Newbie wanting to load .32 S&W (short) with Pyrodex- what do I need?

[Chakotay]

i have no idea where Hurst, Tx is. Is there anyone that is within reach of this guy to give him a hand?

Thanks Wayne Smith. Hurst, TX is sort of a suburb of Dallas/Fort Worth. I'm actually looking forward to learning reloading. It's a skillset that I've always wanted to acquire.

[Bent Ramrod]

If I was in the OP’s shoes, I would scrounge the auction sites for a .32 S&W Short Ideal No 1 nutcracker tool in usable condition, for cheep.

Lead can be melted in any usable container with a torch or on a fire, and a teaspoon and gloves used to cast a few boolits in the mould on the end of the Ideal tool. They can be lubed by hand with lard and sized through the hole in the handle. Cases can be primed on the tool, and a depriming punch (likely missing) can be made of a hardwood dowel with a small brad in the end. A .22 LR empty case, soldered or glued to a handle, can be used to charge the cases with Pyrodex, and the assembly squeezed together in the tong tool.

After all the desired experience with loading and shooting the .32 S&W Short has been gained, the gun and tool can be cleaned and mounted in a shadow box, as a curio.

That’s about the most cost-effective way I can see to satisfy the casual curiosity.

[Wayne Smith]

Thanks Wayne Smith. Hurst, TX is sort of a suburb of Dallas/Fort Worth. I'm actually looking forward to learning reloading. It's a skillset that I've always wanted to acquire.

Then start with getting and reading the Lyman 50th! It will go way beyond what we can tell you.

[Oyeboten]

I've looked through Gunbroker. Currently there's only 2 listings for boxes of .32 S&W Short black powder. Listed at $110 and $135 respectively. The price isn't necessarily the issue, it's the fact that both are obviously vintage antique ammo. Almost more like collector pieces. I know ammo doesn't really "go bad", but I would like to insure it goes "bang" when I pull the trigger

Have you thoroughly cleaned and oiled the Mechanism and anything else which moves? ( LOrd only knows the last time anyone else may have! )

There's a quite a few various full Boxes of 32 S&W on Gunbroker right now, $17.00 and in to the 20-Dollars for a fifty round Box, of ordinary plain RNL Smokeless ones, which your Gun should be just fine with...it is not going to know or care if the Rounds are Smokeless or Black Powder...and any factory Smokeless Rounds of 32 S&W will be loaded so as to be just fine in the least strong of the BP era .32s chambering it....same as they do with 38 S&W.

One example from Gunbroker -

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/866903888



Brand new .32 S & W $31.00 a Box, from Midway -

https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1000433354

I'd say. just "Go for the Gusto!"

These are what I shoot in my Iver Johnson 'Bicycle Gun'.

Post us some nice images of the old 'Bull Dog' so we can see it?

[Oyeboten]

Thanks Wayne Smith. Hurst, TX is sort of a suburb of Dallas/Fort Worth. I'm actually looking forward to learning reloading. It's a skillset that I've always wanted to acquire.

Oh!

I see things have changed!

When I first got on to re-Loading I got a nice Lyman 'Tru Line Jr.' Press, and I got also a second Turret to accept the more common "fat" size dies all the other makes of Presses use.

These are very nice Presses for Hand Gun Cartridges, and are a joy to use.

The latter version of them have the jointed Articulating Arms which have some advantage over the earlier straight Arms.

ebay always has them, Gunbroker likely does also, I have two I am going to sell, and with the Turret for using fat Dies, one can load anything one wants then, Hand Gun wise, and use any Dies one likes...and or use the '
310' Dies in the Original small size Holes Turret.

Shell Holders are easy and inexpensive if one has a little patience and luck on ebay or elsewhere.

It is a Cast Iron Press, four hole Turret style, and very nicely made.

In a relaxed stride, from de-prime of empties, to ready-to-go Box of Fifty, any Hand Gun Cartridge, usually took me about 45 Minutes.

For Black Powder, one can simply make a Dipper to hold what one wants, using a cut down version of that Cartridge Case.


Viz: ( No connection to seller, just wanted to show an example - this is the one to get in my opinion, having the improved 'articulated' Arms instead of the straight Arms of the earlier versions ).

https://www.ebay.com/itm/LYMAN-TRU-L...UAAOSwKulerA5V

[Walks]

I bought a set of Lee dies for .32 Short & Wimpy to load .32S&W in my old LemonSqueezer.
They are a mix of .32acp & .32S&W Long dies. They work very poorly.
Sizing .321dia balls may not work too well. My Revolvers groove dia. is .313. I follow the Lyman #2 Cast Bullet Handbook and load the starting charge of Bullseye.

Found an OLD set of Lyman 310 dies on fleabay. Only ones I've seen in 4yrs. They work great with the Lyman #311252 Cast of 50/50 COWW/#2. Then PC'd with Smoke4320's Carolina Blue. End up at .314 with no sizing.

[Chakotay]

Man, lots of info. Thanks guys. However, the advice I'm seeing about using regular smokeless loads in this gun flies in the face of everything I've learned since I was a kid on safety. It's always been my understanding that smokeless powder in a black-powder firearm is tantamount to a hand grenade.

Below is a picture of the gun (actually, pre-1898 "non-firearm") in question:

[Walks]

I used to Cowboy Shoot with 2 Guys that shot Only pre 1898 Guns. They Shot Smokeless Powder only. Never had a problem.
Unfortunately both have passed on from Natural Causes.

