The .32-20 Hand Ejector Thread

[old tanker]

The competition

More .32-20's, these from those guys in Hartford. The 4-1/2 inch barrel New Army was among the last made, dating to 1907. It was reblued somewhere along the line, but it's sound and shoots fine.

The 5 inch Army Special is from 1925. It's just what appears to be, a well kept revolver exhibiting some honest wear. Lock up is legendary Colt, like a bank vault! Shoots exceedingly well with Lyman 31108 cast bullets and 6.0 grains of DuPont's SR-4756. Rumor has it that Hodgdon is going to discontinue that powder.

 

[DWalt]

I have a 1912 AS in .32-20, with the somewhat unusual 4-1/2" barrel, also a 1933 OP with 6" barrel. Both minty condition. My standard load is 3.5 gr. Bullseye with 105 gr FP lead bullet. Need nothing better.

 

[old tanker]

Are you sure they are factory?

I just acquired a collection of (I presume) 50's-60's RNFP. The question is: is this HV or no?



"Self-realization. I was thinking of the immortal words of Socrates, who said, "... I drank what?"View attachment 185933View attachment 185934

That red plastic box makes me think they might be somebody's reloads. Back in the Fifities and Sixties hefty charges of Hercules 2400 to use in a Marlin or Remington carbine were not uncommon. Those loads were way too stout for any Hand Ejector and were likely borderline in an Offical Police or even an SAA.

I am generally leery of other folks' handloads unless I know them and their habits really well.

 

[Muley Gil]

"Here is a 4 inch nickel .32-20 HE that was reportedly a Louisville, Kentucky PD gun. Whether or not that's true, can't say, but the lady who sold it said her dad was a cop and this was his gun."

Back in the day, most police officers and sheriff's depuies were required to buy their own handguns. I carried a S&W M&P .32-20 as a young deputy in the mid '70s (1970s that is ).

 

[weatherby]

Probably not. I believe the HV ammo had 80 grain jacketed hollow point bullets, and usually had something on the headstamp identifying that it was high velocity. At one time I had some .32-20 rounds with jacketed exposed lead bullets (not hollow pointed) which were not HV. I'll check information in some of the old ammo catalogs.
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I checked a variety of both pre-war and post-war Remington, Winchester, and Western ammunition catalogs. In all cases, the .32-20 HV loads listed had 80 grain jacketed hollow point bullets (which Remington describes as "Mushroom" and W-W called Open Point Expanding). You might want to pull a bullet or two and weigh it - if it's more than 80 grains, it's not HV.

Having these on hand 115 grain JSP with a muzzle velocity of 1,480
I'd definitely err on the side of caution.

The headstamp....."is not" marked HV either

 

[DWalt]

Having these on hand 115 grain JSP with a muzzle velocity of 1,480
I'd definitely err on the side of caution.

The headstamp....."is not" marked HV either

Is the 1480 ft.sec for a rifle or a revolver? The typical modern handgun .32-20 load could well produce about that MV in a longer-barreled rifle. I think the U. S. HV load advertised a rifle MV something close to 1800 ft/sec.

 

[Muley Gil]

Is the 1480 ft.sec for a rifle or a revolver? The typical modern handgun .32-20 load could well produce about that MV in a longer-barreled rifle. I think the U. S. HV load advertised a rifle MV something close to 1800 ft/sec.

I agree. I believe those rounds would be safe in a revolver.

 

[weatherby]

I'd hope neither of you guys would shoot them in a revolver.

If they weren't in the box who would know ?

Just think sometimes it is better to be very cautious.





I just looked at the 80 grain stuff and the muzzle velocity of it is 2100 FPS

 

[DWalt]

Back in the good ol' days many of the good ol' boys fired the HV rifle loads in their .32-20 revolvers. I've been present when that was done, and nothing blew up. I have also been given to understand that cops, etc., who carried .32-20 revolvers were known to load up with the HV loads an an easy way to magnumize their revolvers. There was a lot more metal around those .32-20 chambers than with the ,38 Specials, so they were pretty strong. I might be leery of using HV loads in any revolver made before, say, 1920, and especially in the old BP Colt single action revolvers. The .32-20 was a fairly popular chambering in the single action colts, especially the Bisley Model.

Is anyone aware of verified gun damage as a result of shooting HV loads in a revolver? I am not, and never remember reading about any such occurrences. Not that I would ever recommend the practice, but even if anyone did, it's not likely any ka-booms would result.
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Back to my Quickload internal ballistics computer program to find out. I simulated a .32-20 HV load using an 85 grain 0.312" dia. jacketed bullet and 12.5 grains of 2400. That resulted in a MV of 2095 ft/sec in a 22" barrel. The calculated maximum average chamber pressure (MAP) was 22,326 psi. That's actually not that much, and a good revolver (such as a post-heat treat K frame or a Colt solid frame revolver, such as the OP) should handle it with ease.

SAAMI seems to not have established an MAP standard for the .32-20, at least they do not have it listed. However, CIP has, and it is 30,500 psi. Generally SAAMI and CIP MAPs are not that far apart, but they do use different MAP measurement methods. Not much chance of finding any .32-20 HV loads anyway, as it was dropped from the ammo catalogs in the early 1960s.

 

[Muley Gil]

IIRC, Skeeter Skelton was known to occasionally fire the HV .32-20 ammo in post 1900 Single Action Army revolvers.

