Hickory
01-23-2012, 10:03 AM
The Misnamed Cartridge.
There are some cartridges that start life the way they should, as a need for a certain application or to fill a particular niche. Most new cartridges are to increase velocities of an existing cartridge. Case in point, 357 magnum over the 38 special. Another would be the 44 magnum over the 44 special. These longer and stronger cases were developed to increase the velocities of the slower, but adequate cartridge. To not only increase the range, but, the killing power of the new round as well.
Almost all cartridges “grow up” as time passes and need increases. The 38 S&W started life in a weak break top action. And evolved into the 38 special when stronger actions and better metals were developed. It was only a matter of time until the 357 would come along as the need for a faster, more powerful cartridge was realized. And not to be ignored, the 357 Maximum, that stands heads and shoulders above the rest. This is the proper progression of cartridge development. The 357 magnum would not have been well received with the first break action pistols. With it blowing up every time you pulled the trigger.
So, let’s get to the point of the misnamed cartridge, and why I think it has been sent out into the shooting world on an ego trip. This cartridge is the 32 magnum. Now don’t get me wrong, I like the 32 magnum. I have 5 of them, but I think when H&R along with Federal developed this case for the fairly weak H&R action, they had to keep the pressure low enough to keep the guns together.
In my humble opinion it should have been named 32 special. Because it is special, in that it is more powerful than the 32 long. By misnaming the 32 special, the 32 magnum, it throw off the natural sequence of case/cartridge development. So, when the 327 Federal came along, its birth right was already stolen from it. And now the true 32 magnum will have to spend its existence incognito with an assumed name of 327 Federal.
There are some cartridges that start life the way they should, as a need for a certain application or to fill a particular niche. Most new cartridges are to increase velocities of an existing cartridge. Case in point, 357 magnum over the 38 special. Another would be the 44 magnum over the 44 special. These longer and stronger cases were developed to increase the velocities of the slower, but adequate cartridge. To not only increase the range, but, the killing power of the new round as well.
Almost all cartridges “grow up” as time passes and need increases. The 38 S&W started life in a weak break top action. And evolved into the 38 special when stronger actions and better metals were developed. It was only a matter of time until the 357 would come along as the need for a faster, more powerful cartridge was realized. And not to be ignored, the 357 Maximum, that stands heads and shoulders above the rest. This is the proper progression of cartridge development. The 357 magnum would not have been well received with the first break action pistols. With it blowing up every time you pulled the trigger.
So, let’s get to the point of the misnamed cartridge, and why I think it has been sent out into the shooting world on an ego trip. This cartridge is the 32 magnum. Now don’t get me wrong, I like the 32 magnum. I have 5 of them, but I think when H&R along with Federal developed this case for the fairly weak H&R action, they had to keep the pressure low enough to keep the guns together.
In my humble opinion it should have been named 32 special. Because it is special, in that it is more powerful than the 32 long. By misnaming the 32 special, the 32 magnum, it throw off the natural sequence of case/cartridge development. So, when the 327 Federal came along, its birth right was already stolen from it. And now the true 32 magnum will have to spend its existence incognito with an assumed name of 327 Federal.