A friend was looking at older Winchester lever guns and after giving him some info on the confusing cartridge names I thought I would post it for everybody.
Left to right are the 32-20, 30-30, 32 Special, and 32-40
The 32-20, 32 Winchester, 32 WCF is a 32 caliber small cartridge found commonly in Winchester 1873 and 1892 rifles along with both Colt and S&W hand guns. The 30-30, 30 Winchester, 30 WCF is a smaller caliber but much larger cartridge found in the Winchester 1894 and various other rifles like Marlins. The 32 Special or 32 Winchester Special is basically a 32 caliber version of the 30-30, found again in Winchester 1894 rifles. The 32-40, 32-40 Ballard, or 32-40 WCF is an obsolete cartridge found in Winchester 1894s and some period target rifles, but is uncommon, like the ammunition. It can be formed from 30-30 cases and uses 32 caliber bullets.
Left to right are the 32-20, 30-30, 32 Special, and 32-40
The 32-20, 32 Winchester, 32 WCF is a 32 caliber small cartridge found commonly in Winchester 1873 and 1892 rifles along with both Colt and S&W hand guns. The 30-30, 30 Winchester, 30 WCF is a smaller caliber but much larger cartridge found in the Winchester 1894 and various other rifles like Marlins. The 32 Special or 32 Winchester Special is basically a 32 caliber version of the 30-30, found again in Winchester 1894 rifles. The 32-40, 32-40 Ballard, or 32-40 WCF is an obsolete cartridge found in Winchester 1894s and some period target rifles, but is uncommon, like the ammunition. It can be formed from 30-30 cases and uses 32 caliber bullets.