Anyone shoot S&W 327 8 shot?

I have a S&W 327 that I bought a few years ago and am just now shooting it regular. Has anyone had a lot of experience with this pistol? I know gun are different, but I am wondering if there is a certain bullet and or weight it favors most? I was shooting some WWB 130gr FMJ FP 38spl, and the groups really stunk. Then I fired some 158 gr 357 CCI Blazer HP and the froups were better. But with both types of bullets my 686 outshot the 327. Are the 327's supposed to be very accurate or is their selling point 8 shots, being light and have rails? It's nice to have 8 shots, but if my 686 gets the job done in a few shots, why scatter 8 all over the place? I know I need to try some different ammo and will be reloading some to try. For self defense I only use factory ammo so I am hoping some here could point me in the right direction of ammo to buy.

I have never shot a .357 L-frame, but I acquired a 627 PC 8-shooter recently and can't be more pleased with its accuracy. Mine's the 2-5/8" snub. I can't speak to the ones with longer barrels, but I don't imagine accuracy would suffer with extra steel out front.

I was shooting both .38 Special Match wadcutters and .357 JHP. Both made tight groups, with the understanding that "tight" needs to be evaluated in light of my age and lack of daily (and sometimes even monthly) practice.

My 327 TRR8 will out shoot me any day of the week, if I do my part it places the bullet exactly where I point it.

Most accurate wheelie I've shot.

No issues with my 327 TRR8 with 38 or 357.

I'll have to wring mine out some then. Those 38spl WWB went all over an 8.5X11 sheet of paper I had drawn a circle and dot on. The 686 hit the dot (50cent piece size) almost every time. The 327 also tends to shoot low and I have adjusted the rear sight as much as it can be adjusted. It does do better with heavier 357 but not a lot. I'm going to assume it's me or the ammo for now....I cringe thinking I spent a good penny on a less than stellar gun

You might want to ask a couple of other people at the range to shoot a few rounds with your 327. If they shoot tight groups where you did not, you probably have some work to do on your technique. If you all shoot loose groups but do much better with other revolvers, that's a signal that the gun may need some tweaking.

I just realized my earlier reply was off topic. I didn't at first catch that you were specifically asking about a 327. I always shoot a heavier gun better than I do a light one, and I might well have loose group problems with a 327.

pzlehr, I am not seeing whether you mentioned what barrel-length you are running. I have the 327PC with the stubby little 2" barrel, the titanium cylinder and barrel-sleeve, and the non-rifled barrel.....it's one of those octagonal twist bores. The gun has fixed sights. I also have the 627PC with the 5" conventionally rifled barrel and adjustable sights. Needless to say, I get better accuracy out of the longer barrel, but have had reasonable success with the shorter one, no less than I would expect from a fixed sight snub. It does, however, seem to keyhole with longer bullets.....170 grain SWCs, whereas the 627 shoots those just fine.

I have the S&W PC TR88 327...5" barrel I believe. My 686 is 6". Today I shot my new Uberti 357 Cattleman and with those old iron sights, I shot better than with the 327...same ammo, same distance. I'll have to go buy some various brands of ammo and see if it likes any of it.

327 Night Guard Best gun ever

I have a night guard and when they made it gun of the year, there werent whistleing dixie. It is buy far the best revolever I have ever owned. Shoots great, light weight, Night sights, N-frame, smith and wesson, not Taurus, What more could you wan,t? Love mine, even with the damn lock.

I LOVE all version of the 8 shot 357 Magnum revolvers. I think the 27/327/627 family is one of the greatest things to come along. I have been shooting them for the past 14 years,

I have 4 variations of the 327 at the moment. All of mine shoot fantastic.






To start off, none of mine ever get fed 38 Special ammunition. Secondly, most all of the ammunition that they do get fed happens to be hand loads of my own construction.

The only two factory loads that they have seen any quantity of is the Federal 158 JSP and the Hornady Custom 140 XTP. I had several cases of both of these on hand.

You have already gotten good advice. See if other shooters have the same issue with your firearm. I would also grab a box of good ammunition.

