32 H&R Mag

Pistolero

Pistolero

Well-Known Member
Last edited:
Pistolero

Pistolero

Well-Known Member
Last edited:
CZ93X62

CZ93X62

Official forum enigma
I have the SP-101 x 4.2" about 2-1/2 years old, and a S&W Model 16-4 x 6" from 1989. That Bisley calls to me, more than a little. If I could find a Model 30 or 31 x 4", that SP-101 would be gone in a heartbeat. The SP-101 needs finishing, like a lot of Rugers do. It annoys me.
 
Bret4207

Bret4207

At the casting bench in the sky. RIP Bret.
30-34 oz Bill, vs 18-22 for a J frame Kit type, that's part of the problem. And L Ross, it's not that 3 or 3.5" won't work in the field, I have a 1 7/8" 38 that has worked, as have my 3" Smith 24-3 and Charter Bull Dog. It's an issue of a purpose created field gun with good sights, a workable (not too short, not too long) barrel, in a caliber we desire. Smith sold a passel of 22 Kit Guns over the years, that's the idea in a nutshell. Make the Ruger Bearcat (if it was feasible) in 32 and put decent adjustable sights on it, there's your single action "kit gun". Yeah, 3" works, so will my 9 1/2 Single Six 32 Mag with the scope on it. But "works" isn't the same as being designed for a job. You can use a 2" 38 for popping at deer, but most people are going to go to something designed more for the job, and a 5 shot 22 short NAA belt buckle gun will work for self defense, but it's not our first choice in most cases.

I'm writing about what I desire, not what will get me by in a "good enough for now" scenario. Good enough for now is why I'm driving a $500 Escape with a transmission leak and serious rust cancer!
 
L Ross

L Ross

Well-Known Member
Pistolero said:
My bet is that for new handgun purchases, CCW weapons are by far the largest current market
segment.
They build what sells. And some older/smaller shooters need a CCW gun and cannot handle much in the
way of recoil. I have seen this in training classes. A .22 WMR in your pocket beats harsh language
by a lot. Esp since about 90% of all self defense gun "uses" involve zero shots fired. Perp
sees the error in his victim selection process writting on the muzzle and instantly butt cheeks
and elbows disappearing in the distance are the view. In those cases, number of rounds in
the gun, caliber, velocity and bullet design are all irrelevant.
My bet is now there are 25 CCW or home defense pistols sold for every 'field gun' being sold.

Bill
Click to expand...
That statistic would certainly make sense as there are probably 25 times more urban dwellers with no fields in which to go aroamin', than us lucky bums with good sized chunks of property, and ease of concealabilty takes priority. Even still, I go back to my Handy Handguns post, and postulate that a heavy, uncomfortable, but highly effective gun stays home while the almost unnoticeable little piece gets the nod.
 
L Ross

L Ross

Well-Known Member
Pistolero said:
Ask and ye shall receive, Bret....if you lay down enough Benjamins.
In this case about seven by the time you pay shipping to your FFL.
If you can stand the bump up to .38 Special/.357. I wouldn't be shooting
many magnums in it, for sure.


These days, that is a pretty reasonable price, actually.

Bill
Click to expand...
That's my packin' revolver! Old enough to have no Hillary Hole. So far it looks like a real winner too. I need to really wring it out on paper, but whilst stalking along this Winter on snow shoes I stopped at my 200 yard rail where there is a sighter gong hanging. I stopped about 25 yards away. There was a black spray painted oblong shape in the center designed to approximate the body of a 200 yard 22 BPCR silhouette ram. Pretending that the oblong was a rabbit, I held from the left end as if it where the head and using my snow shoeing staff as a rest, fired one single action. The gong clanged and jumped, but I could see no impact in the white paint surrounding the oblong. I shuffled up to the gong and by golly there was a hit right where I held. I marched back and tried it again, and again not mark in the white. I walked back to the gong and there to me delight were two impacts almost superimposed. I load the Model 60-4 with 148 gr. double ended wadcutters over 3.4 grains of Bullseye, with the sprue end facing out. These come from a Magma Master Caster mould and are pretty much just plain old wheel weights sized to .358" and tumbled in BLL.
A few hundred yards later, I saw movement under a downed elm top and spotted a cottontail. There are several in the freezer and there were pink spots in the snow signifying that breeding season was commencing, so I unloaded the cylinder and dry fired on the lucky bunny a couple of clicks at about 14 paces. I have not doubt about the outcome had the little revolver been loaded. Other than that I shot at some 4" squares on a rail at about 20 yards and missed none that were not my fault due to a less than perfect trigger squeeze.
 
