Which 32 brass for a low-power wadcutter

Well a hollow base will seal better and probably be more accurate. More so with low pressure loads as a DEWC will require more pressure to bump up the base for a good seal. To me the choice of brass would be cost primarily and then availibility over time. The shorter the brass the lower the amount of propellant needed will be. There are some thoughts for your consideration.
I was able to source a pile of once fired 32 long brass but had to buy 32 H&R MAG brass new due to lack of once fired availability. Just sayin.

I would look at the manuals and see what velocity you want and buy what ever brass will work. If the 32 S&W long brass would work that is what I would use. Less empty case space.
Shooting the shorter cases you should use the bronze cleaning brush do a couple of passes in your cylinder to take care of the carbon & burnt powder so the longer 327 Federal will still go in easily.

I have four 327 Federal Magnum revolvers.
A S&W 637
Ruger SP101
Ruger GP100 and a
Ruger Single Seven

I bought a taurus 327, took it out & shot it.
Next day took it to a local gun storexsnd traded it off. Didn't like anything about that revolver.

If 32 S&W shorts will work for you you can use 32acp dies to liad them up. You will have to use the regular 32 S&W shell holder.
I have brass for 327, 32 H&R Magnum, 32 S&W Long, S2 S&W Short and 32acp.
I will be buying a 32acp pistol this spring.

I also buy a set of dies for each caliber, once set ip I don't have to readjust anything.
I use the Hornady Lock n Load single stage presses.
Have fun with your load development.

@Highland Lofts pretty much said what I would. Find the velocity range you would like to use depending on components you're looking at and powder on hand and buy that brass, watch the carbon rings in the chamber with the shorter cartridges. If price is a factor the 32 Long and 32 H&R brass prices are almost identical when you're looking at the same brand, 327 will be a little higher priced. However, 100 pieces of Starline will last you a long time loading at these lower levels, should be able to load all of them at least 5 times if you don't lose them! I wouldn't bother with once fired brass (you find 32 some but its not everywhere).

If it were me, I would use 327 brass with faster powders at near minimum levels, just for the fact that this brass fills the chamber. But if you go with a plain lead low brinell Hollow Base you may not have stellar results in 327 Mag pressures/Velocity, the plating on the bullet i'm about to mention below helps hold it together so you can push them a little faster than plain lead... The 32 Long brass would be my last choice unless you are just wanting really light loads. H&R may actually be the most versatile because right under 900 fps would still be a pretty mild load and the top end overlaps the 327 FM's minimum data. Back to velocity, Hodgdon data shows loads across the 32 Long, H&R and Magnum range using the exact same component and powder combinations for one version of wadcutter. Its the "83 grain BERB HBWC" which is a Berry's brand plated bullet. Common powders used throughout these three cartridges with this bullet choice are HP38, Titegroup and Universal. I picked HP-38 powder for this example below:

*WARNING* As always don't use this data provided here, there could always be typos etc. Always check the manual for yourself for the bullet and powder combination you are using.

Starting with the 32 Long the charge range is 2.1 to 2.4 grains for velocities between 680-800
Next the 32 H&R Magnum charge range is 2.9-3.8 grains for velocities between 870-1120
And last 327 Federal Mag charge range is 3.6-4.6 grains for velocities between 1000-1200

All of these loads again are for the 83 grain Berrys Hollow base. Good luck with whatever you choose and post results when you try them out!

If the gun is chambered for .327 mag then that is the brass I would buy for it then simply load it to the power level that you want.

Doesn't useing longer cases with the smaller caliber data change the preasure?

I'd rather clean the cylinder and use the right size case for the velocity I want to use.

SlowFuse said:

All of these loads again are for the 83 grain Berrys Hollow base. Good luck with whatever you choose and post results when you try them out!

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As Walkalong eluded to, Berry’s discontinues this bullet a few years ago.

I’ve still got several hundred of them that I'm slowly working through. I’ll probably have to go to lead HBWC when these are out.

I’ve been shooting 98 gr DEWCs in .32 S&W Long and .32 H&R Magnum. There’s not a lot of difference between them; about 50 FPS or so. Whichever brass you have and want to use will give similar results, but the magnums will be just a tad stronger. Speer #12 has a lot of data for 98 gr HBWC, but DEWC will use the same data. Alliant Powder has online data for Bullseye, and MD Smith’s page has some data as well.

