Was the .32 long revolver - police or other use?

[Mobilman44]

Hi!
As I indicated on previous posts, I inherited a S&W .32 model 1903 hand ejector revolver, with the 4 1/4 inch barrel. It is in excellent condition, not having been shot in 55 years or so. It is serial number 104, and I recently picked up new grips for it.

My question is, were these .32s primarily produced for police use or personal or what? While I know full well even a .22 short can be fatal, it seems the .32 long cartrige was somewhat "underpowered" for police use.

Thanks for your input,
Mobilman44

 

[Wiregrassguy]

Sorry, I posted the wrong picture.

They were widely used by both civilians and police. There is a version of the .32 S&W Long called the Regulation Police, as well as a .38 S&W version with Regulation Police stamped on the barrel. Attached is a picture of my .32 Regulation Police.

 

[DWalt]

.32 revolvers (both Colt and S&W) were in common use by some police departments early in the 20th century but of course they were popular among civilians also. Maybe the BGs weren't as tough back then.

One of Teddy Roosevelt's accomplishments when he was NYC's Police Commissioner was to standardize the use of .32 revolvers within the NYPD.

 

[Wiregrassguy]

There are some threads here that discuss the phases of police guns from .32 to .38 SPCL to .38 HD to .357 Magnum. The .32 is a low recoil gun so can be put back to POA quickly. However, as the gangs began to become more assertive, body armor began to be a problem for the lower caliber rounds. If you go on YouTube, you can pull up old films of BGs shooting each other in the chest while they were wearing metal plate armor and laughing. Thus, the police asked for and got increasingly more powerful cartridges and the .32 sorta drifted away from being a primary police carry weapon.

 

[rburg]

Back in the day, .32s were considered very adequate. Particularly in the eastern states. Its still used in Europe but in the .32 ACP form. Did you know that you can even fire those cartridges in you gun? Also, back then, many if not most gunshot wounds were fatal. Maybe not instantly, but before the advent of modern medicine. They would get "septic" and the owner of the wound would croak. Not as neat and clean as today's theories of killing the bad guy on the spot, but deadly none the less.

My story of our families .32 Regulation Police doesn't end as well as yours. My fathers family probably looked dirt poor back then, except they owned a farm. Every farm needed a gun, so they bought a military surplus .45-70 Springfield. I think the price for the gun was $1.75, and the box of 20 black powder shells was close to the same amount. But my grandfather died in a bread truck accident in 1925, when my dad was 14. At that point they needed spending money, badly. So Dad took up a trap line along the creek out back. All the while hauling the overlength Springfield with him. He needed a shorter gun, so the local chief of Police sold him the .32. Today, they'd both be planted under the jail for that kind of transaction. Back then no one saw any problem with it.

But when my dad died, my mother let my brother pick first, and he selected Dad's .32. I took the Springfield. And as anti-gun people often do, he sold it immediately. I don't have the urge to keep family guns until I die. Had my father felt that way, my sons would have that .32. I passed the guns I got along to my sons. Both are well aware of family history and my desire for family guns to stay in the family. I just feel they mean more if they're passed to the next generation so they can be enjoyed.

 

[6mmman]

While I agree with what has be said about the 32S&W Long being underpowered I will relate that I helped clean a garage where someone terminated his life with a 32 to the head. It will work believe me! It is fast becoming one of my favorite center fire cartridges to shoot for fun and I would'nt feel undone about using it for self defence. I know one to the head will work.

 

[Mobilman44]

Hi!
Thanks for the replies and information.

This handgun is in excellent shape, and obviously was made to shoot the S&W .32 long cartridge. But I gather the more common .32 ACP can be used as well. Will this cause excessive wear, or is the pressure about the same?

I believe my Dad acquired it from a police relative right after WWII when they bought a grocery store in Chicago. It was on a shelf under the cash register from '48 to '58, and in his dresser drawer until his passing.

Dad saw action in the Phillippines (44th Tank Battalion) and occupied Japan for some time. He often remarked that he would have loved to have had the .32 for carry as it was much lighter and less bulky. Of course this was during the occupation, and not during the War itself.

