32 longs in a 32-20 colt pistol

[bouncer50]

I have a old Colt 32-20 is it safe to shoot 32 long in it. The reason i asking is i reload for both but i have a lot of brass for 32 longs and short. The bullet size is about the same. 32-20 brass is not that easy to find any more. I hunt the flea market never found any 32-20 but a lot of 32 short and long brass dirt cheap.

[Green Frog]

You will find that 32 Long (or Short) rounds are excessively loose in the 32-20 chamber. You might be able to get them to go off, but ignition would be sketchy and accuracy would be pretty much nonexistent. Go to a gun show or online and buy a hundred rounds or two of new Star*Line brass in 32-20 and load it carefully and it should last a very long time. The 32-20 is the exception to the rule though... if you have a 327 FM or 32 H&R chambering, you can go shorter with impunity. I do it all the time.

Froggie

[Guesser]

Probably the 32 Long case will split, the body of the 32-20 is substantially larger than the body of the 32 Long. Simply put; it is your gun, ammunition and safety. Be cautious!!

[Twmaster]

Bad idea. Just do as suggested and get the right ammo or components to make the correct ammo.

[9.3X62AL]

Most calibers of brass have been hard to find for 2-3 years now. To my mind, this does not justify the use of poorly-fitting cartridges just to enable firing a given firearm. Use of 32 S&W or S&W Long brass in a 32-20 revolver is NOT something I would do. Any brass fired in this manner would either split upon firing or distend so much that resizing would be impossible. Such wastes of brass run counter to the whole rationale for reloading ammunition at all.

[DuckHunterJon]

Just one more confirmation of a no. I have a convertible in 32-20 / 32 H&R. I dropped a 32 long in the cylinder once and was dismayed how sloppy it was - then realized I had the wrong cylinder in. The shorts and longs work fine in the H&R, but not in the 32-20.