.32 H&R Mag in Nagant?

[wally]

Since its .32 Mag day

I've heard its a viable substitute, anyone here tried it. Sure beats the very expensive Fiochi Nagant ammo on price.

I tried .32 S&W long and while it shot OK, something like 29 out of 50 cases split making it not very suitable for reloading. I was thinking may be the .32 H&R mag case is strong enough not to split.

--wally.

 

[Moonclip]

I have only done 32 S&W long, still makes me a bit leery and I'd double up on eye protection. I suppose you could wrap the cases with a layer of tape if you desired but I'd probably not. Will try 32mag eventually though I rarely shoot mine due to stick extraction with original ammo and 20Lb plus DA pull.

 

[461]

Heard recently of someone shooting .32Mag from their .30Carbine Ruger Blackhawk. No, I don't endorse or advise it but just thought I'd pass it on.

 

[Stainz]

Some surplus vendors even advertise their Nagants can be used with .32 H&R Magnums. In a word, DON'T! Even though the .32 H&R Magnums are not as much more powerful in comparison to a .32 S&WL as the .357 Magnum is to the .38 Special, they are hotter. Like the slightly shorter cased .32 S&WL, the .32 H&R Magnum is straight walled - and the Nagant, like the .30 Carbine, is slightly tapered. This leaves room for the cases of the .32 ammo to 'grow' to. The .32 S&WL's are lower pressured rounds, and generally have thinner walls, thus the bulged/split cases I experienced with MagTech .32 S&WL ammo in my Nagants. The GA Arms 100gr JHP .32 H&R Magnums also bulged their more stout cases - and spit excessively. Both types of .32 ammo's cases were not reloadable after shooting, some of the .32 S&WL's actually having split. I don't consider either to be a 'safe' round in my Nagants.

I reload - and make my own Nagant plinkers. I modify .32-20 brass - size it via a carbide .30 Carbine sizing die - load with .32 lead via .32-20 dies & shellplate holder on my Dillon 550 - and have safe shooting fun - and trigger finger excercise. My brass does not bridge the b/c gap, as the original and Fiocchi's would, so it literally falls out afterwards. Additionally, my loads are hotter - 700+ fps vs the Ruskie target/Fiocchi ammo's 575/675 fps. Check the Nagant specific posts on gunboards.com for more loading info.

I bought 200 of the GA Arms rounds last summer for a proposed 432PD purchase that didn't occur - tried seven in each of two Nagants - never again, they spit more than a beater Rossi .357M did in the lane next to me at the range several years ago... unacceptable. I still have 186 rounds for that 4" SP-101 I want...

Stainz

PS The Rossi shooter kept it as a PD piece... promised to only shoot it at the range when he had no lane neighbors.

 

[JBP]

I've been using both 32 H&R Magnum and 32 S&W Long in my Nagant for over 5 years and I've never experienced a bulged or cracked case in either caliber. I find the accuracy with the H&R Mangum rounds to be comparable with Fiochhi Nagant ammo (if you can find it and want to spend the money for it).

 

[mfree]

I tried it with Federal 85gr JHP H&R. Cases swelled *dramatically* but did not split.

I wouldn't do this too terribly often, it's like dancing with the devil

 

[Stainz]

I just mic-ed a selection of new GA Arms 100gr .32 H&R Magnums and found a maximum OD at .25" past the rim of .334" (Actually, since they are straight walled, that could be measured anywhere!). I also mic-ed a selection of new Fiocchi and Russian Nagant ammo to find a minimum OD, again, at ~.25" from the rim, of .352". That means, with a tight cylinder bore, the .32 H&R cases will 'grow' by .018" in OD - beyond useful reloading/re-sizing capability. The H&RM cases are tougher than the S&WL cases, especially those MagTech's I shot, so they likely won't split.

Another interesting problem - the .32 cases droop at the rim, placing the bullet 'off-axis', thus the spitting at the 'closed' b/c gap. That can also happen to a lesser extent with .32-20 brass resized with an M1 Carbine carbide sizer, as it measures .3485" at the same .25" mark below the rim. While it's even heavier brass will 'grow' slightly (Still easily resized.), the rims, if they fit at all initially, were canted slightly by bearing against the inner raised edge of the cylinder. I remedied that in mine by turning .024" off the rims with a Taig micro-lathe - a bit tedious for the 300 cases I did, but worth it for decent ammo. Of course, thinning the breechblock will prevent the need for rim thickness adjustment, as would turning that inner rim down slightly. I prefer to leave my Nagants stock, altering the ammo to fit.

Others may use the straight walled ammo at their own risk, but I am not that way. The few rounds of GA Arms ammo I did shoot made me want a proper .32 H&R Magnum revolver, of course!

Stainz

PS The spitting with Magtech .32 S&WL ammo left lead residue on the outside, ie, convex, side of the barrel's inverted forcing cone. This became copperish in color after a few .32 H&RM's, explaining what was zinging pass my hands. It has dark powder residue after my homebrews - much less after the 'proper' (Ruskie or Fiocchi) ammo, as expected due to their longer cases bridging that tightened b/c gap.

 

[wally]

Sounds like I won't be bothering to try .32 H&R mag.

Thanks.
--wally.

 

[Snowdog]

After running through the Russian target fodder I ordered from SOG, I put some Georgia Arms 100gr .32 magnum JHPs I had left over from my Davis Derringer that fell to pieces years ago. 200+ rounds without a problem. Sure, cases swelled, but they extracted easy enough and I certainly don't plan to reload for this caliber. My 1895 Nagant is still super tight with absolutely no cylinder play (while the hammer is back, anyways).

I did notice a thread or two that mentioned the prospects of gas cutting on the top strap after prolonged use of .32 magnum, so I don't plan to purchase any more.

It's your call... it can be done, but you could also get proper 7.62x38R Russian "target" ammunition from SOG at $14/40rounds.