The .32 S&W Long is Still One Crackerjack Trail Gun
Copyright, C. E. Harris, 1998, All Rights Reserved
An ideal small game round should down rabbits, groundhogs, or
squirrels in their tracks without tearing them up, be precise to
shoot the heads off grouse to 25 yards, be flat shooting and
accurate enough for body shots to at least 50 yards and still have
adequate energy for the occasional wild turkey, marauding feral
dog, rabid fox or raccoon.  It should also be easy to reload,
economical of powder and lead, with components being both plentiful
and inexpensive.
In my opinion, a .22 LR rimfire handgun simply doesn't cut it on
small game, though it is far better than throwing rocks. High 
velocity solids don't anchor small game positively.  Long rifle
and .22 WMR hollow-points usually make furburgers of pot meat. 
Subsonic .22 LR HPs, .22 WRF and WMR solids do fairly well, but
are expensive when you do find them.
Today's handgunners don't think much of the .32 S&W Long, but it
deserves a serious look in the trail gun category because it is
still a very useful cartridge.  Factory loads are unimpressive,
but accurate, either a 98-gr. lead roundnosed or hollow-based
wadcutter at about 720 f.p.s.  Handloaded, the .32 Long has great
potential, equal to the famed .32-20 Winchester.  Until the .32
H&R Magnum came around, the .32-20 WCF was the best small game
load ever invented.  It drove a 100-gr. softpoint or lead,
flatnosed bullet about 1050 f.p.s. from 6" revolver.
Prior to introduction of the .32 H&R Magnum, I used the S&W Model
31, Colt Police Positive and Officer's Model Target .32 revolvers, 
which are all safely coaxed to standard velocity .32-20 levels. 
The big problem with the .32-20 is that guns or ammo aren't easy to
find, the thin brass is fragile and revolvers chambered for it
aren't as accurate as similar models in .32 Long or .38 Special.
Some owners of .32 H&R Magnum revolvers use .32 S&W longs in them
just as we ordinarily use .38 Specials in a .357 Magnum.  This
works just fine.  A Ruger Single Six or S&W Model 31 makes a
handy and accurate trail gun.  Brass for the .32 S&W Long is more
common and less expensive than for the .32 H&R Magnum.  In .32
H&R Mag. revolvers you can use loads which are a bit heavier than
factory .32 Longs, but which are safely within the design limits
of modern .32 revolvers.  All load data which follows, unless
stated otherwise, it suitable only for post-war, solid frame guns
such as the Smith & Wesson Model 31, Colt Police Positive Special
and modern .32 Magnums, such as the Ruger Single-Six.
Cast or swaged lead flat-nosed or semi-wadcutter bullets from 80
to 115 grains make the best non-destructive small game loads and
are accurate from 800 to 1050 f.p.s.  Proper bullet diameter for 
.32 S&W Long revolvers is .312-.313." Check cylinder throat
diameter, because modern Rugers run as small as .310 and pre-1950
S&Ws may run as large as .314."  Always size lead revolver bullets
to pass through the cylinder throats with slight resistance when 
dropped into the chambers and pushed from the chamber end with 
a pencil eraser and hand pressure only.  Hornady's .312"
diameter 90-gr. SWC is similar in shape to the H&G #65, is
accurate in most .32 revolvers and can stand magnum velocities.
The Speer 100-gr. hollowbased wadcutter is suitable only for 
target loads up to 700-830 f.p.s.
Introduction of the Hornady XTP bullets, provides off-the-shelf
varmint medicine which is highly accurate and expands even at
subsonic velocities.  The 85-gr. Hornadys produce exit holes in
wax blocks which are indistinguishable from those of .38
wadcutters, about the size of your thumb, whereas the 100-gr.
loads expand less than the classic mushroom, but give deep
penetration for larger animals.  The 85-grainers are most
accurate and shoot flatter, permitting 100-yard kills on 
woodchucks without holdover, and are my first choice. 
