The 32 S&W Long and the 32H&R Mag are perfect self defense revolver calibers. Plenty of penetration and easy to shoot very low muzzle blast easy for follow up shots. There are hotter rounds but an aggressor would be just as dead. I would rather Use the 32 S&W Long. Think about if you used a hotter round and it passed through their body and ended up killing someone behind them.
Every test you do with 32 Smith Wesson Long impresses me with its all around, balanced performance of low recoil, accuracy and penetration. Teddy Roosevelt had it right when he made that the first NUYPD standard round!!! Great test!!
That .32 S&W Long might not be choice #1 for brown bear, but I’m thinking it would do a mojo on a 2-legged predator, especially if delivered in a 6-round volley of love at 10 feet. Great video Sam, thanks! 👍
👍Thanks for covering these calibers that few others ever mention. Most get pretty boring after a few months as they always cover the same calibers in similar guns repeatedly.
@@GunSam Mister Sam you are filling a niche that is very much sought-after. Your videos are very educational and fun to watch. I enjoy the different calibers tested. I respect that you are a revolver toting 38 Special caliber loving person. Thank you for all you do and please continue.
Very important point about a real world difference between a small semi and a small revolver: You’re likely to be able to use ALL the rounds in the revolver if you need to, while you might just get one or two rounds off with the small jam-prone semis. The .32 H&R and .32 Long really impressed here. Makes the new 432 UC and 632 UC from S&W very very interesting.
It really is low noise too. One of the only centerfire rounds i'd fire with no ear pro without much concern. Even .38 Special is too much to do that with.
Interesting performance on the .32 H&R mag. I have a couple of boxes of Black Hills 85 Gr JHP i'm planning on testing out, seems like it might be a decent self defence load. Great job as always Sam.
You should confirm the excellent penetration of the .32 H&R magnum out of a snubby with a new video. Anyone agree? Maybe compared against several loads of .327 Federal Magnum.
In the abstract , very impressive . But , for ( this implied ) intended purpose it's Too much of a good thing . A good 158gr SWC , at 1100- 1200 fps would allow for a semblance of control / less pain , and still very substantial penetration .
.32 fan. I'd like to see a comparison between the two different.32 longs, and the .32 mag, that Buffalo Bore sells plus non Buf Bore 32 mag if you can find one (other than the weak cowboy round) and non BB .32 longs.
I am always impressed with your shooting ability! The .38 WC's were hitting on top of each other! Never on my best day, shooting Bullseye, could I ever do that! 👍👍
VERY impressed with the 32 H&R Mag... Wish Taurus would step up Production on their new 327 Fed mag 2 and 3 in Revolvers... You can't find an SP 101 in 327 Fed Mag!!!!
@@marcthomas2482 AWESOME... I've been looking in the used market too... So yours is running good.... Great to hear!!! What a DIVERSE little Revolver... I wish OLDER BOOMERS would catch on to this.... I'm Gen X ... From a 327 Mag you can fire a Hardcast 327 or 32 Mag that can kill a Black Bear while you're on The Appalachian Trail with your retired Boomer Buddies and still trust Pops at 85 plus to be secure with a 32 H&R or a 32 Long...
Frankly, I'm impressed with the amount of damage. Between the flat meplat and some yawing/tumbling those rounds all did more than I expected. The .357 was INSANE. And, I gotta say, AWESOME shooting. You put those .38 wadcutters all in a couple inches. If you'd been shooting paper all the holes would be touching.
Quit kissing his butt. Sam I think you are the best Marksman ever the way you handled those revolvers is amazing I wish I was half as good of a shooter As You Are.
For whatever reason it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Probably because I fired one. When a round is brutal, 3-4 start to add up fast for recoil.
Buffalo Bore rating those for longer barrels? Sometimes there's a recoil reduction in shorter barrels because the powder hasn't fully burned before the bullet leaves the muzzle, and pressures cannot max out.
Its funny this video came up today. I was out this weekend with some buddies and i was shooting this hard cast buffalo bore +p stuff out of my lcr. We get together at the one guys house and he has a “range” set up in a gulley behind his house. We make a day out of it and just like to play around and try different things. Another friend has an old 686 and he shoots this +p stuff out of it pretty regularly. For whatever reason, we decided to try it in my lcr. Let me tell you, i am sooooo glad i put that new Pachmayr grip on there. That ammo is no joke whatsoever. I was blowing holes in trees with my pocket pistol. What a ridiculous round. Lol I ordered 3 boxes as soon as i got home.
