What the heck is a 32-20 and a 32 HR magnum?

[Just Duke]

Looking at extending my Marlin collection and was wondering what these cartridges would be good for. The 32-20 and a 32 HR magnum sure are cute little guys.
Wish the 32-20 had a full length magazine tube though.
Looks like they might be slow enough one would not need gas checks.

[JeffinNZ]

Depends what you call slow. I am pushing a Lyman 311316 GC at the thick end of 2000fps out of my Martini. Great on hares and wallabies.

[Just Duke]

http://www.sixguns.com/tests/tt3220.htm


A standard load for the .32-20 for at least 50 years has been Lyman's #311316, a 120 grain flat-nosed gas check cast bullet over 10.0 grains of #2400. I was particularly anxious to try this long-time favorite in the Contender .32-20, .308" barrel. Sized at .312", the Lyman .32-20 bullets shoots into less than one-inch at 25 yards and moves out at a very respectable 1549 fps. A duplication of this load can be assembled with 12.0 grains of H4227 and is even more accurate, shooting into almost one-half inch at 25 yards


Depends what you call slow. I am pushing a Lyman 311316 GC at the thick end of 2000fps out of my Martini. Great on hares and wallabies.

Heck you can kill a Texas deer with that baby! Uggg! looks like I would need more gas checks though.

[Just Duke]

Looks like the 357 beats it though.

http://www.reloadbench.com/cartridges/3220w.html
Bottom of the page. ;)

[Dragoon]

You will find that a 115-120 grain plain base cast bullet will shoot very well out of the Marlin 32-20 at 1400-1500 fps.

It is a very nice cartridge. I've had good luck with both the Saeco 322 and the Lyman 311008.

[Southern Son]

One of the fellas at the pistol club has a nice little spagetti Colt chambered for 32/20. I don't know what his reloads are, but it was a pleasure to shoot and accurate enough out of the revolver to give the bowling pins at 25 yards a horrible time. I know that there are a fair few Martini Cadets getting around Oz that were rehambered to 32/20. If you want more power, Duke, you might ba able to rechamber the 32 H&R Mag to that new .327 Federal, I don't know if the action would be able to feed it, but I can't see strength in the Marlin being a problem.

[Just Duke]

Looks like Marlin dropped them. Neither caliber is shown on their website. sad.

[Dragoon]

There is a half dozen of them on Gunbroker right now. Probably never be any easier to get one than now.

My local shop has one with much nicer wood on it than the one I have. I've been thinking about gettting it for a spare.

[Bret4207]

Those are two of the finest small game, general woods walking cartridges ever invented. At one time the 32-20 was the most popular round made. Boolits from 80 to 200 gr cam be loaded depending on platform. General load is something from 90-120 gr at 750-1200 fps. I have several and love 'em all.

[TAWILDCATT]

first cartridge I loaded for.a friend had a 73 win and win mold and tong tool.115 gr pb.I got the loading tool and still have it. stopped in Birmingham al. on way home and bought a win 32/20 from gun shop there.un fortunately it was stolen yrs later.:coffee:[smilie=1::mrgreen:

[405]

The offerings by different firearms manufactures come and go as do the gun companies themselves as do the ammo factories, as do the types of ammo made, as do the components companies. Been going on since guns and ammo have been made by factories. So I don't understand the question completely I guess. A lot of the industry is market driven, velocity driven, short driven, fat driven, light weight driven, what's hot and what's not driven and so on.
Do yourself a favor and get a copy of Cartridges Of The World by Barnes. There is no one source for every single flash in the pan wildcat nor every hottest, latest SSSSSMag out there much less what such and such gun company has currently chambered in such and such gun, magazine type, action configuration, barrel length, etc. But for types of cartridges and a bit of history....Carts of the World is worth having in a reference library. And, if you want to drive a 500 grain bullet out of a lever gun at 2500 fps just get a big bolt gun or double rifle :mrgreen:

[JeffinNZ]