Some discussion of FMJ bullets is in order, because people
will ask.  I am not crazy about them and I'll tell you
why.   The 71-gr. .32 ACP FMJs are only acceptable plinkers
in the .32 S&W Long with 3.5 grs. of Bullseye or 4 grs. of 
W231 in modern revolvers.  The .308" diameter, 110-gr. FMJs
intended for the .30 M1 carbine give acceptable plinking
accuracy in the Ruger when seated out to the full length 
of the Magnum cylinder with these same charges, but they 
do not shoot well in .32 S&W Long revolvers with cylinder
throats larger than .311" in diameter.  In general FMJs
are a poor choice for .32 revolvers as they tend to be
less accurate and less effective than a lead FN bullet of
the same weight. I don't recommend them at all, unless you
have a supply of them you got cheap and want to use up.
I have standardized .32 S&W handloads for my Ruger Single Six, a
re-barreled and recylindered S&W Model 15 in .32 Long and my .32
Colt Officers Model Target.  My .32 Long handloads worked up for
the Colt also shoot well in the Ruger and the S&W.  The Hornady
85-gr. XTP is the most accurate jacketed bullet, but the 90-gr.
Sierra Power Jacket does nearly as well.
In limited testing of the Speer 100-gr. JHP bullet, it didn't
tolerate the jump from the .32 S&W Long case in the Ruger's
Magnum cylinder.  Groups with the Speer bullet using the same
charge which shot well with cast bullets of the same weight
enlarged from neat 1-3/4" clusters in the .32 Colt to over 5" in
the Ruger.  The Hornady XTP bullets showed no such finicky
tendency and averaged under 2" from .32 S&W Long cases in the
Ruger's Magnum chambers, whereas they do 1-1/2" or less in the
Colt for which they were developed.  My favorite loads with the
85-gr. and 100-gr. Hornady XTP bullets average under 2" from .32
S&W Long cases in the Ruger's Magnum chambers and do 1-1/2" or
better in the 6" Colt Officer's Model and the 4" customized S&W,
which both have .32 S&W Long chambers.
Proven recipes for .32 S&W Long handloads for strong revolvers
are 3.5 grs. of SR-7625 with the 85-gr. XTP for 1000 f.p.s., or
4.0 grs. of W231 for 1120 f.p.s.  With the Hornady 90-gr. swaged
lead SWC 2.5 grs. of W231 gives about 800 f.p.s. and should not
be exceeded in older revolvers, whereas in the Ruger, 3.0 grs. of
W231 is highly accurate at 900 f.p.s. from a 4-5/8" barrel.  
My favorite cast bullet for the .32 Long and .32 H&R Magnum is
the Saeco 100-gr. SWC, which is a miniature Keith type.  In .32
Long brass my most accurate load is 2.6 grs. of SR-7625 for 800
f.p.s., a nice "bunny popper," a bit warmer than factory, though
still safe in old solid frame, but not top-break revolvers.  For
a flatter shooting load in the Ruger I bump the charge up to 3.5
grs. of SR-7625 for 1035 f.p.s. in the 4-5/8" Ruger and 1087 in
the 6" Colt.  You can also use 2.5 to 3.0 grs. of Bullseye or 3.0
to 3.5 grs. of W231 for 850-900 f.p.s.  A charge of 3.5-4.0 grs.
of Unique has similar ballistics and shoots well in strong guns,
but don't exceed 2.8 grs. of Unique in pre-war solid frames.
If your chosen .32 trail gun will shoot under 2-inch 25-yard
groups with a 100-gr. flatnosed lead bullet at velocities from
800 to 1050 f.p.s., the basics of a crackerjack trail gun are
there.  If the particular revolver weighs about 2 pounds or so,
so much the better.  A 4" barrel is enough, if you have good
eyesight.  The Ruger 4-5/8" barreled .32 Magnum Single Six is
just about ideal.  The effect of barrel length upon accuracy is
insignificant for field use, if you can see the sights.
'73 de KE4SKY, Regards, Ed
 
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