Saving old S&W rimfire revolvers

[LAGS]

I do not consider myself a Gunsmith.
I am a Firearms Recycler

[uscra112]

Befits a man to be modest.

[toot]

There is plenty of ammo but most people want $3 or $4 a round. I have about 800 rounds that I have bought for around $2 a round average. I think of it as an investment, I don't think they will be making anymore. I mostly shoot them with cartridge adapters anyway. Like USCRA112

sorta like 41 CAL. rim fire.

[toot]

Attachment 310741

where do you buy the 32 CAL, RIM FIRE adapters? and can they be reloaded with out using healed heads?

[dtknowles]

where do you buy the 32 CAL, RIM FIRE adapters? and can they be reloaded with out using healed heads?

I got some from www.hc-collection.com. They were very nice, better than the ones I made. I make mine from 32 acp and 32 S&W long brass.

I don't know what a healed head is but I use these with #3 ramset nail set blanks. If I could find #2's I would use them. #3's are hotter than factory ammo. Kind of like a 32 rf long magnum. Other shooters use acorn blanks and a small powder charge. Has its advantages.

Tim

[dtknowles]

sorta like 41 CAL. rim fire.

I got another 41 rf round today along with 8 ea. 38 rf long rounds from a GB auction, along with 200+ rounds of various stuff, some very cool and some mundane. All and all, I am pretty happy with the haul. Average price was $0.75 per round. What do you think a 142 year old Bennet primed 45-70 round is worth? I got one of those in the deal.



newest 41, 38 long, the 45-70 and a Spencer blank

[Cris T]

It looks like I'm gonna have to start swaging some 32 rimfire boolits. This is my recent foray into 38 rimfire: Yes this is me.

[uscra112]

where do you buy the 32 CAL, RIM FIRE adapters? and can they be reloaded with out using healed heads?

Jack Harrison
https://www.gunbroker.com/item/972311445
He also has the correct heeled bullets. And a little tutorial in the listing.
He's told me that he's slowing down due to health issues, so don't wait.

No, you can't reload .32 rimfire or .32 Colt centerfire with anything but the correct heel-type bullets.

I do not recommend using nailgun loads, as they expand too much to make punching them out easy. This shortens the life of the adaptor. I use "acorn blanks" and a pinch (1.0 to 1.5 grains) of Bullseye.
More expensive than nailgun loads but worth it.
Acorn blanks are sold by https://www.airgundepot.com/6mm-crim...s-100-qty.html
or
https://www.gundogsupply.com/walther...orn-blank.html

[Rusty Goose]

I was searching for parts today and ran across this site.

https://everygunpart.com/handgun-kit...h-huao-00.html

They have several "parts kits" S&W .32's (pricey).
It looks as though they sell the parts of guns with destroyed frames. They seem pretty proud of their bits, but if you need it...

Sorry if you were already aware of this site.

[toot]

I got some from www.hc-collection.com. They were very nice, better than the ones I made. I make mine from 32 acp and 32 S&W long brass.

I don't know what a healed head is but I use these with #3 ramset nail set blanks. If I could find #2's I would use them. #3's are hotter than factory ammo. Kind of like a 32 rf long magnum. Other shooters use acorn blanks and a small powder charge. Has its advantages.

Tim

healed bullet heads are the same as 22 CAL lead heads. the bullet head base sets inside of the case mouth, and the foreword end of it catches the riffling. hope this helps ?.

[dtknowles]

healed bullet heads are the same as 22 CAL lead heads. the bullet head base sets inside of the case mouth, and the foreword end of it catches the riffling. hope this helps ?.

Laugh, we are talking different languages. Bullets are not heads, the head is the closed end of the cartridge case. I am familiar with healed bullets. It was mentioned that they are required. I would suggest instead they are preferred. Hollow based bullets can be used instead. I make and use them use healed bullets. Bullets are just one component is a cartridge. Cartridge cases are often called "brass" or case, they have a head and a mouth and some have rims, extractor grooves, shoulders, primer pockets, etc.

I have heard bullets being called heads but it did not ring a bell with me in your message. I don't like calling bullets heads, it causes confusion because a bullet is a bullet, it is the projectile and can be confused with the head of the cartridge.

Tim

[uscra112]

How do you heal a bullet? Medicated lube?

Don't get any on the heel of the bullet.

