Muzzle Energy question

[The Annoyed Man]

I think that after all of your calculations you will come to the conclusion that you need a larger caliber.

I knew someone could not keep from suggesting a larger caliber. When my 70 year old hands with arthritis finally could no longer take the recoil from my dearly loved 38 Spl snubby, I downgraded to 380. By the time my hands were 75 years old, I had tried 4 different 380's and couldn't grip them tight enough to keep from getting stove pipes, etc.. So I am now down to a 32 acp and glad I can shoot it. In five more rears, I may be shooting rimfires. We do what we can.

Hi Paul,

I wonder if you might not be better served by a pistol shooting .22 LR or .22 Magnum? I can certainly understand how arthritis can limit your choices. I use different carry alternatives these days because of my back, and I tend to carry lighter pistols than before too. But the reason I mention .22 LR is that it actually has pretty decent penetration for its caliber, and you wouldn't have to deal with painful recoil at all. And I don't know that it is any less effective than .32 would be in most defensive applications. I could be wrong, but that's what comes to mind.

Just a thought. And I meant no disrespect with my "P" joke (above).

[CC Italian]

Pfgrone- As a .32acp owner (kel tec) I have tried several different ammo brands. The S&B you mentioned is the hottest one I know other then the buffalo bore hard cast. I run the Fiocchi 73 grain round in mine. It is still a hotter round but not as hot as the S&B and BB. I have shot over 500 rounds through my Kel tec with no problems. On a side note I wouldn't be to worried about ft lbs of energy with a .32acp. Just penetration and shot placement. 22lr would also be a good option if you need to move down but imo the .32acp still does better then then the .22lr simply for the added bullet diameter being that penetration of both rounds can exceed 12inches in hardball. Just my two cents but a 22lr is better then a rock!

[WildBill]

I think that after all of your calculations you will come to the conclusion that you need a larger caliber.

I knew someone could not keep from suggesting a larger caliber. When my 70 year old hands with arthritis finally could no longer take the recoil from my dearly loved 38 Spl snubby, I downgraded to 380. By the time my hands were 75 years old, I had tried 4 different 380's and couldn't grip them tight enough to keep from getting stove pipes, etc.. So I am now down to a 32 acp and glad I can shoot it. In five more rears, I may be shooting rimfires. We do what we can.

Hi Paul,

I wonder if you might not be better served by a pistol shooting .22 LR or .22 Magnum? I can certainly understand how arthritis can limit your choices. I use different carry alternatives these days because of my back, and I tend to carry lighter pistols than before too. But the reason I mention .22 LR is that it actually has pretty decent penetration for its caliber, and you wouldn't have to deal with painful recoil at all. And I don't know that it is any less effective than .32 would be in most defensive applications. I could be wrong, but that's what comes to mind.

Just a thought. And I meant no disrespect with my "P" joke (above).

I am also a revolver fan. If it's the recoil that you can't handle, rather than the trigger pull, there are some nice .22LR revolvers available. I believe that there is one that holds nine rounds.

P.S. People tend to forget that recoil is a function of the weight of the pistol vs. the weight of the bullet x velocity [momentum] rather than muzzle energy. Also the perceived recoil is a function of the grip area. .32ACP guns tend to be very light weight and thin.

The shape of the grip also effects perceived recoil. In my experience, a S&W Model 29 .44 Mag hurts a lot more than a .44 Mag Ruger Blackhawk.

[CC Italian]

Also if you are a revolver fan I would highly recommend the .32H&R mag. as a lower recoil personal defense pistol. My fiancee loves her Ruger SP-101 with a 3inch barrel. You can load it with the mild federal loads or the hot stuff and it is still pretty mild. I also have more faith in this round then I did my .380acp or my .32acp. I would put it right up with .38special standard pressure imo. I wouldn't think twice about carrying her .32H&R over my snub .38 special smith! Very under appreciated round for people who need low recoil!

[srothstein]

I would not worry about the 5 lbs over. One of the factors that affects the muzzle velocity is the barrel length. In general, the longer the barrel, the higher the velocity. This is true until the barrel is long enough for all of the powder to burn and the friction to overcome the force of the expanding gas.

I would guess that the barrel being shorter by .3" would drop the muzzle velocity down enough to drop the muzzle energy down close to the five pounds. You could chronograph it and calcualte it out to make sure.