Beware of Bad Shotgun Snap Caps

[CaseHardened]

Got what I thought was a good deal 12GA Snap Caps for my KSG Shotgun. 15 for about $30.

Made in USA, and the guy gave me a good deal on 15 ( I wanted 15 to fully load my KSG ).

They arrived, and he even sent me an extra for free !

And they look real nice.

BUT....

Problems immediately surfaced.

Ammo was tough to load. I watched several YouTube Videos, including Hitchcock's:



Shells slid in sweet as can be for him - I was tempted to use a hammer.

Then I went to pump the Snap Caps through - at least 50% of the pumps resulted in misfeeds.

I sprayed some oil into the chamber to see if this brand new weapon was simply dry. Oil did not help.

I began to think my KSG was a lemon.

So I took a close look at the crimp end - the crimps extend outside the diameter of the plastic case, thus making these too large for a 12GA bore.

At first I thought I'd sand the ends a bit - then realized what better way to assure sanding grit and loose plastic particles would ruin my firearm.

So today I ordered some A-Zooms instead.

The 15 had cost me about $30; these 5 about $20.

I'd prefer 15, but now I think 5 will be enough to check out the KSG.

 

[CaseHardened]

I deliberately did not mention the Seller of the bad caps, because he seems like a nice guy.

He got right back to me: "I just got a new press for the 12 gauge. The ones I sent were made on the old it sounds like. I will send a new set. Just toss the old ones.... Thanks"

When the new set arrives, if they are good, I will post the Seller's Name, and, hopefully, recommended hm.

 

[technicalgadget]

If your KSG is brand spanking new, you should try to use those after breaking in your KSG with a couple hundred rounds. I have the same ones and have used them without issues.

 

[Marine Cpl]

He doesn’t want to shoot it from what I gathered in another thread due to an injury. He wants to zero it with a laser bore sighter and run snap caps through it to somewhat break in the action.

 

[CaseHardened]

He doesn’t want to shoot it from what I gathered in another thread due to an injury. He wants to zero it with a laser bore sighter and run snap caps through it to somewhat break in the action.

You are correct.

Also, this is not a good time, IMHO, to use very scarce ammo to break-in a weapon.

My Green Laser Picatinny and Red Bore Laser are on their way.

Sadly, I wear different eyeglasses for both near and far.

IRL I am fine, except for shooting. Which alternates between the Sights (Near), and the Target (Far). Awkward in a stressed situation, to say the least.

But as I really have firearms for Self Defense only, as long as the laser works out to 10 meters or so, I should be good. With a laser I should be able to wear the Distance Glasses only, and ignore any sights.

I really have firearms for Self Defense only - although I have a couple I enjoy purely as collectibles.

 

[Marine Cpl]

I would ditch that laser for a red dot. Even if you are nearsighted or farsighted with astigmatism, the red dot can be seen and will not shake as much or be thrown out of zero with recoil.

Before I had lasik done, my nearsightedness and astigmatism was pretty bad. Without glasses, the red dot looked like a cluster of grapes but that cluster of grapes put me on target at 25 yards easy.

I tried lasers before and found that it made me slower since the laser jumped around and I was always trying to chase it.