Import of Cartridges of 32 Winchester special

[sonuvecv]

Goodevening fellow IFG'ians,
I am having a 32 Winchester special,liver action,side feeding rifle on my liscence which is valid for all India. Gun is in my family from last 30 years and in a brand new condition a, I got it from my uncle.Now I am facing the problem of unavailability of cartridges ,I contacted with one of the arm dealer in Gwalior(M.P.) ,he told me that it is possible to get the cartridges from some big Arm dealer as he can get it Import from USA but I have to Pay for atleast 50 cartridges.my yearly quota of cartriges are 50 so that is not a problem.
I want suggetion from u all that how much shall I pay him per cartridge he was asking for 500 RS/piece and is it legal and possible to import the cartridges.
Also Please suggest me cartridge of some other bore which can be used as alternate.That gun dealer suggests me 4 using Adapters as well,how much I shall pay for that and is it safe.Your help and guidence is solicited.

Regards,
Digvijay Singh Tomar

[goodboy_mentor]

I want suggetion from u all that how much shall I pay him per cartridge he was asking for 500 RS/piece

Since it is seller's market for firearms and ammunition, there is no hard and fast rule. It depends on your bargaining skills, your pocket and your alternative options. You can also try contacting some other arms dealers. You may also get their details from yellow pages section of this website.

is it legal and possible to import the cartridges

It is legal if you have import license for the same, which is almost next to impossible to get or you are willing to fight the restriction on import of firearms and ammunition by arms license holders in High Court or Supreme Court.

Please suggest me cartridge of some other bore

Personally I would avoid cartridges of "other" bore as it is most likely to cause a fatal accident and use the correct cartridges for the gun only. Let us see what other members have to say if cartridge of similar dimensions and pressure ratings is there.

That gun dealer suggests me 4 using Adapters as well,how much I shall pay for that and is it safe.

I have never heard such thing, maybe I am ignorant. What does he mean by adapters?

[Kittu]

hi sonuvecv i also have the same problem i recently baught 32-40 rifle by winchester no one manufactures artridges for this rifle this is called a dump bore.there is term in arms act to convert i am working on this.is there any gunsmith who has got the liecence to convert to another bore.as your gun is og .32 caliber you can use 8mm bullets but there are many other factors in conversion of chamber as case lenths are diffrent as soon i will know any solution ill let you know thanks

[timmy]

Digvijay:

I am not sure what adapter he is trying to sell you. .32 Winchester Special uses a 0.321" bullet. I'm not aware of common handgun bullets of that diameter. 32 ACP and .32 S&W Short and Long use 0.309" and 0.312" bullets, respectively, which are going to be too small to use in your .32 Winchester Special bore. I almost wonder whether he may be trying to sell you a .30-30 adapter, as .30-30 and .32 Winchester Special are very similar, except for the bullet diameter:





The .30-30 adapter would probably chamber in your gun, but shooting any commonly available handgun round out of such an adapter from your .32 Winchester Special rifle wouldn't be a very good idea. I would inquire to this dealer for more information on what he's proposing to sell you.

Additionally, adapters are somewhat of a pain to use, as you must load the adapter, chamber it, then eject the adapter, then remove the spent round from the adapter.

-- Sun Sep 11, 2011 14:15 --

re:

...your gun is og .32 caliber you can use 8mm bullets but there are many other factors in conversion of chamber as case lenths are diffrent as soon i will know any solution ill let you know thanks

Actually, 8mm (7.92mm) uses 0.323" diameter bullets, and this larger size could well cause higher pressures in a .32 Winchester Special bore. Since I would assume you are not proposing to handload, but adapt, there are some obsolete handgun cartridges that are 8mm, but that may not mean they are correct for a 0.321" bore. I doubt that there are many who have on-the -shelf merchandise that would adapt the .32 Winchester Special to some old handgun cartridge, either. Is the man proposing to machine some custom adapter for you?

