My Father-in-Law has .32 Long Colt revolver that dates back well before WW2. He only has a few rounds for the gun, and hasn't shot it in many years. He says it has only had one box of ammo through it. The gun looks like it was made yesterday (maybe better). I haven't been able to find any place to buy .32 Long Colt ammo. If anyone knows where I can buy a few boxes I would apprecaite it.
.32 Long Colt?
- Thread starter K_Mac
- Start date
Bill DeShivs
New member
There is no .32 long Colt.
We need more information on the gun and markings to tell you what ammunition to use.
We need more information on the gun and markings to tell you what ammunition to use.
Bill DeShivs
New member
I think I had a brain fart.
Mike Irwin
Staff
.32 Long Colt hasn't been loaded, IIRC, since World War II.
Jim Watson
New member
1. If he just wants to pop off a few rounds "on ceremonial occasions" .32 Short Colt is available and will work safely if not powerfully.
http://www.buffaloarms.com/browse.cfm/4,5827.html
2. A Colt revolver (Is it?) chambered in .32 Long Colt would predate WW I by several years, never mind WW II. About 1908 Colt gave up on the .32 (and .38) Colt cartridges and started making guns marked .32 New Police or .32 Police Positive; which are the same as .32 S&W Long.
Please post pictures and exact markings.
His old ammunition might not be correct.
http://www.buffaloarms.com/browse.cfm/4,5827.html
2. A Colt revolver (Is it?) chambered in .32 Long Colt would predate WW I by several years, never mind WW II. About 1908 Colt gave up on the .32 (and .38) Colt cartridges and started making guns marked .32 New Police or .32 Police Positive; which are the same as .32 S&W Long.
Please post pictures and exact markings.
His old ammunition might not be correct.
Mike Irwin
Staff
Go to the SAMMI website...
they have the interchangeability charts for most cartridges.
The .32 Colt round is identical to the .32 S&W, but was loaded with a
"Elmer Keith" type semi-wadcutter lead bullet, whereas the S&W used a round-nose lead.
Confirm using the SAMMI info.
Intended use was banks were little or no-trained individuals could attempt to stop a incident.
they have the interchangeability charts for most cartridges.
The .32 Colt round is identical to the .32 S&W, but was loaded with a
"Elmer Keith" type semi-wadcutter lead bullet, whereas the S&W used a round-nose lead.
Confirm using the SAMMI info.
Intended use was banks were little or no-trained individuals could attempt to stop a incident.
Thanks for the replies. I will get a photo and serial number information later this week. He is out of town for the next few days. In the mean time I'll run down some of the links given.
After talking to him yesterday I found this gun was handed down to him by an old uncle ~1950. The uncle owned a bar and kept it for protection. It was never used by him according to legend. My father-in-law and his father fired a box (?) of ammo through it when it was passed on. It was cleaned and put in a case where it has stayed for 60+ years. It is a beautiful old gun. It seems a shame to not give it a little exercise now and then.
After talking to him yesterday I found this gun was handed down to him by an old uncle ~1950. The uncle owned a bar and kept it for protection. It was never used by him according to legend. My father-in-law and his father fired a box (?) of ammo through it when it was passed on. It was cleaned and put in a case where it has stayed for 60+ years. It is a beautiful old gun. It seems a shame to not give it a little exercise now and then.
Jim Watson
New member
Sorry, jrothWA, that is not the case.
The .32 Colt is NOT identical to the .32 S&W (and I did double check SAAMI publication #205.)
The .32 Colt New Police/Police Positive IS identical to the .32 S&W Long except for its bullet shape. Which is not an Elmer Keith type semiwadcutter, it is a simple flatpoint which came out when Elmer was about 9 years old.
K_Mac, hang in there and get us some details on FiL's Uncle's gun.
The picture posted by cxcvbob gives the dimensions of the .32 Long Colt and (except for case length) the .32 Long Colt. The case diameter is .318", where the case diameter of the .32 S&W is .338", so they obviously are not the same cartridge. The older New Line and Model 1877 revolvers are for the .32 Colt, usually the Long. (A .32 Model 1877 is rare but there are some.)
Colt, probably deliberately, confused matters by simply refusing to put the hated letters "S&W" on their revolvers, so many are marked only .32 or .38 with no cartridge identification. Then Colt "invented" the .32 Colt New Police and .38 Colt New Police, the former identical to the .32 S&W Long except for the bullet shape, and the latter identical to the .38 S&W. Even then Colt fudged the markings, and some guns just say ".32 Police." Any swing cylinder Colt made after c. 1910 is probably for the S&W cartridges.
To confuse matters further, the .38 Short Colt and .38 Long Colt are the same diameter as the .38 Special. An easy way to remember is that the "Colt" cartridges in both calibers are smaller than the "S&W" cartridges.
Jim
Colt, probably deliberately, confused matters by simply refusing to put the hated letters "S&W" on their revolvers, so many are marked only .32 or .38 with no cartridge identification. Then Colt "invented" the .32 Colt New Police and .38 Colt New Police, the former identical to the .32 S&W Long except for the bullet shape, and the latter identical to the .38 S&W. Even then Colt fudged the markings, and some guns just say ".32 Police." Any swing cylinder Colt made after c. 1910 is probably for the S&W cartridges.
To confuse matters further, the .38 Short Colt and .38 Long Colt are the same diameter as the .38 Special. An easy way to remember is that the "Colt" cartridges in both calibers are smaller than the "S&W" cartridges.
Jim
I have a Marlin 1892 in .32 Long Colt made between 1905 and 1908, dating it from its features.
