Bullet Sizing 32 S&W

[GLSHOOTER]

Anyone have an idea what size the 100 grin WC form Fiochhi is in the 32 S&W Long? I'm shooting a Unique 92 and am not sure what size bullets I need for this one. I believe revolvers like 313 but maybe the autos a tad smaller at 312?

Thanks,

Greg

[fc60]

Greetings,

I have a Unique DES/32U and the barrel groove diameter is 0.314".

Also to note, the chamber in my pistol has a free bore of 0.315" diameter by 0.400" long.

Fiocchi bullets probably measure 0.312" diameter.

Find some 0.314" bullets and you should be in "tall cotton".

Cheers,

Dave

[David M]

Bullet size for the .32 SW long is a bag of worms, it has the worst SAAMI spec of any cartridge.

Diameter is anywhere from .309" to .315".
Revolvers are Manurhin .311"-.312" up to SW .315"-.316"
Auto's are FAS .310"-.312" up to Hammerli .313"-.314"
Slug your barrel to find out the size.
Use soft lead bullets .001"-.002" over barrel size.
Check/alter dies to match bullet diameter.
Best of luck....

[David Levene]

Auto's are FAS .310"-.312" up to Hammerli .313"-.314"
Slug your barrel to find out the size.
Use soft lead bullets .001"-.002" over barrel size.

The early FAS 603s in the mid 1980s had .308 barrels (as designed). They would happily shoot factory Geco or Lapua factory rounds with great accuracy. Fiocchi were a bit finicky; some were good but others (like the batch available at the Auckland 1990 Commonwealth Games) were diabolical. Favoured bullets for reloading were Geco or Lapua, .312 or .313 HBWC, 4-5 thou above bore size.

[mister G]

As I recall, fc60 has done extensive work on this, focusing on "your" particular barrel. Lots of variables here ... barrel twist rate, bullet weight, DEWC or HBWC, powder brand and weight, cast or swaged, taper crimp or roll crimp and so on.

For 25 yd/25 meter marksmanship (NRA/International CF) I've never been fussy about my recipe, but for 50 yd/50 meters, fc60 has the most comprehensive knowledge IMHO .

I still have some of his "special" bullets I got in a trade with him (for some vintage .32 S&W-L boxes). With 2.7 - 2.9 gr W231, a soft roll crimp or a Redding taper crimp die, my Hammerli SP-20 does the job for me.

Your mileage may vary ....

[j danielsson]

Fiocchi makes their very nice bullets .313. That is the only size we can buy them.
If they sqeeze them down to make so crappy ammunition l don't know.

[fc60]

Greetings,

I forgot, there is an outfit named Bear Creek Bullets that offer a swaged 0.314" HBWC.

They almost shot ten ring at 50 yards.

Barrel is an older Pardini HP mounted in a mechanical fixture.

Cheers,

Dave

[mister G]

To: fc60

Took your lead and called Bear Creek 30 minutes ago, Yes, they do have some inventory of 98 gr HBWCs. These are cast, then swaged at 0.314". Since I can't locate my Speer HBWCs, I ordered a bunch. Price is reasonable IMO and shipping is flat rate PMail.

I'll be comparing the Magnus (now OOS) to the Buffalo Creek in my Hammerli SP-20 as soon as the weather warms a bit.
Thanks for the referral.

[fc60]

Greetings misterG,

What is the groove diameter of your SP-20?

Cheers,

Dave

[mister G]

When I slugged it a year ago, it was 0.313” -0.314””.

Mister g

[mister G]

Attn: fc60

Just received my order of 98 gr 0.314" HBWCs from Bear Creek. Very satisfied with appearance and consistency of weight and dimension.

Thanks for the referral. Now I can stop hunting for those Speer bullets.

[TomAmlie]

To: fc60

Took your lead and called Bear Creek 30 minutes ago, Yes, they do have some inventory of 98 gr HBWCs. These are cast, then swaged at 0.314". Since I can't locate my Speer HBWCs, I ordered a bunch. Price is reasonable IMO and shipping is flat rate PMail.

I'll be comparing the Magnus (now OOS) to the Buffalo Creek in my Hammerli SP-20 as soon as the weather warms a bit.
Thanks for the referral.

Did you ever do that Magnus/Bear Creek comparison? Any insights?

