When I posted about my Model 30-1 a few weeks ago, I promised to post some shooting results with factory ammo. Over the preceding year, I had managed to acquire a variety of loads as they became available and recently have had a chance to put some through the four-inch barrel of the 30-1.
There are essentially four bullet designs: Several have the standard round nose, one has a half-jacketed hollow point, one has a flat nose that is just like the old .32 Colt New police, and a couple have wadcutters. The picture shows, left to right, an Aguila 98 gr RN, a MagTech 98 gr half-jacket hollow point, a Sellier and Bellot 100 gr flat nose, and a Fiocchi 100 gr wadcutter.
Here are some results (Ave = average velocity, 10 rounds, ES = extreme spread,and SD = the Standard deviation):
Winchester 98 gr Round Nose Ave 665 fps ES 108 fps SD 34 fps
MAGTECH 98 gr Round Nose Ave 620 fps ES 79 fps SD 30 fps
PRVI Partizan 98 gr Round Nose Ave 542 fps ES 112 fps SD 37 fps
Sellier and Bellot 100 gr Flat Nose Ave 696 fps ES 107 fps SD 31 fps
Aguila 98 gr Round Nose Ave 624 fps ES 52 fps SD 14 fps
MAGTECH 98 gr Jacketed HP Ave 483 fps ES 154 fps SD 43 fps
Fiocchi 100 gr Wadcutter Ave 616 fps ES 101 fps SD 30 fps
Federal 98 gr Wadcutter Ave 734 fps ES 74 FPS SD 28 fps
General observations are: Cases obturate poorly at these pressures and they come out dirty; Extreme spreads are large, exceeding 100 fps for more than half the brands; Standard deviations are correspondingly large, 30 fps or more for three fourths of the brands. Looking at an SD of 30, knowing this means that 95% of shots will fall within a range of plus or minus two standard deviations, you see that it takes a range of 120 fps to catch 95% of your shots. Pretty wide range when the average velocity is only in the 600s.
The Federal wadcutter wins here, and would be the best factory choice for small game or defense. It is also the most expensive. I liked the Sellier and Bellot a lot. It gave pretty good velocity and the flat-nosed bullet would be more effective than the round noses. The Aguila had the most respectable uniformity. The MagTech jacketed was worthless.
Accuracy of the loads was pretty good, overall. I used an NRA 25-ft slowfire target and a sandbag rest when putting 10 rounds of each brand over the chronograph. Ten-shot groups ranged from 1-1/4” to 2-1/8”. The Sellier and Bellot, the Fiocchi wadcutter and the Federal wadcutter all managed 1-1/4”. The Aguila was close at 1-5/16”. My eyesight is a limiting factor in group shooting, so I think these could be tightened up a bit by you sharp eyed shooters out there.
If you want better zing from a factory load, there are a couple things you can do. In the first place, I noticed that the round nose loads did not have much, if any, crimp, so I got my 32 seating die out and set some of the Winchesters 0.06” lower and then roll-crimped over the shoulder. Average velocity jumped to 730 fps, with an ES of 35 fps and an SD of 12 fps. This was a considerable improvement in velocity and uniformity. These data were taken on a different day than the first Winchester numbers, but, no reason to doubt the chronograph on either day.
The second thing you can do is heat up your rounds. The Sellier and Bellot, after sitting in a cardboard box in the sun on the range bench, and feeling decidedly warm to the touch, gave an average velocity of 743 fps with an ES of 46 fps and an SD of 13 fps. I am not recommending this practice. It is just for your information.
It is a joy to use a gun as finely wrought as this little, mid-20th-century Smith and Wesson. Function was perfect and smooth, and I am quite satisfied with the accuracy. I know, as you do, that the 32 Long is really a handloading proposition, and that is where I am headed next.
There are essentially four bullet designs: Several have the standard round nose, one has a half-jacketed hollow point, one has a flat nose that is just like the old .32 Colt New police, and a couple have wadcutters. The picture shows, left to right, an Aguila 98 gr RN, a MagTech 98 gr half-jacket hollow point, a Sellier and Bellot 100 gr flat nose, and a Fiocchi 100 gr wadcutter.
Here are some results (Ave = average velocity, 10 rounds, ES = extreme spread,and SD = the Standard deviation):
Winchester 98 gr Round Nose Ave 665 fps ES 108 fps SD 34 fps
MAGTECH 98 gr Round Nose Ave 620 fps ES 79 fps SD 30 fps
PRVI Partizan 98 gr Round Nose Ave 542 fps ES 112 fps SD 37 fps
Sellier and Bellot 100 gr Flat Nose Ave 696 fps ES 107 fps SD 31 fps
Aguila 98 gr Round Nose Ave 624 fps ES 52 fps SD 14 fps
MAGTECH 98 gr Jacketed HP Ave 483 fps ES 154 fps SD 43 fps
Fiocchi 100 gr Wadcutter Ave 616 fps ES 101 fps SD 30 fps
Federal 98 gr Wadcutter Ave 734 fps ES 74 FPS SD 28 fps
General observations are: Cases obturate poorly at these pressures and they come out dirty; Extreme spreads are large, exceeding 100 fps for more than half the brands; Standard deviations are correspondingly large, 30 fps or more for three fourths of the brands. Looking at an SD of 30, knowing this means that 95% of shots will fall within a range of plus or minus two standard deviations, you see that it takes a range of 120 fps to catch 95% of your shots. Pretty wide range when the average velocity is only in the 600s.
The Federal wadcutter wins here, and would be the best factory choice for small game or defense. It is also the most expensive. I liked the Sellier and Bellot a lot. It gave pretty good velocity and the flat-nosed bullet would be more effective than the round noses. The Aguila had the most respectable uniformity. The MagTech jacketed was worthless.
Accuracy of the loads was pretty good, overall. I used an NRA 25-ft slowfire target and a sandbag rest when putting 10 rounds of each brand over the chronograph. Ten-shot groups ranged from 1-1/4” to 2-1/8”. The Sellier and Bellot, the Fiocchi wadcutter and the Federal wadcutter all managed 1-1/4”. The Aguila was close at 1-5/16”. My eyesight is a limiting factor in group shooting, so I think these could be tightened up a bit by you sharp eyed shooters out there.
If you want better zing from a factory load, there are a couple things you can do. In the first place, I noticed that the round nose loads did not have much, if any, crimp, so I got my 32 seating die out and set some of the Winchesters 0.06” lower and then roll-crimped over the shoulder. Average velocity jumped to 730 fps, with an ES of 35 fps and an SD of 12 fps. This was a considerable improvement in velocity and uniformity. These data were taken on a different day than the first Winchester numbers, but, no reason to doubt the chronograph on either day.
The second thing you can do is heat up your rounds. The Sellier and Bellot, after sitting in a cardboard box in the sun on the range bench, and feeling decidedly warm to the touch, gave an average velocity of 743 fps with an ES of 46 fps and an SD of 13 fps. I am not recommending this practice. It is just for your information.
It is a joy to use a gun as finely wrought as this little, mid-20th-century Smith and Wesson. Function was perfect and smooth, and I am quite satisfied with the accuracy. I know, as you do, that the 32 Long is really a handloading proposition, and that is where I am headed next.
