[This post is part of our series, What I’m Carrying Now. If you’d like to submit a photo and description of the gun, holster and gear you’re carrying in the new world in which we live, send it to us at [email protected] with WICN in the subject field.]
Fredster writes . . .
I’m packing an H&R model 732 in .32 S&W Long effortlessly carried in my pants pocket. It was the last steel gun my local pawn broker had and is tight as a drum.
There were plenty of plastic guns at unrealistic prices. I got out the door with this and a bag of 50 rounds of Georgia Arms .32 XTPs for just under $140.
But why?
Better than a sharp stick
My sister came to visit once years ago, and she brought an ancient H&R 732. I was fairly new to firearms back then, but I was amazed that a revolver trigger could be so atrocious.
15 lbs. of creepy, gritty, grindy mess.
Told her to throw that POS back in the ocean where it probably came from.
These guns do have a pretty heavy trigger, but they are generally solid firearms. I picked up the longer barrel NEF .22 version (R92) about 10 years ago. Nine shot DA revolver (used in good condition) for $115. I’ve put many rounds through it, and it worked fine. It was my first handgun.
This .32 revolver is under powered, but otherwise, it isn’t a bad defensive option if all you can afford is $140.
On the other hand, G2C Taurus were selling for less than $200 a couple months ago, and S&W Shields were a bit over $250. Those are far superior. For around $150 you could probably get a used micro .380 (LCP, P3AT, TCP). Those are also probably preferable. I once bought a Rossi .38sp for $125. Rossi and H&R might be comparable but .38sp is far superior to .32 long.
My VERY FIRST firearm, was a 32 mag version of this revolver. Yeah it was ugly. But it always went bang, and I was accurate with it. Having never shot a “good trigger” I didn’t know any better….
Plus it was $50. 😎 (Mid 90’s)
I sold it to a buddy because after a while I realized that the guy who sold it to me may not have been completely honest with me when he said ‘nah man. It ain’t stolen. I promise.’ 🤨
Sometimes three wrongs make a right?
Sounds about right.
You know what two (W)rights make?
An Airplane.]
The ammo’s worth more than the gun.
I picked up a Model 733 (nickle plated) .32 Long a couple of years ago in perfect condition for a good price. It’s my tackle box gun. Better for it to accidentally go overboard than a Ruger, Colt, S&W, Sig, Beretta…..well, y’all get the picture.
I forgot to mention, my 733 is loaded with 98 grain Federal Lead wadcutters. Hollow points won’t expand at such modest velocities and FMJ is not my favorite, but I think the lead WC’s are the best load for .32 S&W Long. Bigger meplat, the projectile will deform, and it will penetrate. Of course, in the boat, I’m concerned with Cottonmouths here.
Is the lead waddcuter more powerful than the LRN bullet and what about accuracy. get back with me.
can I shoot a h&r 32 mag out of a 732 model Smith & Wesson long the same gun as the guy advertising. please get back with me
A good 32 Long HBWC load definitely meets FBI spec and can be very effective. Gun sam on YouTube has some good demos.
Even if a 32 H&R fits in a gun chambered for 32 S&W Long it is not a good idea to fire it. The 32 Long was a popular police caliber for many years. Just carry good loads and learn to hit your target.
Peculiar, but if it works, it works.
I would bet a significant amount more than he paid for it that it doesn’t work
In my youth I had several of those H&R revolvers as did my circle. They all worked. Quite well as a matter of fact.
The kind of guys that think they will die if they don’t have the fanciest, most expensive latest and greatest are the guys that are going to die first. Then the dude with the old school gun will have their shit to trade for an all night woman.
That’s a funny way to put it. LoL
Made me snort
Thnx
Because as we all know, when choosing a tool that you may one day bet your life on, getting a bargain basement deal from your local combination pawn shop/liquor store/tire center is paramount…
“JuSt As GoOd”
The question is not whether it is “just as good”- the question is “is it enough?”
My handguns include Ruger, Sig, S&W and HK. But my first handgun was a Taurus. Not as good. But I didn’t feel outgunned and I doubt someone trying to victimize me would have asked “wait, what kind of gun is that?” before they decided if they wanted to persist.
Most defensive gun uses never involve a shot. Those that do almost always involve very few. I’d bet this little .32 long will serve its purpose. And since it’s not my life being bet, not really my business what he wants to bet on it.
