Shootin' The 32-20 With Little Bullets

[Sixgun]

Howdy Dudes,
This summer is killing me with yard work and all--Have not had time to BS with the boys---Anyway, I got to playing with the old 1892 Winchester in 32-20 (made in 1893) the other day with bullets made for the 32 S&W Short. I have had this rifle for 35 years and never thought about using the little bullets in it.

I have been using the Lyman bullets for so long, I did not think anything else would shoot out of it I have logged over 6K out of the old '92 and its got a very nice shiny bore. For the boys here who don't cast and for the ones here who do, but hate casting the little bullets and spending the money on gas checks, well, here's your answer. The 32 S&W Short bullets I use are usually shot out of and old top break .32 S&W double action. I buy them for about $30 a thousand. (well, that was last year) They are sized .312. Pushing them with 5 grains of Unique yields 1440 fps and no leading whatsoever out of the '92. Accuracy was an astounding 2 and 1/2" @ 100 meters (109 yds) with my 54 year old eyes. The Remington 71 grain jacketed designed for the 32 auto shoots just as good.

While these loads may not be all that great for hunting, they sure do work for plinking and pistol caliber silhouette shooting. Mighty cheap too ------------------------Sixgun
left to right
71 gr. Reming. jkt---115 gr. NEI gas check----115 Lyman plain base----77 gr. commercial cast
,

[JimT]

They are fun! I have a Lee 90 gr. roundnose mold that I use like that. Also I have used a "00" buckshot pressed onto the mouth of the case over 1 1/2 gr. of Bullseye for indoor loads.

[JJ_Miller]

Looks like the perfect coon load..............JJ

[Glenn]

Hey Jim, aren't you going to tell about your most unusual use for a .32-20 (Shootin' Thru) ?
Glenn

[BenT]

Who did you buy the cast bullet from ? Or who was the manufacturer? i should try them in my 32 H&R mag.

[Nath]

I use to do the same with a pistol 32 bullet pushed through a 308 sizer for my 30/30 and a pinch of w231

Weren't that accurate though!

Nath.

[Blaine]

They are fun! I have a Lee 90 gr. roundnose mold that I use like that. Also I have used a "00" buckshot pressed onto the mouth of the case over 1 1/2 gr. of Bullseye for indoor loads.

That would be .33, right? Never thought of that....RB is fair accurate to 100yds, depending on the load.....my .54 Renegage would do about 6" with RB at 100 yds.......Any way, a little .32 Single Six and a couple bags of 00 could keep ya in rabbits and such for a very long time.....

[Sixgun]

Who did you buy the cast bullet from ? Or who was the manufacturer? i should try them in my 32 H&R mag.

Ben,
I probably have 50 moulds that I cast for but this little bullet is not worth the aggravation. I buy them at the Valley Forge gunshow. They are made by a company called "Penn Bullets". Just google it and I am sure they have a website. If not, its a fairly common bullet and most decent bullet suppliers will carry them. Just make sure you get .312 or .313 diameter. These bullets also shoot great in a 32 Mag or for that matter, probably any 30 caliber rifle.-In the 32 mag. I drop in about 2 grains of Bullseye for shootin' in the backyard. Very quiet and fun--------------Sixgun

[Jay Bird]

My father has always been an expert at smaller the normal things.

[Tycer]

My father has always been an expert at smaller than normal things.

You lookin' in the mirror?

[mav]

Sixgun,
do you use a Lee Factory Crimp die on the ACP bullets or do you just fill the case with black.

[w30wcf]

Sixgun,
Nice pic with the 1955 Lyman / Ideal Handbook #40 in the background Nice idea! Unortunately, I don't have a .32-20 yet but I have pushed the 311245 in lino (88 grs) to over 3,000 f.p.s. in my .30-30's with good accuracy.

Mav,
Are you going to the PA State Cowboy Silhouette Championshiip this year? Sixgun is planning on being there as am I.

w30wcf

[OD*]

Great post, Jack.

[mav]

John,
Yes, I will be there Saturday. Just shooting SCR and PC. I gave them the check this evening at one of their weekly shoots. Boy do I need to practice!

[w30wcf]

mav,
Glad to hear. I plan on being there both days. It will be fuunnn!

w30wcf

[CraigC]

Mighty interesting! A while back I bought a bunch of .32ACP bullets, including the 60gr Gold Dot, intent on turning a cannelure in them and seeing how fast I could drive them out of my Browning 53 but just never got around to it.