Did I make a mistake by getting full metal jacket 98 gr. ammo for my newly acquired 32 long Smith revolver? I haven’t shot it yet, everything mechanical feels and looks right, but my concern is with my choice of fmj ammo instead of lead. Advice much appreciated

You might find it likes lead bullets better. Or maybe not. Load up a box or two and give it a go. I have two .32 revolvers, one S&W and one Colt. They seem to like lead bullets better, but not wildly so.

(My bad, you said ammo, not bullets. I reload so I assume EVERYBODY reloads even though I know they don't. Shoot some, carefully, at a known range, keep the target, compare to when you get some lead bullet ammo. No biggie. Maybe the gun will prefer one over the other, maybe not.)

I don’t reload so I bought 2 50rd boxes of Fiocchi 32 long fmj before I researched what this gun is gonna be most “happy” shooting.

IIRC these guns were designed to shoot lead. I don't think that I would shoot anything else and would save FMJ's for my more modern guns. Just my opinion and worth exactly what you paid for it.

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James Redfield
LM #497

You bought it, shoot it. Your gun may or may not shoot it well, there's only one way to find out. I would shoot the ammunition you bought in any gun I would feel comfortable shooting lead bullets in.

It may not be the most accurate ammo for your gun, but it will not hurt it in the least.

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Pisgah

Notso-see if you can find some Fiocchi .32 wadcutters. They are very accurate in my .32s, mild loadings too.

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Jim
Many K and N Frames

I bought a nice mod 31 not long ago and the only ammo I've shot
in it so far has been .32 ACP FMJ. I have been surprised at the small
groups I have seen. I have lots of .32 ACP but I will probably buy some
.32 Long sooner or later. I don't worry about the little 71-73 gr FMJs
of the ACP ammo because the 31 will probable never see more than
a few hundred rounds in my lifetime.

"Choot" it!

I am curious, does the 32 acp head space correctly in the cylinder, does 32 acp have a rim?

The .32 ACP is a "semi-rimmed" cartridge. It's enough of a rim for headspacing, not quite enough to give 100% reliable extraction from some revolvers.

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Pisgah

In my S&W .32 Long revolvers, .32 ACP works perfectly. When fired it makes an almost toy-like pop.

In my Ruger SP-101 in .327 FM, 2 chambers will properly hold and fire the little ACP round. In the other 4 chambers, the ACP slides too far in.

Shot it today using the Fiocchi 97gr fmj & Lrn, the little gun ran like a champ and the ammo worked very well. Pretty darn accurate, did just shy of a hundred rounds. The Lrn had a louder bang than the fmj

As mentioned above the .32 ACP is a semi-rimmed cartridge and will
headspace in the .32 Long chambers without falling in. Since I have
several old .32 autos I have accumulated a variety of .32 ACP ammo
over the years. My mod 31 is more accurate with 73 gr ammo than with
the 71 gr stuff. Only 2 grs but it seems to make a difference.

IF YOU ARE CONCERNED WITH DAMAGING YOUR GUN, I DOUBT THAT A SINGLE BOX OF FMJ WILL HARM IT......

KEEP YOUR TARGETS, SO YOU CAN DETERMINE IF LEAD BULLETS ARE MORE ACCURATE......

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'Nam 1968-69.DAV,VFW,NRA Inst.