Why are .32 Cal handgun cartidges so pricey?

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whm1974

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So I was wondering about how much a few .32 handgun ammo such as the 32. SW Long and .32 HR Magnum cartridges along with reloading bullets cost...

The prices of ammo is a bit higher then I expect, but sort of in line of what I seen back in ~2004 when I gun dealer sold me a S&W Clone in .32 Long by mistake, unmarked Caliber...

".312" reloading Bullets are quite pricey for what they are...:(:eek: Recoil was a little more then expected for such a low power 19th century cartridge...

Found out at the Caliber when shooting at the Olin Range in East Alton IL. Nice Enough Revolver but since the ammo was and reloading bullets were so pricey, I took it back and exchanged it for an used S&W Model 10 in .38 Special...

If the Ammo was cheaper, especial lower then .38 I would have kept it...

Ammo here:
https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1001496379?pid=146077
100 count bulk pack Reloading Bullets here:
https://reloadingunlimited.com/product/magtech-bullets-32-sw-312-313-98gr-lwc-100ct/
Article on why .32 Cal is better for revolvers then .38:
Lost damn article, Sorry about that... But it made think more about .32 Cal for defense and new shooters...
 
film495 said:
just popularity, supply and demand. .38 Special isn't much of a deal either IMHO, so I started reloading for it, just because.
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I was well surprised on how much .312" Cal bullets for reloading are. One brand is ~$30 for 100 count bulk pack of wadcutters... Might as well buy .32 S&W long wadcutters instead instead of reloading.:fire::cuss:Seems like the only reasons that cartridge survives at all is due to international target shooting and a few countries such as India, restrict which handgun caliber their citizens can have.
 
I have a few 32s. I reload for all 32 caliber handgun rounds except 32-20, and have a gun chambered for each of the 32 cartridges except for 32-20 and 32mag, but I have shot 32mags in my .327.

Reloading 32s is a big cost saver, especially so if you are loading lead instead of jacketed bullets. They are all easy on brass except for 327. They are a lot of fun to shoot and are generally regarded as being highly accurate. Accurate enough in fact that a lot of true target guns are chambered for 32 long. They are a lot of fun.... and my 32s are still multiplying.

Started off with a RG31 from my grandma, (32 long)
Then a Kimel POS that I gave away (32 long)
Then a S&W 30-1 (32 long)
A Walther PP (32acp) traded away
Taurus m327 (327fm)
Mauser 1914 (32acp)
S&W safety hammerless (32 short)
 
WestKentucky said:
I have a few 32s. I reload for all 32 caliber handgun rounds except 32-20, and have a gun chambered for each of the 32 cartridges except for 32-20 and 32mag, but I have shot 32mags in my .327.

Reloading 32s is a big cost saver, especially so if you are loading lead instead of jacketed bullets. They are all easy on brass except for 327. They are a lot of fun to shoot and are generally regarded as being highly accurate. Accurate enough in fact that a lot of true target guns are chambered for 32 long. They are a lot of fun.... and my 32s are still multiplying.

Started off with a RG31 from my grandma, (32 long)
Then a Kimel POS that I gave away (32 long)
Then a S&W 30-1 (32 long)
A Walther PP (32acp) traded away
Taurus m327 (327fm)
Mauser 1914 (32acp)
S&W safety hammerless (32 short)
Click to expand...
So what are you reloading .32 S&W with? Found some lower cost 100 round boxes of Fiocchi .32 S&W long long LWC for ~$19, which during a brief web search is the cheapest I found.
 
I started casting my own bullets about the same time I got a 32. I didn't start because of the price but it sure was a nice benefit. 32s are rare enough that I think several shooters aren't even aware there are other 32s than the ACP. With the savings on how little powder is needed I find the projectiles I do buy a wash. I've had good luck finding PPU 32 long ammo in the past at a good price but the rest of the 32 revolver ammo not so much.
 
somethingbenign said:
I started casting my own bullets about the same time I got a 32. I didn't start because of the price but it sure was a nice benefit. 32s are rare enough that I think several shooters aren't even aware there are other 32s than the ACP. With the savings on how little powder is needed I find the projectiles I do buy a wash. I've had good luck finding PPU 32 long ammo in the past at a good price but the rest of the 32 revolver ammo not so much.
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Well I knew about a .32 center revolver cartridge, but not the name of it...
 
I'm wondering if both the .32 S&W Long and .32 H&R Magnum would became more popular and widespread with much better marketing?
 
whm1974 said:
So what are you reloading .32 S&W with? Found some lower cost 100 round boxes of Fiocchi .32 S&W long long LWC for ~$19, which during a brief web search is the cheapest I found.
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I buy what I find cheap. Here lately I haven’t found much, but looking at some of the online sellers like Missouri bullet, badman bullet, and a couple others I see some that aren’t bad at all. I’m just waiting on a need for a couple other things to make ordering make sense. 500 for $40 ain’t bad though
 
I wonder if I would have to order a very number of either .32 cartridges or reloading bullets to obtain some what inexpensive practice and plinking ammo?
 
