I've ordered some shot capsules to use in my 396 Mountain Lite but have some concerns about them holding the crimp. Everything I've read about loading them says that anything more than a light crimp will crack them. In this light revolver will I have trouble holding the crimp?

I still have half a a box of them (38 spl). They are not worth the trouble (for me) I bought some loaded ones.

Yes, they crack very easy. TAPER crimp is the way to go.

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Still Running Against the Wind

I made shot shells for 45 Colt by trimming 460 brass to the COL of that round. You will need to"neck" the end of the brass, in order to clear the throat. I used a light, "cowboy" charge with a card over the powder. That case would hold an entire 1/2 ounce of shot (I used 7 1/2 size). put a second card over the shot and seal. Some people use Elmer's glue or silicone, but I prefer clear gutter seam sealer ( you can get it in squeeze tubes in the roofing department at Lowe's). No crimp at all. Let cure for 5 or more days or you get goo in your rifling.My shells run about 750 fps and pattern about 12" at 10 feet. Great for snake loads. I'm sure you can do this for any round with a little tinkering. Ivan

That sounds cool. More work but more performance too.
For 44 the 445 brass would be the ticket and it is available.
As it so happens the 1.6" brass just clears the front of a 396 cylinder so no trimming required.
Necking them will be the challenge. A 41 die would be indicated?
I may have to dismantle some 12ga shells to get some shot, but I will give it a try and report back.
Might be a week or 3.

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Nemo

You have a better chance of getting this to work with the larger caliber. I tried them in a short barrel .38 and it wasn't worth the trouble or the expense.

I have not loaded any of these in a while, but occasionally I'd get a loose one after taper crimping. The use of mixed brass may have been the reason as there is probably a slight difference in the case wall thickness, enough to affect the crimp.

While it takes some experimentation to get the taper crimp just right without cracking the capsules, they worked fine for me in a snubnosed .38 Chief. Once you get it right, this method is far less trouble than any other and the cartridges are very effective on snakes to about ten feet using #9 (or smaller) shot.

I agree with Rule3. I ruined more that I saved. If you really need them it is easier to just buy the CCI ones. It is not something you are going to blaze away with. My first box of 10 was $3.95, my second was $14.95, so they lasted a long time.
They were very effective for me on copperheads that liked to rest on our concrete porch. And they didn't mess up the concrete.

I load these for my model 60 and 696. Use super glue to hold the base plug and also to seal the capsule in the case with light roll crimp. Let the glue "wick in". Just a drop is enough. I use #12 shot (available in 10 pound sacks at Ballistic Products) and the Speer recommended load for Bullseye: 4.5 gr for 38 Spec (COL. 1.5") and 5.8 gr for 44 Spec (COL 1.6"). Short barrels work best so I do not use them in my 6" 686 or 6" 629. Patterns are great and the load is deadly on copperheads and rattlers at 5 to 10 feet. Resist the temptation to load hot! Yes the loading is tedious, but loading the capsules themselves is a separate operation that can be done away from the actual reloading area. Have fun.

Yes in deed, a taper crimp is the way to go. I bought an inexpensive Lee .38 Special taper crimp die for only $12 and that worked well for me.

A roll crimp will work but like the others, I broke too many in the beginning but got the hang of it after a while. The taper crimp die just makes it easier to do.

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