3D Print Shot Capsules for .32 Long, .32 H&R and .327 Federal?

To you fellas with the 3D printers would it be possible to cylindrical capsules for loading shot into the .32 (actually .31) caliber revolver cartridges? I've loaded my own using cardboard and/or gas check over powder and over shot wads, but the little .32 Long needs more capacity.
I would think the capsule would need to be made of a plastic that is frangible and could be either flat our rounded (like a medicine capsule)on the end. One end could remain open and an over powder wad of some sort used. Thoughts?

35W

Great idea. I would think that scoring the capsules would do the trick to help ensure they break apart when fired. One might be able to 3D print the grooves too. Maybe even a crosshatch pattern.

I have a vague memory of n old article specifying the medicine capsules that worked with various calibers, so that may be the best way to go. A few longitudinal Xacto cuts would help breakup.

A nylon shot cup would be close to the material used in wads today but I suspect cheap PLA would work almost as well.
My printer is down hard, waiting on a replacement.
The design wouldn't be hard, just a cylinder with some "scoring" grooves built in.
I might spare the time, if someone else isn't already working on something.
We need dimensions of the interior of the cases, and how far will it be seated and how far you want it to stick out of the case mouth (so its OAL).
No doubt it will take some experimentation to get the right thickness to hold up but still be tangible at the right time.
Bulldogger

Edit: millimeter dimensions preferred in my case, easier to CAD with.

The medicine capsules would likely soften and fail if subject to moisture.

As far as size, .32 caliber handguns typically use bullets .312" in diameter, but I'd think .309" or .310" would work. I'm not sure about length, but I'll run out to the shop and look at some of my brass and cylinder lengths.
Thanks for your interest guys.

35W

OK...I have .35, .44 and .45 Speer capsules on hand, so I took some measurements.

ALL calibers are 1" long +/- .005" or so (25.4 mm). This the capsule only, without the plug.

They run from .005" to .010" under nominal groove diameter; that is .350" (8.89mm), .420" (10.668 mm) and .450" (11.43 mm)respectively.

All caliber capsules have the same wall thicknesses: .025" (.635 mm).

So I think .32 caliber capsules would probably need to be around .306" (7.77 mm) in diameter and 1" (25.4 mm) in length. I do think though that for a small caliber such as this, thinner capsule walls might be better.

35W

I think 1” might be a bit long.
It depends on the intended revolver.
A J frame 38 has a longer cylinder than a 32.
My notes show 1.588” max COAL for a 36-1 and 1.436” for a 31-1.

Regards
Russ

But I really like the idea !
Where do I send the M O to do a beta test ?

I was thinking of one 3D printer, but am now looking at another style, the Resin Printer. Might be able to prescore the shot capsule easily with that?

I could do the design pretty quickly with OpenSCAD but no working printer here ATM :/

When I did my .32 experiment I used a 30 cal gas check over powder, filled with #12 shot and another 30 cal gascheck and crimp. They worked ok.

If anyone makes one, or for the 41Colt let me know. I have some #12 shot. I have a 32 Long and a 41 Colt.

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Originally Posted by Mr_Sheesh

I was thinking of one 3D printer, but am now looking at another style, the Resin Printer. Might be able to prescore the shot capsule easily with that?

I could do the design pretty quickly with OpenSCAD but no working printer here ATM :/

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For whatever reason I didn't think of that. This is significant (to me) since I do have a resin printer.

Now we just need a design... I should have a little time later this week.

BDGR

I'm very interested in the results of this project. I will be intently following. My idea for 32 s&w long shot loads was to cut fired nagant pistol brass and star crimp. Your 3d plastic capsules idea is a much better choice.

Attachment 261975
The shot capsule is a great idea .
This is one I started for 32 S&W L making a sot case from 327 brass but have not followed through to completion.
The 327 is necked down to .314 od

I’m really not in the market for a 32 shot cartridge right now, but “one never knows, do one!” I’ll be watching this thread with interest.

Froggie

Does there exist a longer case (rifle probably) that has the same or very similar head and rim as a .32 pistol cartridge?

I make .38 and .357 shot shells using .357 maximum brass, cut to just under cylinder length.

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Originally Posted by dbosman

Does there exist a longer case (rifle probably) that has the same or very similar head and rim as a .32 pistol cartridge?

I make .38 and .357 shot shells using .357 maximum brass, cut to just under cylinder length.

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The Nagant 762X38R mentioned by psweigle is 1.530 long and the 327 is 1.20 .

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Originally Posted by onelight

Attachment 261975
The shot capsule is a great idea .
This is one I started for 32 S&W L making a sot case from 327 brass but have not followed through to completion.
The 327 is necked down to .314 od

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This is good.

How did you neck the .327 brass down?

The Nagant brass might be good too, just not sure where to find it.

