Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters 32-20

Hello, I am new at the camp fire.
Any fellow 32-20 lovers here?

I still hunt with a Marlin 32-20 loaded with handloads or the old 80 grain hi velocity bullets from long ago.

I also have a 3rd generation Colt Custom Shop SAA 32-20. I carry this one horseback and out in the field hunting pigs. Would those old rifle only loads be okay in it? Seems like the SAA is okay for the 357, and the rifle loads were no where near the 357 pressure wise. Seems ok.

Also, anybody got any good 32-20 stories?
Thanks.

I don't think you will blow up a SAA with .32-20 rifle only loads, but unless you wear earmuffs when you're horseback, you'll be pretty deaf after you touch one off. Try it in low light and enjoy the fireworks show.


Been there, done that with a 6 in Police Positive.

Shot a rabid raccoon with a Marlin 1894 32/20 once.

I once bought a nice old Winchester Low Wall that originally was a .32 rimfire, but the bore was rusted out. So I had it relined and firing pin converted to make it a .32-20. Unfortunately all I has then was a nice old .32-20.

I'm kind of joking about that, but kind of not. I still have a T/C Contender handgun barrel for the .32-20 but can't figure out what the round is really good for. It may be the ultimate stalking cartridge for javelina, a pretty limited use. Anybody else have suggestions?

Sometime in the middle 60's I called in a red fox and shot it with my '92 Winchester carbine in 32-20 using a hand loaded 80 gr. hollow point. The exit hole was so large that I quit that load and went to a hot 100 gr. load from then on. Later I shot coyote with the 100 gr. load and It worked much better. The 32-20 with the right bullet works great for predator calling as long as you don't need a long range load.
Doc

I too have a 32-30 (30-20) 10" TC Contender barrel. I've used it for handgun silhoutte shooting. 110 grain loads for field pistol (100 yard maximum target) and I've used 190 Sierra BTHP for big bore standing where the target is a 50 pound ram at 200 yards. It takes the bullet a little while to go 200 yards.

I haven't used it for anything other than silhoutte.

Mule Deer, as to what the .32-20 is good for, in a revolver it is perhaps the best all-around, walk-a-bout round I have ever used.

Not really suitable for a true hunting round intended for game larger than 35-40 pounds, it can and has taken much larger animals when it's limits are accepted and shots carefully placed. Personally, I have taken three deer and a half-dozen hogs with a 5 1/2" SAA in .32-20.

For a revolver to be used as a true small game round (squirrels, rabbits, ect.) the .22 LR might seem a better choice, but where I roam the woods there is the ever-present possibility that hogs will be run across at any time (or deer when in season). The .22 LR is just a bit light for such use......but something larger such as the .357 is just a bit too destructive on edible small game.

The .32-20, when loaded with a hard-cast bullet of 95-100 grains and driven to about 1100 fps, doesn't "blow up" on small game, but punches a caliber-size hole that isn't much bigger than the LR. However, it is when a stray hog happens by that the .32-20 really shines. If carefully placed through the ribs, the .32-20 is sure death on smaller (100-150 pound) hogs and much more effective and reliable than the .22 LR.

I'd be very, very careful if I was to try a larger boar of 300 pounds with the little gun.....but then again, I'd not be too comfortable with a .357 in such a case either. In fact, I have seen very little difference in the performance of the .32-20 and .357 in the field against average size hogs and the hard-cast bullets often seem to penetrate better than a jacketed .357 round.

No.....I'd probably not choose then .32-20 for exclusively hunting small game, nor would it be the first choice for deliberately hunting deer or hogs, but that's the secret. It's not perfect for either, but bridges the gap better than anything I've found.

I've owned and played with a .25-20 for quite a while now. Like it so much, I'm on the lookout for a Marlin 1894CL just like it in .32-20.
When it came down to making the choice between the .25-20 and the 32-20, I went with the .25-20 for a number of reasons. A little better brass, faster with 60 gr. bullets, and it seemd to be more popular with folks that had used both.
What I'd do with one would be to load and shoot 112-115 gr. lead bullets. Cheaper for one, and I can shoot steel at my local range with them.
The other thing I've found is that with this class of cartriage, you can't easily go from one load to another. My 86 gr. loads, for instance, shoot about 8-10 inches lower than my much faster 60 gr. loads.
I have alot of casual fun with my .25-20. If I decide to go squirrel hunting, for instance, I feel much better armed for that occasional predator which sometimes show up than I would be with a .22 RF. The 86 gr. load, BTW, doesn't tear stuff you want to eat to shreds like the much faster 60 gr. load will.
I understand from my cowboy action buddies that both the .32 H&R and the .32-20 have a pretty good following in those circles. Since Starline makes brass that is much better than the traditional brass for that round, it now holds up to repeated loading much better.
While enjoying limited popularity in revolvers, I'm not sure it will ever become very popular again in rifles. That's because the .38/.357 Magnum rifles do a good job of filling that need. E

Erimicus, I too am a fan of the .25-20 (mine is a Savage 23B) for small game. I've always thought a reloadable .22 LR would be the perfect rabbit-squirrel rifle and the .25-20 is as close as I've found.