The last .32 Long Colt cartridges were made in the late 1970s or early 1980s. I believe, Remington was the last maker. An occasional green and yellow Remington box is found at gun shows.
A co-worker just found a full box of Winchester 1970s .32 Long Colt at a gun show here in Utah. He picked it up for $25, knowing I shot this caliber.
Winchester still makes .32 Short Colt ammo on occasion, and it works in revolvers and rifles. My Marlin 92 cycles .32 Short Colt ammo just fine, but others with Marlin 92s report it doesn't. I suspect it depends upon how much wear the rifle's action has.
To my knowledge, Winchester is the ONLY manufacturer of .32 Short Colt ammo in the world. It's feast or famine finding the Winchester cartridges; right now we're in famine. I've been all over the internet and didn't find anyone who had boxes. They're all backordered, though one site said it expected delivery in early January 2012.
The Winchester .32 Short Colt stock number is X325CP. The lead, roundnosed, heeled bullet is 80 grs. Velocity is listed at 745 fps from a 4-inch revolver barrel. In a rifle with its longer barrel, velocity would be a little higher, perhaps 900 fps.
Winchester does not sell ammunition directly, you have to purchase from a dealer who orders from Winchester.
Boxes of 50 or cases of 500 cartridges (10 boxes) are listed in Winchester’s website, and newly made empty .32 Short Colt cases are readily available on the net.
If you find ammo, save your empty cases, especially for the .32 Long Colt. You may wish to try reloading later.
I've been reloading for the .32 Long Colt for about 12 years. Search the internet under my name (Gatofeo) and you'll find a ton of info on reloading, and the Marlin 92.
The last .32 Long Colt cartridges were made in the late 1970s or early 1980s. I believe, Remington was the last maker. An occasional green and yellow Remington box is found at gun shows.
A co-worker just found a full box of Winchester 1970s .32 Long Colt at a gun show here in Utah. He picked it up for $25, knowing I shot this caliber.
Winchester still makes .32 Short Colt ammo on occasion, and it works in revolvers and rifles. My Marlin 92 cycles .32 Short Colt ammo just fine, but others with Marlin 92s report it doesn't. I suspect it depends upon how much wear the rifle's action has.
To my knowledge, Winchester is the ONLY manufacturer of .32 Short Colt ammo in the world. It's feast or famine finding the Winchester cartridges; right now we're in famine. I've been all over the internet and didn't find anyone who had boxes. They're all backordered, though one site said it expected delivery in early January 2012.
The Winchester .32 Short Colt stock number is X325CP. The lead, roundnosed, heeled bullet is 80 grs. Velocity is listed at 745 fps from a 4-inch revolver barrel. In a rifle with its longer barrel, velocity would be a little higher, perhaps 900 fps.
Winchester does not sell ammunition directly, you have to purchase from a dealer who orders from Winchester.
Boxes of 50 or cases of 500 cartridges (10 boxes) are listed in Winchester’s website, and newly made empty .32 Short Colt cases are readily available on the net.
If you find ammo, save your empty cases, especially for the .32 Long Colt. You may wish to try reloading later.
I've been reloading for the .32 Long Colt for about 12 years. Search the internet under my name (Gatofeo) and you'll find a ton of info on reloading, and the Marlin 92.
Black hills ammo now makes some for cowboy action shooting. Here is the link to their page. http://www.black-hills.com/cowboy_action_calibers.php
The Old Western Scrounger is the usual goto company for things like this, but even they don't have any in stock. They do have one box of .32 Short Colt which should work satisfactorily in the Long Colt chambers. http://ows-ammo.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=62_72&products_id=556
bedbugbilly
New member
I know this is about the 32 Colt Long but reading it has brought up another question in my mind only concerning the "32 Colt Short". I had (if I remember correctly) an H & R Police Special (or Safety Police - I can't remember) that was marked for "32 Colt Short". With the pistol were a few cartridges that were in a very old past board box but I can't remember the brand. The box did say "32 Colt Short" though.
Anyway, the pistol was in great shape so I took it in to one of our LGS and asked if they could get me some cartridges for it. In a couple of weeks, they said they had a box of cartridges so I stopped in to pick them up. If I remember correctly, it was a box of "S & W 32 Shorts". They seemed to fit the chamber alright but they wouldn't work because the tip of the bullet projected out the end of the cylinder just enough that the cylinder wouldn't rotate.
I returned the cartridges to the shop and took the pistol in to show them the problem and they just scratched their heads over it. I finally got tired of trying to find ammo for it so I sold it to a guy who thought it was a neat pistol (which it was). The last time I saw the guy, he had sold it as he couldn't find any ammo for it.
So . . . did Colt makt a 32 long and short? On the short, was the only difference between the Colt and the S & W short the type of slug length similarr to what you are talking about on the 32 Colt Long?
Anyway, the pistol was in great shape so I took it in to one of our LGS and asked if they could get me some cartridges for it. In a couple of weeks, they said they had a box of cartridges so I stopped in to pick them up. If I remember correctly, it was a box of "S & W 32 Shorts". They seemed to fit the chamber alright but they wouldn't work because the tip of the bullet projected out the end of the cylinder just enough that the cylinder wouldn't rotate.
I returned the cartridges to the shop and took the pistol in to show them the problem and they just scratched their heads over it. I finally got tired of trying to find ammo for it so I sold it to a guy who thought it was a neat pistol (which it was). The last time I saw the guy, he had sold it as he couldn't find any ammo for it.
So . . . did Colt makt a 32 long and short? On the short, was the only difference between the Colt and the S & W short the type of slug length similarr to what you are talking about on the 32 Colt Long?