red jackets vs caps convert? buy new?

[crowinghen]

I had my first ever no-go with my muzzleloader yesterday- missed a deer at about 10 yards because my  gun went click instead of boom.
I use the caps- never had any trouble before, I keep the  cap covered well- but it was extremely wet yesteray, and maybe it was just a dud cap? Is there a life expectancy to these?
The gun I use is on sale right now, i could get it in the 209 version for about 300 dollars...
maybe I should just buy the new one?
what are your thoughts?

[bowhunterforever]

tagging

[wadu1]

It does happen, here is what I do with #11 caps. I get a nipple that fits snug with the cap, I've had the best luck with the Uncle Mike's "Hot Shot". Then after the cap is in place I use a drop of nail polish to seal the cap. I've only had one failure in 20+ years with a side lock and that was due to me picking up one of my partners cap the was longer than my nipple. It did fire on the second fire of the hammer. Note you will need to cut the cap off with a knife or something.

[crowinghen]

Looks like the conversion kit is 39 dollars...
are the 209's  still exposed to the weather that moisture can get to the powder?

[wadu1]

I should have asked what is a Red Jacket? I use side locks 50 or 54 Thompsons without issues that you had.

[crowinghen]

I should have asked what is a Red Jacket? I use side locks 50 or 54 Thompsons without issues that you had.

I meant the plastic 209 primers

[HntnFsh]

Too me its not worth switching over. Could have been a bad cap. Which could happen with any type. Could be a nipple issue. wet or damp powder. Too many variables. Ive had a couple failures to fire with #11s but never with an RWS #11 and Ive been through many packs of them. With a lot of time spent in absolute down pours.

[Timberstalker]

Switch to 209’s. They are way hotter and will perform better in wet conditions.

[crowinghen]

Too me its not worth switching over. Could have been a bad cap. Which could happen with any type. Could be a nipple issue. wet or damp powder. Too many variables. Ive had a couple failures to fire with #11s but never with an RWS #11 and Ive been through many packs of them. With a lot of time spent in absolute down pours.

I use the rws #11 caps also , and they fit tight on the nipple.

[HntnFsh]

Is the cap deformed in any way. I've seen nipples get deformed and not let the cap seat properly causing a misfire.

[crowinghen]

Is the cap deformed in any way. I've seen nipples get deformed and not let the cap seat properly causing a misfire.

no, it was on tight...
I'm second guessing myself- maybe my secondary safety wasn't screwed out all the way?
I use a Knight that has both  the safety switch and the screw knob... the click was relatively quiet, just enough to spook the deer
 maybe the screw kept the  pin from fully striking the cap.....My breech and barrel  were both covered in plastic very well...

[Duckslayer89]

Is the cap deformed in any way. I've seen nipples get deformed and not let the cap seat properly causing a misfire.

no, it was on tight...
I'm second guessing myself- maybe my secondary safety wasn't screwed out all the way?
I use a Knight that has both  the safety switch and the screw knob... the click was relatively quiet, just enough to spook the deer
 maybe the screw kept the  pin from fully striking the cap.....My breech and barrel  were both covered in plastic very well...

I would loctite the screw nob so you only have the safety switch to worry about!

[crowinghen]

Is the cap deformed in any way. I've seen nipples get deformed and not let the cap seat properly causing a misfire.

no, it was on tight...
I'm second guessing myself- maybe my secondary safety wasn't screwed out all the way?
I use a Knight that has both  the safety switch and the screw knob... the click was relatively quiet, just enough to spook the deer
 maybe the screw kept the  pin from fully striking the cap.....My breech and barrel  were both covered in plastic very well...

Thanks, but sometimes when walking through brush my safety gets  clicked off- there's no way I would loc-tite the other one. Maybe just a reason to buy a new muzzleloader...

I would loctite the screw nob so you only have the safety switch to worry about!

[HntnFsh]

Your probably right about the knob not being backed off all the way. I check mine a lot. I just rely on the slide safety in the brush Never had an issue with the brush catching it fortunately.

[Chesapeake]

It may have been a bad cap. I've seen 2 different failures over the years. One time I had an entire tin of RWS caps that were weak. I had a few misfires before I test fired several caps alone and could hear that they were real weak. You couldn't tell when they touched off a charge. I only use CCI now.
The other failure is the charge actually falling out of the cap. I always look in each one now when I load them in my capper. Its not uncommon to have 1 empty in a tin of caps.

About the moisture. I wear my capper around my neck and in my jacket sometimes for days. Often when sweating. Every few days I empty my capper into a tin marked with a "P" so I know to only use those for practice. I don't recall ever having a practice cap not go off.
I've also held a few caps inside my mouth for several minutes before shooting them, and they all go off just fine.

I shoot Knights. I crank the cry knob back real hard before every hunt. The sound of the cry knob slamming home is totally different than the bolt slamming home on a dud cap. Trust me, I know.
You can also remove the allen screw from the end of the bolt like when your cleaning the bolt spring, and then when you reassemble, back the cry knob out 1/4 turn and tighten the allen screw down on it locking it in place.