Because way back in the day many police department and even the military used 38 revolvers much more than 32s. The supply chain that started then is still scaled to keep 38 much lower than 32.

Also because of this, civilian sales of 38s and not 32s were high. Marginally fewer 32s means very much less 32 ammo and components. Less volume, higher cost and prices.

When you don’t go with mainstream products, you pay more.....for everything involving that product.....for as long as you own it.
 
I reload .32 Long, and find it to be pretty cheap. The bullets I'm using right now are $35 for 500, and if I wanted them plain lead instead of coated, they'd be $32. Works out to just under ten cents per round, and you can spend that much for mere .22s.
 
Just ordered another 500 rounds of 32 long and 1,000 rounds of 32acp from SGAmmo. Prices are better when you buy in bulk and they are great to buy from. That said, I bought a reloading kit, powder, primers, and bullets for reloading the 32 H&R magnum. Impossible to find them for less than 50-70 cents per round.
 
whm1974 said:
Well I knew about a .32 center revolver cartridge, but not the name of it...
Click to expand...
Until I came here I didn't know any 32 cal revolvers existed. Didn't know 9mm or 10mm revolvers existed either. I just think revolvers are only known in 38/357/44mag to most people. Even 44spl is a surprise to my gun guy friends.
 
somethingbenign said:
Until I came here I didn't know any 32 cal revolvers existed. Didn't know 9mm or 10mm revolvers existed either. I just think revolvers are only known in 38/357/44mag to most people. Even 44spl is a surprise to my gun guy friends.
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Ha Ha there used to be a much wider range of handgun, rifle, and shotgun cartridges aviable as not only every large gun manufacturer had their own ones, so did a lot of former World Powers during 19th century on top of that, prior to WWI which more or less ended them and broke those up into current nations they comprised of.

For example, they had .38 and .44 handguns and rifles that are those caliber sizes instead of .357"/.355" and .429" the current modern cartridges are. 9mm Flobert Rimfire shotguns that are still used in Garden guns in a East and West Europe for light pest control that are even considered to firearms at all(check laws first).
 
ChiefTJS said:
If I didn't reload then I wouldn't play with 32's. Very probably if I didn't reload then I wouldn't play with guns much at all, thankfully I reload.
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Which .32 handgun cartridge do you perfer to use and reload?
Prices of .32 Long, .32 Mag, and .327 Mag from Luckgunner,com:
https://www.luckygunner.com/handgun/32-hr-magnum-ammo
https://www.luckygunner.com/handgun/327-magnum-ammo
https://www.luckygunner.com/handgun/32-s-w-long-ammo
And for giggles, the .32 S&W Short, which I didn't even know was still being loaded and aviable...
https://www.luckygunner.com/handgun/32-s-w-ammo
Other vendors may have better prices and wider selection...

Maybe I'm just reading between the lines in what I been reading briefly since last night... I was under the impression that the .327 Mag has higher, more painful recoil in snubnose revolvers then the .32 HR Mag does. And it's more pricey, with lower aviablity then the latter. Of course this only looking at one vendor...
 
Full power 327s are wonderfully loud and do have significant recoil - it can surprise you. I've shot quite a bit of the various 32s from a light weight 32 HR mag SW 432 (not in production but desired by aficionados of the snubby world) and a SS SW 632 3 inch barrel hammered and comp'ed gun (I love it). The 32 Mags are easy in either gun. I do shoot 32 Longs in matches for the easy recoil for the most part. However, I do shoot quite a bit of the 32 HR mags and 327s. The latter is useful in knocking down steel - the Longs bounce off. Funny, in a match there were the usual paper targets and then a series of steel. Thus, I planned my speed loaders such that when I got to the steel I loaded the 327s. Boom and Flash - the SO was startled as were the spectators - they though I had BLOWN UP!
 
whm1974 said:
Maybe I'm just reading between the lines in what I been reading briefly since last night... I was under the impression that the .327 Mag has higher, more painful recoil in snubnose revolvers then the .32 HR Mag does. And it's more pricey, with lower aviablity then the latter. Of course this only looking at one vendor...
Click to expand...

Yes, the 327 Federal is a very powerful cartridge, and in a snubby can be painful. It has a little less recoil than a 357 magnum.
 
I reload for all my centerfire calibers. That comes in handy for two of my favorite rounds: 32 long and 41 magnum. Not the most popular caibers (although they should be) and ammo is expensive. Buying in bulk, especially for the 32, helps but reloading with used brass and cast bullets makes a huge difference. I shoot both calibers in single action revolvers so I'm not blowing through ammo at 10 rounds per second. I usually get at least ten reloads from 38 special brass, often more, and hope to get the same from 32 long and 41 mag brass. That's a lot of shooting for an initial outlay. I use cast bullets from Missouri Bullets but have the means to cast my own in 32 and 41 which would save more bucks.

Jeff
 
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