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32-20 Winchester
ron65
Member Posts: 66 ✭✭
I recently obtained an old revolver .Barrel markings are as follows :
MANUEL ESCODIN EIBAR SPAIN 1926 MODEL REVOLVER 32 WINCHESTER CTG. From my research it appears to be chambered for the 32-20winchester round , a slightly bottlenecked cartridge .This seems to be bourne out by looking into the cylinder which is noticabley stepped in appearance.My question is how difficult a reloading prospect is this cartidge in terms of components etc ,anyone have any experiance with it ?At some point in time bubbaq got hold of it buffed it aggressively and had it nickel plated . It is in reasonable shape and fairly tight for its age
MANUEL ESCODIN EIBAR SPAIN 1926 MODEL REVOLVER 32 WINCHESTER CTG. From my research it appears to be chambered for the 32-20winchester round , a slightly bottlenecked cartridge .This seems to be bourne out by looking into the cylinder which is noticabley stepped in appearance.My question is how difficult a reloading prospect is this cartidge in terms of components etc ,anyone have any experiance with it ?At some point in time bubbaq got hold of it buffed it aggressively and had it nickel plated . It is in reasonable shape and fairly tight for its age
Comments
I used to load for a 92 Browning in 32-20. Never did more than put holes in paper, but could probably find some data on both jacketed and lead bullets. The very thin necks and problems I was having with crimp induced buckeling, helped introduce me to the Lee crimping tool. I love it for the 44-40, 32-20, and also had good luck with it in the Hornet, though for the most part I do as well without the crimp and it's easy to deform those tiny pills more than is good for them.
I use a Browning Mod 53 I haven't shot it much yet but will this spring and summer.we have lots of Richardson Ground Squirrels; (Small version of Prarie Dog)I am concerned about leading, I don't know if it is worse as you increase Velocity to say 1800fps.I found lots of re-loadind info on Loadata.com Ron
WACA Historian & Life Member
Rob,
I use a Browning Mod 53 I haven't shot it much yet but will this spring and summer.we have lots of Richardson Ground Squirrels; (Small version of Prarie Dog)I am concerned about leading, I don't know if it is worse as you increase Velocity to say 1800fps.I found lots of re-loadind info on Loadata.com Ron
Leading will be a problem at 1800 fps using a cast lead bullet. Your rifle is a modern gun, and it can easily handle the higher chamber pressures associated with the faster loads. Loaded with 80 - 85 grain bullets, you can push them to 2300+ fps. If you intend to stick with cast bullets, use a hard alloy, and keep the velocity under 1600 fps.
WACA Historian & Life Member
Bert, I rarely go to 100yds most shots are within 75 yds.I have some MEISTER 94 gr. cast bullets and Use Lee Dies with Factory Crimp Die.I have found Suitable jacket bullets from Speer,Sierra and Hornady.It kind of tees me off That factory load are all 100 gr and over $32/box when other calibers are less than $20/bon and I've never even seen a gun in those calibers.That tale about they cost more because they don't sell very many is balony.imho; Ron
Hello Ron,
It is the old supply and demand marketing ploy... more people are looking for and shooting the 32-20 than the oddball cartridges. There were a lot of old firearms made for the 32 W.C.F. cartridge... both rifles and handguns. In addition to Winchester, nearly all of the other old firearms manufacturers made at least one model chambered for it (Colt, Iver Johnson, Harrington & Richardson, Marlin, Remington, Savage, Stevens, S&W, just to name a few).
WACA Historian & Life Member
The only factory loads today are lead low velocity loads suitable for
the weakest guns.
Factory high speed loads were 80 gr jhp @ 2000fps and 100 gr jsp @ about 1650fps. Knowledgable handloaders can better that.
I knew a shooter who used medium lead loads on ferile dogs and was happy with the results.
Factory literature advertized the 32-20 as suitable for squirrels up to and including deer. Today it's not legal in some states for deer.
I use plated lead, Rem JSP 100 gr and Hornady JHP bullets.
It's probably best to trim all your brass to the same length to prevent buckling longer cases during crimping.
I use Lee dies.
Thanks for jogging my memory. My Browning was a 53. When I bought it the dealer had half a dozen and I spent an hour or so deciding which one had the prettiest wood. Probably should have kept it.
If you're interested, I have some brass and a few bullets that you might be able to use. Email address in in profile.
Take care,
RCrosby brought up an issue regarding problems reloading the .32-20 that I'd like to address.
I probably shouldn't be making this post at all, since I don't have all the information necessary for it to make sense, but I'm doing it anyway without all the facts at this time just to give people a heads up that if you are having problems reloading the .32-20, it may be the dies you are using. Realizing that there may be such a problem that applies to you could save you grief and expense.
I have not personally reloaded the .32-20, but I know a couple people who do for cowboy action shooting and they had one heck of a time with it until they found a solution. These guys shoot lots of rounds every month in practice and competition.
The problem these men described relates to the neck on the .32-20 case being damaged by the dies. Both these guys are using Dillon progressive equipment, were having problems with the Dillon dies and switched to another brand of die (don't know which) without solving the problem. I didn't file away all the details at the time, since I don't shoot .32-20, but in their words, Dillon "finally owned up" to the fact that they would not manufacture a die that was properly sized for the case due to some liability issue, which I never quite understood. My immediate thought was, "Then why make dies for this caliber at all if they know they won't work?"
The fix was to have die machined out a bit in some manner. I will pursue this with my two compardos and get back here with the details.
REGARDING BULLETS
The two guys I referred to above shoot only cast lead bullets and they buy in bulk (as I do) either through various suppliers or through one of the club members who bulk orders bullets by the ton. If you can find a cowboy action shooting club in your area, consult with them and see if they do something like that in which you can participate in a bulk order to save some bucks.
Also, determine the size of the .32-20 slug and look through the catalogs to see if there is another caliber bullet that matches the .32-20 specifations for size and the weight you want. Sometimes you can buy bullets cheaper than buying the "caliber" they've jacked the rent up on.
Another idea is that often you can buy a lighter or heavier weight bullet by substituting the "different caliber" bullet that has the same size specs as your caliber. In that vein, the cast lead bullet makers will very often offer non-standard bullet weights to the cowboy action shooters, who customize their loads for less recoil.
Of course, you should remember that if you substitute a substantially lighter or heavier bullet, you should consult a good set of loading tables or be a math whiz and match your powder charge to the bullet to ensure pressures are acceptable. Cast lead bullets require you to clean more often, but that's pretty much all I shoot and I don't have any problems.