327 MAGNUM BEST REVOLVER CARTRIDGE EVER!

dandyrandy · Oct 29, 2016

Okay Im the kind of gun owner that loves an all around do every thing type of gun. The gun you can keep at home for invaders and also for daily carry. That includes my revolvers. That also includes my revolver cartridge too! Okay I love a 4" .38 special or 357 revolver. Its what I would call Old Reliable! Its like that 1972 Chevy pickup that everyone loves! Old Reliable right?? The do it all type of gun right?? One problem there honcho... Though you can carry 4" barrel cold steel 6 shooter its quite ungainly to carry, slow to fire, heavy as a lead brick, and most of the time uncomfortable. Just like that beater pickup! Also the fact that Im not Wyatt Earp walking around Dodge City. I also like the little pocket 380 guns and the like but they have there many shortcomings. Also once again Im not James Bond! So it brings me to what I think is one of the best do all type of gun and cartridge combinations EVER! 327 Federal magnum in a six shot 3" barrel revolver. Good luck trying to find one though! Ruger maybe?? Taurus?? Good luck with that! S&W???? Perhaps but way to expensive for my taste dude! WHY THEY NO MAKE MORE GI!!!???

roscoepc · Oct 29, 2016

.327 Magnum?? Never heard of it till now! Thanks for the post!! A bit of looking revealed this:

.327 Federal Magnum - Wikipedia

22hipower · Oct 29, 2016

For awhile S&W could hardly give them away. Wish I'd bought more at that time. Not sure it is the "best revolver cartridge ever" but it is fun to shoot. I'd have to put the 44 Special in the 696 configuration up as a contender for "best." Good luck hunting.

Jeff
SWCA #1457

S&W Rover · Oct 29, 2016

The .327 Federal Magnum has a lot going for it, but has never quite caught on. The ammo is expensive (although easy and cheap to reload) and a light revolver in this caliber has some recoil to go along with considerable blast.

One major benefit of this round, though, is that a sixth round can be added to the small frame revolver, either a J frame or a Ruger SP101.

S&W made the six-shot Mdl 632-1 in .327 Fed Mag, with a 3" barrel and an all-steel frame, starting in 2009. I think it has been out of production for a couple of years now. It would seem like the ideal revolver for this cartridge, but I don't think it sold well.

Ruger is making a six-shot SP101 in .327 Fed Mag with a longish (4.20") barrel, which helps the round shine in the plinking/varmint role, but that is a bit too much barrel to carry concealed. They previously cataloged a 3" barrel. (Ruger helped develop the cartridge, so is more committed to making sure there are guns that can use it. They previously made a GP100 in .327 Fed Mag -- the weight of that revolver absolutely tamed the .327, and it was a joy to shoot).

I had a Mdl 632 in .32 H&R Magnum, which is a milder round with the same diameter (.312) bullet, but as it was pretty light (aluminum frame) it was a snappy little gun and I never enjoyed shooting it while doubting the value of the 6th round in the smaller caliber, compared to same-size gun with 5 rounds in +P .38 Special. I also had a SP101 in .327 Fed Mag with a 3" barrel, when they first came out, and found it, too, was pretty snappy. Its all about individual perception, though, and I always thought there would a place for the J frame in .327 Fed Mag. Maybe S&W will make another run of 632-1's...

dwever · Oct 29, 2016

dandyrandy said:
Though you can carry 4" barrel cold steel 6 shooter its quite ungainly to carry, slow to fire, heavy as a lead brick, and most of the time uncomfortable.

Speaking only for yourself there.

.327 Magnum is a decent lighter caliber that just really never caught on since it's release to market in January 2008 as it offered nothing in performance the 9mm didn't already provide, is more expensive than 9mm, and doesn't begin to offer the range of power of the .357 Magnum from 294 ft. lbs. in a Speer Gold Dot Short Barrel to 800 ft. lbs. in Buffalo Bore High Velocity.

Interesting? Ok. Best? Well it ought to be selling then.**

Perhaps in an interesting marketing note, the ".327" designation was chosen because it sounds and looks like ".357," as in .357 Magnum, the most popular of all magnum revolver cartridges. The cartridge's name is both inaccurate and misleading because it is in essence, a .32 H&R Magnum case lengthened by 1/8" with thicker walls for greater strength.