L Ross

L Ross

Well-Known Member
Bret4207 said:
My wish list is for the J frame field guns to return. At one point Smith made J frames with 4" and I believe up to 6" barrels and adjustable sights. I saw one in 38 Spec once, just once, with what I was told was a 4" barrel but it looked like a 5 to me. And yes, adjustable sights and yes, it was blued as I prefer. In a moment of major stupidity I walked away from it! Not a fan of stainless at all. A 4" Kit Gun in 32 Long or Federal would suit me fine. I don't need the 327 and I imagine it would need a longer cylinder, but if it was my only choice I'd take it. I've been looking for a Smith 30 or 31 for decades to slap an adjustable sight on but the sole example I've seen was a 2 incher. My K32 isn't bad to carry in a holster but it's not like my little 22 Kit Gun. Some guns are just handy and the J frame fits the bill in my book.

Actually, if Smith came out with new guns like I want I'm not sure I'd buy one simply becasue the latest Smiths I've seen have been "techno-ed" out into heavy, somewhat crude for the price monstrosities. Maybe as was mentioned, if some big wholesaler had a special run of field type guns made, sans safeties and green sights, etc, I'd spring for one. But a stainless, under lugged, heavy barreled, drilled and tapped for scope mount with fixed glow in the dark, neon green front sight Frankengun doesn't appeal. Light and easy to carry, that's the ticket. Smith knows or knew how to build them accurate, now they need to dispense with the "bling"!
Click to expand...
Bret, why the dislike of stainless? The only bad experience I've had with stainless was with an AMT Hardballer that was obviously made with the wrong alloy.
 
J

Jeff H

NW Ohio
TWO pretty cool "field guns" in the 32 Mag I've handled were; first, someone else's 4" Charter Arms six-shot RIGHT after the cartridge came out, and the second was a beautiful 4" Taurus six-shot. With starting loads (and less), they were accurate and cheap to shoot.

The Charter burned up in a shop fire and the Taurus' chambers were so oversized they split factory-loaded 32 S&W cases on the first firing, let alone actual "Mag" loads. Sent it back to Taurus and they returned it with a target and a note stating they had "fixed my front sight for me."

I wouldn't mid following Ed Harris' footsteps and building a tiny single shot rifle for a 32 as a "companion" to a nice 32 field revolver, but the 357 handles the role with some added flexibility and commonality of some components and tooling/other guns I have.

I've always felt the Single Six was a bit much gun for the 22 LR (for me) and that it was the perfect form for a SA 32 Mag.
 
Bret4207

Bret4207

At the casting bench in the sky. RIP Bret.
L Ross said:
Bret, why the dislike of stainless? The only bad experience I've had with stainless was with an AMT Hardballer that was obviously made with the wrong alloy.
Click to expand...

It's flashy and garish and cheap looking to my eye. Same with a nickle gun. I'm a traditionalist I guess. Blue steel and walnut, or maple under the right circumstances. Just a personal preference. To me stainless is the girl with way too much makeup on wearing clothes that show way more than I want to see. Cheap looking. But I understand that others feel differently and that's good by me. Just another one of those "To each their own." things.
 
Bret4207

Bret4207

At the casting bench in the sky. RIP Bret.
Jeff H said:
TWO pretty cool "field guns" in the 32 Mag I've handled were; first, someone else's 4" Charter Arms six-shot RIGHT after the cartridge came out, and the second was a beautiful 4" Taurus six-shot. With starting loads (and less), they were accurate and cheap to shoot.

The Charter burned up in a shop fire and the Taurus' chambers were so oversized they split factory-loaded 32 S&W cases on the first firing, let alone actual "Mag" loads. Sent it back to Taurus and they returned it with a target and a note stating they had "fixed my front sight for me."

I wouldn't mid following Ed Harris' footsteps and building a tiny single shot rifle for a 32 as a "companion" to a nice 32 field revolver, but the 357 handles the role with some added flexibility and commonality of some components and tooling/other guns I have.

I've always felt the Single Six was a bit much gun for the 22 LR (for me) and that it was the perfect form for a SA 32 Mag.
Click to expand...


Jeff, if you can find a Remington #4 Rolling block in 32 RF with a good barrel, you can convert it to 32 S+W or S+W Long easily. Some say the Long os too much for the #4, but mine has digested some pretty stout loads without a hiccup. But, the plain old 32 S+W out of a rifle will break 1100 fps with a 90 gr bullet, and that was as hot as I got. That right there is getting up into a very effective range for small game and treading on the heels of a 32-20 out of a handgun.
 