 

[DWalt]

Giving warnings about not using .32-20 HV rifle ammunition in revolvers is just a topic that everyone seems to want to bring up for no other reason than to show they know about it. For the most part, there is no hazard, at least for any revolvers made within the last 100 years in reasonable condition. The chances of running into any HV ammunition in the first place is fairly slim, as it is now mostly in the ammo collector's realm. Much like shooting .38-44 ammo in an old K-frame .38 Special. That was done a lot also, and I don't ever remember hearing of any revolvers blowing up. I have calculated (using Quickload) the MAP of the .38-44 to be very likely in excess of 25,000 psi.

 

[Plain Old Dave]

Good gouge on the Dominion ammo. Wasn't aware they made "rifle only" ammo, and this makes a good case for consigning any loose DCC .32-20 to the rifle only pile or collectible only.

Regarding damage, you do see K frame .32-20s with cracked forcing cones and bulged cylinders Around Here. And the old-timer gunsmiths will tell you damage like THAT only comes from the "rifle only" .32-20s. About like a steady diet of full-house .357s in a Model 19, you might get away with it from time to time but is sure isn't healthy longterm.

I have seen one posting somewhere on the Web. IIRC it was a Colt Police Positive, and the shooter shot ONE HV shell and the gun locked up tight. The force from the HV shell sprung the crane it seems like, but the PP is a very small revolver. Saw a .32-20 PP the other day and my first thought was that it was a .32 Long.

 

[Xfuzz]

Late for the party.
One I found today...Serial..42362

 

[noviceman]

Need help. Trying to determine manufacture date of Smith & Wesson 32-20 CTG.

Serial# on butt: 112889.

Barrel length: 6".

Gun length from tip of barrel to back end of handle: 11".

Printed on top of barrel:
"SMITH & WESSON SPRINGFIELD MASS. U.S.A. PATENTED
Oct.8.01 Dec.17.01 Feb.8.06 Sept.14.09 Dec.29.14".

Printed on left side of barrel: "SMITH & WESSON".

Printed on right side of barrel: "32-20 CTG".

Printed on left side beneath cylinder release: Smith & Wesson trademark symbol.

Printed on right side beneath cylinder: "MADE IN U.S.A.".

# engraved on hinge of cylinder: 68424.

3 screws on right side of frame.

Wood handle. Large diamond in center of handle on each side. Screw in center of diamond on left side. Screw on inner slope of handle.

Thanks.

 

[DWalt]

Dating from the SN alone is far from an exact science, but I have numerous SNs close to that one which shipped in 1923 and 1924. You may or may not know that M&Ps in .32-20 were serial numbered differently from those chambered in .38 Special. Production of .32-20s ceased in 1929-30, but continued to be sold until about 1940.

 

[BPG]

Appears to be Second Change 1903 Part # 1

I am posting this to this thread as a monument to S & W durability and downright toughness. This little gun is not as pretty as any other gun posted here. In fact, I am sure it will be the roughest little gun to be posted here.

First off it is a Model 1903 Hand Ejector Serial # 812XX in .32 Long. As far as I can tell it seems to have been made between 1906 and 1910. I have of course identified it as an I Frame. You guys already know this, but this old an S & W was a new one for me.

When the customer brought it into my shop I thought it was beyond all hope. I cleaned it, replaced a few parts on it. Cut a new muzzle crown and I will be danged if it did not shoot straight, had an awesome lock up and the timing was excellent. I was still able to get the parts for this project through Jack First and Numrich. The customer was ecstatic and brought in four more of his oldies in for rework/repair.

I had made a friend for life. Well, enough of the build up. Here are some of the before pictures:

 

[BPG]

Appears to be Second Change 1903 Part # 2

Here are the after pictures. Once again, I was impressed with the quality of the machine work and how well this little pistol operated after I gave it a little TLC. I hope you have enjoyed my first post here. I hope to have many more.

 

[turnstyle]

Here are the after pictures. Once again, I was impressed with the quality of the machine work and how well this little pistol operated after I gave it a little TLC. I hope you have enjoyed my first post here. I hope to have many more.

I hope you have many more, too. This is great. I love the 1903. Feels great in the hand and as reliable as the day is long.

 

[Hondo44]

Here are the after pictures. Once again, I was impressed with the quality of the machine work and how well this little pistol operated after I gave it a little TLC. I hope you have enjoyed my first post here. I hope to have many more.

Welcome to the forum.

Your post should have its own thread, since your in a K frame thread your rescue project will not get enough of the exposure as it should.

 

[oneofsixreborn]

Hi all,
Wonderful wealth of info in this thread alone, I had a great time learning new things about my latest trade.

Poor finish, 5 screw with unmatched walnut(?) grip panels (stamped inside with a different serial #). The grips have a gold medallion.
Serial# on butt, bottom of barrel and the back of the cylinder- 138641 followed by a star- date stamped under the left grip panel 12-44
Barrel length: 5"
Printed on right side of barrel: "32-20 CTG".

So, from what I've read, it seems to be a late 20's production. Refurbed at the factory and returned 12-44.

Story from the previous owner is this- his grandfather owned the pistol, carried it in Korea, then carried it again as an auxiliary policeman in his hometown. While I never would have traded away a family heirloom, I don't knock the previous owner as I'm the new owner! It came with a police style holster and 7 rounds. My son and I promptly fired them as soon as we got home and were suitably impressed.
Since then, I've gotten the dies for reloading, so I can at least reload the brass I have until I can get some more.
Pics when I can...and thanks for the great info here!