You have purchased a top of the line firearm and are feeding it Winchester's cheapest, bottom of the line ammunition and CCI's cheapest, bottom of the line ammunition. Often they work adequately, sometimes they do not.

If after doing everything it turns out you can not find the problem, send it back to S&W. They will take care of it. Even though none of us ever want to get a lemon, no manufacturer of any product at any price can produce 100% perfect items 100% of the time. Someone is going to get a lemon now and then.

I have had 3 lemons from S&W over the more than three decades of personally buying and shooting them, not to mention my family's decades old relationship with S&W. I never bring them up in the Forum because S&W took care of it right away.

Yes, I'll get some better ammo to try. I have had and still have quite a few S&W's and have never had a problem with any, so I'll experiment more with ammo. I reload but when it comes to ammo for defensive purposes I use factory. More for the legal aspects than reliability. Have read from a number of sources where some slick lawyer turned things around so it looked like the reloads were "meant for killing"...duh! I just figure it's one less problem to deal with should I ever have to actually use my weapon. Thanks for the ammo advice. I don't buy much factory ammo so I'll have to look around for prices and types.

pzlehr said:

Have read from a number of sources where some slick lawyer turned things around so it looked like the reloads were "meant for killing"...duh!

Click to expand...

This is one of those Urban Legends that is often talked about but no one can point to a single case where it was used.

Do not make that an issue.

Personally, I only carry Premium ammunition from one of the big ammo companies in my firearms, not from the little boutique ammunition firms.

There are several benefits of Premium ammunition over hand loaded, plain box or other bargain choices.

Premium ammunition usually is loaded with powders that have been treated with flash retardant. This is a bit of a plus in low light.

Premium ammunition usually is loaded with better projectiles. Certainly better than plain box or cheap Foreign ammo.

Premium ammunition usually has sealant at the projectile and primer to keep moisture and other liquids from getting in contact with the powder.

Premium ammunition is often collet crimped for less projectile movement when chambered or fired

QC must be better because I see seconds of Premium ammunition offered as practice ammo but have never seen second of plain box ammo offered. Speer once pulled a lot of Gold Dot ammo because there was a one in one million chance of primer failure.

I purchased one of the S&W 327 PC JM versions with titanium cylinder and titanium shrouded barrel 9second picture in Colt SAA's post). I have only shot it imn matches with light 38 Special velocity loads. It comes back on target faster than my 627 and is at least as accurate as my 627 (limited data indicates it is slightly more accurate). For self defense purposes using it with full power 357 Magnum loads would not cause me any concerns. However, I would not want to shoot 50 to 100 rounds of full power loads through it in a range session.

The last post makes me wonder...does anyone know how well the 627,327 type ( those with Scandium Alloy Frame
Stainless Steel Cylinder) hold up? I have not seen anything written about their longevity. I don't plan on shooting mine 10's of thousands of rounds, but I'd like to know just to satisfy my curiosity.

When the 327 M&P R8 was first introduced Guns & Ammo did an extensive test on it. Because of the accuracy it demonstrated at 25 yards they ran a further series of tests with it at 50 yards using a handgun scope and shooting it from a rest. Two seperate SD loads scored 1/2 inch or less 5 shot groups at 50 yards, I believe the particular loads were Speer Gold Dots and Winchester Ranger-T, but it's a vague memory. BTW, both the R8 and your TRR8 feature Tensioned barrels with ECM rifling, so your TRR8 should demonstrate similar accuracy potential.

I don't have any experience with the tensioned barrel in a scandium frame but I've done some pretty extensive testing of my model 620 that also features a tensioned ECM barrel by shooting it from a rest. To date my best result at 50 yards has been a 1/2 inch 3 shot cloverleaf and 4 rounds into 7/8 inch and then the scope shot loose. Normally, I don't shoot it with a scope but with a reflex sight I am constantly seeing cloverleafs at 35 yards from a rest. I've come to the conclusion that I'll never have the ability to shoot my 620 to it's full potential for a full cylinder load, however I do keep trying on occasion because I actually enjoy butting my head into that partcular wall. To date, my best result with the reflex sight has been 5 rounds into an inch at 35 yards and someday if the stars align properly I may manage to shoot a full cylinder without any obvious flyers. BTW, the reason why I limit my range to 35 yards with the reflex sight is because I can't see the bullseye at 50 yards on a 25 yard NRA slow fire pistol target.

