32acp suddenly intrigues me

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WestKentucky

WestKentucky

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Folks I will be the first to say I am a revolver guy through and through with only occasional attraction to autoloading handguns. In fact I own only 1 autoloader at the moment in a Taurus pt99. I have owned lots and traded them or sold them due to lack of interest, and I have owned many, none of which I miss. I suddenly find myself unmistakably and very highly interested in a pistol because of the 32acp cartridge which I am loading for use in my 32swl revolvers (very low loads).

Historically the 32 has seen quite the range of iterations from Deringers to submachineguns and machinepistols. I am aware of some truly incredible designs and some which failed miserably. Please suggest models for me to look into for a potential search in the future. The more svelte the design the better...and historic designs even more so.

I'm thinking thing like the Walther PP, Colt Pocket Hammerless, Beretta Cheetah...something fitting to be worn under a nice 3 button pinstripe suit....
 
I love my Walther PP... I've recently seen a bunch of Austrian surplus Manurhins popping up in the states for about $450.

I paid $425 for my 1960's Manurhin, Vienna Justice Department turn-in, with box and two magazines. I'd say that was a deal.

I'm fascinated by the cartridge as well... just pretty expensive and a pain in the butt to reload.
 
We go through phases over the more decades that you are involved in this sport. A bit of advice from one of many men who have carried a gun, every day for almost 5 decades.
You don't want to carry a 32 caliber gun for protection in this day and age.
All of the romantic secret agent stories are filled with alluring instances of action packed gun engagements with many calibers that at the time were all that was available.
Now I can assure you that these men would be carrying a much more substantial pistol load, but couldn't, because it didn't exist back then.. You aren't going to find a 32 caliber weapon, other than a machine pistol, that is going to give you the level of protection or the amount of fire power to get you out of a real jam. It just is very unlikely than other than a backup gun or a seacamp or "even they have a 380 now" is going to work for you.
Now collecting is a different story, but please don't carry anything that underpowered with a limited capacity, and a heal magazine, it is just not enough gun.
 
There are a few FMJ rounds out there that will punch through 4 layers of denim and penetrate 14 inches in gel tests.

There is an argument to be made that you can fire a 32 pistol more accurately than a compact nine, and put quite a few 1/3" diameter - 14" deep holes in an assailant in a very short amount of time.

I've said this before, but if Kel-Tec only put some better sights on their P-32, I would buy one in a heartbeat.
 
No worries on the carry gun side, just that the gun has to have that certain aura about it. From the hay day of the 32. Not a modern Tupperware popgun but those worn by officers way off the front lines of WW2, tucked away in businessman's briefcases during the roaring twenties, or in the pocket of a pair of bibs or coat out on the rails. Much like the SAA brings people that feeling of playing cowboys and indians, I want a gun that makes me think of another era slightly more modern but equally interesting.

I don't intend to knock the modern versions, but they simply aren't my cup of tea...the NAA guardian and keltec are a couple modern guns that work well for their purpose, but they are modern. I want old school cool.
 
You should also get a Stetson hat, take up smoking and learn to talk like a character from a Mickey Spillane novel. :D
 
Count, I always respect your opinion, but if he is going to have to use a high pressure load to accomplish the task, he may as well go with an overall better round like a 9mm hollow point. Or just go for an HJ&R 32 magnum, rather than a high pressure load that may not even be a good idea to fire out of some of those old classic pistols.
But again each to their own. If we were in Britain working for MI-6, during WW2, I might be carrying a 32 caliber Beretta or Walther. But just not now, I would opt for a more modern 9mm weapon.
The pin stripe suit is still an option.
 
george burns said:
We go through phases over the more decades that you are involved in this sport. A bit of advice from one of many men who have carried a gun, every day for almost 5 decades.
You don't want to carry a 32 caliber gun for protection in this day and age.
All of the romantic secret agent stories are filled with alluring instances of action packed gun engagements with many calibers that at the time were all that was available.
Now I can assure you that these men would be carrying a much more substantial pistol load, but couldn't, because it didn't exist back then.. You aren't going to find a 32 caliber weapon, other than a machine pistol, that is going to give you the level of protection or the amount of fire power to get you out of a real jam. It just is very unlikely than other than a backup gun or a seacamp or "even they have a 380 now" is going to work for you.
Now collecting is a different story, but please don't carry anything that underpowered with a limited capacity, and a heal magazine, it is just not enough gun.
Click to expand...

