Reloading .32 cal. rimfire cartridge ammunition

 

The popularity of .22LR cartridge ammo among recreational shooters caused manufacturers to discontinue .32 rimfire following WW2.

Today, there are countless antique rimfire firearms in good shooting condition, and owners have to be creative in order to keep shooting their old rimfire rifles and revolvers.

There have been  some creative cartridge conversions  discovered and shared that have solved the problem of obsolete rimfire ammo shortages.

The most convenient, in my opinion are the custom machined hand reloadable brass cases, designed to use 6mm Flobert crimped blanks as primers, and 0.310" or 0.315" roundball plus black powder/pyrodex.

There are two companies in Belgium & France that offer reloading kits and supplies form many of the various obsolete rimfire & center fire  cartridges.

A few American shooting supply companies also sell similar 6mm blank primed  brass cases.

 I lucked out and have bought 11 x .32rf short and 14 x .32rf Long cases from a terrific fellow in Alberta, Canada.

They aren't cheap, the last 10 x .32rf Long cases cost $102 including postage, and arrived 3 business days after I paid for them!

I have read that people report reloading these cases 30 times, and they are still in great shape.

The .32 Colt is essentially a center fire version of .32 rimfire, and if I get .32 Colt cases, I plan to ream out the primer pocket to accept .27 cal. Nailgun blanks, which is another handy cartridge conversion that provides shootable .32RF ammo.

This is a tool kit with dies & punches  for use with a Lee hand press to reload .32RF.

Here's a page taken from the 1905 Marlin catalog, when .32 R.F was still available.

These are original factory made .32RF cartridges.

They cost $5 or more per round on the collector's market!

I own an antique Civil war era bullet & ball mold tool  that casts projectiles which meaure 5/16" or .32 caliber.

I have yet to cast my own heeled bullets and roundballs, but plan to do so eventually.

My S&W No.1½ 'New Model/2nd Issue .32 cal. Rimfire "Tip-up" Revolver

 My Smith & Wesson No.1½ New Model .32 caliber Rimfire Revolver is in amazing condition, as these current photos show.

That Factory blued finish on the frame is nearly perfect!

The high  serial # 92900 makes dating the revolver's manufacture date to 1874-75.

The barrel/frame hinge has a bit of play, causing barrel wobble.  I will tighten it up with a bench vice and aluminum vice blocks to protect the guns finish while in the vice.

UPDATE: The barrel wobble was eliminated completely with a few seconds of very careful pressure in the bench vice.

I have 11 reloadable .32 r.f. Short cases, and 14  of the .32 r.f. Long cases  to reload with pyrodex, 6mm Flobert blanks and 0.315"(long) or 0.310"(short) roundball.

I will put together a compact field handloading kit so it can easily load 5 cartridges to fill the cylinder prior to shooting.

Some of my Personal Antique Black Powder Pistols & Revolvers

 

Belgian Muff Pistol

.46" bore/shoots a patched .45 cal. RB

"Suicide Special" spur trigger revolver: Bliss & Goodyear "Protector" .32R.F Long

Smith & Wesson Model 1½ New Model/2nd issue .32R.F Long

Custom made  36 Gauge/.506" smoothbore:  In-Line Percussion action  Muzzleloading  Shot pistol circa 1870's.

This is a "Flobert" rifle that was modified into an in-line percussion muzzleloading shot pistol.

J.Bourne &Son, Birmingham, Eng. 12gauge. English Coach Gun

 

J.Bourne & Son of Birmingham, England was one third of the founders of B.S.A: Birmingham Small Arms.

Prior to forming B.S.A,  J.Bourne & Son made high quality caplock muzzleloading guns, like my English Coach gun, circa 1840-45.

This was a time before interchangeable parts and mass production, and guns like this were designed from a pattern, but essentially were on of a kind items.

The hickory  ramrod is said to be original, and it certainly appears to be over 175 years old.

At some point, a gunsmith installed a replacement left hammer, and did a good job at matching at least the style of hammer.

The SXS 22" barrels are a perfect length for self defense purposes. I suspect that was the original use for this particular coach gun.

Baikal MP-641k Co2 Pistol/Carbine

There have been some interesting & exciting Airguns designed and made in Russia throughout the 20th century, and this BAIKAL  model 651k is definitely one of the more interesting.

 

BAIKAL MP-651k Co2 Pistol/Carbine Kit

-Caliber: 4.5mm Lead roundball or .177 cal. Pellet

-Rifled Bore suits 4.5 mm lead roundball and approximately 30 rounds can be loaded and fired semi-autimaticly.

-Co2 powered Revolver action

-muzzle velocity: 475 fps

-made in Russia

Carbine Kit includes unique periscope style rear right that is surprisingly effective.

Smith & Wesson "Tip-up" Rimfire Revolver Models: 1, 1½ and 2 (Disassembly/Assembly)

I have become  the "caretaker" of these Antique firearms which I have purchased, and collecting information such as the following disassembly guide for the S&W "Tip-up" Revolvers is very helpful.

 (The above pages were borrowed from a Gun Digest Book on Antique firearm restoration, and I don't hold any copyrights and will remove the pages if necessary.)

A fellow who is interested in Antique firearms should be fairly handy with tools and working with  fiddly little parts.

Being able to repair and restore Antique firearms properly is a necessity, because the shortage of gunsmiths that specialize in Antique firearms, and the fact that most broken or missing parts must be fabricated from scratch, cause the cost of sending your Antique firearm to the Gunsmith is quite high.

There are many invaluable books focused on disassembly and repair of specific Antique guns, like these pages covering the early S&W rimfire revolver models, taken from a Gun Digest Published Manual on Antique firearm restoration.

Tacticool

Antique Derringer's, Muff Pistols & Spur Trigger Pocket Revolvers

 My  little guns: Bliss & Goodyear "Protector" . 32 Rim-Fire Spur Trigger Pocket Revolver & Belgian Double Barrel  Boxlock Percussion "Muff" Pistol...

The following are an assortment of late 19th Century Civilian "self-defense" sidearms, mostly chambered for .22 caliber, .32 caliber, 38 caliber & .41 caliber Rimfire cartridge ammunition.

My "Pocket Pistols" from the 19th Century

 This Norwich Pistol Co. "Suicide Special" type of .32 caliber rimfire revolver was the first antique revolver that I owned.

Norwich Pistol Co. "Protector" single action spur trigger revolver circa 1880's  & Belgian double barrel Muff pistol circa 1850's