help me find a 32-40 cast bullet

[Range Gypsy]

Hi I'm new here and looking for help finding a cast bullet for my 32-40.

The mould I have - Lyman 319247 , 165gr throws a bullet .3205 and is keyholeing at 25 yrds. I slugged the bore at .329 which explains a lot but I can't seem to find a larger mould. I've tried a couple of different loads in the 1100 - 1250 fps range. No luck.

The rifle is a marlin 1893 made in 1900 but the bore looks mint, with sharp rifleing , so much so that it was sujjested that it may have been rebarreled. It is a Marlin barrel, with the correct stamps. But the bluing is brighter than on the rest of the gun also.

I am hoping someone can point me to a mould that will throw a larger bullet in that weight range

[beagle]

Oh man, that's a hard one. Lyman once made a #328371 but I've never even seen one in all my mould wheeling and dealing so they're few and far between.

Maybe take a 33820 and run it through a couple of nose first sizers and bring it down to about .330" and try that. Of course, that's assuming you have or can find a .338, .334 and .330 sizer die.

Any option you elect will be expensive.

I'd take that mould you have and "beagle" it up a little and then paper patch it and see if that makes any difference. If it shows promise, get a custom mould made for it.

IF....... a .32-40 loaded with a bullet that big will even chamber in your rifle.

Sorry to be pesimistic but that's a hard diameter to find./beagle

[jhrosier]

A bore that large could mean that the rifle was rebored to 33-40.
It was a pretty common practice back in the day.
Before you spend any more money, you really should do a chamber cast to find out what you have.

Jack

[405]

Whew that is way big. First I'd slug it again to make sure. "measure twice, cut once". Then I'd mic the neck on a fired round to get some idea of the chamber/neck diameter. That will help determine how fat a bullet can be and still chamber in that gun.

Follow these, step by step:
1) measure fired case neck dia.
2) measure neck wall thickness.
3) double neck wall thickness measurement.
4) subtract that 2X thickness from fired neck dia. = max bullet diameter
5) subtract .003" from "max bullet dia." = max practical bullet diameter.
That should allow about .004" for case neck release upon firing.

I've dealt will all manner of getting old originals to shoot their best. I have 2 Win. 1885s in 32-40 and a Win 94 in 32-40. Each one is slightly different but none even come close to that .329" groove diameter! They all fall between .322" and .323" groove.

Like beagle, this is a tough one because none of the common molds are even close to what you'd need... a .329-.330" bullet. The closest I see is a Lyman 323470 listed for an 8MM. It's not a FP so at best a single shot in the lever gun :(

Again, I'd slug the bore again to make sure and check the case neck dimension. Then if indeed it is a .329" groove gun I'd go to a site like MM and design a 150-170 gr GC FP bullet best for that gun. A MM mold will run about 120.00 +/-. Just spend enough time and double check every detail of the design before ordering. MM molds are excellent if the data entered is good. :)

http://www.mountainmolds.com/

[Leftoverdj]

Lee's C329-205-1R

PS -- Someone will jump in any minute telling you to paper patch what you have. I don't do it, but those who do swear by it.

[405]

May also work as a single shot of some form?... but I'd check the gun's max OAL against that long nose when loaded. May have to taper crimp in front of the front drive band and onto the bore riding shank of the nose??:):)

[Loudenboomer]

You could try several wraps of teflon tape around an 8mm boolit then run threw a .329 sizer. Also this could be a good candidate for a paper patch application. Untold millions of paper patched 32-40 rounds have been sent down range.

[BPCR Bill]

I agree with Loudenboomer. Paper Patch, though time consuming, is one route. The other is a custom mould. I wouldn't fret too much about how the rifle got to be overbore. I have a buddy with a vintage Winchester in 40-65, and that barrel is ovebore by quite a bit. It's not unusual for factory rifles of the 19th century to be a bit large in the spout.

As long as you have the true barrel dimensions, send that along with the twist rate to any custom mould maker such as Dave Farmer at Colorado Shooters Supply, Steve Brooks, Barry Darr, Paul Jones, etc. Make sure you get the proper size case neck expander for your dies as well.

Regards,
Bill

[beagle]

On sleeping on this...... I have a 323470 that drops bullets at .325". This may be able to be "beagled" up tp .329". Next time i cast, I'll give it a try. It shoots all right in my .32-40 as I have to downsize. I bump a flat on the nose and it's fine in the lever but I got better bullets for the .32-40 and .32 Special./beagle

[gschwertley]

Lee makes a .329 bullet mold in 205 gr. for the Austrian 8x56R; it's the typical long RN lead bullet for military-type rifles. Hornady makes a 205 gr. jacketed spitzer bullet for the same application, but it mightn't be appropriate for the .32-40/.33-40. I believe this jacketed bullet is made for Grafs and sold by them. Buffalo Arms also offers a jacketed .329, if I remember correctly, about 175 grains.