Funny how my Kel-Tec P32 goes along as a back-up to my G26 now ain't it,,,

Often as not I'll tuck the P32 or a Walther PP in my pocket when working outside at night.
Both kill vermin critters quite nicely without blowing chunks of wall off the outbuildings...
 
Why purposefully limit oneself on an anemic, rare, and expensive caliber (even if you reload)?

Pocket 9mm, 9x18s and even .380s are plentiful and more potent. Heck, the OP is a revolver guy and could just stick with a slender and light .38.
 
leadcounsel said:
Why purposefully limit oneself on an anemic, rare, and expensive caliber (even if you reload)?

Pocket 9mm, 9x18s and even .380s are plentiful and more potent. Heck, the OP is a revolver guy and could just stick with a slender and light .38.
Click to expand...

Simple answer.
Because this is Still a free country, most of it anyway, and he can.;)

I might could add that .32 acp is available in my area and priced the same as .380 ammunition but 9X18 Makarov has become as rare as .22LR
 
Pinstripe is only an option with the accompanying, and fitting hat. A Fedora or Tinley. And I know that in the timeframe of the 32acp there were literally bigger and better rounds and undoubtedly more effective guns, The 1911 and the browning high power were out in this time period as were the various colt "pocket" guns in the US along with guns being made by FN-Herstal and a host of Spanish guns. The German guns were moving along at a good clip at this point as well since Walther had the p1 and the p08 lugers were about...but those were the big military guns of the day. I want the gun that an upper middle class gentleman would have carried, and for some reason I am fascinated by the 32acp....so George burns I am not going to swap the caliber.
 
OP is a magnum revolver guy at that...I routinely carry a 6" 44 mag vertical shoulder holstered under a jacket. As much as anything I want a cool old gun that is easy on the wrist. My wife can't handle the snappy little 380s and 9mms, and with small hands can't manage a grip on the larger guns which are softer shooting. I own 3 32swl revolvers which she likes and shoots, but she wants an autoloader that doesn't hurt. She doesn't hunt or carry so it is strictly a tool for us to use at the range. Neither of us care for the modern guns as we have peroused many pistol counters looking for her a gun she liked that wouldn't hurt her. The options are that she doesn't get a gun that she wants to be able to shoot with me, or we find a gun that is neat, older in design (styling at least) and in the 32acp. Because the only other options are 22lr which we have, 25acp which are almost all too small to shoot accurately and nearly impossible to reload for since I have big hands and fat fingers.

We have rifles for her, a shotgun for her, revolvers she loves, and she wants an auto, at the same time that I do, and out of curiosity and nostalgia just like I do. She's getting one, I'm getting one, we are collectively getting one for us to use. She likes the same stuff I do typically with handguns in that they are simple, elegant, steel on steel on steel with wood grips, but are made to be very usable. My initial thought was the PPK, but I want to look at other options.

So back to the original post...I asked for suggestions on models to look at. I have gotten none so far other than in post #2. The rest is argument over the caliber that I want which is already settled...and a little chatter about fashion related to the time period in which the caliber I selected was at its peak. Can we please get back to the point of this thread before it goes further off track and gets mod action?
 
Well you certainly want an FN model 1900, Browning's first auto pistol design. Incidentally, I gave one of these to a friend a couple of months ago. You should have posted earlier.

I used to have what I consider the ugliest .32, the Dreyse. This pistol was popular with the German army in WWI and many of them were brought back home by our doughboys.

I've had a half dozen or more examples of the FN Browning Model 1910. This is the pistol used to assassinate Arch Duke Ferdinand of Austria which was the fuse that ignited WWI. This model with very little change stayed in production until the late 60's. These are accurate, very thin, and well built. They are near the top of my list for .32 acp.

