32 S&W Long Recipes

[StrawHat]

What is everyone using in the little 32 Hand Ejector? I have 100 grain Keith SWC (Catshooter’s Group Buy).

Looking for suggestions for powders and such. I would also consider getting a full WC mold.

Thank you.

Kevin

[EMC45]

What a great gun. I have it's twin. Wood grips however.

I use Bullseye under 100-115gr bullets.

[Green Frog]

StrawHat,

If Dale53 doesn't chime in here quickly, you should reach out to him via PM. That bullet ranks as one of his all time favorites for both 32 S&W L and H&R loads. There seems to be a sweet spot for 32 S&W in the 95-100 grain bullet range.

If you decide you want to go with a full wadcutter, I think you will find a wealth of possibilities there. I personally found an old DC Ideal 313492 button nosed WC (long discontinued) and the MP HBWC (currently available at last check) for full on target work. Once I'm able to get back to the casting bench, I plan to spend some quality time with those two moulds and do a little load development for the two Smiths in that caliber I'm definitely keeping, my recreated Model 16-3 and my snub 32 Hand Ejector (I-frame.)

There have been several threads on this subject lately, and it appears that good powder choices would include Bullseye, 231, Red Dot, Green Dot and Unique. Do a quick search so you don't have to replow old ground. You might also get some good info over on the S&W Forum in their Reloading threads.

Froggie

[Guesser]

I've been playing with Trail Boss under 95-100 grain cast bullets. 313226 and 313445. It seems to work well but I don't think there is any advantage over B'eye or Unique; or even A#2. The cartridge is not picky!!

[MT Gianni]

I have a 94 gr wadcutter and the Lee 90 gr tumble lube bullet. Both shoot great with 2.3 gr Red Dot. I cut that load back from 2.5 gr as it chronographed faster than I wanted to push things out of the Pre-Regulation Police I frame.

[StrawHat]

Thank you for the insights. Please, keep them coming.

Kevin

[Petrol & Powder]

I'm out of the 32 S&W long and 32 H&R mag game but they are great cartridges. Back in my younger days I sold off all of my 32 reloading equipment and components to fund who knows what that I had to have.

My favorite bullet was a full wadcutter that ran right around 100 grains.

Good Luck !!

[shooting on a shoestring]

One the really good wadcutters is the RCBS 98 gr. I use one from Accurate that’s 88 gr with two lube grooves. It’s my favorite bc it’s a 5 cavity mould and I need lots of those little boolits. They are easy and fun to shoot.

Keep an eye on boolit size. These little 32s often have an affinity for larger than expected diameters. I size at 0.315” for great results in my 0.314” throats.

Bullseye is my favorite fuel. It meters great in the tiny charges and burns well at the low pressures.

Enjoy!

[35remington]

I do not care for the large flake powders due to meterability issues attendant to the large granule size in small charge weights. Variation means more in a 32 Long case than a 45 ACP case. If by some miracle your powder dispenser meters them with acceptable uniformity (good luck!) there is nothing otherwise wrong with them, or if you weigh each charge.

Like and use Titegroup, Bullseye, and WST with the last two preferred. Titegroup is not any more position insensitive in this cartridge than the other two. Universal powder with standard seating depth 98 RN’s and SWC’s gives me the hives and I suggest avoiding it due to velocity consistency issues.

Enough Bullseye or WST to give the RCBS 98 WC 710 fps or the RCBS 98 SWC 780-820 fps is a favorite. Ditto the Lyman 313492 “semi wadcutter wadcutter” at around the same speed.

[35remington]

I should add these are from a 4” Colt Police Positive and a 4.25” Smith Regulation Police.

[Larry Gibson]

As to WC bullets if you can find any of the Speer 98 gr HBWCs they are really excellent performers in the 32 S&WL. I found 1.8 to 2.1 gr Bullseye to be an excellent load with that bullet seated out to the 1st canalure. More than 2.1 gr is not a pressure problem but destroys accuracy blowing out the HB skirt. 2.1 gr runs 725 fps out of my 3" M30 S&W.

[Gus Youmans]

Kevin,

From the Lyman Cast Bullet Handbook, 4th Edition for the SAECO #326 100 grain SWC:

Powder Start - Max
N310 1.9 - 2.2
Bullseye 2.1 - 2.4
Titegroup 1.8 - 2.1
700X 1.9 - 2.2
Green Dot 2.1 - 2.5
231 2.2 - 2.6
Zip 2.4 - 2.8
Unique 2.2 - 2.6
Acc #5 3.1 - 3.6

The manual shows the starting load for Titegroup as their accuracy load.

I use 231 and Bullseye but lean more toward 231.

Gus Youmans

[Erich]

While I have no idea whether it's right for you and your guns, I've happily used Phil Sharpe's Unique data from his 1930s Complete Guide to Handloading for years in my solid-frame .32 S&W Longs. It's worth seeking out a copy of this book for your library.

2013-03-10_11-16-09_507.jpg

[Larry Gibson]

I've used that data from Sharpe's book for many years also. I recently posted actual tested pressure data on another thread of 2 loads that were under the max listed for a 90 gr and the 98 gr bullet. Both shoot exceptionally well in my M30 S&W I frame.

[Walks]

I use the Saeco #325 and Lee #311-93-1R in My Colt Police Positive 6" 32S&W Long and Ruger SSM 5 1/2" 32H&R. Bullseye works well for Me in the light loads.

Although the Lyman #4 Cast Bullet Handbook confuses me. The loads shown for .32H&R with Bullseye are Actually Lighter the loads Shown for .32S&W Long.

Since I have plenty of TiteGroup I may try it out the next time I load .32 S&W Long.

[rintinglen]

I use the afore-mentioned RCBS boolits, both the 32-98 SWC and 32-98 WC, as well as the MP 314-640 HP. 2.2 grains of WW-231 works for all of them.

[Larry Gibson]

I use the Saeco #325 and Lee #311-93-1R in My Colt Police Positive 6" 32S&W Long and Ruger SSM 5 1/2" 32H&R. Bullseye works well for Me in the light loads.

Although the Lyman #4 Cast Bullet Handbook confuses me. The loads shown for .32H&R with Bullseye are Actually Lighter the loads Shown for .32S&W Long.

Since I have plenty of TiteGroup I may try it out the next time I load .32 S&W Long.

That is somewhat confusing with the SAECO 100 gr cast bullet. However, all the other bullets have heavier Bullseye loads listed for the 32 H&R. We always, erroneously, assume max loads in manuals are there based on psi levels. Such is not always the case. This may be one of those "other reasons" or it may be a mistake in the CBH #4.

CBH #3 lists 3.5 gr BE as a max load under the 100 gr Lyman 313631. I have found in measuring the psi that is pretty close to what is considered a "max" charge for the old H&R revolvers. There is no SAAMI MAP for the 32 H&R btw.