fun shooting the .32 revolver...

J

JERRYS.

New member
Sorry, no pix.

I took out my LCR .327 and shoot a few rounds off informally. this, as with every .32 revolver I shot is simply enjoyable. The fed mag rounds aren't fun but for only six rounds of life or death I can deal. The h&r mags are actually pretty nice, not much recoil at all, less than standard .38 spl in a similar size and weight gun. Now the treat was the .32 Long. Magtech jhp and Remington lrn (both 98 gr.) proved to be soft shooting especially in this 17oz. gun. Of course the LCR trigger pull is the easiest of all my "J" frame sized guns.

If it weren't for the fact that .22lr is still the absolute cheapest to shoot I'd go with the .32 Long as top choice. In fact, for self defense for the recoil shy I no longer see how the .22lr would be choice over the .32 Long.

Just my opinion. What say you?
 
I enjoy shooting .32 Long from my Smith. I suspect that a reloader could cut the costs of shooting the .32 Long down to close to .22lr cost.
 
32 wheelguns are simply fun to shoot till you get to the 327. When 22's were unobtanium, I simply cast up a mess of 32 bullets and even today can shoot 32's cheaper than 22's. I wish I had a dollar for every female student that shows up with a airweight dao j frame and a box of 38 +P ammo that their husband/boyfriend/gun counter geek recommended to them. Some don't make it through the first cylinder full. I keep a box of wadcutters in my range bag for such emergencies, but usually the damage is done. My Taurus 3" with 32 longs or H&R mags would be a better choice. Plus, you can cock the hammer!
 
I enjoy shooting .32 Long from my Smith. I suspect that a reloader could cut the costs of shooting the .32 Long down to close to .22lr cost.
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True IF you can get your hands on bullets. I reload for my I Frame 32SWL and powder charges run from 1.7 to 2.3 depending on powder so an 8# jug can last a LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG time.
 
FITASC said:
True IF you can get your hands on bullets. I reload for my I Frame 32SWL and powder charges run from 1.7 to 2.3 depending on powder so an 8# jug can last a LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG time.
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As a bullet caster, I have not had a problem getting bullets for my current S&W .32 Long. My holy grail is a S&W K-32 but could never afford one...but then I have never even seen one.
My current S&W .32 Long is one of those pre-J frames with five screws and a flat mainspring instead of a coiled mainspring. I can never remember that model designation for that size frame.
 
JohnMoses, I certainly agree with you,, I start ladies out with a 22, and show them how much fun shooting really is...Often their male’s get po’d because they don’t want a ‘whomper’,,, and often the girls can outshoot the guys,,, I have one who shoots an 80 yr old 22 semi-rifle, and she can easily hit 48 out of 50 all day long... she likes to blast my 45 maybe once a week, just because of the noise it makes... She always closes her eyes when she shoots it.
 
I also enjoy both .32 H&R Magnum and .32 S&W Long. I've had guns specifically chambered in those over the years and I've hung on to them. It might sound silly but one of my most memorable lifetime shots was splitting a millipede into two equally long and wriggling sections on an old dirt road with .32 S&W Long.

Using .327 Federal is totally dependent on the load and the gun. In the LCR, I've found the lighter 85-grain Hydra-Shoks to be fine. They are marketed as "low recoil" and felt recoil is on par with .38 +p from my LCR 38. They are okay for practice and definitely adequate for defense.

I save the warmer, heavier loads in .327 for steel guns or the Henry rifle.
 
I own a couple 327s. Have 100 pieces of 32 long brass that have probably been reloaded more than any brass I own - friends that have shot the 32 long can’t believe the lack of recoil. And then there is the magic of also shooting 32 acp, 32 HR, and 327 Mag - Unbelievable to me that the 327 isn’t more popular.
 
I agree with about everything. Unfortunately I've yet to shoot a snub .32, but have shot .32 in a few revolvers and I enjoy it and am learning to tolerate the blast, yet tolerable recoil of 100 grain .327 in the SP101. I find that starting loads for .327 are more than adequate for my shooting needs and I do not like pushing the .327 to max with published data, I have concerns doing so will stretch the frame of small revolvers.

Maybe I'm being cautious, maybe I'm being smart, IDK.

As to the .22 vs .32, I still have a desire to buy an 8 shot .22 Taurus snub just because it's cheap and will be a lot of fun at the range. For defense? Nah, I'll still prefer a .32 SW Long every time.

It's nice that you made this thread tho because I was just about to make one saying how little interest and faith I have in .38 in snub revolvers.

I'm gonna catch a lot of shade from those set in their ways who will point out the .38 snub has been used since before they were born and it's a known standard and all that, but it's 2020 people, better is out there and if the industry would do its job and deliver a product that people can make at home in good quality .32 and .327 Magnum defense ammo, it would change a lot of minds.

