32WCF Frustration

[Washington1331]

My darling wife for Christmas bought me an antique Winchester 92 in 32WCF. It's a lovely gun and I needed an excuse to buy another caliber for casting and reloading anyway right?

My serial number search showed that it was manufactured in 1893. So to me that places it in the black powder only range.

So I got starline brass and stuffed it with 20 grains of Goex 3F and topped it off with a Lyman 115 grain 311008. Cast of nearly pure lead.

I pan lubed each boolit with Emmert's lube.

I finally got to the range today and quickly found out that the barrel fouled after nearly the first shot. The first shot was 6 o'clock low. The next few, hello shotgun.

I went to punch the bore and I could barely get the jag in. I had to pour some "moose milk" down the barrel to get the fouling soft enough to run the jag down.

I'm thinking that either I have to add a lube cookie to the mix or risk some smokeless.

Any suggestions?


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[Don McDowell]

Get the lead mined out of the barrel, that includes all the stuff from days gone by. Slug the bore and make sure of the diameter you need. Then cast the bullets from 16-1 and use a proven bpcr lube such as SPG, Bullshops Nasa, etc.
Moving from the Goex to Olde Eynsford will help a bunch as well.

[square butte]

What were your bullets sized at? And what is the condition of the bore? If your bore is pitted - I would suggest using bullets sized to the largest diameter that will chamber in your gun. I have an 1885 Low Wall single shot in 32-20. The bore looks good - except for the first inch and a half forward of the chamber and the last inch or so near the muzzle. It needs a .315 bullet to shoot good

[w30wcf]

My darling wife for Christmas bought me an antique Winchester 92 in 32WCF. It's a lovely gun and I needed an excuse to buy another caliber for casting and reloading anyway right?

My serial number search showed that it was manufactured in 1893. So to me that places it in the black powder only range.

........I'm thinking that either I have to add a lube cookie to the mix or risk some smokeless.

Any suggestions?


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Factory Smokeless cartridges were introduced in 1895 and were safe for use in your rifle. Current loading data for the .32-20 would by fine.....but your bullet does not have a crimp groove so be careful that the bullet does not telescope into the case.

w30wcf

[missionary5155]

Greetings
AS stated above be sure your barrel is clean. There well could be layer upon layer of copper and lead and powder residue. SAome rifles require lots of brushing. Copper / brass wool will help a lot. Fine brass screen is useful also. A good soaking with Ballistol is always a big help with any used barrel.
If you are using a "smokeless" lube the petroleum based oils are going to turn to "gunk" absorbing and sticking the BP fouling. Think asphalt. I have used olive oil (45%) and beeswax (55%) for years and it works fine. SPG is top notch lube that wins matches.
Do look into your bullet diameter. With BP my habit is to shoot as fat a 40-1 bullet as will chamber with no resistance. But you need to be sure first what that bore / groove diameter is. Also is there a fat throat in front of the chamber. If the bullet nose has a very loose fit so it can get angled off at ignition you are not going to get accuracy.
And never give up. Your rifle can shoot accurately. I have an 1873 32-20 rifle with rusted bore, interrupted rifling and pitted. Yet with a fat cast it shot "minute of ground hog head / shoulders" at 35-40 yards for many years. I learned a lot with that barrel.
Mike in Peru

[Washington1331]

Thanks all for the replies.

I'm shooting the boolit as cast. They mic at .313. I don't think that it's the boolit, as I'm not seeing leading in the barrel. What I'm finding is a thick hard fouling that really obliterated all visible signs of rifling. More concerning to me is that I examined some of the fired casings and I found a couple of cases where the primer was significantly pushed back. Hello pressure.

When I first got the rifle the leading in the barrel was really bad. After soaking it in ballistol, running a bore brush through it more times than I care to remember, and hitting it with a Lewis lead remover I though I got the lead out.

I made the mistake once of not using BP lube. I'll never make that mistake again. I was using 50% beeswax, 40% crisco, and 10% olive oil. I've had good success with this lube in my 45/70.

I'm thinking the boolit just doesn't carry enough lube to keep the fouling soft. Anyone tried a lube cookie with this caliber?


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[curator]

Washington 1331:

Primers pushed bask are a sign of low pressure, not high. Follow everyone's suggestion and slug your barrel. Some .32WCF barrels are as much as .315 groove diameter. Using holy black and soft bullets should work pretty much regardless of as-cast boolit diameter (with in reason .002") 32WCF is a bugger to get to shoot accurately with black powder loads. Modern Black Powder is no-way as clean buring as those from 100 years ago. I originally used Curtis & Harvey's #6 and had zero fouling. Goes FFFg works OK but there is considerable fouling unless you put 3 grains of SR4759 or Reloder7 under the powder charge (Search "duplex" loads) Black powder bullet lubes do help as does proper powder compression.

[John Boy]

Obviously there is a gas leak in the ignition some where.
* As mentioned slug clean bore and match bullet
* Not mentioned - crimp. Crimp the case so when you run finger down over the mouth, it is smooth, not a ridge felt
* Not mentioned - COL of the loaded round. Bullet seated too deep or is it sliding into the case with little or no crimp. I would make the COL so the bullet nose is just touching the lands of the leading bore cut

I shoot the 32-20 in a Remington #2 & a Rossi M92 with your same powder charge but it is KIK ... no adverse foul

[Nobade]

I shoot a lot of those same bullets in my Marlin for cowboy silhouette. They don't carry much lube, and with straight black I do need to wipe between strings. But with 2.0 grains of AA #5 and 15 gr. Of 3f Kik, velocity is the same as straight black loads and I can keep shooting as long as I want to.

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