John Ruth Posted April 15, 2021 Share Posted April 15, 2021 So I picked up my shiny new Taylors 1873 yesterday and immediately went shooting. Shoots great, cycles great. Went home and loaded up some 38 snap caps. Turns out that the caps I got, A-ZOOMs, are shorter than actual 38s by at least 1/4 inch and would try to double feed into the loading gate, not allowing the gate to come up or the cap to chamber. Anyone else have this problem? I ended up having to take the frame plate off to manually remove the caps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jessey Hightower Posted April 15, 2021 Share Posted April 15, 2021 Frustrating. I didnt have any jams but they would not cycle properly without finessing them into the chamber. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marauder SASS #13056 Posted April 15, 2021 Share Posted April 15, 2021 Cartridge length is important. The snap caps are generally intended for pistols so length is not as critical. Another solution is to file off part of the cartridge rim so that the extractor cannot grab the shell. Then you can cycle the gun with only that one "snap cap" in the chamber. I just used regular brass and loaded a bullet with no powder or primer. Then filled the primer pocket with sealer. Once in a while I replace the sealer to be sure it is "live." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smokey Bandit Posted April 15, 2021 Share Posted April 15, 2021 I dry fire quite a bit and the gunsmith that setup my 73 advised against using snap caps...I am 2+ years into the sport and dry fire multiple times a week and have seen no problems to date. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caboose Posted April 15, 2021 Share Posted April 15, 2021 A-Zoom sells .357 snap caps.. Work good. You only need one, file part of the rim off and insert that section up so the extractor will slide over that part. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Spade Posted April 16, 2021 Share Posted April 16, 2021 Long hunter sells rifle length dummy round/snap caps and the ones with the rim cut off so they don't eject. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gateway Kid SASS# 70038 Life Posted April 16, 2021 Share Posted April 16, 2021 10 hours ago, Smokey Bandit said: I dry fire quite a bit and the gunsmith that setup my 73 advised against using snap caps...I am 2+ years into the sport and dry fire multiple times a week and have seen no problems to date. I used to dry fire a lot (over a thousand snaps per week), and have used snap caps in my rifles and pistols and not used snap caps in my rifles and pistols. Typically use A-Zoom with an edge filed off and replace fairly regularly. Only issue I ever had was older factory firing pins would occasionally break but no other problems. Never had a match issue as I had a dedicated practice rifle and a dedicated match rifle and my Rugers are tanks and virtually unbreakable. Did your gunsmith say why you should not use the snap caps? Curious Gateway Kid Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smokey Bandit Posted April 16, 2021 Share Posted April 16, 2021 1 hour ago, Gateway Kid SASS# 70038 Life said: I used to dry fire a lot (over a thousand snaps per week), and have used snap caps in my rifles and pistols and not used snap caps in my rifles and pistols. Typically use A-Zoom with an edge filed off and replace fairly regularly. Only issue I ever had was older factory firing pins would occasionally break but no other problems. Never had a match issue as I had a dedicated practice rifle and a dedicated match rifle and my Rugers are tanks and virtually unbreakable. Did your gunsmith say why you should not use the snap caps? Curious Gateway Kid He said the anodized aluminum would cause unnecessary wear, especially on the carrier. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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