I have a snub .38 and find it does not like lighter bullets under say 130 grains. It shoots 158's fine, but that's not a bullet I like in a snub .38, it's barely moving and while I could accept 700 fps from a 250 grain .45, I can't with a .38.

I'm sure there are other .38 snubs out there that will shoot lighter bullets better, but I'm not interested in buying another snub .38. There are issues with .38 snubs not having enough velocity to expand hollow points and while there are a few factory options that can work, I don't like being stuck with just factory options because look what happened this year with regard to ammo availability.

The nice thing about the .32 and .327 Mags are you can load XTP's fast enough to expand out of a snub revolver and I think that's a lot better than being stuck with a solid bullet or a wadcutter in .38, not to mention the recoil is still better with .32... in a snub.
 
During Obama 22 Panic, shot a lot of 32 and 32/20. Shot 32 from M16 S&W k32 and 32/20 from 100yr old Marlin 1894. We cast and loaded cheaper than 22, as we could now.
 
Yep as to price and FUN. Discounting the price paid for molds a cpl decades ago, my wheel weight 100 grainers cost less than 1/4 cent each. Bullseye powder: less than 2 cents per shot, and primers at $30/1000 make it just over a nickel a shot! About 1/2 of what I paid for .22's the last time I bought from Cabelas.

All in all I'm feeding a pair of Ruger Single Sixes, a S&W M-16, and another pair of Colt Police Positives...cheap, accurate, FUN....gotta love the .32's. Here's the Ruger pair followed by one of the Colts. YMMv, Rod



 
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I like 32 mag better than 327 Federal when it's loaded with 115grain cast bullets or 100gr XTPs to about 1250fps. The 327 makes my ears hurt even with plugs in.
 
I love me some 32 fun, its what I call my reloadable 22. Now if I could just find a Ruger LCRX or LCR in 327 I would be set.
 
"The" .32 revolver implies only one.

Like potato chips, you can't stop at just one .32 revolver.

I have four, so far; S&W models 431 and 631, and two Single Sevens. Not counting some "close" ones like a Nagant or Lebel.
 
Lee makes a .32 bullet mold that works really well if you're up to that sort of thing. Mine is one of my favorite molds to use...

Tony
 
Dain Bramage said:
"The" .32 revolver implies only one.

Like potato chips, you can't stop at just one .32 revolver.

I have four, so far; S&W models 431 and 631, and two Single Sevens. Not counting some "close" ones like a Nagant or Lebel.
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Applies to all handguns, not just revolvers, lol. I do find myself after 3 or so .38/.357's just not needing or wanting anymore. The only other I would like is a 7 shot Taurus, but with .32's I can find an excuse to own more and more.

Lately it's a .32 Mag Cobra derringer, next it will be an H&R Young America, after than a .327 LCR, after that a 6" long top break H&R... it's endless.
 
I’m still waiting for Ruger to get it together and make an LCRX in .327 mag with a 3” barrel. Once they do that I’ll be getting into .32 caliber pretty hard.
 
Holdeth not, your breath, Jetinterior.You never know, but I'd be surprised if Ruger made that marketing move...all of the .32's are kind of 'cult' calibers in my opinion, but I gotta tell ya...they are truly fun...and great trail guns for most anyone. Minimal recoil, but substantially more smack than any .22, Magnum or LR.

Those two Rugers I've posted are right up there with my favorite guns. For packing around, the Mini-Vaquero is just right...but only lacks adj. sights to make it perfect. And that birds-head grip took about 1/10 of a second to feel just right in my hand. You seem to want a very light pocket type, but I'd bet a bag of monkeys, you'd really like the bigger Rugers. JMHO, Rod (If you take the plunge, PM me and I'll forward you some .32 H&R loads that are top notch.)
 
I have seven 32 caliber guns, 6 revolvers and a 32acp Auto. An old PP made in 1957 thats is pristine condition. I love shooting the 32s also. I have 32 longs and 32 mags but no 327 chambered guns. Never wanted the 327.

Of course I reload and cast the lead bullets I shoot. I have thousands cast up now. I have hundreds of 32 cases and lots of powder and primers. I have had all the reloading stuff so long I don't remember what it cost me so its like shooting free of charge.

My favorite 32 mags are the two Ruger single sixes I have both with 5.5" barrels and adjustable sights. Those are my favorite trail and woods guns. I like to load a 90-100gr lead bullet to around 900fps. Very pleasant to shoot and well above a 22 in a handgun. I always carry some hotter jacketed loads with me just to remind me this isn't a pop gun I'm shooting. I recommend a single six in 32 mag to anyone who will listen.

As for the ladies shooting 32 caliber guns I think thats a great plan. My uncle was a homicide detective and he gave his wife a S&W model 31 with 2" barrel for a SD/HD gun. He felt that was all she needed. And he said she could shoot very well with it.
 
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