Snap Cap Options

[einherjarvalk]

My old A-Zooms are starting to look pretty bruised up after 8 years worth of dry fire through a number of different handguns. Lots of rim wear, the primer cushions have permanent indentations, and due to the stepped chambers in my P30s, the case mouth is starting to chip away too. Are there any other snap caps that are considered "the best" or are these still it?

So far the other options I've seen look to be the ST Action Pros, which don't have any sort of cushion in the primer pocket, the Tiptons, which have a neat spring-loaded primer but I've had bad experiences with (had some for my shotgun and the plastic cracked in short order), and a handful of options on Amazon I've never heard of.

About the only complaints I've ever heard about the A-Zooms is the whole "aluminum shavings in the gun" thing but I'm not 100% if that's fuddlore or not. Obviously the anodized surface wears away over time, but I've never heard of a verifiable instance in which it's caused a critical component failure (though I haven't looked for instances of that very hard).

[HopetonBrown]

Dave Harrington mentions ST Action Pros by name for his course materials. I thought AZooms were not recommended because the aluminum rim gets chewed away so easily.

[rathos]

I always liked the Pachmayr and the Tipton snap caps. ST actions are dummy rounds, they do nothing to cushion the firing pin.

[Guerrero]

I always liked the Pachmayr and the Tipton snap caps. ST actions are dummy rounds, they do nothing to cushion the firing pin.

Make your own with this one weird trick:

http://jerkingthetrigger.com/2013/03...-snap-cap-mod/

[11B10]

I always liked the Pachmayr and the Tipton snap caps. ST actions are dummy rounds, they do nothing to cushion the firing pin.

From their website: "...they have a recessed primer hole (which) prevents damage to your firing pin."

Personally, I've used them for years, in every firearm I've owned - never had anything but good results. I have had problems with other brands, one of which is A-zoom. They refused to feed in more than one pistol I've owned, including my H&KP30SK. YMMV.

[Irelander]

I got some of these to try. I'm liking them. I sharpied them red.

https://www.amazon.com/KP-Tactical-S...47&ref=sr_1_47

[WobblyPossum]

Make your own with this one weird trick:

http://jerkingthetrigger.com/2013/03...-snap-cap-mod/

This. I used Shoe Goo but the marine sealant would work too.

[DamnYankee]

Check out B's snap caps. Bust I've used. They have the weight and feel of an actual round.
https://www.amazon.com/B-Unique-Ente...nap%2Bcap&th=1

[einherjarvalk]

Thanks for the feedback - I ordered a handful of the B Unique caps to try out since they're not too much more expensive than the A-Zooms I'd be buying otherwise. I've got a couple of the ST Action Pros I found as well, but I do like having a filled primer pocket to verify firing pin function after slide detail cleaning by placing a tiny bit of Tamiya masking tape over the primer before a dry fire. Hopefully the B Uniques work out well.