Formed .32 Long Colt cases....

[Harry O]

130673

The one on the left is a formed case for the .32 Long Colt. The center one is a formed case loaded. I have finished a little over 100 formed cases so far. They were originally .32 S&W Long cases. The case on the right is a factory .32 Long Colt case. The bullets are from a Lyman/Ideal 299155. The bullet on the left has been pan lubed, which is why it looks a little "off". It isn't.

I drilled a bunch of holes in a block of steel to try this out. Hammered the cases into the holes and then drove them out as I worked down in size. It worked, but they were pretty ugly. I got a Lee sizing die in 0.323" and one in 0.314". The cases from the sizing dies were much better. The larger one sizes the .32 S&W Long case full length. The smaller one only sizes it down to the bottom 1/8" to 5/32" of the case. There is a "belt" around the case where the head is solid. I have to turn off a little bit around the bottom of the case.

I have fire formed about 60 so far and had only one crack. I will be fire forming the remaining ones this weekend. Then it will be time to develop some loads and adjust the sights of the gun.

[Mk42gunner]

Looks good Harry. I never thought about using a .323" die as an intermediate step, but it does make sense.

A few years ago I ran a .32 H&R case into a Lee .311" die to see if it would work. I decided I needed a .314, and to trim the lower end of the die a bit so the case would be sized further towards the case head. I kind of let that project go for a while, maybe I can get it going again this year.

Robert

[Reg]

If you have .32 LC dies, just use a flat block on the end of the press ram and push the .32 S&W case completely into the .32 LC die less the rim itself. In other words, stop when the rim contacts the end of the die. The die would be less any decapping assy. Then use a short piece of 1/4" brass rod and tap the formed case out of the die. There will be a small "belt" on the base of the case that will have to be removed. a small lathe and a fitted, tapered mandrel are a good way to go. Check for overall length.
Have made up a few of these cases just as an experiment and they look good, seem to work.
Imperial is a good sizing lube.

[Harry O]

If you have .32 LC dies, just use a flat block on the end of the press ram and push the .32 S&W case completely into the .32 LC die less the rim itself.
Imperial is a good sizing lube.

I do have the 32LC dies, but I decided to get the 0.314" sizing die to reduce any wear or damage to the 32LC sizing die. The .32LC sizing die is MUCH more expensive than the Lee sizing die. I am using some old lube I tied to make some time back to lube the case before it goes into the sizing dies. It did not work well enough as lube, but it is great for sizing -- lots of beeswax in it.

BTW, the final diameter of the formed cases is NOT 0.314". It ends up between 0.315" and 0.316" because of springback of the brass. This works out great since the SAAMI specs call for a case diameter between 0.312" and 0.318". What I end up with is just about in the middle.

[Ballistics in Scotland]

The methods described should work well. With a higher pressure round, if you formed it right down to the solid head, you would have to worry about either of two things. You might leave a slight thinning of the case wall, which could be a cause of separations rather further back (and therefore more likely to liberate gases) than they normally are. This shouldn't be a danger with the .32.

It is also possible, if you reduce part of the solid head, that you could reduce the size of the primer pocket. It might be useful to have a pocket swage or reamer handy. I might turn a sort of dummy shell holder, flat except for a primer-sized stud to fit inside the pocket.

For someone with no lathe, it might be a good idea to make two holes in that steel block, one sharp-edged to shave off that final bulge right down to the rim. Another useful tool is a mandrel to fit an electric screwdriver, onto which the case is a tight fit. You can then shave off the brass against a small carpenter's rebate plane. A faster electric drill is too liable to wobble and bounce.

[Harry O]

In theory, I could see how this might reduce the size of the primer pocket. In real life, though, it does not. I have loaded a little over 100 of them and there was no problem with seating the primers on any of them.

I did have one case fail while firing the first 60. It did start at where the solid head ends and tore upward to the mouth. Either there was a flaw in the original case or (more likely) I got it too thin at that point . In any case, the split case was not dramatic. I did not realize it happened until I started sizing and decapping the cases. I have formed a number of different types of cases in the past and had a few of them split on firing. None of them were a significant problem. In all cases, if it did not split while fireforming, it was good for many firings afterward.

[texassako]

Good idea using the Lee .323 die. I will have to remember that one. I have used the hole in a steel block method for a few 'experiments'. A HF arbor press is much easier than a hammer, and is a better way of using my Lyman Ideal FL Resizers as well.

[Harry O]

I fired the remaining 45 cartridges. No splits with them. So, I had one failure in about 105 formed cases. I can live with that. I intend to section the failed case to see if it was too thin.

