Cutting a 32 Long Boolet To Fit 32 acp?

[Eddie O]

Just purchased a beautiful VZOR 50 from Century International Arms Inc. Also purchased a half dozen boxes of .32 acp, a little more expensive than some, but Brass and Boxer Primed. Never used this Cal. before so I pulled out my copy of Lee's Modern Reloading. Saw the recommended Bullet for Reloading was .312 Diam and Lead weight between 77 & 84 Grains. And Listed the Powder Recommendations for that Load.

Went looking for a Round Nose Lead Mold to fit those Specs and found None, Zilch, Nada.

My question in two Parts;
1.) I found a $19 Lee Mold for .32 S&W Long at .311 and 93 Grains, A workable Diam., but a little Long and Heavy for the .32 acp. (Need comment yes or No) on casting the .32 Long and using my Wire Cutters to clip the Boolet at the rear Lube Ring, which would give me a .311 Boolet most likely in the 75 - 85 Grain range and the right length for the .32 acp.
2.) Would like to use my favorite Handgun Powder HP-38 and thought 1.5 Grains would be a good Starting Load? Comments? (Are you a Fool is already taken by my Wife)
By the way I should mention,the Loads are only for tin can plinking
All comment, both Pro and Con are welcome, I'm a Novice with just enough experience to kill myself.

By the way on Mr. Lee's recommendation for Powders, if anyone were to follow all of the Powder recommendations in his book he would need to construct an A-Bomb Shelter to House it.

Thanks,
Eddie O

[Doby45]

http://www.midwayusa.com/viewProduct...tNumber=461615

[rond]

I had a friend mill that section of the mold off and it now drops a 67 grain bullet for my .32 acp. You might be able to do it with a file or a grinder if you're careful.

[Eddie O]

I had a friend mill that section of the mold off and it now drops a 67 grain bullet for my .32 acp. You might be able to do it with a file or a grinder if you're careful.

Thanks,

Great Idea, I see others have run into a problem with finding a suitable .32 acp Mold.

The .32 Mold being sold at Midway is throwing a 90 Grain .32 Flat Nose, still 6 Grains heavier than the 84 Grain .32 acp maximum Boolit weight Lee recommends.

I've learned that tolerances are subjective, but I still like to remain close to the recommendations.

Thanks for a good idea,

Eddie O

[captaint]

eddie - good luck, you'll need it!!! Mike

[runfiverun]

ain't no way you are gonna cut no boolit and have it useable.

[Mk42gunner]

There are a number of Lyman/ Ideal molds that were designed for the .32 ACP. However, they will cost more than a Lee mold.

You may (or may not) be able to mill the top off a Lee mold to get what you want.

My Fifth Ed. of Hornady's Handbook of Cartridge Reloading lists HP-38 behind a 71 gr FMJ in amounts ranging from 2.0 to 2.2 grains. Please verify this for yourself, I could have made a typograhical error.

Robert

[Eddie O]

There are a number of Lyman/ Ideal molds that were designed for the .32 ACP. However, they will cost more than a Lee mold.

You may (or may not) be able to mill the top off a Lee mold to get what you want.

My Fifth Ed. of Hornady's Handbook of Cartridge Reloading lists HP-38 behind a 71 gr FMJ in amounts ranging from 2.0 to 2.2 grains. Please verify this for yourself, I could have made a typograhical error.

Robert

I see the same load data for the 71 gr FMJ, but Lee does not list HP-38 for any of the heavier Lead Rounds. I know my initial thought of 1.5 gr of HP-38 for a 82 - 85 gr Lead Round nose is most likely extremely consecrative and may not even cycle the Weapon.

Although the VZOR 50 I got from Century looks near unused, the Barrel is pristine. I need to get all the Cosmoline off for a full inspection but it looks like the $10 Hand Pick, a good Salesman, Josh and early order got me the cream of the crop.

That is if you consider $209 for a forty year old .32 acp a good deal, I do since I collect VZ Handguns. But in loading for them I'm always concerned about their age although I'm told not too.

After going through several Ammo scares I now make it a point to be able to Reload for every Weapon I own, and have adequate supplies on hand. I normally buy the inexpensive Lee Molds since they are only meant for Fall Back on in a emergency. For a .32 I'm not sure I want to invest in high end reloading Molds

Hopefully Millimg the Lee Mold will work, If not it was only $20 and I will have fun doing it. If it appears to work, I;ll Post pictures before I pull the trigger.

Hopefully all will go well, if not I;m sure someone will tell me.

Thanks for the input,

Eddie O .

[Bret4207]

I would strongly recommend you get beyond the Lee book. I'm sure Ken Waters has a "Pet Loads" on the 32ACP ad that's the first place I'd look along with Lyman and RCBS.

[gray wolf]

I'm a Novice with just enough experience to kill myself.

I hope your alone if you do.

Lyman, and RCBS make nice molds for the 32 ACP. I use the RCBS with great satisfaction.
Lets get real here, do you know what the back of a bullet will look like after you attack it with a pare of side cutters ??
Why not just try a round ball ? or a small marble ? or a ball bearing ?
Cutting down ( milling the top off ) a lee mold doe's not always work out.
I would like to see you at least trying to do it correctly.
I am the fist one to try and save money, cheap is good.
But even Mc Iver would walk away from this one.

[Finster101]

I would go for this, the 313640. I plan on getting one when finances permit.

http://www.brp.castpics.net/P1.html

[gnoahhh]

Ixnay on cutting bullets in half. Get the proper mould or forget about it. The money spent for a Lyman .32ACP mould will be offset by the savings from not having to buy the outrageous factory ammo.

