search for .32-20 ammunition

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lgeorge1

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I have a vintage single action Colt revolver. Original caliber was .32WCF. That was later changed to .32-20.

Gun was shipped to Sears & Roebuck in 1907.

It is in superb shooting condition but I ran out of factory ammo a few years ago. Did find some from Georgia Arms about 3 years ago, but none since. The GA ammo was cowboy stuff & dirty as hell to shoot.

Anyone have any good ideas, I love to hear about.
 

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Yep. For 32-20 fans, like me, Reloading is normally a preferred option. I enjoy handloading as a hobby almost as much as shooting. I can do it at home any time I want. I can build better ammo for my guns than the factory.

But
Right now almost all supplies and equipment are expensive and can be difficult to find. I suggest reading local news and web sites to find an old timer giving up his shooters and gear. You should let everyone know you are looking. Local shooting ranges are also great places to post and get to know folks.

If you find the right folks, some might be willing to let you use their gear or even load for you (rare). I strongly recommend a mentor if you go the reloading route.

I just did a search on ammoseek.com and found nothing for 32-20. I thought there would be some, but expensive. I was surprised.

You will find almost no reloader willing to SELL any reloaded ammo.
You will find very few shooters willing to shoot other people's reloads.
Danger and Liability.

Please let us know what happens.


Good luck.
Prescut
 
Once it's available you will find it wherever cowboy action loads are sold. Presently, AFAIK, none is available. Rolling your own is an option for hobbyists who like that sort of thing. If you don't , which is me, totally, it will be a long while before you find .32-20 cartridges.
 
Old ammo is a problem for me because I'm lazy, and hate hassles. I have a fair amount, including .32-20, that I'd love to get rid of but the local mailboxes place won't ship it, and a shipping hub is more than an hour from me. I've gotten advice from a gunshop that once you put the hazmat sticker on the box it's none of the mailbox place's business what's inside as long as it isn't illegal, and from a shady guy to just ship via ground as an ordinary box of stuff. But I'm too pretty for prison, and too poor for a good lawyer.
 
.32-20 & 32WCF

Though most forum members know this, it bears mentioning that 32WCF (Winchester Center Fire) and .32-20 are the same, exact, cartridge, and always have been. Thus it is unlikely the revolver was re-chambered, or "changed," from one to the other. If the reference is to the common name for the cartridge, and not the firearm, that's correct.

Colt, and other manufacturers, were never overly excited about stamping another company's moniker on their products. Generally the 32WCF became more commonly known as the .32-20 based on projectile diameter and standard black powder charge.

I have several .32-20 chambered firearms including Colt and S&W revolvers and some long guns as well. I doubt I would have acquired them had I not been a hand-loader. This cartridge hasn't been "commonly" available in my adult lifetime - meaning it is seldom been seen on LGS shelves. Fun and easy cartridge to reload and quite economical too. However, as stated several times above it is hardly a great time to begin reloading. Good luck to you!

Bryan
 
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32-20 is very hard to come by. At the Cody gun show in December I was talking with John Linebaugh and he noticed I had a box of Winchester jacketed 32-20 on my table .He jumped on 'em like a duck on a junebug. He said it was the first box he had seen in over 3 years. I do load my own but mostly with cast bullets.Starline usually makes a run of brass most years and they are not hard to load. I even bought a set of RCBS Cowboy dies at the same show for 35 bucks and sold John my new set of Lyman dies. He even told me they were the first set of 32-20 dies he had seen in a few years. I even found a couple hundred Star line cases at the show....as well as 200 32 H&R Mag cases.
 
lgeorge1 said:
I have a vintage single action Colt revolver. Original caliber was .32WCF. That was later changed to .32-20.

Gun was shipped to Sears & Roebuck in 1907.

It is in superb shooting condition but I ran out of factory ammo a few years ago. Did find some from Georgia Arms about 3 years ago, but none since. The GA ammo was cowboy stuff & dirty as hell to shoot.

Anyone have any good ideas, I love to hear about.
Click to expand...

The best answer is what some others have said. The 32 WCF is a GREAT cartridge, but it is a reloading proposition nowadays. It's basically a defunct cartridge that will always be last on the list for the major manufacturers to turn out.

