Anybody make 32 wcf lever action?

[Unforgiven]

I'm in the market for a 32wcf lever gun. I think it would be a fun plinker and small game rifle. Are there any current production rifles being chambered for the 32-20?

[square butte]

Cimarron/Uberti - 1873 & 1866 Winchester copies. Then there is a fairly recent Browning/Winchester model 53 made by Miroku in Japan

[northmn]

Good luck. The 357 chambering in some rifles, like Rossi has kind of taken its place. A good 357 does have some attraction over the 32-20. Saying that I sold the Rossi 357 after I acquired a 32-20 Marlin. The Marlin just plain outshot the Rossi. But a 357 does offer a lot of attributes of a 32-20 with far more available loads and brass.

DP

[Unforgiven]

I've thought long about a 357 lever gun, just for the reasons stated above. Anticipating using the rifle to replace my 22lr as a plinking gun, and for rabbit and squirrel hunting. I've got tons of 38 brass and appropriate boolit molds so it might be a good option.

A couple things drew me to the 32/20. The first is it is a historically acurate chambering, and that would give me much pleasure. The second reason is I thought it would damage meat less than the 38, but I'm not sure if that assumption is correct as I've never used either on game.

[OuchHot!]

I have both the Marlin 32-20 and the browning. The marlin has a very sloppy chamber but shoots admirably. The browning is wonderful but used guns are too high.....I'm glad I bought mine when I did. For the money, I can highly recommend the Marlin.

[DeadWoodDan]

Its on my wish list also, since i have an original high wall chambered in it. But having a few revolvers in .357 and the cost I purchased a Rossi last year in .357. Glad i went that route, lots to play with thus far. Someday i will have the 32-20 lever....also am a big fan of the Ruger Blackhawk and if your lucky you can pick up that in 32-20 for enough cash.
DWD

[Dan Cash]

Take $900.00 and search the net; you will find a fine Marlin .32-20. After breaking my neck last spring, I bought one as I could not tolerate recoil. It is the most useful rifle I own; easy on lead and powder, accurate enough for coyotes to 200 yards, a lot like a .22 Magnum on steroids. It is pretty hard on meat.

[OuchHot!]

For me the 32-20 Marlin sorta bridges from 22LR type shooting on up to coyote and Turkey. It is really versatile, tolerating a broad range of loads very well. I have heard that the cowboy shooters have adopted it and that has run the prices up. Don't know for sure.

[northmn]

I really do not know what to say about the 38/357 on destroying more meat than a 32-20. Both are more damaging than a 22 LR. Use of round nose bullets can help alleviate that as does reduction in velocity. Also a good hardcast works well. My 32-20's offer little if any expansion in small game but the 30 caliber hole is fairly large. I have taken small game with a 38 revolver and had little problem, but generally I try to head shoot them so that the damage is not an issue.
The 32-20 was offered in a 73 Winchester and for a cowboy shooter would be an historically correct caliber. It is easy to reload for and I have used both a Lee 120 grain bullet and a 100 grain pistol bullet as cast and lubed with Lee Liquid Alox. As the pistol bullet does nopt ahve a crimp groove I have gone back to the 120 grain as some claim they can stovepipe without one in a lever, but I admit I have not had that problem, but I only load about 2 or 3 in the magazine. It also is very easy on powder and not all that fussy there either. Right now I am using up some powders that I have no further need for in other calibers, but it does not use them up very fast.
The original load is about like shooting a 22 and uses a 100 grain bullet but the Lyman 115 grain is another famous bullet for the little cartridge.

DP

[GabbyM]

I never personally not had much luck greatly downloading 30-30. Used Unique so maybe red dot or similar would of worked better. I got a dirty burn and so so accuracy. With 8.0 grains of Unique under a 140gr FN. Then sights don't shoot to where your more powerful loads do so it's not really a dual round gun.

32-20 would IMHO be sweet. They will do less damage than a 357 assuming similar velocity. Which translates into trajectory.
My now ex wife used to have an H&R 32 mag pistol in Ruger SP101. Was plenty of gun and a 32-20 rifle would out do that.

One of my neighbors back when I was a kid in the 1960's. Had a Marlin 32 rim-fire which had belonged to his father in southern Indiana. Way he described it to me. You have a squirrel and small game rifle. But if a large varmint shows up you've enough gun to put it down. Back those days it would of been a fox in the chicken coup. Now we have other targets of opportunity like coyotes and hogs depending upon where you live. Here in Illinois the largest critter you can legally shoot with a CF rifle is a coyote So if you like lever guns. You can only shoot at night as far as your light shines anyways. I've shot a couple hundred critters with 32 caliber round ball. Via OO buckshot in nine ball 12 gage shotgun loads at 1,530 fps. One ball hitting was all it ever took. So I know a 32 will kill critters. 32-20 is far quitter than a 12 gage.

[xgboy]

Interesting thread. I find myself with three 32WCF rifles: 1914 Marlin 1894, 1894CL, and a Browning 53. I guess I like the caliber. Also have a Marlin lever in .357. The .357 is probably more versatile, but the .32 wins on historical appeal and 'different' factor. Their application ranges clearly overlap. As a caster/loader, you can absolutely dictate any 'splat factor' on small edible game. Loaded to long rifle or less velocity, both calibers are not objectionably destructive (Besides, we all only make head shots, yeah right?) The 32WCF may be the better small game specialist. I do resent flinging that valuable brass into the leaf litter, though! Wish I had a nice single shot. When plinking, I often single load, anyway. The .357s are clearly cheaper to run. None of our current choices are inexpensive. The Marlin '94s are, far and away, the most available. I like toying with 'cat-sneeze' loads, and this thread has now got me thinking for the first time about round ball possibilities. The Lyman 311008 has worked well, but I'd like to find a deal on a gas check number. I would suggest avoiding trying to make the 32 into a 357: hard on that thin brass. Clearly there is no wrong answer to the pistol caliber levergun question. Pax

[northmn]

Interesting thread. I find myself with three 32WCF rifles: 1914 Marlin 1894, 1894CL, and a Browning 53. I guess I like the caliber. Also have a Marlin lever in .357. The .357 is probably more versatile, but the .32 wins on historical appeal and 'different' factor. Their application ranges clearly overlap. As a caster/loader, you can absolutely dictate any 'splat factor' on small edible game. Loaded to long rifle or less velocity, both calibers are not objectionably destructive (Besides, we all only make head shots, yeah right?) The 32WCF may be the better small game specialist. I do resent flinging that valuable brass into the leaf litter, though! Wish I had a nice single shot. When plinking, I often single load, anyway. The .357s are clearly cheaper to run. None of our current choices are inexpensive. The Marlin '94s are, far and away, the most available. I like toying with 'cat-sneeze' loads, and this thread has now got me thinking for the first time about round ball possibilities. The Lyman 311008 has worked well, but I'd like to find a deal on a gas check number. I would suggest avoiding trying to make the 32 into a 357: hard on that thin brass. Clearly there is no wrong answer to the pistol caliber levergun question. Pax

Just lost one in the snow also. Basically many of us load the 32-20 up a bit such that the 30-30 isn't so bad loaded down. While I will take a 30-30 over a 357 for loading down to small game and up for deer, I do enjoy the 32-20. Just bought a Henry 22mag as another rilfe for that use when I get tired of reloading and casting (and the 32-20 when you can't find rimfire ammo).

DP