327 Fed mag with a 115 gr hard cast out of a 7 1/2" bbl is a most wicked round. I've punched groundhogs at 125 yds with mine and it's thru and thru. The Lyman mould and a healthy dose of bluedot is accurate and hits very hard.
You have shed a lot of light on the 32 Cartridge. I was ignorant of its effectiveness. The tumbling is intriguing. You need to load some 32 Wadcutters and see what they do in the different 32 cases.
I could and should. My guess is .32 H&R would "win" again. When I hand loaded XTP .32's in .32 Long, H&R and Federal Mag, it was similar to what you might see when loading .38, .38+P and .357 Mag with standard non magnum powder. The .32 Long was so-so, the .327 wasn't all that powerful with more recoil, but the .32 H&R slung an 85 gr at 1,000 FPS from the LCR. Great balance of power to recoil.
Wow, what a run down on different rounds. You have just about convinced me to have a few of my old .32 guns refurbished for modern carry. With BB ammo of course.
One of your best Sam. You make shooting the magnum rounds out of the small guns look easy! I have all of these calibers except 357, so this is relevant. We also have problem bears in my suburban neighborhood that are getting too familiar with humans. Lately two neighbors were charged by mama bears. It concerns me because we have young children playing in their yards. My 327 magnum sp101 4" is at the ready with the Buffalo Bore 130 ball ammo. Also a long gun is handy. Usually bears don't cause problems, but it concerns me.
Hi Sam, you put out some very interesting and informative videos. Here’s a though for you, maybe compare the 32 mag, 327 mag an the old 32-20 (32 Winchester). The old 32-20 was the grandpappy of the other two calibers. Just a thought, but it might be interesting to see how the stack up in comparison. Lots of very solid revolvers out there chambered in the 32-20. Again, thank you for taking the time an expense to produce these high quality and informational videos.
Buffalo bore is usually some pretty hot stuff. i think i have only found it for sale locally a few times, and I had some .38 special, I shot it up years ago.
I would love to see a video on the original Harrington & Richardson mod 504 32 H&R Magnum with a 6 inch barrel. I am beginning to think I have the only one left in existence. Yes there is one video on the snubby version. Mine is the most accurate revolver I have ever owned. Bought new in 1989 and still have the original box and paper work.
I can't thank you enough for all your time, money, and effort you put into these tests!! I'm torn between a 3inch lcrx in 38 special +p or the 2inch in 327 federal (to shoot 32 h&r mags out of).. all would be buffalo bore or underwood hardcasts. Any suggestions? Curious how recoil compares between the 32's and 38+p in a light package
I have some of the Underwood 38 special +P hard cast SWC I got for my Taurus 856 with a 2" barrel. I don't know what I'd use it for but I figured it would penetrate well through most objects.
Nice. I took apart a Gold Dot .327 and it looked like it had 14 gr of Ramshot Enforcer. I don't load .327 Much, but when I do I use generic powder and get velocity something like that or 1,050 on a 100 gr bullet from my snub.
Sam, did you note your 25 yard group with the 38 wad cutter? Smallest group with the best placement far over every other combination tested. Depending on the goal the 38 wad cutters also produced a good wound path with optimum penetration for self defense. Don't you usually count quarter inch mdf as 3" of gel? Doesn't the put the wad cutters at ~ 18 inches? With a complete energy dump inside that range? 1) Shot placement 2) Shot Placement 3) SHOT PLACEMENT 4) "Ideal" penetration 5) Last thing is wound channel, but it was still above average in that company due to the full caliber meplat. I'd prefer the 32 for plinking and small game though. Here is an interesting test. The "get off me" ballistics test. Press the muzzle into the target and slow-mo the combined effect of the projectile + gas. I bet the magnums open some eyes as backup/holdout choices. These tests are a valuable resource to the shooting community.
I have shot the new Bodyguard a few times. Reminded me of the LCR, I don't know if it was just the one I was shooting or not, but the firing pin would strike the round then immediately retract rather than staying against the primer like all other revolvers.
What do you think of Hornady’s 90 grain self defense ammo for S&W Airweight 38 Special? We know it’ll be less recoil, so to get back on target faster. But is it enough punch compared to more potent 38 Special loads against a bad guy.
Really cool vid and a great subject. I've been shooting HC/FN bullets a lot in the last year and have used 147/9mm, 180/.40, 158/.357. I've been tempted by the 180/357 but after seeing you shoot that one, I don't think I'd care for it in my 2" Kimber. OTOH, the 180 (loaded down) to maybe 950-1000 fps might be a little more shootable than that "wrist breaker" you just showed. I noticed that you avoided that load for your 25 yd shooting.....don't blame ya at all.