Agreed.
The hardware is not the most important thing.
It ain’t the arrow. It’s the Indian.
What’s the saying? “Perfect is the enemy of Good.”
I think the quote is “don’t let perfect be the enemy of good enough”. Patton expanded on it as “a good plan for today is better than a perfect plan for tomorrow”. Good advice, any way you look at it, I think.
A .32 carried is better than a .45 left home in the dresser drawer.
Correct, nothing wrong with a .32 S&W long for a bug. Shoot someone in the face or neck with it and see if it is under powered.
One thing I noticed when AmmoGeddon hit, is that less popular but still viable calibers like 9×18 Mak and 32 S&W were generally far more available and had far more modest and slower occuring price spikes than the more common calibers. Not exactly surprising – plain old supply and demand – but it was food for thought for whenever the next ammo shortage/panic happens.
Nice find, btw.
I still use one of a trio of Makarovs in rotation for my casual off duty carry (I work a security job). Have for a lot of years.
I have several modern pistols ,both for work and other matters. But I honestly don’t feel unarmed going Old School Eastern Bloc.
I didn’t even know that there was an XTP load for the .32 S&W Long. If his revolver still works and shoots to the point of aim,who am I to judge.
Georgia Arms loads a LOT of different stuff. And I imagine they load whatever bullet they can find during ammo droughts.
I have bought a decent amount of 32 H&R mag from them with 110 grain hollowpoints.
The are listed at 1100 fps but run almost 1200 out the 6.5 inch pipe on my Bisley Single Six. I buy these from them because I cant load JHPs that cheap.
what are xtp cartridges are they more powerful can you still buy cartridges from Georgia arms. get back with me
Yep. One reason I keep a .40 is so I can keep shooting through panics. 9mm is the new .22 now so it’s existence on shelves is no longer certain. TTAG should do an ammo availibility matrix article one of these days, on just how popular a round needs to be to remain in steady production, yet not popular enough to disappear entirely for months on end during panics.
At a certain point, the ammo becomes so popular it is no longer a reliable common to find caliber.
Yep. That’s why I have conversion barrels for my G23 to 9mm, .357 Sig, and a Advantage Arms .22 conversion kit. Back during the Obama ammo shortages I could always find something to shoot.
I have an advantage Arms kit. Was never accurate at all other than barn size targets. In the process of converting to .357 (started life as a .40) with new slide/upper parts. A Poly80 is on the bench beside that one and having a hard time finding parts at my usual places.
Soo..Lessons learned during pandemic….TP, Ammo, frozen pizza, masks, netflix…Household was good to go before hand..but spare parts..not so much other than long gun bits.
Which is why I like my .327 Fed Mags (LCR, LCRx, SP 101, and a Taurus which is a really sweet tackdriver). In addition to shooting their namesake .327 Fed Mag they’ll also accommodate.32 H&R Mag, .32 S&W Long, .32 S&W, and in a pinch .32 ACP. Next time there’s a shortage of common calibers I SHOULD be able to find some flavor of .32’s. Of course, I don’t intend to run dry on the common caliber ammo that I have but, unexpected shit happens.
is the cylinder hole bigger on the 327 Federal Meg that you have is that why you can shoot various cartridges the model I have is the h&r 732 I don’t know if it can shoot h&r mags and 327s federals do you know if I can or not get back with me
I’d wager that, like mine, it has no serial number because it came in before the gun control act of 1968.
Have you been able to test it yet? Of course, you don’t want to wait until you need it to test it.
I have one of these ( not with white grips).
Minemwas my mother’s and I have toted it on many cane pole fishing expeditions to the creek bank.
Mine is 32 S&W ( not 32 S&W Long) and anemic in the extreme. It is effective on cottonmouth and other legless antagonists as well as armadillos, raccoons, and possums.
We tested it once on a folgers coffee can and it made it’s way through one side but barely dented the back side. The next day,.my mother bought a Chief Special.
I know GA ammo tend to be loaded stout but I dont think the XTP will expand unless its loaded to 32 H&R magnum velocity.
You also need a solid pocket holster. That thing behind themtrigger is the search. When it is pushed back (with little pressure) the hammer block is defeated.