**For example, Midway USA offers all of seven different variations of .327 Magnum while .357 Magnum / .38 is offered by the same company in over two-hundred variations (200).

dandyrandy · Oct 29, 2016

22hipower said:
For awhile S&W could hardly give them away. Wish I'd bought more at that time. Not sure it is the "best revolver cartridge ever" but it is fun to shoot. I'd have to put the 44 Special in the 696 configuration up as a contender for "best." Good luck hunting.

Jeff
SWCA #1457

This is where the solid good arguments go on this 327 cartridge. I too like the 44 special and 357 but its just NOT all that great as everyone thinks it is in a short barrel. Put it like this do you know the huge significant difference from the power of a 22 magnum rifle as opposed to a short barrel 2 inch barrel 22 magnum revolver??? Food for thought! Now granted comparing a rifle to a pistol is a not really feasible but I am just making a point here... I would love to see more of this little light weight champion known as the 327 Federal magnum in more guns!

Stopsign32v · Oct 29, 2016

"Best"??? Eh...

45 Colt IMO

series guy · Oct 29, 2016

327 Federal in a K Frame is a match made in heaven just like a .357 N Frame. Nix the 2" barrel and the recoil just disappears.

dandyrandy · Oct 29, 2016

Here is more of my arguments on why the 327 Federal magnum in a revolver is one of the best ever! YES this is my personal opinion on the best type of gun! I like a compact easy to carry but yet packs a lot of punch type of gun. You know the do all type of gun! I love the S&W Model 10 38 special and I love the old Colt 45 1911 BUT there is a reason why Al Capone carried a small gun! Cuz hes got to get the drop on you! Man you can see that gangster carrying that big piece of iron a mile away! A 3" barrel revolver is still considered an easily concealable type of revolver. S&W used to make lots of 3" pocket revolvers in the wonderful and time proven J frame. But for some reason they do not any more. Dont be fooled into thinking different.. Longer is better when it comes to accuracy even 1 inch makes a difference! The small 3" revolver has fallen off the gun owners wanted list for some reason that I dont know why. The big problem with the small J frames is that they only typically carry 5 bullets in any significant self defense cartridge. The 327 revolver can carry 6! Okay yes the little 327 revolver is snappy but ANY cartridge that has significant power to speak of will be snappy in a small gun! But here is the beauty of the little 327 revolver! It can shoot 3 different cartridges! Keep the 327 in it for self protection BUT when you want to plink with it put some 32 S&W long in the thing and the gun will shoot like a Cadillac drives down the road on the way to church!

dandyrandy · Oct 29, 2016

Stopsign32v said:
"Best"??? Eh...

45 Colt IMO

Im not stuffing that big 45 colt in my pocket mannnnnnn!!!!!

sw282 · Oct 29, 2016

Teddy Roosevelt armed the New York Police with the 32..Al Capone's favorite ctg..
''Bad Bad Leroy Brown'' also carried a 32... My bedside
friend is a Colt Police Positive in 32 New Police..l never feel unsafe or outgunned..
lf things really get serious theres always backup..BAMBAM is nearby.
A 10 1/2'' barreled PC 460S&W MAGNUM

dandyrandy · Oct 29, 2016

One shortcoming of that revolver in that cartridge.... The ammo is very expensive! I guess learn to make the stuff yourself????

dandyrandy · Oct 29, 2016

sw282 said:
Teddy Roosevelt armed the New York Police with the 32..Al Capone's favorite ctg..
''Bad Bad Leroy Brown'' also carried a 32... My bedside
friend is a Colt Police Positive in 32 New Police..l never feel unsafe or outgunned..
lf things really get serious theres always backup..BAMBAM is nearby.
A 10 1/2'' barreled PC 460S&W MAGNUM

I love ANY 32 S&W long revolvers... Mostly because I like nostalgia and antiques and the cartridge shoots so well and is so fun to shoot! BUT its seriously lacking in firepower in this day in age.. Once again though it beats throwing rocks!

gen3guy · Oct 29, 2016

Stopsign32v said:
"Best"??? Eh...