In 1948 I was 14 years old. I traded a Red Ryder BB gun to a boy for a badly abused Spanish Ruby .32. I got on my bike and rode to my best pal's house to show him my new treasure. He was a gun nut like myself. We were sitting in his bedroom and he was examining the gun, working the slide and pulling the trigger. I didn't have any ammunition for the gun. He said his dad had a .32 and a partial box of ammunition, so he went to his parent's bedroom and retrieved a few rounds, sat down on the end of his bed, loaded the rounds into the magazine, racked the slide and BANG! The bullet struck at an angle the maple frame of a large mirror that hung over a dresser in front of his bed. The bullet ricocheted and hit the plaster ceiling then bounced down and struck my pal in the head. Fortunately the second round had jammed or we would have probably had a magazine full go off in auto mode. We examined the mirror frame. A little varnish was removed and there was a slight dent about an inch long but nothing really noticeable. On the ceiling, a small dimple, nothing more. And his head fared even better, not even a small pump knot. We decided that we had indeed dodged a bullet. We also decided that the .32 wasn't much of a round. Anyway, the Ruby was made in great quantity for the French in WWI. I used to see a lot of them around.

Mauser made a high quality .32 the HSc. It was a little large for the caliber, but a once popular pistol that was widely used by the Germans in WWII but available until the 60's on the commercial market. The model 1924 was also a nice pistol. The last HSc I owned I sold for thirty bucks - that was around 1968.

The only .32 that I still own is a Sauer and Sohn Model 30. This is an interesting little gun in almost perfect condition. Otherwise it would be gone.

A great classic if you can find one is the American made Savage model 1917. I've always wanted one but never found one at an agreeable price.

The classic Beretta .32 is the model 34 although it had a couple of predecessors that looked quite similar. A lot of these came home as war trophies, but they were available on the civilian market for several years after the big war. This is a good pistol, reliable and accurate, one of my favorites.

The Spanish made some nice pocket pistols. The Astra 300 was available in .32 and .380. I have a late model .380 that I bought while visiting the Astra factory in 1955. It has been very reliable and is quite accurate. I also liked the Llama pocket pistols that looked like miniature 1911's. They were available in .22, .32, and .380. I've had them in all three calibers. I especially enjoyed the .22. However, I don't remember the model designations.

You already know about the nice Colts and Walthers.

I have just scratched the surface of what was available in .32. For the most part I have listed only the ones that I have owned. Anyway, they used to be very cheap to collect and carried a lot of historical interest, but as I indicated, I don't think much of the cartridge.
 
I don't know “classic” they are. but has she tried a Beretta tomcat. Easy shooting, you don’t have to wrack the slide to load it, and they look so dam cool.
Just a neat little gun.
 
When I think of classic .32 ACP pistols two designs that immediately come to mind are the Colt Model 1908 and the Walther PPK. A few others that deserve equal consideration are the Browning Model 1910, Mauser HSc, Beretta Model 1935, Remington Model 51, and the Savage Model 1907.
 
Svelte you say?
I'll remind you this is a family oriented (albeit a gun crazy one) chat room.;)

Have quite a few European .32s. No Colts or Smiths.

My experiences are that the Walther PP is the most comfortable to shoot, due in large part to the bigger grip.
A post war Walther PPK .32, not a S&W, will cost you almost double what the .380 version goes for, alloy frame even more.
You will notice a difference in felt recoil between the PP and the PPK.

My favorite to shoot is the Mauser HSc. These little guns really do point well as a bonus.
The first shot DA trigger on the HSc is rather heavy for some though.
The HSc is large and heavy compared to the Kel-Tec .32 I carry hanging from a shoelace/worn out cleaning brush around my neck
(when I'm wearing my three piece - jeans, a henley, and a worn denim shirt),
but they are fun to plink with.

Beretta's Puma is a nice accurate SA. Keep a look out for the long barrel target version.


When you start searching for 'classic' .32s from quality makers, I believe (from the bidding) you'll find you are not the only one looking!

JT
 
Over the years just couldn't resist buying them 32 acps, which were right common at local gun shows. Have a Manhurian pp that is EXTREMELY accurate, and a pleasure to shoot.

Would buy one of those older FN models or Colts in an instant, but have never seen a FN around here, and the Colts are usually out of my price range. Thin, flat semi's are just right. The locked breech on the FN or Colt likely reduces the recoil even further than the fixed barrel of the PP.
 
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