Thread: S&W model 30-1
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Old 09-17-2016, 11:21 PM
wrangler5 wrangler5 is offline
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Originally Posted by schutzen View Post
Am I reading this correctly or is it just wishful thinking on my part. Can the cambers of a 30 or 31 be deepened to take the .32 H&R Magnum safely?

I really like the .32 H&R Mag and this would be a sweet package.
I know it's been a while, but I've acquired three 32s since this question was posted, including a 3" 31-1 which I had Big Cholla ream to 32 H&R Mag. Drop him a PM if you're interested. He only needs the cylinder, so you can use regular mail back and forth.

Buffalo Bore offers a very potent 100g JHP +P load in 32 H&R that averages 1100fps out of my 2" 432PD and 1234fps from the 3" 31. The muzzle energy of that round from the 2" 432 exceeds the energy of Remington's 38 Special +P 158g lead HP "FBI" load from a 2" Model 49, and from the 3" 31 it exceeds the energy of the Remington +P 38 out of my 4" Model 10. You know one of those BB +Ps is something special when you light one off, but I still find it much more comfortable to shoot from the alloy 432 than the 38 FBI load out of an alloy snubbie. (At $1.30/round I still don't shoot very many of 'em, though.)

The owner of Buffalo Bore advised that that particular +P round was safe for unlimited use in my reamed Model 31. (Which I don't find too surprising, as even with 6 chambers the cylinder walls are still thicker than the thinnest wall of a 38 Special J frame cylinder.)

I just got a beautiful 2" 30-1, which I haven't shot yet. I'll start it next week with 32 Longs, but even though I can theoretically pump a 32 Long up to H&R Mag velocities, I strongly suspect I'll send the cylinder off to Big Cholla for a ream to 32 H&R. Common ammo makes for simpler packing for range trips - I typically take wadcutters, mid-range plinkers and some hot stuff, all in H&R cases. Plus, I never have to worry about a super-hot 32 Long that I made up finding its way into an old weak gun.
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