CZ-83 7.65 Browning(.32 ACP)

[BustemAgain]

This .32 caliber bug I have been nursing finally has spread from revolvers to automatics. I have been thinking about a .32 automatic for awhile now but not too many have impressed me feature wise. Most have little, indistinct and non adjustable sights if they have any at all. I wasn't looking for a belly gun but something suitably for general woods loafing, small game hunting and a coat pocket companion for big game season.
I think I have found the answer to my search and I just picked her up from my dealer this afternoon. Last month some dealer had a CZ-83 in .32 ACP on Gun Broker that he kept re listing with a buy it now price of $380 or so. This peeked my interest and then I read Ed Harris's piece in the latest "Fouling Shot" about shooting cast in the .32 auto and I knew there was no stopping now. I called CZ-USA and was informed that although uncatalogued CZ-83s are indeed available in
.32 automatic. Next call was placed to my dealer. One was ordered and 2 days later(today) I picked her up for the pleasing sum of $320.
So far I am impressed and quite pleased. Over all she is about the same size as my 3 inch S&W model 31 although a bit more dense. The sights are the same as those on current CZ-75s,quite sturdy phosphorescent 3-dots with different height front and rears available from CZ. The trigger is amazingly smooth and light in both double and single action, nearly equal to the aforementioned S&W. Each of the 2 mags provided hold 15 rounds. Frame mounted safety allows for cocked and locked carry. I was really excited to find that it headspaces on the case mouth and not the rim like every other .32 ACP I have heard of. I don't yet know how accurate she will be but a quick 5-shot group @ 7 yds. with Fiocchi 73 gr Ball put 4 shots into less than half an inch with the first shot opening it to just under an inch and to point of aim as well.
I am very happy so far and all I need is a quality holster and a few new moulds
(RCBS 32-90-CM being at the top of my list and Lee's 311-93-1R being next) and I am ready for the Morels to start popping up and winter to be gone for another year.

BustemAgain

[txpete]

congrads on the CZ 83 and looking fwd to hearing about you cast loads.I picked up a CZ82 a couple of months back but have only shot some 9mm mak S&B surplus/brown bear in it so far.I want to try some cast loads in the 82 but with the poly bore I have put it off for now.
pete

[BustemAgain]

Got a chance this afternoon to get to the range. I put 290 rounds through my CZ83,
200 of 73gr Fiocchi Ball,50 of Winchester 60gr Silvertips and 40 of Speer 60gr GoldDots. Everything functioned without a hitch except I had one GoldDot get jammed at the top of the magazine and fail to feed.
I noticed there is quite a bit of variation in case design, not to mention overall, length between these three brands and I believe that is the cause of the problem with GoldDots. They had the largest diameter rim (.357in) and the smallest(.035in) and shallowest(.310in) extractor groove of the three along with the shortest overall length(.895in). I could feel and see them stacking goofy in the magazines because of this. I don't see myself looking through leaves and grass to retrieve this brass after I reload it. The Fiocchi brass is quite different with a .355 rim and a
.050in extractor groove that is quite deep at .304in and has a very shallow-angle cut transitioning to the body of the case. These stack in the magazine beautifully and it is easy to load 15 in the mag. This seems like excellent brass.
I shot three 6 shot groups at 25 yds with each load and accuracy broke down like this. Fiocchi 73gr Ball: 3.46in average. Speer GoldDot 60gr: 2.63in average. And the accuracy Champ Winchester 60gr Silvertips: 1.40 in average.
The barrel on my 83 slugs out at .3085in. I pulled the bullets on one cartridge of each load. The Fiocchi slug measures only .308in while the other two measure
.312in. I imagine this has a bit to due with the accuracy results. But it also leaves me scratching my head as to what diameter to size my boolits to. Any suggestions?
I have never reloaded any cartridge this small in a pistol and am really looking forward to my dies and molds arriving so I can get to work. I would really like to here anybody else's experience with this cartridge and what worked best for them.

BustemAgain

[9.3X62AL]

Another mid-caliber fanatic here, and longtime loader of the 32 ACP. I looked at that CZ-83 on the website awhile back, it's not importable into California without 10-round magazines--so I set the idea of getting one aside. I'm glad to hear that the Model 83 maintains the good name of the CZ line.

My most-fired 32 ACP currently is a Walther PP. It suffers from the rudimentry sights you mention, but will still shoot well with due diligence and half-decent lighting. The Winchester Silvertips are ACCURATE PLUS in a pistol that can exploit the caliber's and the ammunition's capabilities.

I see you have noted the variances in brass for this caliber. Maybe that Fiocchi ammo is loaded to "full value"--most American ball 32 ACP barely makes 800 FPS. Weak-sistered stuff. I use Winchester brass, it is long enough to prompt headspacing at the case mouth instead of the rim as you are trying to accomplish. Even with Win brass, a pass/fail case length check at .675" results in 8%-10% scrap rate.

My long favorite cast boolit in this caliber is Lyman #313249. Either 2.5 grains of Alliant Unique or 2.2 grains of WW-231 give around 800 FPS, and the full-caliber square shoulder on this boolit provide reliable stopping of small game and vermin. Don't accept these powder weights as "given"--you may need to adjust seating depths with heavier-for-caliber boolits to get proper fit in the chamber throat, so start low and go slow. You can run outta powder space in a hurry with this diminutive case. A more rounded boolit profile might make life less complicated, but the #313249's work fine in my pistol.

There aren't a whole lot of people casting and reloading for the 32 ACP these days, but a good 75 grain truncated cone or round flat nose design for this caliber would be a real delight. Last but not least--I have a Lyman #311419, an odd little 30/31 caliber flatnose gascheck design weighing about 88 grains. It might be a good small game boolit in the 32 ACP, but the use of gas checks for a 32 ACP is almost decadent--and pretty pricey.