Bill;

Quite probably but the 32 caliber guns reach a given velocity with less recoil. This is a consideration for many shooters particularly if chambered in a lighter weight gun such as my 32 Magnum 4" J frame 631. I would like to see a J frame 327 Mag personally. I have the Model 60 5" in 357 Mag already.

Even the K frame 357 Mags were considered a gun to carry a lot and shoot a little with full velocity loads.

Imagine a 9 shot L frame. While the .327 offers an additional shot from a J frame, bigger guns should offer more than one extra shot.

We are new to handguns and purchased a 432 S&@. Problem is the only ammo we can find for self defense is the Federal 85 grain JHP. But at about $1/cartridge, it's not for practice. Only thing we found that is even usable is the Fiocchi .32L 100gr Wadcutter GZG, but even that is not cheap at $19.95/50. The flat nose seems to be a hindrance for effective practice target shooting. Does anyone know of a reasonably priced FMJ practice round for the .32 H&R?

No one does a FMJ I know of. Per Midway Black Hills does a JHP in addition to Federal. The Black Hills lists at $30.49 for 50 cartridges.

Black Hills, Federal, Meister and Ten-X all do lead bullet loads but not cheap.

If you shoot much a minimal reloading setup will quickly pay for itself.

Ek and KK:

Rich W is correct. Factory ammo for the .32 H&R Magnum, as well as the .32 Long is expensive, and getting worse. If you aren't already doing so, save your brass. A simple, used, single stage reloading press, dies, and a powder scale could probably be had for less than $150.00 with judicious shopping - especially at gun shows. I reload, but I can't at present due to injuries. I go to the gun shows and find decently priced .32 Long and .32 H&R Magnum ammo from Masters and Aguila (sp?) a Mexican company. Both shoot just fine and I can usually get them for around $12.00/box, but you have to go early and head straight for the ammo vendors as it goes fast. I haven't had a chance to reload the brass yet, so I can't speak to the quality, but Midway sells Starline brass which is known to be of good quality (the brass cartridge is the most expensive component). You might want to check the gunbroker.com website as they occasionally sell .32 H&R Magnum ammo in bulk - watch the shipping cost as it can eat your lunch.

Best of luck to you.

Dave

EK and KK:

Addendum: you can also check out the www.cheaperthandirt.com website for ammo. They have decent prices and a pretty good selection to choose from. Ultimately, you will be better served by reloading.

Regards,

Dave

Reed's Ammunition seems to have the widest selection of 32 S&W Long and 32 magnum loads available, a total of seven in the two chamberings combined. Their cheapest 32 Long seems to be listed at $18.50 for 50 and their cheapest 32 Magnum loads are $19.50 for 50. Both lead bullet loads.

Here is a LINK

Thanks everyone. I also found Georgia Arms handles some H&R Magnum so between all the responses, I am hopeful we'll be able to keep a supply on hand. Wife really likes the little Airweight and shoots quite good groupings for a neophyte. Plus we both like to shoot and do so several times weekly. The reloading probably won't work for us because we shoot indoors and they require ammo purchase at the range. We are looking into some outdoor gun clubs in the area where we might be able to shoot our own ammo, and then the reloading would work because we also have other calibers of handguns from .22 to .44 mag and everything in between (except a 1911--which is on my wish list)

Another source seems to be Gad Custom Cartridges. He lists the 32 Mag along with an incredible selection of older obsolete cartridges as being loaded at what appear to be very reasonable prices, if the shown prices are still current.

LINK

I still love my revolvers in .32 H&R Magnum! These are so much fun that I'd almost rather shoot the .32's than my .357 Magnums! Low recoil, accurate to a fault and powerful enough to handle most situations. The .327 Federal Magnum simply improves the whole .32 caliber 'package' to the point of perfection! If you plant .327 Fed Mags in a bad guy, he's going down. While it isn't the .357 Magnum, quick follow-up shots are more of a reality with the smaller caliber. This, in itself, can make a BIG difference when "the chips are down." Make no mistake about it, the .327 Federal Magnum is a VERY good idea.

Scott

This ws written by Ed Bell on the Gunblast on-line gun magazine:

"Lefty Lewis told me a story of a 20th Century Western sheriff who was involved in a number of shootings during the “Roaring 20’s”. His weapon of choice was a revolver chambered for the .32 Long cartridge. It was said that he killed as many miscreants as any of his law enforcement contemporaries, which points out that a cool head, accuracy and thinking on your feet most often have more effect than the weapon you use in a gunfight."

This is the kind of approach that we need in the field of law enforcement. If our younger men and women would espouse this attitude and devotion to the use of their sidearm, it would be just as effective, while resulting in fewer "collateral damage."

Scott

want to hear more when you get it back, as I have a 16-4 that I really dont use...but might in 327mag

oh and the 32acp someone asked about, my 16-4 wouldnt fire them.....but I did try

quote:

Originally posted by Rich W:
Scott;

The S&W collectors are going to hate me but I just today shipped the cylinder from my 99% S&W 16-4 4" off to Bowen Classic Arms for rechambering to 327 Magnum. Rechambering and any necessary refinishing on the cylinder after the rechambering was estimated to be under $100, + the shipping both ways of course.

Should be able to handle anything from 32 S&W through 327 Mag once I get it back. A versatile revolver.

Hope that Ruger does a single action for it. A adjustable sighted 5.5" version on the New Vaquero size frame would be a fun gun IMO.

It seems to me there are a lot of reasons for new cartridges:

1. It gives us something new and different to play with (I mean, work up loads for).

2. It gives manufacturers something to sell us we don't already have.

3. It's meat for the incessant chatter on these forums.

4. Small caliber guns are a lot easier to shoot than large caliber ones. As pistol shooting is a lot like basketball shooting, in that it takes practice, and few city-types (even cops) rarely have the opportunity to practice, the sad truth is most of us are nowhere near what we could be with adequate practice. So we gravitate to easy-to-shoot guns.

So as Jeff Cooper noted, now in "The age of the Common Man" we all qualify to the lowest common denominator. That means guns that are easy to shoot, ie small caliber.

Truth is, hard-to-shoot guns ARE easy to shoot, with enough practice.

quote:

Originally posted by KeithCarter:
Truth is, hard-to-shoot guns ARE easy to shoot, with enough practice.

You sound like me on that one, Keith. Those of us who are avid, regular shooters should not necessarily be content with what the gun makers, ammo companys and gun press spoon feed us. That's why I moved up to the .44 magnum, and I've found that it's a cartridge that is, as far as self defense goes, very undersupported by said institutions.