No precise information, I fear.
Perhaps a little general data and some slightly informed guesses will help a little bit.
Most of my information comes from Frank C. Barnes's valuable reference book,
Cartridges of the World. My copy is the Third Edition printed in 1976, but it has a lot of old information from the First Edition from 1966
There were actually several .32 RF cartridges in circulation for a time:
.32 Extra Short
.32 Short
.32 Long
.32 Long Rifle
.32 Extra Long
The .32 Short RF was arguably the most produced. Introduced under the Smith & Wesson patent of 1860, it was used in the original S&W No. 2 and 1-1/2 tip-up revolvers which became so popular as a sidearm during the War for the Liberation of the Southern Confederacy.
It is still loaded and is listed in current catalogs. . . . Original load had an 80-gr. bullet and 9 grains of black powder. Stevens single shot rifles were available in this caliber as late as 1936.
While no velocity is given in the text, we can make some
fairly educated guesses based upon those .32 centerfire cartridges which immediately succeded the RF number.
The .32 S&W (CF) was introduced in later production of the No. 1-1/2 revolver in 1878, replacing the .32 RF. Production did not fully switch over to smokeless powder until about 1940. It is logical to assume it was loaded to approximately the same level as the old BP rounds. The factory load is listed as an 85 gr. bullet at 705 fps.
The British .320 revolver cartridge was introduced in 1870 for the Webley revolver. It was the inspiration for the later .32 Short Colt, and was manufactured in the US but discontinued in the late 1920s. Barnes wrote that it is (WAS, more likely) still made in Europe and England. Factory load: 80 gr. bullet at 550 fps.
The .32 Short Colt (.650" case length) was introduced in 1875, and late production ammunition is said to run an 82 gr. bullet at 790 fps. It is noted that the Colt revolvers of that period were far more robust than the little tip-up S&W designs of 15 years before.
Given the above information, a pretty good
estimate of the .32 Short Rimfire cartridge specifications would be an 80-gr. bullet at about 650 to 700 fps from a 5" revolver barrel.
For whatever it's worth.
Johnny