Now a few observations concerning the tensioned barrels and ECM rifling. First, I've found my 620 to be VERY insensitive to ammunition variables, once the sighting is zeroed I expect groups of 1.5 inches or less at 25 yards from a rest no matter what I'm shooting. Second, experience with some Blazer LRN has led me to conclude that lead bullets aren't compatable with the newer ECM rifling, so I now only shoot jacketed or semi jacketed ammunition.

Now, for some observations on shooting handguns accurately.

First, sooner or later we will all "grow" a flinch. My choice for carry is a 40 caliber Sig P239 and anytime I lay off on shooting for too long I constantly have to pay attention to supressing a tendancy to flinch. Handguns are loud and it's a natural instinct to flinch in response to a sudden loud noise. It's also pretty natural to develop a "push" flinch in response to shooting a powerful caliber in a light weight handgun. If you don't think you are flinching, throw a couple of snap caps into the cylinder and spin it before closing the cylinder with your eyes closed. I expect that you'll find you've grown a larger flinch than you are aware of. Now, a tip from an old fart who has had to learn how to cope with flinching. Apply a bit of Yoga to your shooting. In simple terms, slow down and concentrate on a smooth steady press of the trigger and NOTHING else. Don't try and anticipate when the gun will fire or scoring a perfect hit on the bull, just simply relax and try and achieve a perfectly even press of the trigger. I've found doing this had really helped my to supress my tendancy to flinch.

Second, Recoil Management is CRITICAL to shooting a handgun. I know some don't believe that how you control a handgun under recoil really matters but I've actually experimented on the effect of recoil management. With my 6 1/2 inch 610-3 loaded with 40 caliber Federal Champion the difference in the POI at 25 yards between allowing the muzzle to flip freely and controling the muzzle is a whopping 12 inch difference in the POI. I've also found from experience that longer barreled handguns are more revealing of flaws in recoil management that shorter barreled handguns, which does make sense when you consider how much longer the bullet spends in the barrel. It's taken me 2 full years of steady practice with that 610 to achieve the same level of accuracy as I can get with that 620 or my new 626JM. With the lighter weight of your 327 TRR8 I fully expect that much of your accuracy problems are a result of less than optimum recoil management. The good news is that with enough practice you'll gain in this skill and likely see your shooting with other handguns also improve.

Sum it up and I expect that you are finding that you've purchased a revolver that is more difficult to shoot well with than you had anticipated. If you consider it a "race" gun, which I do, that isn't really too surprizing. If you think that you could jump into Tony Stewart's race car and drive as well as Tony Stewart I got news for you, it aint gonna happen. What you have is a light weight revolver in a very powerful caliber and it's going to take some real effort to master. On the plus side, mastering that TRR8 will lead to real gains with any handgun you own, on the minus side it's light enough that you'll have to really work at mastering it, especially with full power 357 Magnums. Personally, I enjoy shooting revolvers because they challenge my skills, however I'm old enough that I would pass on the 327's simply because I'm just not willing to put in the effort they would require.

pzlehr said:

The last post makes me wonder...does anyone know how well the 627,327 type ( those with Scandium Alloy Frame
Stainless Steel Cylinder) hold up? I have not seen anything written about their longevity. I don't plan on shooting mine 10's of thousands of rounds, but I'd like to know just to satisfy my curiosity.

Click to expand...

Scandium framed firearms have not been around long enough to answer your question. In ten or twenty or thirty more years we might get a better read on longevity. There are alloy S&W revolvers still being carried today that were made half a century ago. We are still waiting for those to wear out.

I do not count rounds so it is hard to respond to this question. My Scandium revolver with the most ammunition through it has definitely had over 5000 full magnums fired in it. It is still as tight as a new one.

