32-20 winchester

pulsarnc

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

pulsarnc

Hi! Does any one shoot 32-20 regularly?,What gun? do you load your own? Do you use Jacketed or plain Lead?.Do you shoot Prarie Dogs with it or Ground squirrels or Coyotes? Ron

Bert H.

Why reload... you can still buy factory loaded 32-20 ammo, and it is quite anemic stuff.

RCrosby

Depending on actual bore diameter, should be no problem. I had an original Win. 73 and a Browning 53 that I reloaded for. Speer makes a nice little jacketed hollow point. Memory tells me 100 grains, but I may be off on that. No special trick to reloading, other than the thin neck walls. It, and the .44-40, are two rounds that I found the Lee factory crimp die to be especially useful with. Otherwise it's easy to buckle the necks if everything isn't adjusted just right.
Should be a fun toy. I'm sure there are good bulk cast bullets available as well. Starline, I think, makes brass.
Have fun.

Pearyw

It is an easy cartridge to load. I use cast lead bullets. Components are available. It is a bottleneck cartridge, so you will have to lube your brass. Data is in most manuals.

rufe-snow

I would take it to a competent gunsmith for inspection and test firing. If you intend to shoot it. The older Spanish made revolvers were cheaply made, with questionable quality steel/workmanship. Timing and cylinder lock-up would be the main consideration with one of these Spanish made revolvers, thats probably at least 80 years old. If it does check out OK, I would only use very light handloads or one of the SASS type cowboy loads if you can find any for the .32-20.

nmyers

I don't about you guys, but my Lyman reloading manual says that the .32-20 cartridge should be fired only in a rifle designed for smokeless powder, never in a handgun.

In the 1920's several Spanish companies rechambered revolvers of dubious quality from 8mm Lebel to .32 cal for sale to the US market. My personal rule is, only fire ammunition in a firearm for which it was designed.

Guns are too cheap, & my face is too pretty, to take a chance on this combination.

Neal

tsr1965

quote:Originally posted by nmyers
I don't about you guys, but my Lyman reloading manual says that the .32-20 cartridge should be fired only in a rifle designed for smokeless powder, never in a handgun.

In the 1920's several Spanish companies rechambered revolvers of dubious quality from 8mm Lebel to .32 cal for sale to the US market. My personal rule is, only fire ammunition in a firearm for which it was designed.

Guns are too cheap, & my face is too pretty, to take a chance on this combination.

Neal




Neal,

The 32-20 has been chambered in handguns since it was first chambered in the Colt SAA's. The stuff loaded today reflects those lower pressures, but that is not to say there is not a box or two of the high speed stuff intended for the 1892 Winchester's out there.

As for the Spanish made revolver...I believe I would totally pass on that.

Best

ruger41

S&W and Colt made hundreds of thousands of revolvers in .32-20 WCF including Post Black powder era guns--so long as you use loads designed for handguns and NOT the .32-20 High Speed loadings speficially for rifles then there is no issue so long as YOUR gun is mechanically sound. GENERALLY factory loads intended for .32-20 rifles say so on the box--Remington is one right off the top of my head that has/had both rifle only and standard pressure loads. The majority of the other factory .32-20 loads on the market are loaded for cowboy action and are very light and will work in either pistol or rifle.

kms1961

32-20 are fun little rounds queit and no recoil.as previosly said was a rifle and pistol cartridge much as the rest of the wcf family. and also if you reload make sure you don't nick the neck or ruined case for sure as with the 38 and 44-40. i shoot 100 gr cast out of mine with universal. very mild loads and acuurrate. after loading the 375 h&h its a pleasure to load a few grs of powder. best of luck and have fun

v35

It's not difficult to reload but use light,lead bullet loads specifically for light frame revolvers, not Single Action Colt Armies.

pulsarnc

Thanks guys I have been reloading for about 15 years NMEYERS , mine looks like your pic only nickel plated . And yes it will be checked by my local smith before I shoot it again thanks for all the info