The term .32 rimfire refers to a family of cartridges which were chambered in

revolver A revolver (also called a wheel gun) is a repeating handgun that has at least one barrel and uses a revolving cylinder containing multiple chambers (each holding a single cartridge) for firing. Because most revolver models hold up to six roun ...

s and

rifle A rifle is a long-barreled firearm designed for accurate shooting, with a barrel that has a helical pattern of grooves ( rifling) cut into the bore wall. In keeping with their focus on accuracy, rifles are typically designed to be held with ...

s in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. These rounds were made primarily in short and long lengths, but extra short, long rifle and extra long lengths were offered.

Manufacturers

Manufacturers in the USA generally discontinued making .32 rimfire ammunition after the country's entrance into World War II in 1941. It was available from old stocks for some years afterwards, but it has been made only sporadically in the last 70 years. Occasionally, special limited runs of .32 rimfire ammunition are manufactured for gun collectors with shootable specimens, but the round is not considered a current commercial cartridge. Navy Arms Company had periodically imported .32 Rimfire Long made by CBC in Brazil until 2014.

History

The .32 short was designed in 1860 by Smith & Wesson for their Model 2 revolver. In 1868, they introduced the .32 Long in the Model 1 Second Issue revolver. The .32 Short fired an lead bullet at (generating

muzzle energy Muzzle energy is the kinetic energy of a bullet as it is expelled from the muzzle of a firearm. Without consideration of factors such as aerodynamics and gravity for the sake of comparison, muzzle energy is used as a rough indication of the des ...

) from a rifle barrel. The .32 Long fired a slightly heavier bullet at approximately the same velocity, for muzzle energy. Remington rifles in .32 rimfire listed a bore diameter of The .32 Short and Long rimfire cartridges matched the external dimensions of the

.32 Colt The .32 Long Colt (commonly called the .32 LC or simply .32 Colt) is an American centerfire revolver A revolver (also called a wheel gun) is a repeating handgun that has at least one barrel and uses a revolving cylinder containing mult ...

Short and Long centerfire cartridges; the

Marlin Marlins are fish from the family Istiophoridae, which includes about 10 species. A marlin has an elongated body, a spear-like snout or bill, and a long, rigid dorsal fin which extends forward to form a crest. Its common name is thought to deri ...

Model 1892 lever-action repeating rifle was shipped with two firing pins, one rimfire and one centerfire, to allow use of either the rimfire or centerfire cartridges.Sears, Roebuck and Co. Catalogue No. 104, 1897. Revolvers and single shot rifles chambered for one of the longer .32 rimfire cartridges would chamber and fire the shorter cartridges.

Remington Arms Remington Arms Company, LLC was an American manufacturer of firearms and ammunition, now broken into two companies, each bearing the Remington name. The firearms manufacturer is ''Remington Arms''. The ammunition business is called ''Remingto ...

manufactured .32 Extra Short ammunition (also known as .32 Protector) until 1920 for use in the

Protector Palm Pistol The Protector Palm Pistol is a small .32 rimfire revolver designed to be concealed in the palm of the hand. It was unique in that the revolver was clasped in a fist with the barrel protruding between two fingers and the entire handgun was squeezed ...

and Remington Magazine Pistol. During its lifetime, the .32 rimfire was loaded with black powder, followed by semi-smokeless and smokeless powder loadings. While it was popular as a very effective small game caliber, it was considered obsolete by the late 1930s, in part due to the introduction of high-velocity versions of the

.22 Long Rifle The .22 Long Rifle or simply .22 LR or 22 (metric designation: 5.6×15mmR) is a long-established variety of .22 caliber rimfire ammunition originating from the United States. It is used in a wide range of rifles, pistols, revolvers, smo ...

using smokeless powder.

Manufacturers

History

References

See also