I always carry mine with 5. I love the old H&Rs. Kinda the Hi-Point of old revolvers. The small ones were designed by someone who evidently didnt have hands. But they tend to work.
I’d say you got a decent deal. I’d like to one of the late 32 Mag versions in electro less nickle.
The thing behind the trigger is the SEAR…..not search.
Looks like a thumb problem and not a knowledge or spelling problem.
Perfect people never have those problems do they?
Did you ask for me?
The tablet softens decides which words get inserted.
“The tablet softens…” It does indeed.
Ha! Auto correct wins again.
Honestly with 32 S&W I would hope they wouldn’t expand; I would have saved my cash and bought ball probably. SWCs would be how I’d want to reload it.
.32 H&R Magnum is a good round. Expensive to shoot, doesn’t often receive the praise it deserves.
https://www.heritage.org/data-visualizations/firearms/defensive-gun-uses-in-the-us/?_ga=2.14353719.184192325.1587435141-1395906327.1587435141
Just saw this……pretty cool.
Thanks, this is very useful. Great find.
Wow, Tulsa had more DGUs than OKC. That’s surprising.
That’s just funny. Looks like something my grandmother would have owned.
Probably did. The gun for non-gunny people back in the day.
I imagine I have seen at least two dozen push-pin 622 H&Rs as tacklebox guns.
Maybe not the best gun, but they served well.
I have owned H&R’s in .22, .22WMR, .32S&W and 38S&W. Carried a hammerless model in .38 for about a year until I could afford better. The thing about Harrington & Richardson is they used good steel, and some models had transfer bars too. Soe of th ebetter models in excellent condition command a good collector price these days.
So, no, I would not want to depend on a little .32 like that. But listen to what the man said, it was all he found when he went looking to buy a gun.
Hell yes, that little wheel gun in it’s low powdered, low pressured cartridge caliber is a good deal better than a sharp stick and some nasty language.
I’d keep it myself, as a memento. Buy a bigger hand cannon when able, but keep that old H&R. They were good dependable guns for the common man when money was tight.
Um, they don’t shoot +P ammo of course. More like “-P”.
The rounds are worth more than the gun, bud you over-paid.
There’s worse choices out there. H&Rs along with Ivers are very much a working man’s gun. As mentioned previously I don’t really think the HPs will make a ton of difference.
This whole “what I am carrying now” is just getting stupid. To be clear, it was never that good to begin with, like an attempt at an EDC sharing but without the instant posts, and now it’s got a bit of satire in with it. I’d like to hope it’s satire, but most times, it’s just some shit an actual borderline special education boomer FUDD carries.
Let’s see your rig then big man
Agreed, the first time I saw this series I thought about how stupid the “EDC of the Day” posts were, and how glad I was that TTAG stopped posting them.
But I don’t know, judging from the comments it seems as though I’m in the minority on this issue.
I think this series is a waste of time and bandwidth. Since it started, if I go to TTAG and see a “What I’m carrying now” post, I wont bother to scroll down to any of the content that might actually be worth something.
It seems to alternate between modern polymer pistols to something more unusual. That ^ was…unexpected I guess.
They seem to generate interest and traffic with minimal effort. Why wouldn’t TTAG do them? As for your criticism of other people choices, it’s presumptuous and vulgar.
Well, then dont read them you smarmy bastard.
And if you do, feel free to keep your opinion to yourself.
Its entertainment and banter to most of us.
If these offend you, I imagine you’re lonely….for a reason.
I feel free to share my opinion, thank you. And if this website, which I’ve been reading for 8 years now, goes too far in the direction of sponsored posts that look a lot like articles, and these ridiculous whatever-of-the-day posts, I’m going to let them know it.
“feel free to keep your opinion to yourself.”
Why should he? You feel perfectly authorized to post your opinion, yet you discourage others from doing the same?
This roughly brings to mind what comedian George Carlin said: ever notice the guy driving faster than you is an a$$hole and the guy driving slower than you is an idiot? My, opinion is to get and give (comments) what you can from these posts, entertaining and/or educational.
Carry what you can carry but i think i’d rather have a hi point. I’d probably spring for a bit more around $200 for various taurus, rossi, ruger, or bersa handguns if i was looking in that price range.
Do you have a pocket that will hold the weight of a Hi-Point.
Not sure I do.
Point taken, lots of good options not far out of that price range, some pocket pistols, some not. The poster should keep his options open when opportunity and funds allow for it.