[Rockindaddy]

Have a local guy that shoots 32 rim fires in his old single shot rifles and S&W revolver. He resizes the empties and mixes up his own home brew priming mix. The priming mix looks like toothpaste' He pre measures the small gob and somehow inserts it into a fired rim fire case that has been cleaned. The primed case gets spun at 3400 rpms. The spun case gets to dry overnight. The primed case with the dried priming mix gets loaded normally. He casts and sizes his own boolits. Have yet to see the process but was showing me the ammo. He collects single shot rim fire guns was showing me the loaded cartridges. The only thing he said you have do is to make sure the previously fired case is inserted so the firing pin does not strike the previously struck dent in the rim. He said they try to keep the firing pin hits close together so the shells can be reloaded. Being an old reloader for many years and even plucking Berdan primers out of old foreign black powder brass cases with an RCBS Berdan decapper to be able to reload them and shoot em again; I was dumfounded looking at these reloaded rim fire 32's !!!!!!

[elmacgyver0]

I am no gunsmith, but I did make a .50 caliber rifle, well not the barrel, it shoots the 50 BMG cartridge.
I guess I had better come clean, I didn't make the picatinny rail, I bought that, and I didn't make the scope either.
Everything else I fabricated.
It may not be the prettiest, but it does work.

[dtknowles]

How do you heal a bullet? Medicated lube?

Don't get any on the heel of the bullet.

That is excellent.

I see now that you understood what he was asking and not only the head thing but the healed vs. heeled thing.

My hat is off to you.

Tim

[dtknowles]

Have a local guy that shoots 32 rim fires in his old single shot rifles and S&W revolver. He resizes the empties and mixes up his own home brew priming mix. The priming mix looks like toothpaste' He pre measures the small gob and somehow inserts it into a fired rim fire case that has been cleaned. The primed case gets spun at 3400 rpms. The spun case gets to dry overnight. The primed case with the dried priming mix gets loaded normally. He casts and sizes his own boolits. Have yet to see the process but was showing me the ammo. He collects single shot rim fire guns was showing me the loaded cartridges. The only thing he said you have do is to make sure the previously fired case is inserted so the firing pin does not strike the previously struck dent in the rim. He said they try to keep the firing pin hits close together so the shells can be reloaded. Being an old reloader for many years and even plucking Berdan primers out of old foreign black powder brass cases with an RCBS Berdan decapper to be able to reload them and shoot em again; I was dumfounded looking at these reloaded rim fire 32's !!!!!!

I have tried to do that, I need to invest more effort until I can make it work since it can be done. I have only had a couple that went bang. I have a couple dozen empties just begging for priming.

I know my compound goes bang as I have reloaded both Berdan and Boxer primers with almost 100% success.

I hydraulicly decap my Berdan brass so that I don't damage the primer cups.

Tim

[Cris T]

Commercial rim fire bullets are both heeled and hollow based. The hollow base facilitates the heel (smaller diameter that fits into the cartridge case) to expand onto the rifling;
As in these pictures of 22 Long Rifle show. They were heeled when loaded into the cartridge but expanded to the rifling because of the hollow base:

[uscra112]

I think the trick to successful repriming is to make a scraper that will clean out the fired rims. Mine is a tooth tediously ground on the end of an old mini-hacksaw blade, which was tempered enough that I could bend it 90 degrees, and then set about the grinding. Spoiled first try, but got the second try right. I'll post a pic if I can get my little camera to do a decent closeup. The tooth is mighty small.

As I posted earlier, this is as far as I got. Not enough spent cases to justify mixing up a batch.

[Cris T]

I think the trick to successful repriming is to make a scraper that will clean out the fired rims. Mine is a tooth tediously ground on the end of an old mini-hacksaw blade, which was tempered enough that I could bend it 90 degrees, and then set about the grinding. Spoiled first try, but got the second try right. I'll post a pic if I can get my little camera to do a decent closeup. The tooth is mighty small.

As I posted earlier, this is as far as I got. Not enough spent cases to justify mixing up a batch.

I made a little tiny tool that looks like a very long stemmed car valve. The protruding end has slits or serrations on it I made it to fit into the rim. A twist or two cleans them out pretty well.

[uscra112]

I made a little tiny tool that looks like a very long stemmed car valve. The protruding end has slits or serrations on it I made it to fit into the rim. A twist or two cleans them out pretty well.

Like a little saw with a long arbor. Good.