Cap gun

<p>A cap gun, cap pistol, or cap rifle is a <a href="/facts/Toy_gun/Rr42XduI">toy gun</a> that creates a loud sound simulating a gunshot and smoke when a small <a href="/facts/Percussion_cap/kvj5E8ac">percussion cap</a> is ignited by a hammer hitting the gun powder. Cap <a href="/facts/Gun/SHApdBYr">guns</a> were originally made of <a href="/facts/Cast_iron/lASt55k2">cast iron</a>, but after <a href="/facts/World_War_II/2efV5L1U">World War II</a> were made of <a href="/facts/Zinc/80b1qgk3">zinc alloy</a>, and most newer models are made of <a href="/facts/Plastic/Kla5QItn">plastic</a>.
Cap guns get their name from the small discs of <a href="/facts/Shock_sensitivity/ajTCm62r">shock-sensitive</a> explosive compounds (roughly 1.4 to 1.6 millimetres (0.055 to 0.063 in) in diameter) that provide the noise and smoke, effectively the same as the <a href="/facts/Maynard_tape_primer/Io7LFpua">Maynard tape primer</a> and <a href="/facts/Percussion_caps/kvj5E8ac">percussion caps</a> used in real firearms of the mid to late 1800s but usually smaller and made from cheap plastic or paper. Some are arranged in plastic rings of eight or twelve. There are also single caps, roll caps (of 50 to 500), disk caps, and cap strips all of which are actually extremely small versions of percussion <a href="/facts/Fireworks/sPEQcu3h">fireworks</a>. <a href="/facts/Armstrong%2527s_mixture/09dj8v8Y">Armstrong's mixture</a> is often used today as the explosive, but previously the tiny powder charge was a simple mixture of <a href="/facts/Potassium_perchlorate/h4KmomHk">potassium perchlorate</a>, <a href="/facts/Sulfur/IK0amTfM">sulfur</a>, and <a href="/facts/Antimony_sulfide/p6BMg6jS">antimony sulfide</a> sandwiched between two paper layers that hold in the gases long enough to give a sound report when the cap is struck. Cap guns are also used as blank guns but still aren’t safe, as they fire small amounts of gunpowder-like material.
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Cap gun open-in-new

Cap gun