RicinYakima

RicinYakima

High Steppes of Eastern Washington
My conversion is a Remington RB #2 from 32RF to 32 Long. Bore isn't even nice, just OK, but will do two inches at fifty with iron sights.
rb no. 2 side.jpgRem #2 target.jpg
 
Bret4207

Bret4207

At the casting bench in the sky. RIP Bret.
Oooooooh! Me wants!!! Very nice Ric, very nice. Lining the barrel is always an option, And Green Mountain make barrels with the proper twist for less than relining costs.
 
Pistolero

Pistolero

Well-Known Member
I have one with a mint bore in .22 RF, a real tack driver. I have seen at least a dozen #4s over the
years at gun shows in 32RF, totally destroyed bores, pure sewer pipe, no trace of rifling and they want
$250 to $500 for the rifle....with a medium decent or worse exterior. :oops:

How do you do the conversion from RF to CF? New breach block or weld and drill or what?

I found mine at Tulsa about 15-16 years ago and paid a lot more than I wanted too, but it has a
good bit of the color case still left, bore is mint, really nice good to very good condition.
Hard to find. I am a huge Rem RB fan, have a number from .50 to .22

Bill
 
Last edited:
Bret4207

Bret4207

At the casting bench in the sky. RIP Bret.
Bill, we welded and drilled Did the same thing to a #6, but that one is a much less robust design and will get 32 S+W only running maybe 800-850fps with an 85-90 bullet and a pinch of Bullseye. 600 fps out of a 2" nightstand gun factory loads have run about 750 in the #4. The little 32 S+W is a lot more in a rifle than in a handgun. They just make a dull "pooomp' sound and then you hear the bullet hit the target. Fun! Kinda like a suppressed gun only no headaches.

This is the Green Mountain barrel I think is just the ticket for a lot of those old #4's or other smaller actioned single shots- https://www.gmriflebarrel.com/wl322228-32-20-cal-27-tapered-octagon/#reviews
 
L Ross

L Ross

Well-Known Member
Bret4207 said:
Bill, we welded and drilled Did the same thing to a #6, but that one is a much less robust design and will get 32 S+W only running maybe 800-850fps with an 85-90 bullet and a pinch of Bullseye. 600 fps out of a 2" nightstand gun factory loads have run about 750 in the #4. The little 32 S+W is a lot more in a rifle than in a handgun. They just make a dull "pooomp' sound and then you hear the bullet hit the target. Fun! Kinda like a suppressed gun only no headaches.

This is the Green Mountain barrel I think is just the ticket for a lot of those old #4's or other smaller actioned single shots- https://www.gmriflebarrel.com/wl322228-32-20-cal-27-tapered-octagon/#reviews
Click to expand...
I shoot a #6 in our Boy's Rifle Match with CCI 22 CB shorts. I'll bet it is fun as a 32 S&W short! I'm pretty sure I saw one locally about 6 years ago at a sports shop in 32 short rimfire. But it had a rotten bore and the owner wanted 275 dollars,
 
Pistolero

Pistolero

Well-Known Member
A repro of the #4 in .22 RF or .32 CF pistol would seem to be a no brainer for the Uberti and Pedersoli folks.
There was a Uberti RB a few years ago, on the Uberti site, never saw one offered in the USA, though.
Expensive and IIRC, like .44 Mag and .357 Mag, and much bigger rifles.

I guess plinkers with one shot only are not so popular nowdays with the younger gens.
I have had some nephews shooting with the RB, one really took to it. Depending on how things go
I may send it his way eventually. It is a bit of an oddball, the RB, but for those who learn to like
them, they are nice rifles. Near zero action length is a plus. The chamber is pretty much right
in front of your trigger finger....and above, of course. But length wise. All the gun from trigger
fwd is bbl.

Bill
 
Last edited:
Bret4207

Bret4207

At the casting bench in the sky. RIP Bret.
Were I to do it, I'd take the #4 and make it out of a good, strong modern metal, fix the "weaker" spots (bearing screws) and be happy. Or go like that one company did with the Sharps and downsize a Stevens 44, make it out of good steel, and use a lighter barrel. 2 different ways to get to a walking around gun.
 
Pistolero

Pistolero

Well-Known Member
Seems like the MSRP was over $500 by a good bit, but it has been a while. When the parts count is
about 8 to 10 total steel parts, I have a little trouble with that price.
 
Bret4207

Bret4207

At the casting bench in the sky. RIP Bret.
Yeah, that's always the sticking point- price. That's part of why those guns sold well, they were inexpensive in the day. You aren't going to sell a million of them today.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.