Mine is very old, purchased before the .380 versions were released.

I believe they are the standard old factory magazines. Tonight, I'll dig out the box and see if I have dated paperwork.

I've got a Mab d, a bernardelli pocket model, and an fn 1922.

lbj, I bought it in Nov. of 2000.

I don't remember ever adding mag spacers.

I put it away a long time ago because I learned I could carry larger pistols efficiently, and I couldn't consistently hit 'stopping zones' on 15 foot targets with the P-32.

A few months ago, our club had a fun mousegun match outdoors, so I used the P-32. Amazed myself with its ability to shoot with acceptable accuracy.

I took the first four plates off the Texas Star so fast I started laughing, and missed the fifth plate several times.

quote:

Originally posted by RichardC:
lbj, I bought it in Nov. of 2000.

I don't remember ever adding mag spacers.

And you used Silvertips with no jams or rimlock. Nice. I like hearing this.

As I say, I am very impressed with mine so far, but I really do need to run some shorter OAL thru mine.
I can deal with the Fiochi FMJ even for carry since it has been 100% for those 100 rounds.

I am old school and would like to rely on my Silvertips.

quote:

Originally posted by billnchristy:
I've got a Mab d, a bernardelli pocket model, and an fn 1922.

I went and looked at pictures of those.
Love them.

I really like the look of the first gen slide.

One thing I did on my P11, was to upgrade the trigger. I got terrible trigger pinch/bite with it.

Went with the Northwood trigger, for ~$50, not a bad deal for a big improvement.
Drop in replacement, did my P11 in about 30 minutes, taking my time. Mine was an early model trigger & required a little filing for overtravel, but I believe those issues have all been resolved.
Also, metal over plastic, less flex through the trigger travel.

http://www.northwoodcomp.com/

There was the good, and then there was the very ugly.

Range day 3:

First the very ugly.
The Silvertips turned out to be a horror story.
I shot 7 mags of 7 rounds each and the slide never did lock back after the last shot. The slide would go into battery instead.

There were also 4 or 5 failures to eject.
The rounds were still hooked on the extractor with the spent case holding the slide from going into battery.

The only thing I can think of here that would apply for all the failures is that the slide velocities were not high enough to insure proper cycling.
Not enough oomph.

All the Silvertips fed fine though.


Case in point, the good:
After the fiasco with the Silvertips, I ran 50 rounds of Fiocchi FMJ without a hitch.
That makes 150 rounds of Fiocchi FMJ total at 100% reliability.
They have a louder report and feel hotter than the Silvertips, which felt very tame.

The Fiocchi is a 73gr FMJ at 1000fps vs the WW Silvertip 60gr HP at 950fps.

lbj, those ballistics seem to logically correlate with performance.

My .32 ACP Silvertips have been on my shelf since I bought the pistol.

I wonder if Winchester has tamed them down since then?

Muzzle energy of the rounds fired today:
Fiocchi 160ft/lbs
WW Silvertips 125ft/lbs

I think I learned if wanting to go with HPs, I am going to need more velocity in the lighter weight projectiles.

Off the shelf. Corbon DPX.

Because some folks need more copper in their diet. 12"-18" penetration (which ladies love) and the proper OAL. Out of a 2.5" barrel, 1050fps/147ftlbs.

A competent reloader can give that bullet more oomph. As Mr. Robertson says, "I'm not competent nor a reloader".

Do you know what the OAL is of the DPX?

Not off the bat. According to my memory, on par with the Fiocchi Extrema.

Granted, sometimes my memory is better than most other times.

Btw, Corbon JHP has been clocked at 1135 fps. But it breaks up. Too much velocity for that bullet. The DPX, however, should have no problem with that speed. Felt recoil is another matter.

It would appear that my P32 demands a stout load.

Not even one lock back of the slide with the Silvertips? Really?

Can a box of ammunition degrade over 10 years in a corner of the garage and hence lower slide velocities when firing that ammo.
I will admit it wasn't the greatest storage.
I could lay my hands upon a box of Silvertips that were properly stored over the last 17 years or so. I wonder.

My P-32 did the same exact thing with Hydra Shoks and Silvertips I had left over from the Seecamp and that's only going back maybe 5-6 years.

Total Jammomatic mess with them. Loaded up the Sellier & Bellot 73 grain .32 FMJ and BAM every time.

I've read everything members posted in this thread as well as scoured the net and other forums.

Rim lock with shorter OAL cartridges
Magazine spacers to prevent such rimlock, later discontinued.

There are seemingly very few complaints about malfunctions using 73gr FMJ, be it Geco, S&B or Fiocchi.
There are a lot of complaints when using HP ammunition with OALs of less than 0.940 though.

From everything I think I have learned this past week, it leads me to think that perhaps Kel-Tec designed this P32 for heavier weight FMJ hotter European loads, but just don't want to come out and say it.

Maybe I'm a little suspicious by nature.
The trials and tribulations of Pauline, or in this case, Claire.

I'm reasonably aware that Seecamp directed the use of Silvertips on their .32. It would have been foolish not to employ them. Just as I do not use HP on my Beretta 70. Proof-marked in 1965--- wrong pistol, wrong cartridge. To use them is just asking for trouble if the need arises.

All nine mags for my Beretta are filled with Geco 73 gr. FMJ. It is somewhat reassuring knowing that when the trigger is pulled, the pistol is going to perform as it was intended. Although it can double-up and be thrown as an ax.

There is a homemade remedy to prevent rimlock with P32s. But the way I see it, if there are alternatives, they all sound better than the flywire. If only because internet rumor has it failing, either by maker error or whatever.

Fwiw. I believe that given a proper OAL, the KT P32 would be extremely nice with the following custom ammo. DPX bullet at 1100 fps. Gold Dot bullet at 1050 fps. XTP at 1020 fps. There's a catch. Unless obtained for free, each round could easily cost $2.00. Or more.

At that price, it'd better be a one-shot stopper. And it most probably will not. The 7.65 Browning/.32ACP was never intended as a one-shot stopper. Heck, even though popular belief is that Archduke Franz Ferdinand was killed with a .32. It wasn't, it was a .380.

I would not mind the price per se. However, the testing could get a little pricey.

The European 73gr loads are pushing 150 to 160 ftlbs muzzle energy.

But holy crap, look at this, a 75gr flat nose 1150fps with muzzle energy at 220.

https://www.buffalobore.com/in...product_detail&p=132

I was able to paint the front sight hot pink. It helps but it's still a tiny front sight and hard to see.

I tried that in the Beretta. Felt recoil is noticeable. Not punishing, but easily distinguished from Geco and Fiocchi, let alone Winchester FMJ.

I can imagine how that feels in a P32.

I don't think that you can really do much about that front sight. RichardC's idea sounds plausible.

About the sights...

http://www.nitesiters.com/
Something I googled. Don't know how they work.

http://www.paperinkarts.com/depainty.html
Again, never used them but some in the internet world have. Zig Painty markers.

http://www.apwcogan.com/pistols/the-kel-tec.html
Mr. Cogan is very personable.

http://na.henkel-adhesives.com...h-strength-12892.htm
Thinking a dab of semisolid anaerobic red Loctite in the area of the front sight.

A combination of RichardC's idea and a dab of semisolid anaerobic red Loctite in the front sight might do the trick.

I think the dayglo pink Testors is currently working out.

My eyes are not what they used to be.