Make Mine a .32 Mag? Ballistic Gel Tests

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USBP379

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https://www.americanrifleman.org/articles/2019/5/30/the-underappreciated-32-magnums/

Here's a combo of cartridges we don't hear much about. Smith (and a few others) made revolvers for both but those are discontinued. I think Ruger is the only source now for a .327 Federal Magnum. Of course anything chambered in .327 should work fine with the little .32 H&R in case someone wants the lower recoil.

I don't think I would have previously really considered either cartridge for defense. But maybe I've been closed minded?
 
Thanks for the link. I hadn't previously heard of the new Charter Arms.

Yeah, the little 32s are probably the unsung heroes of the concealed revolver market.
 
I agree with the article, the .32 Mag is definitely underappreciated. I have never carried one (Although I have carried a 3" .32 Long a few times), but love it for a range toy and a small game getter.
 
I don't think I'd carry a .32 as a primary defensive piece but I could certainly see carrying one in a deep concealment capacity or as a back-up firearm. Too bad S&W no longer makes the 432 or the 332 revolvers.

Of course the LCR is certainly a wonderful little option although a couple ounces heavier than the .38 +P version. And there's the SP-101 for someone who might not necessarily want the lightest gun available.
 
I just took the new to me 432 to the range today. Running BB +P .32H&R through it was stout, I have no doubt it will stop anything on two legs. I have a couple of .327's , a Taurus and S&W, and frankly full power .327 is very stout. I'm going to try some loads using Lehigh's 75 & 95gr extreme cavatators next.

Only thing I noticed about these long 32's is several powders like 231 are very position sensitive. Currently I'm using VV 3N37 to fill the case more and it works well.
 
W-231 with plated or jacketed yes, lead, not nearly so much. But that is true for many powders.
I notice a little in .38spl but this is like 200fps in .32H&R according to the chrono. Could be exaggerated due to lighter bullet.
 
but this is like 200fps in .32H&R according to the chrono.
Yep, 200 FPS is fairly normal, see worse, see better, but 200ish is common depending on the caliber/bullet weight/powder....Lead is much more forgiving.
 
Now that I've seen some data of what the .32 revolvers can do in gel, I knew there was meat to the .32 for defense. I've been hard on the .32 revolvers and Ruger lately because the industry hasn't been supporting the caliber and Ruger makes their .327's for jacketed bullets, but the results speak for themselves; the .32 and .327 Mag in a snub are legit.

The only disappointing one I saw was the Buffalo Bore .32 Mag not being able to deal with heavy clothing. I'd like to see BB switch whatever bullet they're using now (probably an XTP) to a Gold Dot. What I'd really like to see tho is Hornady come out with a 100 or 115 grain Critical Duty .32 bullet that uses the "controlled expansion" or whatever in it as I find that the Critical Duty bullets can take very high velocities and not over expand and fall apart in tissue.

I think what the magnum .32's need is more ammo makers bringing out ammo for it. Hornady should start making .327 ammo, Winchester and Remington don't make any .32 Mag ammo currently, and some of the cheap foriegn ammo makers like PPU, Magtech, PMC, Aguila, etc. could start making some range ammo in .32 and .327 Mag to get some cheaper ammo on the shelves.

Beyond that, Smith, Taurus, and others need to bring out .32 revolvers again. Personally, I wouldn't buy a $250 Taurus .32 Mag, but others might and if it gets them into the caliber, great, that increases the market share and thus the demand.
 
The only disappointing one I saw was the Buffalo Bore .32 Mag not being able to deal with heavy clothing. I'd like to see BB switch whatever bullet they're using now (probably an XTP) to a Gold Dot. What I'd really like to see tho is Hornady come out with a 100 or 115 grain Critical Duty .32 bullet that uses the "controlled expansion" or whatever in it as I find that the Critical Duty bullets can take very high velocities and not over expand and fall apart in tissue.

I think what the magnum .32's need is more ammo makers bringing out ammo for it. Hornady should start making .327 ammo, Winchester and Remington don't make any .32 Mag ammo currently, and some of the cheap foriegn ammo makers like PPU, Magtech, PMC, Aguila, etc. could start making some range ammo in .32 and .327 Mag to get some cheaper ammo on the shelves.

Beyond that, Smith, Taurus, and others need to bring out .32 revolvers again. Personally, I wouldn't buy a $250 Taurus .32 Mag, but others might and if it gets them into the caliber, great, that increases the market share and thus the demand.

