percussion cap kit?

[caliber45]

Being pessimistic about rising percussion cap prices and never-ending governmental firearms control efforts, I have a question: Years and years back, I seem to remember reading about a "do-it-yourself" kit for making percussion caps from aluminum (cringe) beer cans. Back then, when caps cost about a penny each, I wasn't interested. But the time may come when I am. Anybody know of a source for such a kit, or a tutorial on how to make them? Tks!

[smokinbuck]

You are right about percussion caps getting expensive as well as hard to find. If you can't stock up on enough caps to keep you shooting then I would suggest that you prepare to go flint. The "Tap o Cap" thing was no better than useless, don't waste your time trying to track one down.
Mark

[SCLoyalist]

Cal45,  the product was Forster's Tap-o-cap.   The device looks like a two piece punch, and it punches the cap body out of an aluminum soft drink can you've cut open.  Then, you take  a single  powder 'dimple' (or maybe more than one) from a roll of kid's roll caps and put that inside the cap body.   Midway and Possible Shop both list the Tap-o-cap.  I guess kids' paper roll caps are still available nowadays.    

 If you do a Google Search on "Tap-o-cap" you'll get a fair number of hits, including discussions in other forums on the merits of the device.   From what I read, you got better results using the caps on a revolver or in-line because you had a straight path to the powder, and there was a lot of variation in quality of paper cap.

[ottawa]

problome with the caps you have to find good ones the ones at wally world and such dont even pop i can snap my finger louder then they sound

[Candle Snuffer]

I also feel going to flint would be a better solution. 

Personally, I think if the Tap-o-Cap was a worth-while effort, there would be a whole lot of folks making their own by now.  I've seen them offered years ago back in the 80's - maybe late 70's I think it was?  Dixie Gun Works was offering them.

[Daryl]

I still have a tap-o-cap. It works as well now as it did back in the 70's when I bought it. At that time, I was unable to buy caps where I lived.  I didn't like using toy caps for ignition due to psper fouing the nipple hole, so made up my own detonating formula. Today, this might not be advisable due to the political climate - possession of the ingredents might be cause for concern - however - it worked well.  I still have 100 or more of these caps without compound in them.

[caliber45]

Thanks, guys, as always for the information. Sounds as if the kit is far from perfect -- but has potential. Incidentally, I have built my first flinter (other than a flubbed "dueling pistol" that I couldn't get to work; my fault), and have another one (one of my "grandkids' carbines") in the works, so I've begun the conversion route . . . and liking it a lot. But I have some percussions, and would like to be able to keep shooting them. Thanks again!

[beleg2]

I have been thinking about trying it but we do not see kid's roll caps nowadays
I was thinking about using a solvent to extract primer compound from other type of primers and use it on  "Tap-o-cap".
I should consider making my own primer detonating compound.LOL

Thanks
Martin

[Daryl]

I'd check into laws concerning possession of explosives, Martin, or anyone else thinking of this. The compounds necessary are quite, well, formidible in any quantity at all.