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The .32 Winchester Special / 8.2x51mmR (or .32 WS) is a rimmed cartridge created in October 1898 for use in the
" by M.L. McPherson at Levergun.com
Extra Special
The .32 Winchester Special
.32 Winchester Not So Special
An Impulsive Purchase Turns Out To Be A Good Deal
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:32 Winchester Special Pistol and rifle cartridges Rimmed cartridges Winchester Repeating Arms Company cartridges
Winchester Model 94
The Winchester Model 1894 rifle (also known as the Winchester 94 or Model 94) is a lever-action repeating rifle that became one of the most famous and popular hunting rifles of all time. It was designed by John Browning in 1894 and originally ...
lever-action rifle
A rifle is a long gun, long-barreled firearm designed for accurate shooting and higher stopping power, with a gun barrel, barrel that has a helical or spiralling pattern of grooves (rifling) cut into the bore wall. In keeping with their focus o ...
. It is similar in name but unrelated to the .32-20 Winchester cartridge (which is also known as .32 WCF).
History
The .32 Winchester Special cartridge, like the .30-30 Winchester cartridge of 1895, is necked down from the .38-55 Winchester cartridge of 1884. The .32 Winchester Special (.321 in) differs from the .30-30 Winchester (.308 in) in bullet diameter. More significantly, Winchester decreased the rate of rifling twist in their Model 94 rifle, from 1:12 when chambered for the .30-30 to 1:16 when chambered for the .32 Winchester Special. Winchester used the slower twist to reduce fouling retention when creating a new cartridge for sportsmen who wanted to reload their own ammunition using black powder and cast bullets. It was also marketed as something more powerful than the .30-30 and yet had less recoil than the .30-40 Krag, AKA .30 Army. This new cartridge enjoyed only moderate success, and remained hampered by the small selection of available bullets in the .321 diameter. There is a wide selection of bullet types and weights for the .30-30, while the only commonly available bullets in .321 diameter are 170 grain and 165 grain. Also, due to the slow twist of the barrel, accuracy suffered when the barrel exhibited wear.
Performance
Ballistics are similar to the .30-30 cartridge and its .308 caliber (7.62 mm) bullet, but the larger diameter .321 (8.15 mm) bullet of the .32 WS will create a larger wound. However, given the same weight of bullet in both calibers, the .30 caliber has a greatersectional density
Sectional density (often abbreviated SD) is the ratio of an object's mass to its cross sectional area with respect to a given axis. It conveys how well an object's mass is distributed (by its shape) to overcome resistance along that axis.
Secti ...
, and correspondingly greater penetration. According to Winchester's original claims, the .32 WS has 5-10% more energy than the .30-30 at close ranges, and less at longer ranges due to increased drag due to the .321's greater diameter and reduced sectional density.What Makes It Special?" by M.L. McPherson at Levergun.com
Dimensions
See also
*8 mm caliber
This is a list of firearm cartridges which have bullets in the caliber range.
*''Length'' refers to the empty cartridge case
Case or CASE may refer to:
Instances
* Instantiation (disambiguation), a realization of a concept, theme, or design ...
* List of rimmed cartridges
Below is a list of rimmed cartridges (R). Although similar, rimmed cartridges differ from rimfire cartridges (list). A rimmed cartridge is a cartridge with a rim, whose primer is located in the center of the case head; the primer is detonated by ...
* List of rifle cartridges
List of rifle cartridges, by primer type, Caliber, calibre and name.
File:Cartridge Sample 2.jpg, 350px, From left to right: 1 .17 Hornady Mach 2, 2 .17 Hornady Magnum Rimfire, 3 .22 Long Rifle, 4 .22 Winchester Magnum Rimfire, 5 .17/23 SMc, 6 5mm ...
* Table of handgun and rifle cartridges
This is a table of selected pistol/submachine gun and rifle/machine gun cartridges by common name. Data values are the highest found for the cartridge, and might not occur in the same load (e.g. the highest muzzle energy might not be in the same ...
References
External links
Extra Special
The .32 Winchester Special
.32 Winchester Not So Special
An Impulsive Purchase Turns Out To Be A Good Deal
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:32 Winchester Special Pistol and rifle cartridges Rimmed cartridges Winchester Repeating Arms Company cartridges