By the way, I also inherited my Dad's WWII Colt M1911 which he did use during the War. It too is in excellent condition, and he had me firing it before I was 12.

Thanks again!

 

[rjb1]

As for Police use of the .32 caliber, I have a revolver of the other brand (begins with a "C") that is roll-stamped "Detroit Police" on the back grip and is .32 S&W Long. It dates from about 1919.

 

[Wiregrassguy]

But I gather the more common .32 ACP can be used as well.

It's your gun so you can do what you want. However, .32 ACP was not designed to shoot in the S&W revolver. There is very little difference in cost between .32 ACP and .32 Long. Why introduce issues in the use of this gun?

 

[rburg]

We've been having an ammo shortage for the last few years. It tells the owner that if he finds or already has ammo in that caliber, it can be used in a pinch. Or purchased at things like flea markets or yard sales. Nothing wrong with informing others of options. These days if you can find .32 S&W Longs, they'll want $40 or more for a box of 50 of them. 2 years ago I found 12 or so boxes and only had to pay $115 for the entire lot, and I got an ammo can to boot! Always keep your eyes open and your ear to the ground.

 

[Wiregrassguy]

Hey, Dick. I just bought a box of 50 .32 S&W Long for $24 with tax. That's in line with other ammo costs around here.

 

[66Park]

Hey, Dick. I just bought a box of 50 .32 S&W Long for $24 with tax. That's in line with other ammo costs around here.

It can be found online starting at 16.95 a box. Try Ammunition to Go. Lots of choices.

 

[Texas Star]

If you can locate a copy of Chic Gaylord's, "Handgunner's Guide" published about 1960, look at what he had to say about the experience of a NYC detective who shot a felon in the head with a .32 Long. Also look at the photos of gunshot wounds to human bodies in the book. Some are head wounds.

There is good reason why most cops still carrying .32's by the 1950's were policewomen, who seldom had to fire their weapons. The same was true of Euro cops carrying .32 autos.

I think that member Old Flatfoot may have some reprints of the book. He knew the late author and was inspired by his holster business. Look in the Vendor area and PM him and ask if he can sell you the book. And, considering that he is also a retired NYC detective, ask hm what he thinks of the .32 as a police weapon.

I think that Geco and others still make a full wadcutter round in .32 Long. It might add a little stopping power to this weak CTG. You can carry a J-frame .38 Special about the same size and weight and have a much more effective defense item.

In Peter O'Donnell's superb novels about Modesty Blaise, she used a Colt .32 a lot in the earlier books, but placed her shots better than anyone but maybe a trick shooter in a circus can. And even Modesty used a .41 Magnum or a Star PD .45 when she could. I'm quite sure that the sole reason why she didn't wear a small .38 was the writer's wish to give her a gun that seemed to suit a girl.

I think you can kill most snakes okay with a .32 and they'll knock over a rabbit with flatnosed bullets, but I wouldn't want to have to shoot anything larger than a jackrabbit with one.

When I wrote a series of stories featuring three women in the 1920's who needed handguns, I deliberately had them carry S&W M&P .38's. Sometimes, they had to shoot very bad guys, and I didn't think they could do that as well with .32's, especially at any extended range.

I know that .32's are small and cute, but wouldn't count on one to save my hide, especially if an opponent was drunk or on drugs or highly adrenalized. Of course, if you can shoot like Modesty Blaise, you can just put a bullet through his eye into the brain and probably come out alright. Alas, that tends to work better in fiction than in real life.

 

[DWalt]

Regarding the use of the .32 ACP, in my experience it works fine in a .32 S&W Long revolver. However, I would not use it in any of the earlier old breaktops, as the peak chamber pressure is somewhat more than the .32 S&W or .32 S&W Long, at least according to SAAMI pressure specs. In addition, the .32 ACP bullet diameter is slightly less than the .32 S&Ws, so grouping, while adequate, will likely be worse than using the correct ammunition.