Nothing against a HiPoint, it is a great truck gun.
Armed defense and you can use it to place the Jack on soft ground.
Hose it off and it’s good to go when done.
I’m not surprised someone with only $140 for a gun and a box of 50 rounds is late to the game of arming himself for protection. Not everybody is able to do so when so many people work paycheck to paycheck and missing just one or two paychecks can break the bank.
I’m sympathetic because I’ve been there. Many years ago but I well remember having to make choices between being able to pay the rent and the utilities or having enough food for the month. There were certainly years when the idea of “I better go out and buy a gun!” would have had me reaching into my wallet and pulling out dust bunnies.
So, the guy found a chance at self defense, last gun in his local pawn shop? At least he’s trying.
Points there, absolutely!
Exactly. In my youth I would have struggled to put the cash together, and did, for guns that compare to this.
Best comment on here, bravo.
It ain’t much, but it’s probably enough to get by.
Sometimes a man has got to know his limitations.
This wouldn’t be my first (or second) choice, but not everyone can afford (or wants) the latest plastic fantastic hand cannon. 100+ years ago the 32 S&W Long (and the 32 acp) were commonly accepted self defense and police calibers. I guess people were skinnier, less fat to penetrate.
I enjoy the latest EDC articles. I could easily do without the snarky, condescending, and often poorly written, sniping.
People weren’t skinnier, or less fat; They just didn’t have access to modern antibiotics, and medicine wasn’t advanced far enough to understand how to deal with sepsis. It wasn’t the calibre of the gun that mattered before modern medicine; It was the mere threat of being shot that did the trick. For that reason, even the stupidest criminal did his best to avoid getting shot, so any gun would do.
Back in The Day of .22 and .41 Short Rimfire, along with various anemic-by-our-standards .32 and .38 rimfire and centerfire handgun cartridges, people understood that being shot anywhere in the thorax was almost a guarantee of a very drawn-out and unpleasant death from infection. Clothes were rarely washed, peoples’ skin was rarely even close to ‘clean’ by our standards, and cartridges contained filthy black powder, mercury-based primers, bullets made of soft lead with inside or outside lubrication with tallow or other grease guaranteed to carry bacteria with it into a wound.
Sure, people got dead more quickly with a bigger gun, which mercifully saved them a lot of extended ugly dying. That doesn’t mean that the little guns weren’t effective deterrents, just as they are today.
“People weren’t skinnier, or less fat…”
Americans started the obesity epidemic back in the late 1970s at the latest. The obesity rate is now over 42%, the latest I read just this past week.
There just were not all the walking lard containers in society.
It coincided with “enhanced” wheat and widespread use of processed food instead of whole food.
You are laughing now but it looks like we are going to go full open. Know what that means? More infections and more closed good plants! Those obese folk have a survival advantage!
Dude. The type and quantity of food we eat now certainly is a factor. Lifestyle is a big factor too. Work and home life was simply more physical in the old days. Much more hands on labor. Longer work days. Less down time.
The average man had to really work for his daily bread in the day. I started life on a farm. I watched my old man plow with a team of mules. He and his peers were much tougher than I’ll ever be.
You clearly have never seen the men’s clothing sections of a vintage Sears, Roebuck & Co. catalog from the turn of the century.
Being ‘fat’ was a sign of health, higher income and prosperity, and higher social standing. Being ‘thin’ was a sign of poverty, being in the ‘working class,’ or being diseased. Nobody aspired to being ‘thin’ if they could help it.
John, you made some very good observations, thanks for the astute post!
Indeed. Today’s modern super fat criminals aren’t just hopped up on drugs, they’ve spent their youths consuming insane amounts of high calorie, high chemical, hormone laced foods that have turned them into fat, hairy, thick boned, hard skinned, wild eyed beasts. When choosing a weapon to fight these modern aged mutants it’s important to choose a caliber that can penetrate thick layers of hair, hide, fat, and bone. The immense amount of chemical mutations have also lowered their intellect and therefore have made them more immune to pain. I’d say a minimum of 10mm for anyone younger then age 30.
I had to reread that. At first I thought you said: “penetrate thick lawyers”.