32 mouse fart wad cutters are fun. If your gun is a 32 mag then I suggest getting 32 mag cases which are easily distinguishable (nickel, different headstamp) because low pressure typically is very dirty and you absolutely get a carbon ring from shooting short cases.

In .32 Long, I've been loading a Lee TL 90 gr SWC's. Red dot is working well, loaded using a Lee dipper and a trickler. Very tedious. Too light of a load for a UniFlow measure with that powder.

I forget what my loads for .32 H&R Mag are, but I keep very good notes.

If I were loading for accuracy, I'd be loading in the longest brass the chamber will accept. Less throat jump. One less variable.
With that much case volume, and the OP's desire for a light plinking load, I'd be tempted to play with Trailboss.

In fact, . . . , That sounds like a great project. I may try that.

I prefer to use the cases designed for what the gun is chambered in (32 SWL in 32 SWL guns, 32 H&R Mag in 32 H&R Mag guns, 327 Fed Mag in 327 Fed Mag guns). It is one of my idiosyncrasies and certainly not a requirement. Since I have guns in all three chamberings, it is easy to save cases for use in particular guns.

I have an RCBS 32 caliber, 98 grain DEWC bullet mould that I use for all my 32 caliber guns.

My S&W Model 30 and Model 31 32 SWL J-frames have crazy small groups with the wadcutters loads.

With light loads, case life is near infinite so I do not mind the extra cost buying a supply of new cases to keep on hand. Over the life of a case, the case cost per round is near zero and by purchasing the same brand, I do not run into differences brand to brand. Starline carries all three sizes of cartridges.

Not wadcutters, but if you want some really soft .32 H&R Magnum, get some Hi Tek coated 77 gr cast bullets, and use Hodgdon's 77 gr cast load data, or use Trail Boss reduced load formula for any size cast bullets.

I have some rounds made with 327 brass, a 90 gr hbwc & trail boss.
Unfortunately im stuck in the hospital (sciatica) so I cant test them.

I don't like the carbon rings left by shorter brass.

If you are gouging to buy brass you might as well buy new Starline .32 H&R Magnum brass for versatility alone.

Like with most handgun cartridges I prefer W231 especially for WC loads.

https://www.starlinebrass.com/32-hr-mag-brass @$93.50/500

Of the 3 the mag brass is cheapest followed by the .32 S&W Long and the highest is the .32 S&W Short, although the differences are only 50¢ between each. I just found that to be strange.

vincyr said:

A bit off topic, but what kind of case life can be expected for full-house 327 loads?

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I’m getting splits after 3 firings with Federal brass. That’s factory load, 2 reloads, and might as well toss the whole lot after that. Seems awfully short, but 327 is super high pressure so perhaps it makes sense.

WestKentucky said:

I’m getting splits after 3 firings with Federal brass. That’s factory load, 2 reloads, and might as well toss the whole lot after that. Seems awfully short, but 327 is super high pressure so perhaps it makes sense.

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if you're a glutton for punishment, you can always trim the .327 Federal cases down to .32 H&R length and reuse them. For all the work involved, though, its probably not worth it.

WestKentucky said:

I’m getting splits after 3 firings with Federal brass. That’s factory load, 2 reloads, and might as well toss the whole lot after that. Seems awfully short, but 327 is super high pressure so perhaps it makes sense.

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I had issues with factory American Eagle 327 loaded ammo brass splitting on the first firing, ones that did make through the first round split at about the same rate (around 10%) of failure. This ammo was bout 6-8 years ago.

I however have had zero issues with Starline 327 brass and highly recommend it for whichever cartridge length you decide on.

Mr_Flintstone said:

if you're a glutton for punishment, you can always trim the .327 Federal cases down to .32 H&R length and reuse them. For all the work involved, though, its probably not worth it.

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Not the way mine split. Mine typically split lengthwise in the middle of the case sometimes leaving the neck intact,but always a visibly larger gap near the midpoint of the case. Same as I get with .357 after several loads.