-- Sun Sep 11, 2011 14:21 --

BTW, .32-40 is another cartridge altogether, and while it may share the same rim diameter as the .30-30 aqnd .32 Winchester Special, it is somewhat longer and of an entirely different shape from those other two rounds:



Plus, it also uses a 0.321 diameter bullet, making true 8mm bullets (those intended for such cartridges as 8x57) too large. These lever action guns are not going to be strong enough to tolerate very high pressures, and I'd be warning against any casual approaches to bullet selection. Also, pointed bullets are never to be loaded into tubular magazines, such as those used by the Model 94 Winchester and similar lever guns. The recoil of firing can cause the point of one bullet in the magazine to touch off the primer of the round ahead of it -- or maybe they will all go off! Independence Day celebrations will come early in that case!

[TwoRivers]

There are adapters available, for cartridges which have the same, or very close, bullet diameter as a pistol cartridge. The only one that comes to mind is the 8mm Japanese Nambu. But that has a case that is to fat for a .32 Special adapter, and it's obsolete. I think you are out of luck. There is no other cartridge that a .32 Special can be rechambered to.
If you could get the correct .32 flat point bullets, and .30-30 cartridges, you can pull the .30-30 bullets, expand the case necks, and seat the .32 caliber bullets. That would be safe.

On the other hand, a .32-40 can be rechambered to .32 Winchester Special, though I would not do it with an older, black powder gun.

[nagarifle]

most adapters tend to make a large cal into small one ie 30-06 to fire .22 or 7.62x25mm . just a piece of tube really also known as barrel inserts and also can be had chambers adapters. however i do not think there is any hope of getting anything for the 32 special. if one goes down this route then one has to think of the legal side ie new licence for the lower cal ammo etc.

[winnie_the_pooh]

Digvijay Singh,

If you travel abroad you can bring in 50 cartridges yourself.As far as getting an adapter to shoot some other cartridge a) it is going to be either dangerous or useless depending upon what the dealer proposes and you agree to b) it is going to be illegal for you to buy or keep cartridge other than the one that is meant for your rifle.Your license allows you to only buy and keep .32 Winchester Special cartridges and not any .32 calibre cartridge.

Ashok,

It would be interesting to see how you get a 32-40 rifle converted.I conclude that it is a lever action rifle?Why not get some nice photographs of yours clicked just so that you can look at it to see how good you looked before the rifle blew up .Also take photos of your hands. Do make a video of you firing the 'converted' rifle to post on you tube.Might make you famous as the stupid Indian who stuffed some cartridge in his rifle and blew it up.

In conclusion to both of you,becoming a cripple for life is not an attractive proposition.Any 'gunsmith' who proposes adapters/re-chambering to some commonly available cartridge ( let me guess "Haan sir,yeh 8mm bore ki rilfe hai.Main dus hazaar meing is ko .315 mein convert kar doonga.") needs to be whipped and have his license revoked.

[sonuvecv]

Digvijay Singh,

If you travel abroad you can bring in 50 cartridges yourself.As far as getting an adapter to shoot some other cartridge a) it is going to be either dangerous or useless depending upon what the dealer proposes and you agree to b) it is going to be illegal for you to buy or keep cartridge other than the one that is meant for your rifle.Your license allows you to only buy and keep .32 Winchester Special cartridges and not any .32 calibre cartridge.

Ashok,

It would be interesting to see how you get a 32-40 rifle converted.I conclude that it is a lever action rifle?Why not get some nice photographs of yours clicked just so that you can look at it to see how good you looked before the rifle blew up .Also take photos of your hands. Do make a video of you firing the 'converted' rifle to post on you tube.Might make you famous as the stupid Indian who stuffed some cartridge in his rifle and blew it up.
ler
In conclusion to both of you,becoming a cripple for life is not an attractive proposition.Any 'gunsmith' who proposes adapters/re-chambering to some commonly available cartridge ( let me guess "Haan sir,yeh 8mm bore ki rilfe hai.Main dus hazaar meing is ko .315 mein convert kar doonga.") needs to be whipped and have his license revoked.