It can be done safely.
I load .32 Short & Wimpy for My Grandmother's S&W LemonSqueezer. Dad took Her out to shoot it about every year until She passed. He also took My other Grandmother out to shoot Her H&R .38S&W every year until I came home from the Service. Then it became My job to take My Maternal Grandma shooting.
They didn't like each other much. After the divorce.......

I inherited both revolvers, but not the reloading gear.
An Old Cowboy Shooter suggested the Lyman Cast Bullet Handbook #2. Those recipes work very well.
I've shot 50-100rds a year in Cowboy SideMatches. From 1987 to 2011.
Worked well for me.

I loaded EVERY ROUND single stage with as much care as possible.

My Revolvers are in very good condition.

That matters a lot. I knew the provence on each gun. Neither had ever been abused and had been properly maintained.

Use good judgement.

[HumptyDumpty]

Man, lots of info. Thanks guys. However, the advice I'm seeing about using regular smokeless loads in this gun flies in the face of everything I've learned since I was a kid on safety. It's always been my understanding that smokeless powder in a black-powder firearm is tantamount to a hand grenade.

Below is a picture of the gun (actually, pre-1898 "non-firearm") in question:

Don't use smokeless, unless the gun was designed for it. The revolver probably will not explode, but will be damaged over time. It isn't a mater of total pressure in this case, so much as it is the pressure curve; smokeless has a very sudden pressure spike, compared to black powder. I have a very modest collection of these sorts of guns, with a particular focus on Iver Johnsons. In 1909, IJ introduced models capable of safely firing smokeless powder, briefly halting production completely of all Iver Johnson branded revolvers, in multiple models, to make the necessary changes. Any part which was deemed unsuitable was replaced in production.
It was common for people to ignore the manufacturers warnings at the time, and several of my guns are quite loose, and mostly worn-out, as a result. The source of this information, apart from my own experience, is a great book on the topic, by W.E Goforth "Iver Johnson Arms And Cycle Works Firearms, 1871-1993"

[garandsrus]

I have an Iver Johnson 38 S&W that is only rated for black powder. That’s all I am going to shoot in it.

[Wayne Smith]

I have two and a half Lyman TrueLine jr presses and some dies. Since dies currently are produced in only two calibers and 32S&W is not one of them I would never suggest such a press to a new reloader, unless I had already taught him/her on it and was going to gift it to him/her. It is not easy to find 32S&W dies any more, although I have a set.

For what the OP (Original Poster) wants the Lee dies/press he posted are very adequate, modern made, supported and better in all ways for a new loader. Once he is addicted we can introduce him to the good old stuff!

PS. Mine is my grandmother's muff pistol - and when I took it to the range one of the range masters with huge experience (US Marine sniper) asked me about it. (He likes my guns) I told him my load and started down to the pistol range I noticed he was following me. I ask him why? He said "I just wanted to make sure it went through the target backing!" One grain BE is not an unsafe load, but I approve your desire to only use Black.

[richhodg66]

I've loaded the .32 (short) on a set of .32 S&W Long dies and used an 85 or so grain RN cast bullet designed for the .32 ACP. I used the starting load of 1.1 grain of Bullseye. Was shooting this in an old top break Iver Johnson from about the turn of the century.

For what it's worth before you go making dippers, my Lyman 55 threw consistent 1.1 grain 10 for ten when I tried it out. I think I'd skip the black powder loading if it was me.

[Wayne Smith]

The OP is brand new to reloading and has no equipment and wants to load his old 32 in BP or Pyrodex. I don't blame him for that, it is the safest way to do it. I'm assuming he shoots his C&B revolvers with Pyrodex, which is why he specified it.

[HumptyDumpty]

You'll have some difficulty finding a manual which list 32 S&W (or 32 Short, as it is often called)

[richhodg66]

You'll have some difficulty finding a manual which list 32 S&W (or 32 Short, as it is often called)

I got it from my go-to loading manual which can be downloaded for free here; http://marvinstuart.com/firearm/Manu...-%20Reduce.pdf

[HumptyDumpty]

I got it from my go-to loading manual which can be downloaded for free here; http://marvinstuart.com/firearm/Manu...-%20Reduce.pdf

That is one heck of a resource, thank you for sharing! It's somewhat gratifying, to see that me pet smokeless load (1.4 grains of 700x, under a 78 grain projectile) is right in line with published data.

[Chakotay]

Got my load of stuff from Midway! The press I bought on eBay second-hand. The Pyrodex and Lee Safety Scale I already had (not sure I'll even need the scale). Jeez, this is getting expensive!

OK, anything screaming "I bought the wrong thing"?

[mac1911]

I got it from my go-to loading manual which can be downloaded for free here; http://marvinstuart.com/firearm/Manu...-%20Reduce.pdf

Nice
good link!

[mac1911]

Got my load of stuff from Midway! The press I bought on eBay second-hand. The Pyrodex and Lee Safety Scale I already had (not sure I'll even need the scale). Jeez, this is getting expensive!

OK, anything screaming "I bought the wrong thing"?

Could you use TrailBoss or even Blackhorn 209 ?

[Chakotay]

Could you use TrailBoss or even Blackhorn 209 ?

It's just that I already have a few of canisters of Pyrodex P. That's why I was planning on using it. I'm familiar with it. I've never shot "real" black powder before.