Chef don’t judge
It’s click bait to evoke a comments of:
1. It’s a piece of junk; or
2. Stupid to carry; not enough gun
If it works, it’s not stupid and the first rule of being in a gun fight right after “Don’t get in a gun fight” is have a gun.
If they’re tight, most of the H&R revolvers will do what they were designed to do which is shoot someone 5-6 feet away. Do they have a smooth trigger, nope, but it works and will hit someone in the chest from 6 feet. Is a .32 enough gun? There’s probably better choices, but there’s probably lots of fatal shootings with them as well as some where they didn’t stop the fight.
Both Lucky Gunner and Paul Harell have video on .32’s. Check them out.
Ok so it’s a under powered gun that is impossibly slow to reload and had a terrible trigger and grip on it. I’m sure if he shot a perp at bad breath distance it would cause a great deal of pain and shock and probably stop an attack. Not only is it better to have this little gun in your pocket while your Cabot or Wilson .45 is in the safe but it’s a throwaway to the Po Po when they take it for 6 mo as evidence.
He should pair it with a folding knife he can stick in the bleeding criminal.
Since I’m an ant not a grasshopper, ammogeddon and the dwindling stock of the local pawnbroker aren’t issues for me. “Oh, sh*t. I didn’t plan at all and now I’m stuck with this crap” is a rough way to go through life.
long is not the same as .327?
you’d have to get closer to the skonk then i’d wanna be.
is that flange bent, or clearance relieved?
Clearance for the cylinder pin.
Good glove compartment gun if you keep a gun in your car. Later versions have a transfer bar safety so you can load with 6.
Imagine thinking pLaStiC guns are bad in 2020.
I do have a soft spot for those old H&R wheelguns. Sure, they look like starter pistols and have a horrid double-action trigger, but there’s something about their no-frills design that sort of appeals to me. My old man still has a little 9-shot .22 that I recall slaughtering many a Coke can with as a kid.
H&R made sturdy guns. 32S&W long is a smooth shooting accurate round and I wouldn’t want to get shot with one. Easy to reload if you have the equipment. If it’s all you can find or afford not the worst choice out there.
An excellent possibility that anyone shot with the 650 to 750 fps .32 Smith and Wesson Long will not even realize they have been shot.
Extremely poor penetration, bounces off a hub cap, stops in heavy clothing.
Was a big thing years ago when I first became a cop.
Old School is good when it is Smith and Wesson .38s with good loads, Colt Government .45s or Colt Pythons. Always been more cheap guns than good guns.
I am pretty certain this post is a joke in the real sense. Fellow wanted to jerk your chain.
I call bullshit on stopping in heavy clothing. I heard the same shit about .30 carbine bouncing off frozen clothes on chicom soldiers.
Spend some time testing such things. .32 is a neat small game round but nothing else.
.32 ACP much faster, much more penetration.
As for the Chinese— 2000 fps 110 grain .30 carbine bullet drops a lot of velocity at 200 yards, typical engagement distance in Korea I think—- very thick winter clothing, thick web gear, I can see the carbine hitting like a .32 pistol at long range- it was a PDW not a main battle weapon. Folks carried it cause it was light.
Always wondered whey the Soviet Burp gun has a fearsome reputation with a .30 hard jacketed bullet — and the .30 carbine is 500 fps faster- and we complain?
Dunno maybe I need to go some testing.
My dad wasn’t much of a bullshitter about the wars he fought in. When I was a teenager I read that the chinese in Korea used amphetamines before attacks and asked him about it. He told me he thought they did because he once lit up a charging ChiCom with his carbine and he just kept coming despite being hit multiple times. He said he could see the stuffing from his jacket flying out his back so those 30 carbine rounds were apparently going through and through the guy at some range. They collected him later and he had been hit nearly a dozen times. Doesn’t say much about “stopping power” but they will penetrate clothing. And a person.
Alright, I’m calling it. This guy and the dude with the glock 22 in a shoulder holster are trolls. Mark my words these are going to get more and more ridiculous.
But the guy with the P-38 was totes serious!
Well, I had just as soon have a good tight P 38 as a Beretta 92- maybe more so. While the P 38 holds less rounds the pistol fits most hands better. The P 38’s safety lever is easy to manipulate. It is one hell of a lot better gun than the old Smith and Wesson M59, etc.
Real problem is shooting someone with a gun that has a Nazi eagle stamped on it.