35W

To neck it down , I starting with lubed sized cases I adjusted the Lee carbide FCD to size the top of the case The floating crimp ring is hollow so you can push the case through it . The crimp ring necked it down to about .315 and then ran it into the .314 bullet size die mounted in the top station of the App a smaller sizer might be better. The FCD leaves it rough on the out side when used for sizing .
I did this more out of boredom after seeing pictures of people running a cartridge into a carbide FCD adjusted way to deep and seeing how it necked the case down.
I think i will try one in the bullet size ring only . I only have the .314 sizer for the App at this time. .312 or .313 might be better depending on the gun.

dbosman, one of my projects is a database of "all known cases" so I can do searches like that, I don't know the answer yet, sorry. Hoping to get that to where I can make 3D printed dummy rounds and look for 'donor cases' easily with software, some day. If you find a case with a larger rim or thicker rim than desired, thinning it down / reducing its' diameter is doable. The problem's figuring out what case to start with!

I whipped up two potential designs just now. No scoring, as that would take a while. I think the resin plastic will shatter well enough without it.
For your consideration, two pictures. One is a plain cup, the other has a lip on the top to help capture the shot and in theory make it easier to close without fussing with over shot cards and so on.
I can run a print, 35Whelen, if you're interested.
Bulldogger
Attachment 261998
Attachment 261999

If you want my opinion, I feel the top design will be much easier to put the shot in. Also, if it were me, I would make the outside diameter of the capsules .311 or .312 diameter. You have an excellent idea in this project and I am very interested in the results.

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Originally Posted by psweigle

If you want my opinion, I feel the top design will be much easier to put the shot in. Also, if it were me, I would make the outside diameter of the capsules .311 or .312 diameter. You have an excellent idea in this project and I am very interested in the results.

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I think the top one will definitely be easier to load, but the second one may be easier to seal. Tomayto, tomahtoe.

BDGR

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Originally Posted by Bulldogger

I whipped up two potential designs just now. No scoring, as that would take a while. I think the resin plastic will shatter well enough without it.
For your consideration, two pictures. One is a plain cup, the other has a lip on the top to help capture the shot and in theory make it easier to close without fussing with over shot cards and so on.
I can run a print, 35Whelen, if you're interested.
Bulldogger
Attachment 261998
Attachment 261999

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Thanks Bulldogger. I like the top design very much.

Without some sort of something to close the capsule and keep the shot therein, seems to me a fella could charge the case, seat an over-powder wad or gas check, fill the capsule with shot, invert the case and insert the capsule, hand seating it and the shot load against the over-powder wad, then give it some sort of light crimp.

Length of capsule- That's a tough one, but I'd think that in order to get the most out of the diminutive .32 Long case the capsule would need to protrude from the case at the very least as much as a bullet (.36") preferably more. I'm thinking a minimum 1" long capsule would work, but I'll take some measurements when I get home.

Diameter of capsule- Since it appears the capsule would need to be hand seated, I'm thinking it would need to be a tad smaller than the mouth of a case after it has been sized. .306" or maybe .307". Again, some measurements are in order.

By "print" I assume you mean a doc with measurements?

Thanks again for doing this.

35W

Just for reference, this is why I need shotloads. I killed it last week behind my chicken house where the grandkids play. :shock:

Attachment 262012

35W

I made shot shells for a 30-30 Contender pistol once. Use soda straws from McDonalds. Used a clothes iron adjusted to a suitable temperature to close the ends. They were slightly small but Scotch tape fixed it. Worked fine for close encounters.

The 3-D capsules would probably be much better.

That will be a great tool.
My pet project is running OCR software on "Handloader" magazine. That's going slow due to the ads varying so much.

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Originally Posted by Mr_Sheesh

dbosman, one of my projects is a database of "all known cases" so I can do searches like that,

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Originally Posted by 35 Whelen

Thanks Bulldogger. I like the top design very much.

Without some sort of something to close the capsule and keep the shot therein, seems to me a fella could charge the case, seat an over-powder wad or gas check, fill the capsule with shot, invert the case and insert the capsule, hand seating it and the shot load against the over-powder wad, then give it some sort of light crimp.

Length of capsule- That's a tough one, but I'd think that in order to get the most out of the diminutive .32 Long case the capsule would need to protrude from the case at the very least as much as a bullet (.36") preferably more. I'm thinking a minimum 1" long capsule would work, but I'll take some measurements when I get home.

Diameter of capsule- Since it appears the capsule would need to be hand seated, I'm thinking it would need to be a tad smaller than the mouth of a case after it has been sized. .306" or maybe .307". Again, some measurements are in order.

By "print" I assume you mean a doc with measurements?

Thanks again for doing this.

35W

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By print I mean I don't mind running a batch to send you, unless you already have a resin printer in which case I can email the STL file to print on your own.

I think the press fit into an over powder wad would work.

I can tweak the design once you provide certain measurements for the capsule.

BDGR

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Originally Posted by Bulldogger

By print I mean I don't mind running a batch to send you, unless you already have a resin printer in which case I can email the STL file to print on your own.

