Well I guess that shows me how misleading ballistics gel can be. A few stories about my early involvement with this caliber. My grandfather had a 32 H&R revolver that he carried when hunting and used it for rats and raccoons on the farm. I had the gun for years and recently gave it to one of my nephews to keep.
The first negative experience my grandfather had with the little 32 was while deer hunting. He shot a deer and as he approached, it appeared dead. As he got there, the deer was immobile but alive. He decided to use his 32 and shoot it through the brain. Well, the bullet bounced off the skull and whizzed past his ear. He never tried that again. He would also tell me about shooting raccoons in the barn and he was never able to kill them, but at least they ran away and never attacked.
That 32 H&R was the first revolver I ever shot. I was probably 10 years old and at the farm when my grandfather was picking up manure. He loaded up the mighty 32 and told me to shoot the rats as they ran from their warm home. Well 5 shots later and I could not hit a thing, so I found a piece of paper, drew a bullseye on it and tacked it to an oak tree. You guessed it . . . I shot from about 10 yards and the boomerang bullet bounced off the tree and hit me below the knee. Broke the skin, but bounced off me as well.
Bottom line, Never - Ever assume you have personal protection if you are carrying a 32 S&W. Chipmunks may even survive the shot and attack!