OR for a really interesting twist use a fast twist (1-10, .303 Brit) barrel and spin bullets from 100 to 220gr subsonic through a suppressor.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v505/JeffinNZ/Shooting%20stuff/100-0053_IMG-1.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v505/JeffinNZ/Shooting%20stuff/100-0023_IMG.jpg

[Boerrancher]

Hey Jeff,

I have a Martini that looks almost identical to yours, that I picked up in Afghanistan. I was quite delighted when I found it was chambered for the 303. I cleaned all of the packing grease and desert sand out of it, and fired it one time, from the looks of the rifle that was probably only the second time it had been fired, the first being the proof round at the factory. I oiled the old girl up and set her at the back of my safe, where she has sat undisturbed for 2 years now. Knowing what I know now I wish I would have sent a bunch of those old rifles home.

[Lloyd Smale]

like jeffinnz said the 3220 is capable of pushing 120s to 2000 out of a levergun and the 32 mag is not far behind. The 3220 may be small but has account for many thousand deer up here in these woods. A few even by yours truely.

[Ramslammer]

G'Day All
32/20 Buy one, use once, Love forever! that's the rules for a 32/20. I have a 1894CL and just using it makes me feel good.
85gr CBE GC 2100fps, 311316 1720fps 9 shots in .940" outside to outside peeps @ 25m
Juddy

[Just Duke]

like jeffinnz said the 3220 is capable of pushing 120s to 2000 out of a levergun and the 32 mag is not far behind. The 3220 may be small but has account for many thousand deer up here in these woods. A few even by yours truely.

Does your Marlin have a full length magazine tube Lloyd. Don't know why the current one is half the length of the barrel.

[WBH]

I have 2 First Gen Winchester '73s. One in 32-20 and the other in 44-40. The best bullet I have found for my 32-20 is the Lyman 311008 cast in 20:1. It is a fun little round, doesn't bark too much and loaded light to duplicate BP pressures, it is just a hoot to shoot. The same for the 44-40..............just a little more ooooph in it's bark.
It is probably one of my favorite rifles to shoot. That and my 22K Hornet when it comes to the small bores.

[Jack Stanley]

Duke , I had one of the first 1894cl rifles they came out with years ago . I fooled with it trying to make it right as it should have been from Marlin . About the time I had enough with it Browning offered a model 53 to the market chambered in 32-20 . It's a drop dead gorgeous rifle but has a short magazine on it . It's tolerances are tight , it's lines are right and works well with no funny bsiness about it .
Last one I saw for sale was on Gunbroker ..... I forget now what the price was . I don't see many of them for sale now , but they are well worth it in my opinion . I load mine with the H7G number 67 bullet at just under eleven hundred feet per second . I get as close to one hole groups as my old eyes are going to allow . I keep threatening to find an old Lyman or Redfield reciever sight and have it drilled and tapped , I just haven't got to it .
It has accounted for a few rodents in the area with cast loads , I got a bunch of jacketed hollow points to try but never got finished with load testing . I'm thinking the next time a load for the thousand cases I have , I'll try for a load that runs about fifteen hundred .

Jack

[Lloyd Smale]

duke mine is a rossi 92 that started as a 357 and is now a 3220 with a 20 inch oct barrel. When i got it it was a 32mag that a well know gunsmith built and my buddy couldnt get it to run reliably and sold me very cheap. I sent it to clements and he did some more work on it and rechambered it to 3220

[Cherokee]

A good gunsmith can fix the short mag tube easy. If you really want the Marlin, get it for it may not be available again. I have two original 1889's that I will not part with and have enjoyed this cartridge for many years.

http://i233.photobucket.com/albums/ee102/DCS44256/Marlin1889LA41106001.jpg

[Blammer]

JeffinNZ, what is that one next to the 311466?

Looks like a truncone 311466. Tell me more about it?

[JeffinNZ]

Good spotting.

I had my 311466 taken out to .315 for the .303 Brit and one cavity made into a FNTC. MAN does that bullet level game!!!!!!!