Since these firearms are covered under S&Ws lifetime warranty for the original purchaser I have no concerns as to longevity. If it ever does fail, I will send it to the factory.

I shot 5200 rounds of light, 38 Special velocity, loads through my 327 PC JM in one season. Another shooter has more vthan 10,000 rounds through his 327 PC JM. With the alloy frame you do see more cosmetic wear on the outsdie as well as on the inside rear of the frame where the cylinder center pin rubs on the frame and shield.

I tried 5 different types of ammo...357 and 38spl, some premium and some not. I rested the 327 on my sandbag rests as I have done with other guns to sight in or see where they are shooting, or what ammo they like better ,and it still shoots low. I get a decent group but paper is never hit. I took my S&W 65 that's at least 30yrs old and all shots in the black. I use a NRA 50ft target, and I was 20yds away. I emailed S&W but no answer yet. I have adjusted the rear sight as much as I can, down brings it up and it won't go down anymore...so. I even shot my 357 Uberti and that shot as well as the 65. I do love those old sixguns! Any ideas beyond what has been offered? Would a new ...newer rear sight be in order?

colt_saa said:

I LOVE all version of the 8 shot 357 Magnum revolvers. I think the 27/327/627 family is one of the greatest things to come along. I have been shooting them for the past 14 years,

I have 4 variations of the 327 at the moment. All of mine shoot fantastic.

To start off, none of mine ever get fed 38 Special ammunition. Secondly, most all of the ammunition that they do get fed happens to be hand loads of my own construction.

The only two factory loads that they have seen any quantity of is the Federal 158 JSP and the Hornady Custom 140 XTP. I had several cases of both of these on hand.

You have already gotten good advice. See if other shooters have the same issue with your firearm. I would also grab a box of good ammunition.

You have purchased a top of the line firearm and are feeding it Winchester's cheapest, bottom of the line ammunition and CCI's cheapest, bottom of the line ammunition. Often they work adequately, sometimes they do not.

If after doing everything it turns out you can not find the problem, send it back to S&W. They will take care of it. Even though none of us ever want to get a lemon, no manufacturer of any product at any price can produce 100% perfect items 100% of the time. Someone is going to get a lemon now and then.

I have had 3 lemons from S&W over the more than three decades of personally buying and shooting them, not to mention my family's decades old relationship with S&W. I never bring them up in the Forum because S&W took care of it right away.

Click to expand...

Maybe I'll send mine too. I've had a number of their guns and others and the only one I had to send back was a Taurus. Never bought another taurus nor will I.
Thanks!

pzlehr said:

I tried 5 different types of ammo...357 and 38spl, some premium and some not. I rested the 327 on my sandbag rests as I have done with other guns to sight in or see where they are shooting, or what ammo they like better ,and it still shoots low. I get a decent group but paper is never hit. I took my S&W 65 that's at least 30yrs old and all shots in the black. I use a NRA 50ft target, and I was 20yds away. I emailed S&W but no answer yet. I have adjusted the rear sight as much as I can, down brings it up and it won't go down anymore...so. I even shot my 357 Uberti and that shot as well as the 65. I do love those old sixguns! Any ideas beyond what has been offered? Would a new ...newer rear sight be in order?

Click to expand...

I'm a bit confused by this post. Just to clarify you are moving the rear sight DOWN and are complaining about the gun shooting LOW. If that is the case, your problem is quite simple, you are moving the rear sight in the WRONG direction. With a rear sight you need to move the rear sight in the same direction that you want to shift the POI, which means to move your groups UP you need to move the rear sight UP.

I'll also mention that when you change the bullet weight in a particular caliber you'll have to change the elevation setting. In general, for a specific caliber, heavier bullets will shoot higher than lighter bullets. I would suggest that you concentrate on one specific load until you get better acquainted with your new gun. If you want a specific recomendation, I've found the American Eagle 130 gn. 38 spl. to be very well made and very consistent shooting for a "budget" priced ammunition, WWB on the other hand not so good and very dirty.