I think the press fit into an over powder wad would work.

I can tweak the design once you provide certain measurements for the capsule.

BDGR

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I don't have a 3D printer, but I appreciate your offer and will be glad to pay you for your efforts.

35W

Have Any prototypes been made as of yet?

Just thanking but for S&w long or hr mag can’t you just use a nagant case cut just short of cylinder leingth or use a 327 mag case cut to cylinder length ? Fill with powder add your card wad add shot then top it off with another card wad crimped in place and or glued? Don’t know never tried it. But That would be the easy Way to do it. Would it work? Just thanking

My .32 has a bore size of .308, and depth of lands .312.
I believe you want the shot capsule to ride the bore and not be engraved by the rifling.
So the shot capsule would be too large if the diameter were .311 or .312.
I make the capsule to slide thru the bore so it doesn't rotate by getting engraved like a bullet.
Also, a much lighter charge to shoot the capsule is needed to keep the shot capsule from expanding to engrave rifling.
It all needs to be balanced to work best.
Experimentation is the best tool the handloader has.
Lots of work, yes.
But worth it when you find the load that works for your firearm.
A wad to cover the shot will eliminate leading as long as you don't use too heavy a powder charge to cause the capsule to obturate or swell up to engage the rifling in the barrel. A shot capsule will disintegrate and spin in the rifling with a charge that is too heavy, blowing the pattern as the powder can even blow thru the wad and cause the shot to blow out of the capsule before it even makes it out of the barrel.
A too large in diameter shot capsule causes the same problem.
Balanced charge and balanced wad diameter and wall thickness of wad.
It's not gonna be easy, that's why so many reloaders say the heck with it and just put a gas check over the powder, dump in the shot and top off the case with another gas check.
Leaded bore, donut pattern, and waste of shot, but it works after a fashion and you can keep pulling the trigger till it gets riddled.
I have made these using gearnasher's method and made shot wads for 38/357,32 and even. 380 and .25 acp shot loads. With no.12 shot, they are better than .22LR shot loads.
The shot capsule has to fit the bore and the powder charge has to be just right for my pistol.
The load for my pistol is custom made for my pistol.
General instructions will work, but it all comes down to a custom load to fit your pistol.
No one load or one size will work as well for every pistol.
It's not easy, but just needs some experimentation.
The easiest is the .45 auto, and it still takes some final fitting to work well.
The .32 is worth it, but you have to teach yourself as you go along. Give it a try. You can do it like I did.

Update here.

35W

That is not much of an update. Did not learn a thing from it.

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Originally Posted by ulav8r

That is not much of an update. Did not learn a thing from it.

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You can lead a horse to water....

35W

I know practically nothing about 3D printing. My boy has 4 rigs. We are working on fishing lures. The one thing I have learned is the practical use of printer. Making shot capsules for anything would be a loosing proposition. Not that you couldn’t do it, just not practical. If you must do it the 38 Speer capsule could be used to scale down and it cold be as long as you wanted. It’s not a big engineering design problem.

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Originally Posted by Jniedbalski

Just thanking but for S&w long or hr mag can’t you just use a nagant case cut just short of cylinder leingth or use a 327 mag case cut to cylinder length ? Fill with powder add your card wad add shot then top it off with another card wad crimped in place and or glued? Don’t know never tried it. But That would be the easy Way to do it. Would it work? Just thanking

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Grafs:
Prvi Partizan Brass 7.62 Nagant Unprimed Bag of 50 $17.99

I think you should use the original case and make the shot capsule to extend into the throat of the cylinder.This also allows you to add more shot as the extended brass case length plus the thickness of the wad makes the internal wad space smaller.
The method used by member gearnasher actually solves the whole problem .
He posted in the shotshells for pistols section of this board.
His post is a sticky and explains how to make shotshells and the much needed shotshell protector wad.
You do have to measure and make a forming mandrel as well as shot collars to form the wad specific to your caliber and case.
They really work.
You can make .25 acp shotshells that work.But, you have to make the mandrell
and shot collars to fit.
It seems difficult at first, but using a drill motor and filing a bolt to make the mandrell is fun.
I even made a mandrell from a hard wooden dowel and sandpaper using a drill.
I know you fellas want to use your computers and printers to make the wads/ design, but have it your own way.
There are many ways to do a thing.

I love reading what you all have been doing with the computers and printers.
I always learn new things when i read what is shared on here.
Thank you and keep up the good work.

Interesting thread. I like the idea of necking down .327 brass for the .32 S&W Long or H&R Mag. About 100 pellets of #12 shot at 5-6 ft. would be effective, but not much farther. Based upon my results in .38 Special I think you would have better results with a faster powder like Bullseye or TiteGroup. I use about a dozen .38 Special shotloads a year doing yard work for snakes, and these are typical patterns with simple .38 Special shotloads assembled with cereal box cardboard wads.

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