32 Caliber for Match Shooting

[Kaintuckkee]

What would be the pros and cons of using a 32 cal for target/match shooting? longest range would be 100 yds ocassionally mostly out to 50 would be the norm, I normally use 40 or 45 cal...never owned a 32,your input appreciated

[SCLoyalist]

For disadvantages, I'd expect you to pick up an extra inch or two of drift in a cross-wind, compared to the .40caliber you're using, and the smaller ball's ballistic coefficient may mean an extra inch of drop out at 100 yds. If your match shooting involves steel targets, as on a woodswalk, it can be difficult to see or hear a hit, and for novelty shoots like splitting a card you've got a little less margin for error.   If you're shooting in bullseye paper matches and like to check your target during a relay, like the Territorials, you'll likely need a spotting scope to see your hits.      Pros that come to mind: economical of lead and powder, no recoil.   I have a high regard for .40 cal for match shooting, and can't think of any ballistic advantage a 32 would give over a 40, but perhaps others can.

[BrownBear]

I'm not a match shooter, but that's the most rational description I've read. 

As much as I love my small calibers for small game hunting, they stay home when the wind is up or the shots are likely to be longer than 30 yards or so.  I'm not shooting "large" powder charges, so perhaps my low velocities exacerbate the situation.

[Daryl]

For disadvantages, I'd expect you to pick up an extra inch or two of drift in a cross-wind, compared to the .40caliber you're using, and the smaller ball's ballistic coefficient may mean an extra inch of drop out at 100 yds. If your match shooting involves steel targets, as on a woodswalk, it can be difficult to see or hear a hit, and for novelty shoots like splitting a card you've got a little less margin for error.   If you're shooting in bullseye paper matches and like to check your target during a relay, like the Territorials, you'll likely need a spotting scope to see your hits.      Pros that come to mind: economical of lead and powder, no recoil.   I have a high regard for .40 cal for match shooting, and can't think of any ballistic advantage a 32 would give over a 40, but perhaps others can.

YUP! my findings pretty much exactly.  Great 'sport' & ribbing of others when you do split cards & cut strings.  You will 'lose' points on a trail walk with steel targets - especially where heavy targets are used. Even with a light load of 35gr., my .32's velocity is high enough, the impact sound on a plate or bar can be covered by the rifle's report - they are very close together due to the fairly high velocity. 

Using less powder to slow the ball down and separate the sounds doesn't work as less powder shoots poorly past 30yards, which isn't anything new.  25 yard accuracy means absolutely nothing if there is shooting beyond that range - even a smoothbore with only a front sight can make a 1" group at 25 yards- mine does, and it shoots horribly at 50 or beyond.

I love to shoot my .32 - but you must be prepared to lose points - expecially as the 'crowd' gets older and hearing loss increases - couple that with heavy use of ear plugs and "I didn't hear anything" or "I didn't hear a hit" becomes common The 42gr. round ball does not move a 15 or 20 pound chunk of steel very far.

For the trail walk, a .45 is much preferred over the smaller ones. Even the .40 will lose you points on a trail form 'tickled' targets, that actually sound off and move if tickled with a larger ball.  The .45's 33% heavier ball over the .40 cal's ball, will also increase your points on longer shots.  I think the ultimate, serious trail walk rifle is a .50, but you must be prepared to feed it - most shooters aren't.

[bgf]

All good responses.  Have you considered .36 also?  Maybe a good intermediate step for targets, and cheap balls in the form of buckshot -- can you tell I've been thinking along the same lines ?...just can't wean myself away from .50 caliber!

[northmn]

I shot a 32 in matches and like Daryl said, had a little fun beating out some of the big bores.  Even was told by some it wasn't fair as it was like shooting a 22.  Some will complain if you hang em with a new rope.  I had a lot of trouble with it at 100 yads and even 75 yards.  I won a rifle aggregate with it where 75 was the longest but it was in a very protected area.  A round ball just does not hold up well at longer ranges and a smaller one is worse.  I rebarreled to a 40 and liked it better, but finally decided for all around match shooting the 45 was very hard to beat.  Someone will pipe up and talk about a particular instance when they did well with a small bore like I mentioned, but for the long run a I found I would do best with a 45 or 50.

