Favorite "smaller than deer" cartridge?
- Thread starter RicinYakima
- Start date
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Dan, I have been in search mode off-and-on for a while--seeking a 32 SWL D/A wheelgun with 4" barrel. I have seen few ads for Model 631s, and the prices are ridiculous when found. "Ideal" for my uses would be a post-1957 example Model 30 or 31, but if a M-631 showed up for a reasonable price I would grab it. I don't have a clear idea of total number of Model 631s made, but I suspect it might be similar to the S&W Model 16 or 16-4.......not many, and not for long. Sellers will need to wean themselves away from "$100 per brick 22 LR" mindsets if they really expect to sell their wares to me or those like me.
Bullshop;
I have no idea what the 631's are selling for these days. I bought it when it was first offered (along about the same time I got my 16-4). The 631 shoots quite well. Just about an inch at 25 yards off a rest. I admit that it is harder to shoot than the 16-4 simply because the light weight kind of "waves around in the air" compared to the much heavier 6" Model 16-4. However, it carries extremely well, due to that same light weight, and works extremely well on edible small game (and some NOT so edible as skunks, foxes, and coyotes
) when loaded appropriately.
Like the 60-4 (target sighted 3" barreled .38 Special) they make terrific side guns when you are bird hunting, etc. Every outdoorsman could benefit from owning one or both (I have both, he said smugly).
FWIW
Dale53
I have no idea what the 631's are selling for these days. I bought it when it was first offered (along about the same time I got my 16-4). The 631 shoots quite well. Just about an inch at 25 yards off a rest. I admit that it is harder to shoot than the 16-4 simply because the light weight kind of "waves around in the air" compared to the much heavier 6" Model 16-4. However, it carries extremely well, due to that same light weight, and works extremely well on edible small game (and some NOT so edible as skunks, foxes, and coyotes
) when loaded appropriately.Like the 60-4 (target sighted 3" barreled .38 Special) they make terrific side guns when you are bird hunting, etc. Every outdoorsman could benefit from owning one or both (I have both, he said smugly
).FWIW
Dale53
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The "Kit Gun" concept is a good one, and I'm sure the new Ruger SP-101 in 327 Federal with 4.2" barrel will sell smartly for that reason. Dale's comment about being handy while bird hunting with the scattergun is right on point. That is the niche I'm trying to fill with the 4" small-frame 32 acquisition.
I did stumble across a similar little jewel a few years ago, a 1920-made Colt Police Positive in 38 S&W. #358477 run at 700-725 FPS shoots right to the sights, and the arm has MUCH BETTER fixed irons than does my 1901-made New Police x 6" in 32 SWL. Jackrabbits and ground squirrels HATE this little roller as much as I adore it.
I did stumble across a similar little jewel a few years ago, a 1920-made Colt Police Positive in 38 S&W. #358477 run at 700-725 FPS shoots right to the sights, and the arm has MUCH BETTER fixed irons than does my 1901-made New Police x 6" in 32 SWL. Jackrabbits and ground squirrels HATE this little roller as much as I adore it.
I'm another proponent of the 1894CL in 32-20. Mine has a receiver sight as do most of my levers. I also down load 30-30s for a Savage 99, have a couple of Marlin 1894Cs that are better suited to deer sized game. I have the 3" Model 36 blued sibling of Dale's SS Model 60, but would be hard pressed to find a more accurate revolver than my old Model 14 6" 38Spl.
Bret4207
At the casting bench in the sky. RIP Bret.
Al, the problem with the Ruger is that's it's just too freakin' big and heavy (not to mention fugly). That's where Dales 631 or the 60-4 shine, a J frame with adjustable sights and a long enough barrel, I'd prefer 4 or 5 inches, would be perfection for a woods gun, and of course I'd have it in blue. 32 Long or 38 spec would be fine in either case. No need for magnum speeds in this venue. What you need is something that hits like a 22 mag or 25 Stevens rifle at 50 yards or so. An 85-120 gr 32 cal FN bullet at 850fps or a 135-150 gr 35 cal bullet at the same general speed will do all you need. Any more speed is just to make hitting at longer ranges a little easier, but open sights limit most of us in that regard IMO, at least on small game. Coyotes add a few yards just because they're bigger. And should you run onto a randy bull/crazy heifer, nasty dog or long haired hippy type mutant ninja zombie...well, I think things would turn out okay.
I much preferred my 6" M14 to my 6" M16 32 H&R due to the weight. As cute as my Colt Police Positive Target 22WRF and S&W M35 were, each found a new home. Honestly, I find my 4" roundbutt M19 pretty hard to beat for accompanying me around my property. 358432s over 7gr Herco in 357 cases will hit most anything I can see at 50 yards without being obnoxiously loud or snappy.
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No argument with ya on the Hamburger Effect (thicker/beefier = better) Ruger gives their wheelguns, Bret. Are they "too big?" Maybe. I lean a lot more heavily toward a Colt Police Positive or J-frame Smith to fill this niche, but that route presents a few complications in California. Not impossible, but convoluted. I have A LOT of 32 SWL brass/ammo on hand, too. Making room for another caliber (327 Federal) doesn't blow my dress up much, either. May have a Colt PP nearby that's legal to snag, working that angle presently.
Bret4207
At the casting bench in the sky. RIP Bret.
Both of us need to seek residency in a state that still recognizes civil rights Al.
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Da, tovarich. California is Albania with date palms.
Chris Sparkman
New Member
Ruger #3 in .223. I load the Lyman 225438 over 5.7 gr of Green Dot. It's the most accurate load I've ever developed and by far my best squirrel rifle.
Bret4207
At the casting bench in the sky. RIP Bret.
Yeah, and NY is Siberia in the Stalin years without the charm of a foreign sounding name...
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9.3X62AL
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Chris, thanks for that load data "heads up" on the 223/#225438 combo. Do you add any Dacron or other filler?
Chris Sparkman
New Member
No, I do not use a filler for that load. I've thought about trying a filler to see if I could get more accuracy with even less powder.
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9.3X62AL
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I can't recommend use of Dacron as a filler, after spoiling (ringing) a chamber on a nice flatband Win 94 in 25/35 WCF by means of that practice. I discontinued the practice immediately and permanently. The story has a happy ending--that rifle is now a rebored 38-55, which is more cartridge by accident than the 25/35 ever was on purpose, but that's beside the point.