Smith & Wesson 432 UC Review [Hands-On Tested]

Smith & Wesson 432 UC Specs & Features

Specs

• Caliber: .32 H&R Magnum
• Action: Double-action only
• Capacity: 6
• Barrel length: 1.875″
• Overall length: 6.3″
• Width: 1.3″
• Height: 4.3″
• Weight: 16.3 oz
• Comes with: Bull Dog Deluxe 36” Case, 30-round PMAG, owner’s manual, lock

Features

• VZ G10 high horn grips
• Titanium pins for increased durability
• Chamfered charge holes and beveled front cylinder edge
• XS tritium front sight and dovetail rear sight
• Grips relieved for speed loaders

If you had told me that in 2024, my favorite carry gun would be a J-Frame chambered in a cartridge designed in the 1980s that barely anyone has ever heard of, I would have laughed at you.

Yet, here we are. As I type this, a Smith & Wesson 432 Ultimate Carry sits in my pocket, loaded with six rounds of .32 H&R Magnum.

The Ultimate Carry series debuted at this year’s SHOT Show and includes the .32 H&R 432 and 632 models, and the .38 Special 442 and 642 models.

These guns are built by Smith and Wesson but at the request of the distributor Lipsey’s, who consulted with notable revolver experts to craft these guns.

I’ve opened my heart (and wallet) and picked up a 432 UC, so let’s dive in and figure out what I learned.

How We Tested the S&W 432 UC

For this review, we tested the S&W 432 UC with 150 rounds of Black Hills .32 H&R Mag and 250 rounds of Magtech and Aguila .32 S&W Long. Accuracy testing was done at 7 to 25 yards. Various shooting drills were run and timed, including drawing and shooting from concealment.

Conducting this test was Travis Pike, a former Marine machinegunner and firearms enthusiast. Travis has been reviewing firearms and writing about them for many years and for various publications. He is also an NRA-certified instructor and state-certified concealed carry instructor in Florida.

Background

While the UC model for the 432 is new, the 432 itself is not. Smith & Wesson first produced the 432 in 2004 and discontinued it in 2006, so its lifespan was short. Even in 2004, the .32 H&R Magnum was an out-of-style cartridge.

The little .32 H&R Magnum came to be in 1984 and was designed to build on the S&W Long cartridge. The idea was to create a round that doubled the power of that old cartridge without creating excessive recoil. It also offered six rounds instead of five in the J-Frame.

Unfortunately, the cartridge was never super popular. But like most .32s, it had plenty of potential but was ignored for larger bullets.

Lipsey’s teamed up with S&W and revolver experts Darryl Bolke and Bryan Eastridge to create what has been aptly called the next generation of J-frames.

For most people, a J-frame means a snub-nose .38 Special, but these guys knew the .32 H&R Magnum was a good fit. Thus, S&W was convinced to bring back the 432

Who Is It For?

This is the perfect revolver for guys or gals like me — people who don’t want to deal with harsh recoil but want a small, lightweight revolver.

It’s also ideal for those who suck at shooting revolvers with trench sights and want sights similar to most modern semi-auto handguns.

Fit & Feel

I fell in love with the Smith & Wesson 432 UC right out of the box. The combination of the dark black finish with the red VZ grips is gorgeous. Revolvers are naturally good-looking guns, and the 432 UC takes it a step further.

Momma always said not to judge anything by its looks, so do those pretty red grips perform? Oh yeah.

These high horn grips go up to the top of the backstrap, allowing for a nice high grip on the gun. They fill the hand with a somewhat rounded design but have a flush-cut bottom concealable ‘boot’ style grip.

I had to swap grips on my Ruger LCR because the regular ones were too short and challenging to hold. But the S&W grips feel longer because they sit higher on the weapon. My pinky isn’t dangling off like Michelle Joyner in Cliffhanger.

If you look at the grips from the rear of the gun, you’ll notice they aren’t symmetrical. The left side has been trimmed and relieved to make it easy to use speed loaders.

Thankfully S&W ditched the silly internal safety lock on this gun. No little hole to distract from the looks of this wheel gun.

A short press on the cylinder release reveals smooth and easy movement. The extractor rod glides smoothly and presses cases out of the cylinder without a problem.

The weapon feels and looks fantastic.