I like the 86 grain bullet is my choice at about 1100-1200fps. It does less damage than the faster 60 grain load and kills just as well.....maybe better when penetration is needed as on larger varmits. To me, the high velosity 60 grain load defeats the purpose I had in mind when I chose the .25-20 anyway.

Agreed. I would only add that the hot 2200-2300 fps. 60 gr. loads do add an option for those that like them. E

Speer makes a flat point 75 gr. bullet for the 25-20. Excellent bullet. My Marlin loves this bullet and the old 86gr, bullets. It has never shot the 60grs. well.
Doc

Yeah, the 75 works very well in the .25-20. I have killed a bunch of stuff with it, up to turkeys in size.

I guess I'm still wondering what a .32-20 would do in the field that a lighter handload from a .38 Special or .357 Magnum wouldn't do, or even a 9mm in a good autoloader. Other than giving the shooter the satisfaction of using a .32-20, that is.

Well John we are gun nuts you know. I'd rather spend an afternoon working up a load for a old rifle and then maybe take it hunting than shooting a round of golf or bowling. To each there own.
Doc

I shot an Antelope one time when we were kids with a Rem m-25 carbine in 32-20, on our West Texas ranch. Actually I shot him 14 times before he gave up. After the 6th shot we went and got the jeep and ran him down and shot him until he died..I sold that gun and never owned another one..I did have a 25-20 sometime after that and it wasn't much better, shot some coyotes with it and didn't care for it...Love the littlel guns, but think the 22 L.R. is just as good in the killing dept...

The 25-20 is more like a reloadable .22WRM. It is perfect for turkey and adequate for javelina and coyotes. With cast bullets it is very cheap to shoot and less destructive on small game than the .22 magnum hollowpoints.

I think the same can said about the 32-20 but I don't have any experience with it other than the ballistically similar .310 Cadet which is a complete hoot. Besides I just like the old Savages 23's, Martinis, and othe rifles designed around this class of cartridges.

Survival conditions would be the only excuse for using either for deer.

"giving the shooter the satisfaction of using a .32-20"

"The [32-20] is more like a reloadable .22WRM"

I'd say those two cover it. I recollect reading in old Shooting Times about old timers, in the days before bullet proof critters, shooting everything from grouse to seals to black bear. Knew a guy up in West by gawd Virginia used it for deer every year and seemed to do alright. Don't know what the law thinks about that usage. Me, I just think the carbines chambered for the round are amongst the handiest carrying strolling around long guns ever made. I have shot a few unwary ground hogs and a tasty piglet with 100 grain hard casts, disremember the exact load. One of those easy and fun-to-shoot rounds with certain nostalgic associations attached.

Ella

It got its name from being a 32cal round that takes 20 shots to make the kill...didn't it?

"giving the shooter the satisfaction of using a .32-20"

"The [32-20] is more like a reloadable .22WRM"

I'd say those two cover it. I recollect reading in old Shooting Times about old timers, in the days before bullet proof critters, shooting everything from grouse to seals to black bear. Knew a guy up in West by gawd Virginia used it for deer every year and seemed to do alright. Don't know what the law thinks about that usage. Me, I just think the carbines chambered for the round are amongst the handiest carrying strolling around long guns ever made. I have shot a few unwary ground hogs and a tasty piglet with 100 grain hard casts, disremember the exact load. One of those easy and fun-to-shoot rounds with certain nostalgic associations attached.

Ella

I've wound up with Marlin 1894CLs in both calibers. Both have taken everything from squirrels to turkeys to our little Hill Country does. The .25 with cast bullets at about 1400fps seems to anchor jack rabbits better than any rimfire I've gotten ahold of and with the Remington 86 gr. SP loaded up to 1700fps works wonders on coyotes and really unzips feral cats within a hundred yards or so. The .25 is a bit pickier with cast bullets than the .32, but it makes less noise which is handy when a 'coon or possum gets into the chicken pen behind the house.

So far I've only shot the .32 with cast bullets-the RCBS 115 grain FP and a heavy load of H110. I shoot the same load in a Ruger Blackhawk "Buckeye Special". I would not shoot the same load through an old Smith or Colt DA as they'd probably come unglued quick. Like I said it will take a small deer cleanly if you put it in the right place. I've got 500 old Remington 100 SPs I'm going to work a load up for this spring if I have time.

Both guns are good for walking around companions in this country. Right now the 32 W.C.F. has a Williams peep and Marbles sourdough front mounted while its little brother wears a 2 3/4 Redfield that nearly as old as I am.

Please note I ain't advocating either as a primary deer rifle, but they will put meat in the freezer if need be.

You can say the same thing about any caliber at all. In the end, most everyone shoots what they shoot for nothing more than their personal satisfaction, name any caliber and there are dozens of possible others that would do the same from a ballistics standpoint. It boils down to nothing but personal choice. If I owned one, I would not hesitate to use a 32-20 on deer, even loaded to original specs and not the modern rifles 1,000 ft/lb + energy it can be loaded to safely. I personally do not hold to any caliber preference when deer hunting, I might hunt with a 22 pistol one day, a medium bore magnum rifle the next, and stick and string the next. I just grab whatever floats my boat that day. I just love our 4 month deer season.