DP

[Roger B]

I used to occasionally shoot a Douglas barreled .32 & did nicely with it out to 100yds.  The fellows are right in that wind drift is a problem, but it is always a problem with anything.  If you can learn to compensate with a .45, you can learn to compensate with a .32.  The Douglas barrels were 1 in 66" which is slow for a .32 (theoretically), but the slower twist allows you to load them with more powder & make them shoot flat.  Since you're not dealing with much recoil to start with, it never becomes a problem.  I've thought about having a custom .32 barrel made with a slow twist for a long time.  I would use a .32 for paper matches only & go to a .50 or larger for novelty stuff & trail walks.  Max Vickery was big on the .32 for paper matches.
Roger B.

[Kaintuckkee]

Thanks guys for all the response,the only type match I would be using it for would be paper bullseye targets out to 50 yds mostly,I dont shoot to many trail walks but when I do I have bigger calibers for that

[Daryl]

If 50 yard paper is the goal, I'd still go with a .40 or .45.  Both of those, I can get shooting under 1" with consistancy, with a rest, 1/2" being the best for a number of groups in both barrels.

My .32 was able to do 1" for 3 consecutive groups but that was it, no better.  I guess I need to try the larger, 00 buck.  I suspect 1" is the very best the .311" ball will do.

With the current loads, the way to look at that with a critical, target shooter's eye, is that the .32 will always shoot at least 1" larger diameter group (1/2" both sides) than the .40 or .45, at 50 yards.

[David R. Watson]

I shot a .30 flinter for several years and all that applies to a .32 holds for the .30. I purchased it for squirrel hunting and used 30 gr FFF which totally removed the head. I went to 60 gr FFF at 100 which chronographed over 2000 fps.
I shot a Bianchi Plate at approximately 60 yards which had been hit in excess of 200K times at a military training center over a three year span and had to pay for the repair via welding up the crater left by the tiny O buckshot. The hardball .45 ACP and 9mm had only stippled the surface, but not the flinter.
I actually used it in the Mid-South Championship and came in second behind J. L. Hargis - would have finished second against him no matter what I shot.

[Daryl]

When I was shooting LHV in my .40, it made pock marks about .1" deep in a 2 1/2" stainless bar. My velocity was around  2,240fps at the muzzle.  Canvas Back's .40, although slower at around 1,750fps mv, also made pock marks in the stainless.  None of the other rifles made more than lead spashes. The range was around 35 or 40 yards.

[northmn]

I shot the paper bullseye matches, which is where I found the 32 wanting.  Note that those claiming success with it are using loads similar to that in in a 40, ie 60 grains of 3f.  The heavier ball of a 40 will do better with that charge.  50 yards is about the limit I considered the 32 as a viable distance with reasonable 32 loads.  Even then, it can start giving problems that a larger bore may not.  Sometimes you can do fantastic with one, but they foul worse, especially with the heavy loads, and still give more wind problems than even a 40.   As I found, it was over the long haul, that I decided to switch away from a 32.  I have one with a faster twist (1-33) waiting to be built, but at this time I need to finish a couple of other rifles first.  I used a Douglas and possibly a Montana, one had a 1-66 and one a 1-48.  I really saw no practical difference between them.  I also used 319 ball cast from a Lyman mold. Do like Daryl states and try one off a rest at the longer ranges.  At 25 yards they can be deadly, even at 50. 

DP

[bob in the woods]

We had a fellow at our club , that almost always used a ,32.... sometimes a .36  Thing is he did well with them against our .50's and.54's but.. he used 60 gr of powder, which was a common .50 load on the line.
He could keep his shots in the 9 and 10 ring most of the time at 100 yds [ NMLA 200 yd target ] Had he used a larger bore I'm certain he would have done better since our .54 's would hold in the 9 and 10 with consistency [ if we did our part ] 

[Daryl]

Bob - had you been using 90 to 110gr. in the .50's there might not have been any 9's. He was using a 100 yard charge, but sounds as if he was the only one.

[northmn]

In the circuit I shot in over Northern MN, as a rule there were usually only 2-3 competitors at a match I had to beat.  There may have been 40-60 shooters, but only a couple I had to best to win.  Sometimes one of the 40-60 would sneak in an individual win, as in 25 yard offhand, but for the aggregate I went after, they would not be that close.  I won one aggregate without one individual win.  In the end, one really is shooting against himself, as you know what you can do.  I dropped the 32 because I knew I could do better.  Also, you start to defeat the purpose of using one if you have to load it too heavily.
There can be advantages to using a small bore for those that may be recoil conscious or like those rifles that could make anyone recoil conscious in a larger bore.  Some like to use the rifles they use a lot in the field. 
I guess when you look at the games like chunk shooting and X sticks, you rally see a lack in the small bores although I guess the 40 is popular in chunk shooting.

DP