Winnie Sir How can i bring cartidges with you,that dealer is saying to get it import on his liscense if i placed the order of 50 or 100 cartidges.is it possible can dealer import cartidges of .32WS

[goodboy_mentor]

WTP is saying that if you personally go for a visit to some foreign country, you can bring 50 cartridges from there along with you. Yes it is possible for an arms dealer to import cartridges on his import license and then sell them to you.

[Kittu]

hi winnie i am not so stupid that i will try to convert lever action rifle to adopt a bolt action rifle cartridge of any bore or diameter as chamber pressure is mush higher in bolt action rifle.as 32-40 ammo is not easily available abroad also.i only wish to adopt a .32 s&w long to fire in it nothing more then that and that to for fun shooting.any gunsmith who will chamber 32-40 for 315 doest have the children or he do not want to go home because he will be only person to test couple of rounds and i will be sitting at least 200meters away watching him as i mean to say there will be no one who will dare to do such things.i know a incident way back when a barrel of 303 rifle was blown in target practice of haryana police and the loss was lives of tree police persons shooting.i have not brought rifle as it is in paper work and i have 25 cartridges with rifle in fireble condition for proper application and i might find more when ill be in search.the purpose of purchase was i got it only for rs 17500 with 25 rounds thanks

[TwoRivers]

Ashok: Despite its name, the .32 S&W pistol cartridge is not a ".32 caliber". It is more correctly a .303 caliber, with a max. groove diameter of .312", and a maximum bullet diameter (soft lead) of .315". This would not work in the .32 Winchester Special's .316" bore, .321" groove barrel. It would work fine, if the .32 S&W cartridge actually were a ".32".
As to the .32-40, rechambering a Wichester Model 1894 to .32 Winchester Special is an easy and perfectly safe job. Even though some forum members with superior lack of knowledge would disagree. Bore and groove diameters, and twist, are identical. Except that some of the earlier ones had softer steel barrels, meant for lead bullets. Still not getting you any closer to a solution. Cheers.

[winnie_the_pooh]

TwoRivers,

Rechambering a 32-40 rifle to .32 Special is not going to help as neither cartridge is available in India.Also when rechambering the so called gunsmiths here do not bother about teeny weeny details like getting a reamer.A drill bit is what they seem to prefer.Also suitability of a cartridge for conversion is not even considered.Many of the rifles in the market are nothing but hand grenades waiting to go off.

[TwoRivers]

Winnie,

Well, hand grenades are very effective and useful in a defensive situation!
I'm fully aware of the Indian situation. But I am sure that some capable and suitably equipped 'smiths can be found; and trust the members of this forum to be smart enough to seek those out, instead of heading for the village blacksmith. But then, maybe not.
However, there are ways to possible come up with ammo for a .32 Win Special. If you can find .32 Winchester SL, and .30-30, you have the makings for .32 Winchester Special. And for the .32 Win SL, I'd make you an adapter, too. With nothing more than a lathe and a drill bit. But the prospect of finding a good supply of .32 Winchester SL cartridges in India is probably pretty dim, too. Cheers.

[winnie_the_pooh]

But the prospect of finding a good supply of .32 Winchester SL cartridges in India is probably pretty dim, too. Cheers.

I have seen some with a rifle but you are right,there is no good supply of these.The problem with reforming 30-30 to .32 Win Special is that in India,a license for .32 Win Spl. will only entitle the licensee to buy .32 Win Spl ammo.Anything else would be illegal.

[Kittu]

hi tworivers in your opinion what is future of these rifles like 32-40,32 win special,401.404 many others in india as ammo is not available as if there is its prized very like rs 500 for 405 winchester to rs 1000 for .250 a pop.and manufacturing of some cartridges is stopped even outside india for ex usa.some manufacturers in us offers dies to mold case and bullets and then handload ammo for use as far its possible in usa to do all these things but in india its not possible mainly because of reloading powder,primer cap etc and all is available and one gets in eye of police they will charge him like a person who runs illigal factories of ammo and whose supply is in various countries of world just to gain popularity not knowing even the facts.in india there are thousands of weapons of varius make and they havent been used for decades.i my self have seen people having weapons mainly rifles and they even dont know of what caliber it is and even speaking of ammo they dont have empty shell or brass to show thanks