How Does the Smith & Wesson 432 UC Shoot?

Any gun that can fire .32 H&R Magnum can also fire .32 S&W Long and .32 S&W. It has backward compatibility, much like .357 Magnum and .38 Special.

The downside to the .32 H&R Magnum is that plenty of people make defensive loads for it, but finding ammo that’s not $1.50 per round is a tall order. This leads to arguably the gun’s biggest downside — ammo price and availability.

Due to its price point and availability, I did a lot of shooting with .32 S&W Long instead. However, that didn’t stop me from getting some hands-on with some .32 H&R Magnum.

Regarding recoil, the S&W .32 Long feels close to something like a .22 Magnum. It’s barely a cough with such a high grip on the gun. It’s like the gun burps. Sure, it’s loud, but it doesn’t hurt.

I expected the .32 H&R Magnum to recoil with a bit more significance, but to my surprise, it was relatively tame. I experienced more recoil with the magnum round, but it’s still less than a standard .38 Special.

My hands didn’t feel like they’d been abused and mistreated at the end of a rapidly fired cylinder. The sights moved between shots, but not by much. I could comfortably and accurately fire the gun rapidly.

Without question, I would feel confident and capable of shooting this in a defensive encounter, knowing I could do it quickly and even maintain control with a single hand.

I ran through drills like the Bill Drill and the 10-10-10, and firing quickly didn’t significantly detract from my accuracy. From a hand in my pocket pocket draw, I scored a 2.03 Bill Drill, which blew my mind.

Ringing Steel

My brain has always had some kind of disconnect with snub nose guns and trench sights. I just suck with them. I need real sights, and the UC models offer them.

The big green front sight drops between the U-Notch rear sight and gives me a sight picture I’m used to. Pair those sights with a very smooth double-action trigger, and we get an accurate revolver.

Short-barreled revolvers often get that belly gun reputation, but this is no belly gun. At seven, ten, and fifteen yards I had no problems making accurate shots to the head and torso of a target.

I walked back to 25 yards and thought there was no way this would work. I dropped the sights on a 10-inch gong, got a good grip, and pressed that trigger.

A resulting ding sent that sweet dopamine throughout my brain housing group. Then another ding, and another, a miss, but that’s okay. The rest were dings. I’m not a revolver guy, but at 25 yards, I can hit a 10-inch gong with this snubby.

Sights should be a higher priority for revolver companies because there is a difference. You could argue that I need to train with a trench sight to master it, and sure, that’s true. However, if your goal is to sell revolvers, you should make them more accessible to everyone.

Reliability

I practiced reloads with both a speed loader and a speed strip. I’m still an amateur at the process, but I’m enthusiastic about it. The rounds slid in quickly to the chamber thanks to the chamfered chambers and the relieved grips.

The S&W 432 UC always went bang. After 150 rounds of .32 H&R Mag and 250 rounds of .32 S&W Long, I have yet to experience a failure to fire or malfunction. The cylinder never got sloppy, and neither did the extractor.

The gun can fire .32 ACP, theoretically, but my attempts resulted in lots of light primer strikes.

What Sets the S&W 432 UC Apart?

First of all, the choice of caliber. Straying from .38 Special is brave but also smart. It offers a caliber that’s much easier to shoot while offering an extra round of capacity.

You can be a tough guy all you want and shoot a .357 Magnum from an air-weight revolver, but I’ll stick to the .32s, which I can more easily control.

The sights are also a prominent standout feature to me. They are enormous, easy to see, and rapid and fast to get on target. It’s crazy the difference a rear sight makes on a revolver, at least for me.

Finally, all the little things make a difference. The grip design, the smooth trigger, the chamfered charge holes for quick reloads, and the beveled cylinder for easy reloading.

Final Verdict

The S&W 432 UC provides shooters with a modern J-Frame that offers increased capacity, reasonable power, and much more shootability.

A few small changes make a huge difference. While the .32 H&R Magnum won’t appeal to everyone, it’s an excellent choice for shooters who might not want to deal with harsh recoil. I think S&W and Lipseys knocked this one out of the park.

What are your thoughts on the S&W 432 UC? Do you have any experience with other .32 H&R Magnum guns? Let us know in the comments below! Interested in other wheel guns? Check out our article on the Best Revolvers of 2024!