[Shiloh]

There have been numerous postings in this forum, as well as in others, regarding the S&W Long re powder & amounts, crimp, seating, and various bullets by several different manufacturers as well an implied accuracy.

I find that the results of all to be confusing and perhaps somewhat misleading.

It would seem that little can be determined from very small sampling of particular implied accuracy or that from a single target.

A NRA aggregate CF (90 shots) or an international match (not "hit or miss") score accompanied with details of loads used including components (bullets, brass, primer), firearms used, and target distance would be of much greater value to those formally competing with the 32 S&W Long.

I have purchased 2 of Mr. Wilson's barrels for a GSP and a HP in the past. I was very satisfied with the performance of both barrels, however, my pistols shooting with those barrels while hanging off my arm were nowhere near as accurate as the results provided from the fixed barrel tester used to test the barrels. They were, however, very close when using a pistol rest so there is value in providing a baseline to experiment.

My NRA Precision Pistol outdoor and indoor classifications are EXPERT. I can normally fire Expert scores (810 plus of 90 shots).

There have been numerous comparisons discussing the differences and advantages/disadvantages between swagged & hard cast, wadcutter (hollow-based and not), reloading equipment, powders used, etc.

Searching for a more accurate 32 S&W round for use a NRA Precision Pistol match at both 25 & 50 yards is a complicated effort. The definite proof of the result of that effort is clearly determined by the score on the scorecard from a match.

If posters would provide much more defined descriptions of what has worked for them in similar competitions with the results, it would be of considerable value by substantially decreasing the learning curve for a potentially better load.

My current 32 S&W Long load for GSP Expert with Expert (2013) and with pre-Expert (1990) barrels:

25 yards: 1.6 Bullseye/64 grain coated SWC (designed for 32 ACP) from TB Bullets in OR/0.929 OAL - slightly lower than the Lapua 83 commercial load/Roll Crimp (for feeding in the HP and have continued for the GSP). Small ragged hole from an old Hoppes Pistol Rest. Very little recoil.
(I also have and use Speer 98 and Lapua 83 grain bullets but the results aren't quite as good)

50 yards: 2.3 231/same as 25 yard above with 64 grain SWC. I am very, very happy with this load but still looking for better. 10 ring easy from the Hoppes rest.

They look a little strange with the TB 32 ACP SWC bullet shoulder deep in the case and which doesn't crimp on/near the edge of the case. Per above the crimp used is for smooth feeding.

I have always liked the Speer 98 bullets no matter what they were called ("Target", "Plinker", whatever). They do vary slightly sometimes so I sort them. I don't have to sort the Lapua or TB bullets.

I would be very interested in similar info from others.

[robjob]

I really like shooting the 32 but to be honest you're really handicapping yourself if you're shooting the 32 outdoors. When I got mine I was also thinking of possibly shooting it for center fire, and listened to some older guys talk about how bad it was and drift. 1st thought was we don't worry about drift in Bullseye then I did some ballistics. With a 10 mile an hour crosswind on a 98 gr lapua at 775fps you're drifting almost 3 Inches in a 10 mph crosswind That takes you from an X to an 8 (9 ring diameter is 5.5" so 2.75 from center). And you have a smaller diameter bullet so you don't benefit from a bigger hole on close shots. Mat not seem like much, but the 45 is .13"bigger so you get 1/16 more scoring area. That's a lot thicker than the line on most targets.

Sure it's only 30 shots for slow fire, and not all will be affected by wind so let's say 1/4 (7 shots) are. You willing to give up 14 points on the long line to start the match?

The bigger issue to me is that it makes you start to question your calls. Ir even worse, blame wind for a bad shot that you don't want to admit.

It took me 15 minutes of ciphering to come to the conclusion that most high level shooters already know... shot 45 for cf...

[Shiloh]

Very interesting info and certainly a proven for those shooting the 32 S&W Long at Perry where the weather and wind often test the mettle of the best shooters. Don't know about Atterbury.

The 32 ACP is different. A lighter, and different, bullet than the 32 S&W Long but better at 50 yards. When Emil Milev was at PardiniUSA a few years ago, he shot an 873 with a Pardini HP 32 ACP at Perry.

I don't have to deal with crosswind at any of the 4 area bullseye ranges in Virginia & Maryland which is an obvious advantage and factor for me.

[robjob]

Your lucky... 10 mph is a calm day where I live...