By Dave Workman
Editor-in-Chief
Buried well back into the pages of just about any reloading manual, one will find recommended loads for a cartridge which this year is celebrating its 40th anniversary and is still going strong despite being overshadowed by the slightly more-potent .327 Federal.
It’s the .32 H&R Magnum, a little hole-puncher of a cartridge which has accounted for small game and predators all over the landscape, and is no slouch when it comes to ballistics in a defensive situation, either.
Introduced in 1984 as a joint project between Federal Premium Ammunition and the old Harrington & Richardson as something of an option versus the .38 Special, the .32 H&R has always fascinated me. I acquired one several years ago when Ruger introduced a fixed-sight revolver on the Single-Six frame with a shortened grip frame and offered it in blue or stainless steel. It was, as I recall, nicknamed the “Vaquerito” possibly for the Cowboy Action crowd, and my specimen has demonstrated pretty decent accuracy, especially with a couple of loads I worked up.
The parent case was the .32 S&W Long, trimmed to 1.075 inches and topped with 0.312-caliber projectiles ranging in weight from 85 to 100 grains, and nowadays the Hodgdon Annual Manual lists loads for a 0.314-inch 77-grain cast lead flat point. I’ve also fired some factory ammunition from Black Hills which pushes a 90-grain lead flat point out of the muzzle at a reported 750 fps.
The first gun chambered for this cartridge came from Harrington & Richardson. It was kind of a homely step-sister double-action five-shot wheelgun with a swing-out cylinder, heavy barrel, adjustable rear sight and, as I recall, kind of a stiff D/A trigger.
The cartridge obviously had more staying power than the revolver, because Smith & Wesson and Ruger have both chambered handguns in this caliber, and a few years ago I did a field test on a model produced by Charter Arms called The Professional. As I recall, my main complaint about the gun was that it did not have an adjustable rear sight.
Earlier this year, TGM contributor John Markwell wrote about his own adventures with revolvers in .32 H&R, and it was quite a tale. Like myself, Markwell is a fan of the cartridge, and he has taken it well beyond my level by having a couple of custom guns put together in .32 H&R. His initial foray into the .32 “rabbit hole” was a custom revolver romp as well, and reading both reports will give anyone the urge to enter the .32 H&R arena just to see what’s there.
If I were to buy another handgun in this caliber, it would be a standard Ruger Single-Six with a 6 ½-inch barrel and adjustable rear sight because in my “golden years,” it would be just fun to pack that sixgun along for small game in the winter. I doubt there’s a cottontail or snowshoe hare that could dodge a bullet traveling about 1,000 fps!
I’d have to say my most reliable, and favorite, load for my little six-shooter with its 4 5/8-inch barrel is a 100-grain Speer JHP over 10.0 grains of H110, which scoots right along.
Some folks believe the .32 H&R has been essentially kicked to the scrap heap by the .327 Federal, but that seems rather short-sighted, if not ill-informed. Handloaders can get plenty out of the .32 H&R, and it is a flat shooter, which makes it a good choice for small game such as rabbits, or predators such as coyotes or bobcats. I’ve even heard of people using it to dispatch mountain lions.
A wheelgun chambered for the .32 H&R makes a great trail gun, for day hikes or even an extended backpack trek.
I pack my little Ruger in a high-ride belt holster, and it carries well with 12 spare cartridges in a little belt slide I built a few years ago. To fill the grip to fit my hand, I removed the factory faux ivory grip panels and installed a Pachmayr rubber grip designed for a full-length Single-six/Blackhawk grip frame and it reduces recoil very nicely.
The moral to this story is that one should never call a funeral mass for a reliable cartridge, and that’s what the .32 H&R Magnum is, and always has been. It is a snappy little round with a punch, and anything on the receiving end is going to regret it.
