A .32 gun in my pocket for fun…

[Ivan the Butcher]

I have several old Top Breaks in 32 L & S, a Berretta Tomcat and 2 Davis Derringers in 32 ACP. The Davis' are very accurate with the recommended ammo: Winchester STHP. I need LRN to use the gun in SASS shoots, so when I loaded, I used the Lyman 84gr bullet and a very old Winchester loading flier load of 1.4 grains WW231 for 32 S&W (Short), That load is very accurate in every top break, derringer, and auto I put it in and has cycled all the auto's actions also.

32 S&W Long:
For some reason I cannot explain, about 25 years ago I ordered 500 32 S&W Long brass from Midway, and load it with the Lyman 84gr bullet (#313249) LRN or the now discontinued Hornady 90 gr LSWC (the Lee SWC tumble lube bullet works best unsized but isn't as accurate.) I use the Lyman #4 starting load of 2.0 gr of 231 in Top Breaks and 3.3gr in solid frames The Lyman 93gr LRN is very accurate with guns with bad bores and 2.0 of WW 231/HP38. Lastly, the 32-20 bullet (based on Ideal's 3118) with 1.9 of 231 in a long case is the same a the 32 Colt New Police, and is very accurate in every gun I tried it in regardless of bore condition!

Ivan

 

[shell627]

Working a murder trial at the moment.A old iver Johnson loaded with 32 acp was used. Unfortunately it did its job.

 

[OLDSTER]

" A .32 gun in my pocket for fun". My EDC for 6 years. Love the .32acp.

 

[Drm50]

The only gun I ever blew up was a IJ 32 Hoot-Owl. The little nickel break down model. A buddy of mine was working foe a grocery store and his last chore every night was to make a dump run. It was in early March when things are messy and muddy. I was wearing one of those quilted nylon coats that were popular in 60s, buddy had Football jacket, wool with leather sleeves. When I touched off the Hoot Owl it came apart like a hand grenade. Pieces of the old black grips were in my hand. Both of us got hit with fragments. Lucky just minor stuff we could hide from parents.
So I would be careful what kind of 32 you poke 32acp into. It’s like the guys who insist on shooting smokeless in wire twist barrels. It may never catch up to them but law of averages says it will.

 

[6518John]

The only gun I ever blew up was a IJ 32 Hoot-Owl.

ME TOO! But mine was a .38 S&W. I know the firearms experts here will appreciate this insightful advice, but don’t use .38 Special load data, especially using Bullseye, to reload .38 S&W!

Sorry for the drift.

 

[Drm50]

Some years ago I got a French 8mm revolver. It was in very good shape all around. According to some expert in gun rags you could substitute either 32 long or 32/20, don’t remember which. Anyway gun didn’t blow up but cases split and bullet went out in smoke. So much for experts. Not to long ago someone mentioned using 32 in 32/20. If a cartridge will hang by rim in cylinder the gun will detonate the round. That’s the only sure thing in this kind of stuff.

 

[2152hq]

Right there on the price tag it says 'RARE'..
How could you walk away from that.

 

[sigp220.45]

I survived firing 50 rounds of mighty .32 ACP ball. It loaded, fired, and ejected with no problems.

I can’t say it was particularly accurate, though. It shot high at 20 yards. I suspect it will do better with lead bullets.

It was lots of fun, though.

 

[6518John]

It shot high at 20 yards.

Then aim for their belt buckle! Unless it’s a Munchkin you should hit something that will hurt!

 

[AJ]

A friend in PA. was down in the woods behind his house looking for some bird/squirrel feeders. A bear had taken them. He was carrying his Davis .32 Auto, I asked him what he was going to do with it if he saw the bear?

 

[DWalt]

Several years ago, there was an animated discussion on this forum as to whether .32ACP was safe to shoot in .32 S&W Long wheelguns. It was a split decision.

Kaaskop49
Shield #5103

It's more a reliability issue than safety considering use in a solid frame revolver. The .32 ACP semi-rim is thin, and the revolver headspace is greater. That can result in occasional misfires, and I have experienced that. Also, fired case extraction from a revolver can be uncertain due to the small semi-rim diameter. A third consideration is that the .32 ACP's bullet diameter is a bit smaller than the .32 S&W long, so accuracy may be compromised. My belief is that using .32 ACP in a revolver chambered for the .32 S&W Long is OK, so long as your target is paper or a tin can. Not a good idea to use .32 ACP in a .32 Long revolver for personal defense. Regarding that H&R revolver, they are not as elegant as some other .32s, but H&R built a good gun for the price, and I would have no concerns about its strength.

I will throw out one thng to look out for. The H&R hammer spring strut may have a Nylon tip. And if so, it can break (I know from experience). Numrich carries a steel-tip replacement strut (or at least they used to) and I would recommend swapping out the original strut for a new one, a very simple task.

 

[Muley Gil]

Some years ago I got a French 8mm revolver. It was in very good shape all around. According to some expert in gun rags you could substitute either 32 long or 32/20, don’t remember which. Anyway gun didn’t blow up but cases split and bullet went out in smoke. So much for experts. Not to long ago someone mentioned using 32 in 32/20. If a cartridge will hang by rim in cylinder the gun will detonate the round. That’s the only sure thing in this kind of stuff.

Back in my cop days, I worked two different murders where the killer used .32 Long cartridges loaded into a .32-20 revolver.

 

[DWalt]

Not actually a murder, but I know of one similar instance from many years ago. I had a friend, and he and another guy (who I did not know) were going to butcher a cow. He was going to use a .32-20 revolver (I don't remember what kind) to administer the anesthetic to the poor beast, in which he had loaded .32 S&W Long cartridges. Somehow, and I never knew the full details, the other guy accidentally shot and killed my friend instead of the cow.

 

[Echo40]

Congratulations!

Just be weary of women on the edge of the bar, especially if their name turns out to be Doris...

Wouldn't want to have to learn a hard lesson bout messin' with the wife of a jealous man.

 

[kaaskop49]

Working a murder trial at the moment.A old iver Johnson loaded with 32 acp was used. Unfortunately it did its job.

Back in my cop days, I worked two different murders where the killer used .32 Long cartridges loaded into a .32-20 revolver.

Typical 'street' firearms use! In some jurisdictions, the mutts can't go into a store and buy ammunition. As a result, they "make do," using any type of ammo they come across that might chamber, however poorly. The unfortunate results are described above. I've seen .22LR rounds with the bullet noses filed down to make them fit into a cheap .22 Short revolver.

Kaaskop49
Shield #5103

 

[max503]

I like that rear sight set-up. You can adjust it for windage. Why don't they do that on modern snubbies?

 

[Muss Muggins]

A gentleman's pistol . . .

 

[glenwolde]

That’s one of those fancy H&Rs with a genuine swing out cyl rather than just a push pin. Almost a S&W

In nickel no less! A rare collector's item!

 

[MyPhoenix]

Nice to read about these old revolvers. About 50 years ago my father in law gave me an H&R 32SWL top break with a folding bayonet. He took it from a man who was departed in Japan at the end of WWII. Brought it back in pieces and reassembled. It still works fine though I stopped firing it several years ago due to its value.

 

[JohnRippert]

Razor in your shoe, Leroy?

First thought when I saw his post.