32 Smith & Wesson
During the first two or three decades of
this century, inexpensive, nickel plated pocket revolvers were a dime a dozen
among American citizens. Possibly the most popular chambering for those guns
was an 1870's vintage cartridge called .32 Smith & Wesson. Originally
loaded with black powder and an 85 grain bullet at 705 fps for 97 foot pounds
of energy, the .32 Smith & Wesson eventually became a smokeless
cartridge.
Due to the tons of revolvers once manufactured in .32 S&W, factory ammunition
is still available from Remington and Winchester. It is currently loaded
with 85 and 88 grain bullets at 680 fps for a nominal 90 foot pounds of muzzle
energy. In comparison, the
.32 ACP and
.380 ACP
cartridges generate respective muzzle energies of 129 and 190 foot
pounds.
The .32 S&W was once recommended as the minimum cartridge to use in self
defense, a title it eventually lost to the considerably more powerful
.380
ACP.
Source: Hodgdon Data Manual, 26th Edition
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