Charter Arms has a .32 H&R on the way that's built on the Bulldog frame. As such, it is a 7-shooter. Why they didn't do a .327 instead is somewhat confusing although I can only assume the design is probably not strong enough for the .327 FM.

Regarding bullets; it certainly would seem that Hornady could take their Critical Defense and add a bit more weight to it so that the load would achieve 12" after clothing. In typical Buffalo Bore fashion their 100 grain load is quite hot and would likely work very well with a Gold Dot. As it is now, it looks like Federal, Black Hills and Buffalo Bore are using Hornady XTP bullets. Finally, it appears that Speer has discontinued the 115 grain Gold Dot load.
 
https://thehighroad.org/index.php?threads/32-h-r-fans-rejoice.849159/

There is a quasi cult following of the 32 h&r and 327 here on THR. Yes, I am a member. The linked thread talks about the charter arms new offering cramming 7 shots in a cylinder. These rounds really make a nice comprise between capacity and pleasantness to shoot, the 327 has copious amounts of flash and bang.
I haven't noticed the flash with .327 being any worse than .357, but the bang is the same, recoil nearly so too, but that's shooting an SP101 with a small-ish grip.

I do think that the .327 is overkill in a .32 revolver for self defense (against humans at least, medium to large animals it's about right) which is why I like the idea of the 7 shot .32 Mag Charter is coming out with more and more. Ruger's marketing and management must have thought that if they were going to make a new .32 that was more powerful than .32 H&R Mag, it needed to be as close to .357 Mag as possible. It didn't have to be and in fact making the max pressure 45k PSI was way too high. I can't imagine capping the max pressure at 35k PSI wouldn't have increased the power insignificantly compared to .32 Mag's 21k PSI limit and had the max pressure for .327 been in the mid 30k range, Charter probably could make the new Professional in that lower pressure .327 vs .32 Mag.

That being said when I shoot .327 in the Henry Big Boy, that thing feels like a railgun with 100 grain loads, shoots like a laser beam.

Back to handguns, I just feel the Charter Professional is going to reinvigorate the .32 revolver for carrying. Too much is put either on making snub revolvers using the same dimensions built around a .38 or is put in making it a .327. 7 shots of .32 Mag is plenty sufficient for a defensive situation and given the much more controllable recoil, better/more ergonomic sized grip, and maybe the 3 inch barrel sight radius, I think the Professional is going to be a paradigm shift in the revolver market.
 
Ruger didn't create the .327. Federal did. Ruger happened to be the first company to produce a firearm for it.

Problem is too many people equate foot pounds of energy into some kind of indicator of terminal performance. As such, Federal created a cartridge with FP near 357 but allowing for a 6-shooter in J frames and SP101s.

Anyway, in talking with one of the Ruger sales and marketing managers, he tells me their line of .327s does quite well. Hopefully we will see more offerings in the future. I would welcome a Clapp SP101.
 
The 32 Magnum is proof of why I would go broke as a gun manufacturer.

I think the 32 Magnum is a excellent self-defense cartridge especially in J-Frame revolver. It has lighter recoil, has the advantage of a extra round (6 vs. 5 .38's) and there are good cartridges choices from Federal and Hornady.

I think the gun 'riters are a lot to blame for it not catching on. No one really promoted it for self defense and snobs know the 38 Special is the best choice in a snubby.

My 32's are single action revolvers, I have both 32-20 and 32 Magnums. The 32 magnum is just the straight wall version of the 32-20. My hands down favorite cartridge is the 32-20.
 
Charter Arms has a .32 H&R on the way that's built on the Bulldog frame. As such, it is a 7-shooter. Why they didn't do a .327 instead is somewhat confusing although I can only assume the design is probably not strong enough for the .327 FM.

Regarding bullets; it certainly would seem that Hornady could take their Critical Defense and add a bit more weight to it so that the load would achieve 12" after clothing. In typical Buffalo Bore fashion their 100 grain load is quite hot and would likely work very well with a Gold Dot. As it is now, it looks like Federal, Black Hills and Buffalo Bore are using Hornady XTP bullets. Finally, it appears that Speer has discontinued the 115 grain Gold Dot load.
Even though it's only 15% more mass and the 100 grain bullets penetrate just fine, the 115 grain Gold Dots were the heaviest hollow point for the .32 caliber and worked, so I'd like to see them offered again just for the sake of another bullet that might shoot better in different guns.

It's clear the Professional wouldn't be able to handle full power .327 as a 7 shot. Were .327 not so powerful, but not as weak as .32 Mag, it could have been possible.
 
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