It also is usually encountered in old guns that you must make sure you are feeding proper ammo.

An added complexity is that it is loaded to rifle specs in some cases because it is technically a rifle round.

For all these reasons, for goodness sake, get yourself a small reloading setup. It doesn't cost much and it's easy after some trial and error, and then you're off and running and you don't need to rely on the ammo companies for ammo, and you KNOW the ammo is right and proper for your particular gun.

For another hundred or so bucks, I'd also recommend getting yourself set up to cast bullets! :)

The 32-20, with a case full of 2F, spg lube, and a 20-1 soft lead bullet fired out of a 1st generation SAA or a very early Hand Ejector, (or early model 92 for that matter) is about as pleasurable a shooting experience as one can get!
 
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Over the last forty years or so, I’ve had about a half dozen 32-20 guns, both revolvers and rifles, pass through my hands. I always seem to have at least a half box of factory stuff stashed away, but if I’ve wanted to shoot any of them more than just enough to try them out, I was and am ready with reloading dies and an old Ideal 3118 bullet mould available with all my other reloading gear. This reminds me… I “need” to load up a box or two for the Ruger Blackhawk combo 32 I bought right before the Wu Flu hit. I’ve shot it with the 32 H&R cylinder, but not with the 32-20 yet.

Froggie
 
Some years ago, I loaded some .32-20 cases with 00 Buck pellets and Pyrodex. They shot fairly well. I don’t think I even resized the brass.
 
look on GB. It's there, but it ain't cheap, $1.65 to $2.75 per sound. So bite the bullet and buy 50 rounds and then get some dies or even a Lee loader and keep shooting those.
 
Good ideas. I haven't bought any loading equipment in years, but it seem you could get setup with a basic press, balance beam scale, dies, manual, and minimal components for no more than the cost of a few boxes of factory ammo.
 
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32-20

Bullet Bob said:
Old ammo is a problem for me because I'm lazy, and hate hassles. I have a fair amount, including .32-20, that I'd love to get rid of but the local mailboxes place won't ship it, and a shipping hub is more than an hour from me. I've gotten advice from a gunshop that once you put the hazmat sticker on the box it's none of the mailbox place's business what's inside as long as it isn't illegal, and from a shady guy to just ship via ground as an ordinary box of stuff. But I'm too pretty for prison, and too poor for a good lawyer.
Click to expand...

I’m in eastern Alabama with friends in charlotte NC, I inherited a Colt police positive 1922? I’d be interested in that 32-20 ammo and any others I might be able to use.
 
32-20 is the reason I got into reloading back in the 1980s. Before SASS revived the caliber, and now we are back to the way it used to be. It was the first set of dies I ever got. I can't bring myself to shoot my factory ammo.
 
.32-20 (.32 WCF) is one of my favorite calibers. OK, I have a dozen other favorite calibers.

Colt SAA Bisley Model and Winchester 1892 carbine, both over 100 years old. All of my brass is over 30 years old. Bullet mold is also about 30 years old.

Now into my 51st year as a reloader and 50th year as a bullet caster. I can't imagine relying on factory ammo! I also can't imagine paying retail prices for factory ammo.

Metallic cartridge reloading has been around since metallic cartridges became generally available about 150 years ago. Minimal expense involved. Modest skills and knowledge that are readily available for anyone interested. A very enjoyable hobby, beats the heck out of network television as a way to spend a little of your free time.
 
raljr1 said:
look on GB. It's there, but it ain't cheap, $1.65 to $2.75 per sound. So bite the bullet and buy 50 rounds and then get some dies or even a Lee loader and keep shooting those.
Click to expand...

I reload and keep my eye open for 32-20/ 32 WCF brass. Haven't seen any for sale in at least 3 years. If you want to reload bite the bullet and pay for the ridiculous priced load ammo on GB and then you'll have the brass to reload.
 
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Thanks. Looks like only option. I'm down to 50 Cowboy loads. Sent about a fair amount of brass to factory loader. Can't get that back. Was supposed to be loading more. Bad move on my part.
 
I'm in Minnesota. If you have 32-30 handgun ammo i can check w/ my shooting club to figure out a way to ship it. I get ammo shipped w/ noting a FFL #.
 
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