45 Colt IMO

Ditto. If you're looking for the best ever, then I'm with 'Stopsign32v'. I already own revolvers in 6 calibers. For someone like me, the .327 is just a solution looking for a problem.

True, you can't conceal a .45 Colt easily. That's pretty much the only thing it doesn't have going for it.

dandyrandy · Oct 29, 2016

dwever said:
Less coffee please.

Not sure if this is a cartridge discussion per the title, or a platform/cartridge discussion, the cartridge combined with a J frame six-shot. Anyway, my favorite .327 Magnum was the year it was offered by S&W in the 2.625" N Frame, but I bought the .357. Later.

I would of bought the 357 too! Mostly because I dont care for the S&W 327 magnum. Its like they made it more for pleasure shooting and its waaaay to expensive and big! Im talking about cheap do all pocket guns or easily concealed guns. The 327 magnum cartridge would be perfect for this! But yet so little manufactures make this type of gun...

dandyrandy · Oct 29, 2016

gen3guy said:
Ditto. If you're looking for the best ever, then I'm with 'Stopsign32v'. I already own revolvers in 6 calibers. For someone like me, the .327 is just a solution looking for a problem.

True, you can't conceal a .45 Colt easily. That's pretty much the only thing it doesn't have going for it.

45 colt is probably one of the best if not best ever revolver cartridges BUT thats like cowboy walking around the ranch with his big heater off the hip type of gun stuff ya know????

dandyrandy · Oct 29, 2016

S&W Rover said:
The .327 Federal Magnum has a lot going for it, but has never quite caught on. The ammo is expensive (although easy and cheap to reload) and a light revolver in this caliber has some recoil to go along with considerable blast.

One major benefit of this round, though, is that a sixth round can be added to the small frame revolver, either a J frame or a Ruger SP101.

S&W made the six-shot Mdl 632-1 in .327 Fed Mag, with a 3" barrel and an all-steel frame, starting in 2009. I think it has been out of production for a couple of years now. It would seem like the ideal revolver for this cartridge, but I don't think it sold well.

Ruger is making a six-shot SP101 in .327 Fed Mag with a longish (4.20") barrel, which helps the round shine in the plinking/varmint role, but that is a bit too much barrel to carry concealed. They previously cataloged a 3" barrel. (Ruger helped develop the cartridge, so is more committed to making sure there are guns that can use it. They previously made a GP100 in .327 Fed Mag -- the weight of that revolver absolutely tamed the .327, and it was a joy to shoot).

I had a Mdl 632 in .32 H&R Magnum, which is a milder round with the same diameter (.312) bullet, but as it was pretty light (aluminum frame) it was a snappy little gun and I never enjoyed shooting it while doubting the value of the 6th round in the smaller caliber, compared to same-size gun with 5 rounds in +P .38 Special. I also had a SP101 in .327 Fed Mag with a 3" barrel, when they first came out, and found it, too, was pretty snappy. Its all about individual perception, though, and I always thought there would a place for the J frame in .327 Fed Mag. Maybe S&W will make another run of 632-1's...

A small self defense 327 federal magnum in a 6 shot J frame S&W would be a brilliant and perfect all around do everything type of gun! The S&W model 632 in 327 is a very rare and expensive bird though...

dandyrandy · Oct 29, 2016

The perfect revolver! But sadly perfect does not compute to most popular to the masses of people.

eveled · Oct 30, 2016

.357, has everything I've ever needed from a revolver. From pocket sized to large duty gun, and single action too, it is also a dandy cartridge for a lever action.. Nothing is as versatile as the .357.

It was the first handgun cartridge I ever owned, and if I had to consolidate to only one cartridge, it would be the .357 still.

ArkieVol · Oct 30, 2016

327 Federal Magnum

A dandy and versatile round. 327 Fed mag guns shoot 32 S&W, 32 long, 32 H&R mag and 327 Fed Mag...mild to wild and 6 rounds in carry guns, seven in 5" Single Seven.

Reloads are easy for all of them and 327 Fed Mag rounds with 85g or 100g Hornady XTP bullets over Lil' Gun or H 110 make pretty potent rounds up to 1500 fps.

327 MAGNUM BEST REVOLVER CARTRIDGE EVER!

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