This is a joke, right?
If that’s the best you can afford or do then go for it.
Some Hogue grips, night sights, trigger job, hammer bob, scroll engraving and custom high polish bluing and you are there!
The gun does shoot to point of aim and it is tight as new. The trigger is heavy,, but certainly not gritty. In single action it is very smooth and light.
The gun has an “AA” serial number which makes it, I believe, a 1972 model.!t has the transfer bar safety.
It seems to be a simple, reliable revolver. Sorry if it isn’t powerful enough for your taste. I like it.
Well, .32 S&W Long has more energy than .25 ACP. So there’s that.
I inherited one of these from my father, the only handgun he owned aside from a worn-out S&W .32 Hand Ejector he got from an uncle. The H&R is still in as-new condition with a nice finish and no rust. I think it would prove more deadly used as a blunt instrument rather than a firearm, particularly with the possibly 20lb trigger helping spread shots like a scattergun. If I had to, I’d use it and be glad to have it, but methinks it’ll be a cold day in torment before that ever has to happen.
You obviously know nothing about shotguns. You must have been watching movies.
I will just say, I have 2, a snubby with transfer bar and a 4ish inch with out.
Key is, they are just like 22’s, 25’s, and all the other calibers nobody likes. If I shoot you in the face enough times, you’re going to stop doing what I don’t want you to do.
If I need more than 6, I’m the wrong gun fight.
BTW, the saying is, “if you use a 25acp the guy is going to be pissed when he finds out you shot him”
I am a 58 year old woman who “inherited” a 32 from my dad. I don’t have a carry permit, but when I travel now days, it goes with me in case I run into idiots during the social unrest right now. I like it cause it’s small and it is not registered under me anywhere. I do have my HGL and own 9mm, etc., but I will keep this one too. You can never have too many guns and the person isn’t going to ask me what type of gun I just shot him with!
So…… ah yeah back to the 732. Dad bought one in the late sixties, now passed to me. Rog get the weapon is under powered. It’s a 32!!! But the action is acceptable if the double action trigger is a heavy pull.
What I hate about the gun the most is the grips. If I can get two and a half fingers on the grip I’m lucky.
Does anyone know if larger grips are made, by whom?
Thanx.
There are ok little guns to keep in a tackle box or glove box. Mine is loaded with wadcutters. If you have to use one for self defense place the first shot low when they look down to see if they still have a johnson shoot em in the top of the head.
I have a like new model 633 H&R .32 long that I’ve had since 1963. I paid $62 for it.
is the cylinder hole bigger on the 327 Federal Meg that you have is that why you can shoot various cartridges the model I have is the h&r 732 I don’t know if it can shoot h&r mags and 327s federals do you know if I can or not get back with me
Yeah send me your email and i can show you things about the 732
PLEASE do not shoot 327 Federal magnum or 32 H&R magnum in a H&R chambered for 32 S&W long! The H&R “magnum” round was downloaded because a true magnum round, i.e. 327 Federal, could blow up those old guns. If yours is chambered for 32 long, be content with that. If you want a more powerful cartridge, find a good used Charter Arms, Taurus or Rossi 38 Special revolver. They’re not terribly expensive, are more effective, and are less likely to blow up in your hand, even with occasional use of +P ammo.
I carry one when I walk in the woods behind our house. Not what I carry for self defense though, just for snakes, sasquatch and stuff like that. Mine doesn’t have those white grips. I think I’m going to order some NEF wooden grips. Not sure they’ll fit exactly but they look close.
Great little tackle box or get the hell away from me gun. I have carried one for 30 years that is loaded with Fiocchi wadcutters.
Yep. Haven’t had mine that long, but I just like smaller revolvers and how all steel guns feel.
Also I think some people are missing the point or my mindset when I’m prowling around the woods behind our house. We have far more powerful, modern and effective personal defense weapons. For me I must like older revolvers especially the old break open .38s and simple revolvers like the H&R 732. I carry it then because I prefer to have a gun in the woods. Not because I ever expect to use it, but simply to have it. They’re quaint in a way that appeals to me. Sometimes I take a single action .22 again not because I expect to need it but just to have when I’m in the Old West mood. If I seriously expected to need a gun when I’m out walking I’d just stay home. We carry different weapons in the car or when we’re walking our dog in the more populated parts of our town.