The gun is surprisingly accurate for a 0.299" bullet bouncing down a 0.312" hole. The bullets are as soft as I could get them. The limiting factor was adding enough tin to get easy fillout. I am using 1oz tin to 48oz pure lead. The Bhn is only about 6 so that helps them expand to grab the rifling. The bullet nose does flatten slightly when seating it because it is so soft.

The next thing I am going to work on is adjusting the sights to center the group. I have to cast some more bullets to do that. Unfortunately, it is the slowest casting mould I have. Even with the pot turned all the way hot, it does not keep the mould hot enough to get good casting. I have to put the mould on a hotplate I have between each cast to keep it hot enough to get good fillout.

[Harry O]

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On the left are 150 homemade cases for the .32 Long Colt. About 60 of them are unloaded and 90 of them are loaded. All are made from .32 S&W Long cases. That should provide me for enough cases to experiment with for a while. I will probably make another 50 or so when I run across some more once-fired S&W Long cases that are cheap.

On the right is one of the guns, the Hollow-Base mould for it and a box that had a bunch of real .32LC cases in it. The gun has an original Pachmyr grip adapter for this specific gun on it. I don't really need it, but it does not hurt, and it would be a shame not to put it on since I have it. I am at the stage of adjusting the fixed sights so that it hits what I see as the center.

[Mk42gunner]

Neat little Colt there, Harry. Have you thought about getting a heeled bullet mold? I know Tom at Accurate Molds has two or three designs meant for the .32 Colt rounds, they would have to be quicker to cast than the HB you are using know.

My .32 Long Colt is a No.2 Remington Rolling Block that started out in life as a rim fire. I have almost a box of factory Long Colt brass and, one box of WW .32 Short Colt 80 grain lead and a partial box of WW 80 gr Lubaloy factory loads. I am still regretting not buying the last two boxes of WW .332 Long Colt factory loads that I saw before I retired from the Navy in 2004.

More than likely I have enough brass to last my current single shot; but there is always the chance I will find a repeater. I don't really like having to scrounge partial boxes of ammo; I would much rather be able to convert easily available??? .32 S&W Long.

Robert

[Harry O]

I have been talking with Old West Moulds about one of their .32LC heel-base moulds. It is a duplicate of the 299153. I have an Old West Mold in 41 Long Colt that I have been using for about 15-20 years that is one of the best 41LC moulds I have.

I have seen the Accurate Mold 32LC drawings, but don't want to try something new. I own about 12 or 13 different 41LC moulds and there are very few that work well. The best ones match the 386177 or 386178 very closely. The worst one are the ones that are most different.

Converting the .32 S&W Long brass into .32LC brass is not difficult, but it takes a lot of time. Basically, this is what I do.

1. Lube a .32S&W Long case with forming wax and run it into a Lee 0.323" bullet sizing die. I use a .25ACP shell holder and put the case on top of it. That way it runs completely into the die. I have to use a steel rod and leather hammer from the top to drive it out.
2. Re-lube the .323 sized case and run it into a Lee 0.314" bullet sizing die as far as it will go. There will be a small belt left around the bottom. It is about 1/8" or a little more long.
3. I put a steel rod that was turned to fit the inside of the sized case closely, into the mouth of the case.
4. Then tighten the case with the steel rod in it, in a 3/8" or larger drill motor. File off the belt. Measure frequently. If it measures more than 0.316" take a little more off. If it measures less than 0.314" throw it away. This takes the most time. When you are near to the correct diameter, use a very fine cut file to remove the marks the coarser files leave.
5. I then get a .32 S&W Long Lee case trimming setup for the drill motor and polish the case with 600 then 1500 grit sandpaper. I used to use 1000 grit sandpaper, but cannot seem to find that anymore.
6. Run the formed case back through the sizing die for the 32LC. It should measure 0.315" to 0.316" in diameter full length of the case. Then load and fire. I lost one case to fire forming out of the 150 cases. I lost about 8 or 10 to turning them down too small.

[Harry O]

I should mention that this gun and handload are surprisingly accurate, considering that I am shooting a 30 caliber bullet through a 32 caliber barrel. It shoots just as well, if not a little better than my short barreled .32 S&W Long revolvers. Accuracy was a very long time coming with the 41LC. This one wants to shoot well.

I tested the altered sights yesterday and find that it is almost perfect left and right now. It is still a little bit low, so I will take a very small amount off the top of the front sight before trying it again.