A strange little gun…
The internet brings us pictures and stories of all kinds of fancy handguns – exotic engraved 1911s with carved ivory grips, booming big bores alongside shaggy beasts they’ve bagged, patinaed antiques from the 1800s worth huge sums of money, etc. This strange little revolver is none of those things, but it is nonetheless special.
S&W introduced the Military & Police (M&P) in 1899, and along with it the .38 Special cartridge. There were several changes made in the early years, but the M&P became the definitive medium-framed fixed-sight .38 Special revolver, used by law enforcement and civilians alike, for many decades. Later on, the M&P was also offered in .32-20, but the vast majority one sees today are chambered for .38 Special. In the late 1950s, S&W changed the M&P’s name to the Model 10. S&W has made a gajillion M&P/Model 10s over the years, and they are quite common. You can’t go to a gun-show today and NOT see at least one.
But this 1950’s vintage M&P is not common. You see, it’s chambered for .32 S&W Long. They didn’t make very many like this (about 4,800). This particular revolver has seen some use, and the bluing wear shows it, but mechanically the timing, lock-up, and bore are in very good shape. It’s a fine little shooter.
I only load cast bullets for this gun. I have tried a variety of different pistol powders (Bullseye, 231, PB, Unique, etc.), but for general purpose plinking/small game hunting, I have found nothing better than 2.5 grains of Red Dot underneath 90-100 grain RN-FP or SWC cast bullets (sized .313”). This combination generates right around 800 fps and delivers excellent accuracy. I also sometimes shoot 85-90 grain wadcutters from this gun using 2.0 grains of Bullseye (I have never chronographed this load, but I think it’s going about 700 fps).
To my way of thinking, the .32 S&W Long is just about the perfect grouse-n-bunny load, and the two loads listed above drop small game both quickly and cleanly. In the past, I would go over to the Olympic Peninsula each November to spend 3-4 days hunting coastal blacktail deer with my retired buddy Bob. Bob was also a fan of .32 caliber handguns, and there are a fair number of grouse over on the Olympic Peninsula, so we would make a point of carrying our grouse guns while we were out hunting coastal blacktails. Bob also loved to cook, and when we got a grouse (or two), we would breast it out, and he would make some Bob’s grouse and brown rice stir-fry -- sliced up grouse breast browned in olive oil with some diced garlic and fresh ground black pepper, then turn the heat down and add brown rice, diced red onion, a hearty dollop of whole-grain mustard, and healthy glug-glug of white wine (preferably Riesling), stir and cover and simmer on low heat until the rice is done. I loved hunting with Bob, and I loved eating Bob’s grouse and brown rice stir-fry (but Bob’s delightful wife Audrey hated it -- it seems they ate a fair amount of it early in their marriage and she had grown tired of eating grouse).
The deer numbers have been down in recent years, so we didn’t see many up in the mountains the last few years. But it was a different story when we came back into town, where we commonly found deer walking through his yard and eating his roses!
Bob died last December. He was 75.
‘Tis the season for giving thanks – I am thankful to have had 20 years of Bob’s friendship, wry humor, and insightful mentoring. I am grateful to have been able to share many hunting trips and adventures with Bob over the years. I am grateful for the hunting camp meals, fine wine, campfires and the many tales of adventure we shared. I handle this little .32 M&P and I think about Bob, I think about grouse, I think about Bob’s grouse and brown rice stir-fry, and I am grateful.
That’s why it’s special. Happy Thanksgiving all.
The internet brings us pictures and stories of all kinds of fancy handguns – exotic engraved 1911s with carved ivory grips, booming big bores alongside shaggy beasts they’ve bagged, patinaed antiques from the 1800s worth huge sums of money, etc. This strange little revolver is none of those things, but it is nonetheless special.
S&W introduced the Military & Police (M&P) in 1899, and along with it the .38 Special cartridge. There were several changes made in the early years, but the M&P became the definitive medium-framed fixed-sight .38 Special revolver, used by law enforcement and civilians alike, for many decades. Later on, the M&P was also offered in .32-20, but the vast majority one sees today are chambered for .38 Special. In the late 1950s, S&W changed the M&P’s name to the Model 10. S&W has made a gajillion M&P/Model 10s over the years, and they are quite common. You can’t go to a gun-show today and NOT see at least one.
But this 1950’s vintage M&P is not common. You see, it’s chambered for .32 S&W Long. They didn’t make very many like this (about 4,800). This particular revolver has seen some use, and the bluing wear shows it, but mechanically the timing, lock-up, and bore are in very good shape. It’s a fine little shooter.
I only load cast bullets for this gun. I have tried a variety of different pistol powders (Bullseye, 231, PB, Unique, etc.), but for general purpose plinking/small game hunting, I have found nothing better than 2.5 grains of Red Dot underneath 90-100 grain RN-FP or SWC cast bullets (sized .313”). This combination generates right around 800 fps and delivers excellent accuracy. I also sometimes shoot 85-90 grain wadcutters from this gun using 2.0 grains of Bullseye (I have never chronographed this load, but I think it’s going about 700 fps).
To my way of thinking, the .32 S&W Long is just about the perfect grouse-n-bunny load, and the two loads listed above drop small game both quickly and cleanly. In the past, I would go over to the Olympic Peninsula each November to spend 3-4 days hunting coastal blacktail deer with my retired buddy Bob. Bob was also a fan of .32 caliber handguns, and there are a fair number of grouse over on the Olympic Peninsula, so we would make a point of carrying our grouse guns while we were out hunting coastal blacktails. Bob also loved to cook, and when we got a grouse (or two), we would breast it out, and he would make some Bob’s grouse and brown rice stir-fry -- sliced up grouse breast browned in olive oil with some diced garlic and fresh ground black pepper, then turn the heat down and add brown rice, diced red onion, a hearty dollop of whole-grain mustard, and healthy glug-glug of white wine (preferably Riesling), stir and cover and simmer on low heat until the rice is done. I loved hunting with Bob, and I loved eating Bob’s grouse and brown rice stir-fry (but Bob’s delightful wife Audrey hated it -- it seems they ate a fair amount of it early in their marriage and she had grown tired of eating grouse).
The deer numbers have been down in recent years, so we didn’t see many up in the mountains the last few years. But it was a different story when we came back into town, where we commonly found deer walking through his yard and eating his roses!
Bob died last December. He was 75.
‘Tis the season for giving thanks – I am thankful to have had 20 years of Bob’s friendship, wry humor, and insightful mentoring. I am grateful to have been able to share many hunting trips and adventures with Bob over the years. I am grateful for the hunting camp meals, fine wine, campfires and the many tales of adventure we shared. I handle this little .32 M&P and I think about Bob, I think about grouse, I think about Bob’s grouse and brown rice stir-fry, and I am grateful.
That’s why it’s special. Happy Thanksgiving all.