Thanks. I avoided it because I had one round left for the gel lol. I would have if I had more. I showed one of my youtube buds that shot before I uploaded the video and said I found a round for his scandium airlite J-Frame. He came back with that it was a coincidence because he shot 2 boxes the day before in that gun. Obvious joke lol.
I shoot 180s @ 1277 from my 4" Smith 66-2. It's not a heavy gun by any means, but way more shootable than a snubby. In my area the bears aren't very big so this is my go to woods gun. If I'm in areas with griz or brown bears, I'll deal with the extra weight and go with the .44 mag.
Thank you! I carry 357 180 grn B.Bore in my 2.5 inch Smith 19-3. Nice to know what it will do for penetration. ...and yes, it kicks. lol Probably less than the Taurus there (by a little) My wife carries our 38 Taurus model 85 with B. Bore 158 grn +P. She handles a shot or two fine. (hope to see that tested one dy) Those are our Black Bear country carries. Nice to see how the short barrels handle it. PS I put the Wolff recoil spring into my LCP Custom, (14 or 15 pounds. I forget exactly). But I still carry standard pressure in it. (Lehigh Extreme penetrstors)They really are not built for +P. Not that you can't put a couple through it ok.
Given that the .38 was not loaded very hot it did pretty well. Perfectly fine for the two legged predators. A furry claw bearer would argue for a more stout charge. Probably OK for a Puma though.
Nice test. Would have liked to see how the 9mm & 10mm would have done as I have both of these as well as a LCP2. I agree the LCP's are not reliable. But I trust 6 of 7 of my 9mm Pistols & both my 10mm Pistols.
That 32 long load was a pretty low velocity through the chronograph. Is that just because of the 2” barrel or do you lose a lot shooting it in 327 chamber also? I will admit the penetration of that 32 long even at that speed was awesome. I handload 32 long for a colt police positive. I load a 100 grain wadcutter from rim rock bullets to 950 FPS from the colt. As always I love watching your channel.
Thanks. Yeah I didn't see it till after because I was out of paint. The .38 is loaded just right, in the same way the .32 H&R was. Too fast and things get weird.
Thanks. Yes there are differences. Semi auto are about the same between the two, but usually Buffalo Bore revolver rounds are more powerful. Also Buffalo Bore generally uses XTP bullets as where Underwood offers more bullet design choices, Gold Dot, XTP, Nosler. General rule of thumb for me is Underwood for semi auto, Buffalo Bore for revolver.
When will you do a video on .450 smc? I’ve seen a few videos but it’s always on the 10mm 180 grain vs 185 grain smc. Instead of using the loadings that best take advantage of the added fpe.
I am not super familiar with it compared to .45 Super. I started to run .45 Super but even that had some issues jamming my pistol. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-0PAgIdV80sg.html
Judging from what you demonstrate here, I am not sure if a big Magnum is really necessary for bear. I like the 357 Mag but I was really wondering if it would have enough energy out of a 2 inch barrel to do that much damage. Now I wish I bought a smaller gun lol.
over 650 foot pounds of energy out of a 2 inches barrel 357 mag .I wouldn't hesitate to take it with me in black bear, wild boar, mountain lion country hiking.,or secondary back up weapon hunting with rifle and shotgun for dangerous game, in big bear country theny compact 44 mag. only the king of fools will intentionally hunt dangerous game with a pistol when a rifle or slug shotgun is far greater to use.
I really wasn't expecting that much power, but I know it would be good as science dictates it. If it's 180 gr there's not a lot of powder and it's like 760 FPE in a 4", so...
@@GunSam Wish you had a 5.5" barrel standard 45 Colt (Model 25, Redhawk, Blackhawk, or older Vaquero) that isn't bleeding off performance like the Governor.
You can fire plus P out of LCPs they just recommend not to in their instructions. Probably isn’t built strong enough to last through thousands of plus p rounds thus the non rating. 🤷♂️👌
Yeah they say that, and of course they would as they need to. A +P could mean a lot of things. That being said I trust Buffalo Bore, they know what they are doing and often say the details no one says. Like how they test all their ammo in ordinary guns and it's safe etc.
Interesting. I’d save that hot 180gr. 357 for a bigger gun, out in the woods. Yet another video to convince me that the mouse guns (including 380) are about as well of with any hard bullet that functions reliably as they would be spending $$ on expanding bullets that don’t.
Thanks. I haven't had the opportunity to try it yet. But in theory it's a good idea. Adding velocity by removing bullet material/weight, is the best way to make reliable expansion better.