Being an inveterate experimenter I too would try milling the top off of the Lee mould. I honestly don't see why it wouldn't work. Mill it flush with the bottom of the top band, re-drill for the sprue plate screw, and Voila! The only trick will be in getting the mould cavity perfectly plumb in the milling machine vise or a slanted-based bullet will be the result and it won't shoot worth a tinker's dam. I wouldn't trust a Lee mould to have the sides of the blocks true in relation to the cavity. Set it up so the top of the mould is level. A dial indicator is your friend for that (after first casting some bullets with it to guarantee the base is level to begin with).

[turbo1889]

First of all I would like to inform you that for loading 32-ACP you may use "32-S&W Short" maximum charge loads as start loads. The 32-Short cartridge has just slightly less internal case capacity (and when I say slight I do mean only a very slight difference) and is loaded to lower pressure levels then the 32-ACP. The important thing is that normally the 32-Short is loaded with heavier weight boolits (its primarily a cast lead boolit cartridge) that are seated deeper inside the case compared to conventional loads with the 32-ACP which is normally loaded with light weight jacketed bullets no heavier then 71gr. that are only seated about 0.15"-0.20" inside the case neck. Using the max load listed for the 32-Short as your start load for loading heavier weight boolits that are seated deeper in the case is an excellent solution to the problems encountered with loading 80 to 100 grain weight cast lead boolits in the 32-ACP. I've been doing it for years with great success.

As far as cutting off the tail of the cast boolits with your snips. That is going to seriously distort your boolits and isn’t going to work. It may be possible to very carefully cut the base section off with a small fine toothed mini hack-saw. That would be time consuming but should allow you to make a handful of test boolits to see how the altered boolit would shoot before you go to the extent and expense of having the top milled off your mold blocks to permanently alter it. If you do decide to have your mold milled down I would suggest you have it professionally done. There are several members of this forum that are highly competent and highly skilled craftsmen in the metal working arts who should be able to help you and of course there is always Eric @ Hollow Point Mold Services.

[Wayne Smith]

Eddie, if you are an experienced machinist and have the tools, go ahead and mill down the mold. Otherwise, PM Buckshot. Be aware that likely none of the sides, top, or bottom are square on that block.

[beemer]

I have used the Lee 311-100-2R in my CZ-50 but it is to heavy and leaves little room for the powder, this makes powder charges very sensitive. With Bullseye there was about a half of a grain of powder between operating the pistol and hotter than I cared for. The 93 gr. bullet would work but would still be heavier than I would like but if I had it I would give it a try.
If you haven't bought one yet I would try to find a proper one, it will save you money in the long run.

You can cut the mould down, I cut down a single cavity 309-113-F to 100 gr. for my 32 S&W Long, it worked fine so it can be done.I did do it with a file,being a single cavity made it easier than a double cavity. I ended up borrowing a Lyman 85 gr. mould and pouring a nice pile so I am set for a good while. I don't know how the Lee TL314-90-SWC would work but I made some flat nose by sizing with a flat punch, it was a waste of time, they would not feed in my pistol.

I size my bullets to .310 and just lube the bottom groove, you just have to tinker with it. I started low with the powder and worked up till the pistol functioned reliably and stopped at that point. The recoil is a little snappy with even light loads, I guess because of the recoil operation. There also seems to be a lot of variation between different brands of cases.

Have fun chasing your brass!
Dave

[Doughty]

I don't think Eddie O means to shoot cut off bullets, but is just trying to get an idea of what a cut off bullet might weigh.

[mdi]

I had a friend mill that section of the mold off and it now drops a 67 grain bullet for my .32 acp. You might be able to do it with a file or a grinder if you're careful.

I was gonna say the same thing. Cutting a lead bullet with a hand tool would prolly be hit-or-miss as far as length and/or weight. I had a Lee die I modified by hand. I took the handles off the mold blocks and secured the sides togerther with small c-clamps and used a piece of emery cloth on a pane of glass to remove metal from the base side of the mold. Carefully kept the mold flat against the emery/glass on my benchtop, and changed direction of sanding often to keep the mold top square.

[Will]

I've cut off 311291 to get a 150gr PB type. After cutting you need to file base flat and weigh to get them all the same. Very time consuming but works. I'd just work up a load for the boolit as is. I've seen loads for the 32acp with 100gr boolits. The 93gr should work ok.

[woody1]

I see the same load data for the 71 gr FMJ, but Lee does not list HP-38 for any of the heavier Lead Rounds. I know my initial thought of 1.5 gr of HP-38 for a 82 - 85 gr Lead Round nose is most likely extremely consecrative and may not even cycle the Weapon.

Hopefully all will go well, if not I;m sure someone will tell me.

Thanks for the input,

Eddie O .

Eddie, Eddie, Eddie, first of all, do not consider the Lee book the only or best authority/. Lee only lists loads copied from other sources.

I urge you to slug your barrel. The 32 acp can have barrel diameters ranging from .308 to who knows where.

Either the Lyman 311252 or 313249 work dandy in MY Walther 32 ACP. Regards, Woody

[Multigunner]

I have cut off the lower portion of a .303 cast boolit to form a wadcutter for BP loads in .32 S&W for my Iver Johnson Safety Hammerless.
I later found I didn't need BP loads for this pistol, it has the Smokeless era frame, only its latch hinge screw was at fault, being too soft and bending when smokeless cartridges were fired.

A shorter bullet can be thrown by turning a plug to fit the lower portion of the mold. I'd suggest a softer steel than the steel the mold is made of, or perhaps aluminum.