Wednesday, August 14, 2013

Just Call Me "Two-Gun:" A Brace Of .32-20s

     Tam brought back a surprise from Coal Creek Armory: my other .32-20 Colt revolver, the one with a mangled ejector star, left with gunsmith Shannon just in case a used part turned up.

     It never did, but gunsmiths being gunsmiths and idle hands finding something to do, he had laboriously welded up and recut the ratchet teeth!  This is no mean feat: you can ruin the timing with a misplaced stroke of the file and it's slow going to get things right.

     Since I had another one (even a malfunctioning .32-20 Colt is addictive: they're quick and accurate, and don't beat you up with recoil, so when a nicely-reblued example showed up, I bought it), I was in no hurry.

     It was worth the wait:
Reblued .32-20, top; restarred, bottom. On gen-u-ine brown canvas duck dungarees, too.
     Yep, y'all c'n call me Two-Gun Bobbi now; I've just gotta save up for a fancy Western gun belt!  --And there's the "obscure ammo" advantage: in times of drought, the supply and price of less-common cartridges stays about as it ever was.  When .38 Special and 9 mm Parabellum are scarce and costly, .32 Nagant, .32-20 and even .357 Sig are usually still on store shelves.

     Plus, I admit it, they're just kewl.
at

14 comments:

  1. Dave HAugust 14, 2013 at 10:40 AM

    Oooh, a gunbelt would be snappy! Maybe try making your own? I've been fiddling about with Tandy leather kits lately and made a holster for my Ruger Blackhawk. I could see this turning into another hobby I don't have time for.

    Although the last time I got involved in a Tandy-supported hobby it turned into a career. (I got into electronics when Tandy still owned Radio Shack.)

    ReplyDelete
  2. rickn8orAugust 14, 2013 at 12:07 PM

    My Envy-ometer is about 3/4ths scale here...

    ReplyDelete
  3. BGMillerAugust 14, 2013 at 2:17 PM

    Better make sure it's 2 Guns Bobbi.

    Bobbi 2 Guns sounds like a gangster from a bad Dashiell Hammett knock off.

    BGM

    ReplyDelete
  4. Bubblehead Les.August 14, 2013 at 4:23 PM

    Well, if you ever have to go out to the People's Republik of Kalifornia, I think you'd be Legal to use them.

    And with the low recoil, Zombie Head Shots should be a Breeze!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Bubblehead Les.August 14, 2013 at 4:25 PM

    Oh, and now it's time to look for a Matching Lever Gun.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Fuzzy CurmudgeonAugust 14, 2013 at 7:28 PM

    OK, let's see that two-gun mojo, then. :)

    ReplyDelete
  7. StretchAugust 14, 2013 at 9:22 PM

    .32-20 lever gun?
    Right here:
    http://www.cabelas.com/product/Winchester-1873-Rifle-32-20/1357327.uts?Ntk=GunLibrary&searchPath=%2Fcatalog%2Fsearch.cmd%3Fform_state%3DsearchForm%26N%3D0%26fsch%3Dtrue%26Ntk%3DGunLibrary%26Ntt%3D.32-20%26x%3D0%26y%3D0%26WTz_l%3DHeader%253BSearch-Gun%2BLibrary&Ntt=.32-20

    ReplyDelete
  8. davidcAugust 15, 2013 at 12:01 AM

    Neato ! Very kewl ! I passed on a S&W in that caliber several years ago, a top-break as I recall. Need to reacquaint myself with my S&W 32SWL. Low recoil & lots of fun !

    ReplyDelete
  9. Old NFOAugust 15, 2013 at 12:17 PM

    Those are PURTY! And their being Colts just makes it nicer!

    ReplyDelete
  10. TamAugust 15, 2013 at 2:47 PM

    davidc,

    "I passed on a S&W in that caliber several years ago, a top-break as I recall."

    .32 Smith top-breaks are all in .32S&W.

    .32S&W Long and .32-20 (aka ".32 WCF") are only found in Hand Ejectors.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Roberta XAugust 15, 2013 at 9:30 PM

    I was wondering about that -- full on .32-20 would be a little peppy for a top-break.

    Stretch, that rifle is way too pretty -- it that a Marble peep sight?

    ReplyDelete
  12. davidcAugust 17, 2013 at 7:03 PM

    My bad ! Had it mixed up with another pistol. It was a long time ago and relying on my memory is risky. I don't have the knowledge you do but that's why I browse your blog. to learn.

    ReplyDelete
  13. BeaumontAugust 21, 2013 at 8:43 PM

    .32-20s can indeed be addictive. I have Grandpa's 4" Smith, complete with considerable holster wear. A rifle in this caliber would probably compel me to handload it.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Steve FlormanAugust 27, 2013 at 11:55 AM

    And on a different note:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gh5zTCdNH_0

    ReplyDelete

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