32 ACP Ammunition

History of 32 Auto (ACP) Ammunition

The .32 ACP is a John Moses Browning designed cartridge that was chambered in his first commercially successful automatic pistol, the Fabrique Nationale 1900. This cartridge is known in Europe as the 7.65 mm Browning, used by European military and police personnel until it was eventually replaced by the 9mm Parabellum. This cartridge was primarily used by officers as a badge of station more so than a fighting weapon. Since its design was completed in 1899, the cartridge has been chambered in several small, high quality, handguns. Manufacturers of these popular pistols include: Beretta, Colt, Fabrique Nationale, Kel-Tec, Smith & Wesson and many others.

The cartridge most commonly contains a 60 to 73 grain bullet fired at velocities ranging from 600 to 1000 feet per second. While by no means a hard hitting cartridge, it was used by Gavrilo Princip, Archduke Franz Ferdinand’s assassin to push the world to war in 1914. The cartridge has been defined as the minimum acceptable caliber for use as a self defense cartridge, and others judge it as lacking in power for use in a self defense situation. Regardless of opinions, the .32 ACP remains a popular caliber as a backup, and as a primary self defense cartridge.

The key advantages to the .32 ACP are the light recoil, low noise and easily concealed handguns that are chambered for it. Another major factor in keeping the .32 ACP in the self defense market is the new ammunition technology. High speed, rapidly expanding, hollow point bullets are the leading edge of self defense ammo tech, and ammo manufacturers have been sure to include the .32 ACP.  For example, Hornady makes a self defense load using its’ XTP bullet, Federal also offers a cartridge topped with its’ famous Hydra-shok bullet.