Can you shoot steel shot in a Remington 32 and/or 3200 DoubleGun without barrel damage?

I certainly do. Field grade 3200, 28” bbls, chokes opened from mod. & full to .015 &.020 by JJ Perodeau. I shoot mid velocity 2.75” steel though it. Zero barrel damage. Zero stock damage. My 3200 has all the updates too.

There are some Tom roster/US Fish and wildlife service videos on YouTube that show him doing exactly that.

Testing steel shot through a 3200 on spring mallards.

Might as well you can't take them with you.

Remington said NO in the non-magnum 3200.

Also page 2345

https://books.google.com/books?id=x...ington%203200%20steel%20rated&f=true

Fun reading
https://www.wildfowlmag.com/editorial/remembering-the-remington-3200/280104

I have a couple 3” 3200 but at full and full would not be happy using large steel in them when I could use Bismuth instead. They might be capable of dealing with steel but what risk it. Hunting requires a lot fewer shells per trip so even reloading at near a bucks a shell, I just pay the price. Steel might be a bit cheaper or easier to find but I have months to locate what I need. Your gun, your money, your choice.

I think it is Michaelangelo’s David.

Sorry for the delay.
Bro. Potter sent me a segment of 3200 barrel for tensile testing and it was an impressive 121,000 psi with a Yield strength of 113,000 psi
I did not ask for a chemical analysis and don't know (and have never found a report regarding 3200 or 32 barrel steel) as to whether it is a chrome-moly alloy or possibly 1140 Manganese Sulfide Modified Carbon Steel.
I still have the segment and will do an analysis the next time I make a run to METL

For comparison the Model 12 Winchester Nickel Steel barrel was non-standard (slightly low nickel and manganese) AISI 2340 medium carbon low alloy steel - 124,000 psi
The 1937 Model 12 Winchester Proof Steel was non-standard (low chromium and slightly high molybdenum with a low concentration of nickel) AISI 4135 medium carbon low alloy steel - 107,000 psi

Of course wall thickness matters regarding steel compatibility, and the 3200 Magnum was reported to have thicker walls than the standard 3200.

Well this is interesting.
I was skeptical of the previously reported tensile testing so had it repeated. A segment had been machined from the same sample for the previous test, so I have no explanation.

On retesting the tensile strength was 93,000 psi and yield strength 53,500 psi with a 17% elongation.
The barrel was AISI Resulfurized 1140 Manganese Modified Carbon Steel - NOT Chrome Moly.
The industrial standard tensile strength for AISI 1140 is 88,000 to 100,000 psi. I couldn't find 1140 Manganese Modified.

Rightly or wrongly decided, Remington's use of 1140 Manganese Modified led to the Garza Class Action Settlement in 1997
http://www.gunsmoke.com/guns/rem_lawsuit_intro.html

I can't remember how much I got from the Garza settlement but it isn't anything compared to what the lawyers got. I still have a set of barrels for a 3200 with a blown bottom barrel. I would sacrifice the top barrel for a steel shot experiment. I would rather do the shooting myself and let someone else provide the ammunition.

Not surprised- "Lawyers clean up all details!"" Don Henley--"The Age of the Innocence".. RWTF

The checks were for $30.00 per gun, for each gun that you registered for a claim. At the time I had a dozen or more Remingtons. Many owners never registered and got nothing. I did get amused by the fine print which said if more people were identified I could be required to return a portion of the settlement for redistribution. I’m sure the lawyers had no such obligation. I had almost forgotten about that suit and the 700 trigger/safety suit. Long time ago it seems.

So what is the actual result of this law suit (besides the $30 payout)? So there’s close to a 3/4 of a million “defective” Remington shotguns out there, how many of those have blown up? How many blown barrels can be traced back to faulty steel vs. something the shooter did?
I honestly have heard more about Krieghoff barrels letting loose more than I do about Remington barrels or even old Damascus barrels!

What’s the back story on the Garza suit?

Eightbore: do you know why the bottom barrel burst on that 3200 set?

The original suit was related to a barrel burst in 1983 with a second hand 1100 in the hands of a trapshooter using RELOADS

Loitz vs. Remington Arms, 1990
http://law.justia.com/cases/illinois/supreme-court/1990/68367-7.html

Lots of stuff out on the internet, including previous discussions here.

So back to the question. My opinion is just that and of no more weight than anyone else's, but I would be very reluctant to use anything but quality steel target loads in a barrel that was not Chrome Moly or Nickel Steel.

Well that was an interesting read. Thanks for the “justia” link, Drew.

I’ll keep shooting steel through my 3200. The pressures on the factory steel loads I use are well within Saami and CIP specs, same as any lead shot shell intended for the same purpose would be.
If that wasn’t the case, over a million Remington shotguns would be regulated to using RST’s.

Steel shot shells have come a long ways since they were first mandated. With that said, I could not recommend using steel in a Model 32. I say this based on the same reasons steel is not recommended in any other vintage shotgun.

With the Model 3200, I would say it comes down to overall condition of the gun. I think with open chokes and smaller shot sizes, you should be okay provided it is not a steady diet.

But I tend to agree with an earlier post. Why take the chance? As steel shot shells have improved, Bismuth shells are much cheaper than when they first appeared. As the guns age they weaken, both steel and wood. Ribs loosen, and wood dries. I'm a big fan of RST shells. 2 1/2 and 2 3/4" will still kill ducks and it only takes one pellet to kill a Woodcock.

Just my opinion like others, based on personal experiences.

Bismuth isn’t cheap enough. Especially for a hardcore waterfowler. Not even close to being practical for a volume hunter. Now if a guy was shooting 20 ducks/geese a season, maybe. I’m not one of those guys.

Hate to differ, but my 7 Model 12's, dating from 1921 through 1949, have all been shot a ton, the 3 12's with steel shot for 30 years hand runnin' they are still as smooth and solid as when they came into my hands, and the 3 12's I use with steel shot are all full choked, and there is NO bulging of deformation of the barrel in any way shape or form. I have in the gun cabinet a framed ad from a No.v 1957 Field&Stream magazine- showing a hunter holding a M12 and he's sitting on a huge pile of empty Red Winchester hulls- and a freight care in the background- the ad states: "A Lifetime of Shooting Won't wear out a Model 12-- That, boys and girls, is what Hemingway would have called "The True Gen"-- count on it.. RWTF

LeFusil, my 3200 blew the bottom barrel, behind the forend, after I fired it with a wad in the bore that I had forgotten had been left there after a defective load was fired. If anyone wants to use that barrel for steel shot testing, let me know and we can work something out, cheap. It would also be a good base for a sleeving project.