Suggestion for K-32 revival

A new K-frame .32 ain't gonna happen. Bear in mind that when the 16-4 was released that it was a flop. They only made a few thousand and it took years to sell them. Its only in the last 10 years or so that they've become popular and that is primarily due to their scarcity. Collectors want the rare gun, not necessarily the cartridge.
Sure, members of this board would run right out and buy one. But the general public would completely ignore it.
Also bear in mind that the .32 long, .32 H&R and the .327 Federal are all barely hanging on by their fingernails. The market just isn't there. :(
 
32 long

OK, Would this work? K frame 32/20, replace with a re-chambered 22 cylinder, Install a M-14 rear sight and early patridge front? I just had a M-14 rear sight and patridge front installed on a 32/20. My cost $200 for a finish challenged 32/20, $35 for a used M-14 rear sight and an early patridge front. Gunsmith cost to install, $200 plus $16 tax.
SWCA 892
 
Medium thread drift. As a new owner of a 16-4 can I look for a K-22 cylinder and crane to rechamber to 327 F? Is there a better choice that still leaves me with my original cylinder in 32 Mag?
 
I just reamed out my two 4 inch 16-4's. I use 32 acp, 32 long, 32 mag and 327 mag in mine. A big plus is when shooting with my grandkids I start with the mild ones and move to wild ones. Once they are ready I will put an assortment in and let the fun begin. This way they learn not to flinch when firing.
 
OK, Would this work? K frame 32/20, replace with a re-chambered 22 cylinder, Install a M-14 rear sight and early patridge front? I just had a M-14 rear sight and patridge front installed on a 32/20. My cost $200 for a finish challenged 32/20, $35 for a used M-14 rear sight and an early patridge front. Gunsmith cost to install, $200 plus $16 tax.
SWCA 892

I wouldn't chamber the second cylinder for 327 FM, maybe not even 32 H&R, since the rest of the gun is still close to a century or more old. An adjustable sighted 32-20 (with post War sights installed) would be a dandy.

If you could be sure the auxiliary cylinder would only be used for factory equivalent 32 H&R, that would work fine since they had to be loaded for the relatively weak H&R revolvers.

I haven't tried to fit a post War K-22 cylinder to a pre War revolver, but I've been told it is do-able.
 
Medium thread drift. As a new owner of a 16-4 can I look for a K-22 cylinder and crane to rechamber to 327 F? Is there a better choice that still leaves me with my original cylinder in 32 Mag?

In a word, yes. If the original cylinder has recessed (magnum type) chambers, you'll just need it reamed and the extractor star perhaps tuned a bit to get good carry up. If it has non-recessed chambers, the rear face of the cylinder will need to be milled off to match.

I had the former with Project 616 and the latter done on my Faux Model 16-3. I really can't see any difference.

Froggie
 
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Purely my own opinion on reaming a Model 16-4 to accept the .327 Federal cartridge; I picked up a finish challenged 16-4 from a friend for a very attractive price. Being an 8 3/8" gun I really wanted to use it with the .327 rounds that I load for my two Horvath customs. I remembered having a couple of adjustable valve guide reamers for motorcycle cylinder heads so I rounded one up and measured it and it was exactly the same size as a .327 Federal chamber. So with plenty of cutting oil I started the process. Well there was absolutely no joy as the only thing the reamer would remove was a bit of carbon from the step in the chamber. Pondering the situation I realized that I was trying to cut the chambers deeper not larger in diameter as the reamer was built to do. I removed each blade from the reamer and used a cut off wheel in my Drexel to put a slight edge on the end of the reamer blades. Back to the cylinder and just a few turns removed enough material for one of my Federal rounds to seat completely. Apparently with a roll crimp on the .327 round it doesn't take much to lengthen the chamber for a good fit. Looking in the cylinder with a good light you cannot discern the modification. This gun will never be sold so the value does not concern me but I can't see why this modification should devalue any 16-4 if done properly. The only way to verify this modification is to test fit a loaded .327 round. The amount of metal removed was minuscule. I guess if you have an unaired collectible you may not want to do this but if you aren't going to shoot it there is no sense in modifying it in the first place.
 
Series Guy, you have certainly made an informed decision in your particular situation, one with which I concur completely.

But with one in higher condition or one that might be traded or sold in the future, the decision becomes more complicated. My best comparison is the pre War N frame 38 Specials that presented (at the time) a cheap way to get a 357 by the simple expedient of reaming chambers. Now, collectors distinguish between "reamed" and "unreamed" examples and they are priced differentially.

I have a Ruger Buckeye Special Blackhawk with cylinders in 32-20 and 32 H&R. While it would handle 327 FM without problems, I hesitate to alter an example of a limited production gun that is in 98% condition with box and dox. Then again, each of buys a gun and makes our own decision what to do with it. At the present I'm more interested in preserving value since I have a couple of 327s to shoot, but if I didn't ... :rolleyes:

Froggie

PS When do you want to get together and shoot? Are you in Pittsburg or Birmingham? :D
 
As far as collectibles go if that is your thing then the visual impact is actually the number one criteria. So shaving the recoil shield on a Triple Lock or cutting a barrel or reaming a .38 S&W to .38 Special would be an instant devalue. On the other hand reaming a .38 Special to .357 Magnum or a .32 H&R to Federal should have no affect on value. I understand that collectors want the best of the best but I also think that many fine guns are devalued for no real reason.
 
Wow series guy, we sound like twin brothers from different mothers! I get up your way occasionally these days and will give you a holler; meanwhile if you are coming through Central VA, stop by Lynchburg and we'll head out to my club where I am chair of Rifle & Pistol Range Committee and have keys & combination to everything. Maybe we could get Jebus35745 and StrawHat from Ohio and perhaps a couple of others together for a Regional 32 Shoot. About 20 or so years ago a similar offhand comment led Dale53 and myself to organize a BP Schuetzen event in Friendship, IN. :). About 60-70 years ago the 44 Associates did the same thing with their big loud guns and they didn't have the InterNet!

Regards,
Froggie
 
Of the hundreds of revolvers I've owned, only one K32. Just out of High School I got it used on a trade. This was in the magnum mania period of 60s. I got several boxes of factory target ammo with it. Shot up ammo and must have traded it off/ sold, don't remember. The LGS were full of 32 revolvers at the time, going cheap. One of the few S&W that I never purchased new. I remember seeing them in display cases like orphans. I think guys my age missed the boat on 32s, especially those with adj sights.
In most cases the 32 would make a better field cartridge than the 38sp.
For shooting such things as small game and varmits where a little more than 22 would be nice. Takes awhile to figure out with a lot of revolver cartridges you are burning more power and lead necessary for the job. I guess the last 30yrs anti personnel guns have been the major market and not much done for field type.
 
Series guy, how far is Andover Ohio from you?? I belong to Solon Sportsman Assn in Dorset. Froggie built the 616 the same time period Andy Horvath built a 5" K-32 from a 6" K-22 for me. Have 3 .32's made by Andy. Wish Froggie wasn't so far south, an actual 32 shoot would be fun. Just ordered an 8 3/4" T/C Contender barrel from MGM in .32 wadcutter, should have it by Jan/Feb.

In another thread AJ is supposedly heading to Meadville north of Pittsburg from Florida this winter and we may get to gether somewhere in between. Bought a gun from AJ and we were talking in Rimfire Central about an Al Freeland Martini. Larry
 
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