My father has a 32-20 Police Colt that my grandfather used when he was a police officer and we have found it difficult to find ammo for it and was recently informed that .38 ammo may work in it. I wanted to hear from you guys before we tried it out... Thanks!
I don't think a .38 bullet will fit down a .32 barrel very easily, could be wrong. There are places on line you can find .32-20 ammo but can't name any off the top of my head. The gun might be worth more to save and enjoy the history and shoot something else. JMHO.
A 32-20 uses a bullet that is .3125 inches in diameter, a 38 uses a bullet that is .357 inches in diameter. If you try to force the larger bullet through the smaller chamber and bore you can expect a rather painful kaboom. I doubt it would even fit into the cylinder.
IF you are having a hard time finding ammo locally, order some on line and start hand loading. The 32/20 had low pressures so the brass should give you a lot of use. A simple LEE hanloader is inexpensive and will do you fine.