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Gentlemen:
I recently purchased the subject rifle for CLA 100 Yard Silhouette. Both metal and wood have been nicely refinished. The action is tight and the rifling looks very good. Head-space is good. A 1907 vintage steel barrel should be OK for low-pressure smokeless loads (per Paco Kelly). Can anyone suggest a potentially accurate 32 WCF load for this rifle? Or at least some reloading components to get me started?
Many Thanks,
John F.
In my #2 Remington rolling block, 12.5gr of Reloader 7 under an Ideal/Lyman 311008, 115gr bullet is a tackdriver. Its a mild load that averages about 1200fps in my rifle.
Thanks, ndnchf. I'll give this a try shortly. Do you know of any current Cast Bullet Manufactures who sell an equivalent 115 grain bullet to the Ideal/Lyman 311008?
I make my own, but I'm sure they are readilly available. Miday sells bulk 115gr Hunter Supply bullets that work well too.
This one dates from 1909 and shoots it’s best with Ranier 100 grain plated .312 diameter Flat Points/Hollow Points.
https://i.postimg.cc/PqbFTtYS/6399-E...-E08053-BB.jpg
This is 5 shots at 100 yards using 10.8 grains of Alliant 2400 using the Ranier hollow points.
10.8 grains of 2400 gives me right at 1700 fps with these bullets and they’re fairly accurate in my rifle.
This load tracks with the ladder sight right out to 300 yards.
Thanks, ATCDoktor. Where do you purchase these 100 Gr, .312" Rainier Plated bullets? So far I have not been able to find any distributors with this bullet in stock. I'll keep looking.
This site might help you MarlinOwners.com see 32/20 Reloaders
Original 32-20's can have a bore diameter up to 314 or so. I have a couple of boxes of Remington factory 100 gr lead bullets that scatter all over the place in my 32-20 but a Lee mold throwing a 120 grain bullet at about 311 diameter shoots very well. Generally I have had the best accuracy and performance from my 32-20 using a little heavier bullet like the 120 grain over the 100 grain. Originally the cartridge was often loaded with the 115 grain bullet, I think the factory 100 grain is due to the pistols using the cartridge which had to keep the pressure down when smokeless got popular.
DEP
I have a Marlin 1894 rifle from early 1900s and Win 53. Both have excellent bores and neither one will shot jackets worth spit. I’m shooting 115FN cast from old Ideal mold in both. 313” they both shoot squirrels head groups at 60yds with iron sights.
Said this before but for all Winchester 1892 owners, Michael Puzo, 2bitrifles@gmail.com is writing a book and has cataloged over 10,000 92’s( including my 1913 vintage 25 20). Mike is a great guy to talk to and has access to records and can give you a little history on your gun .
A gunsmith recently slugged the groove diameter of this rifle at 0.3120". It has an amazingly clean bore for a 1907 rifle.
One dimension to not overlook is the end of the chamber area or "throat" diameter.
We have numerous 1892's from 2nd year up to the cousin of your 1907 rifle. None of them are the same. Chambers are the place where you have to think about fit One 32-20 will accept .315+ diameter cast. Another .310 is almost to snug.
Shooting 3F black powder we use .310 cast of range scrap which bumps up fine.
But smokeless slugs must fit that throat area or you will have slugs not lining up with the barrel. Pull the trigger on a too loose cast out of line and your target will feel awful lonely out there.
Mike in LLama Land
Use this data at your own risk. I use an Accurate 31-100F mold, which is plain based, sized to .314" and gas checked using a Pat Marlin's PB Checkmaker. CCI400 or Federal 205 small rifle primer, 11.8 gr Alliant 2400, and an OAL of 1.555". My chronograph is in the shop currently, however, QuickLoad predicts ~1995 fps from a 20" barrel. Good luck and stay safe.
I too have an early 1900’s (1902) 1892 in 32 WFC. Before I started loading for it I read several articles and am glad I did. Skeeter Skelton, Elmer Keith, Paco Kelly and John Taffin all say the 32-20 comes to life using .314 sized boolits in older guns - I’m not going to reinvent that wheel.
The challenge was finding a mold that would drop boolits .314 - Lee makes a 314-90-SWC which does the job but I was looking for a Flat Point. So… after much searching I decided on the Lee 309-113-FP and took the time to open up the mold until it dropped a .314 boolit. After PCing and gas checking it weighs in at 121 grains. When loaded with 8.1gr of 2400 QuickLoad predicts a very safe 13,400 psi and 1400 fps. I didn’t chrono the load but its very mild and more accurate than I am at 100 yards. Enjoy the fine old girl they’re real beauties!