Is .327 Federal Mag Still Viable?

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Is it still Viable? Sure, but the same hitting power as a 357 magnum? lets not get carried away now.
 
The SP101 in 327 MAG was discontinued by Ruger due to lack of manufacturing floor space, and not, as everybody conjectured, for lack of demand. It will most likely come back at some point in some version or the other when it can be made in Ruger's new plant in Mayodan, N.C. The advantage of a bullet which expands larger than a 38 Special and penetrates several inches is obvious.
 
Not as far as I'm concerned.

I am a revolver guy, and a handloader. I own and load for .41 Mag and .45LC (as well as others) and I have no desire for a .327 anything.
 
The revolvers that people like to carry concealed are often too harsh in 357 Magnum and are carried with 38 Specials instead. I think of my SP101 in 327 Federal Magnum as a rather ideal carry gun for me. It holds six rounds, is not as punishing as 357 Magnum, is manageable in full up loads, and is considerably smaller than any 357 magnum big enough to absorb some recoil but too big and heavy to comfortably carry or carry concealed.

I do carry a Security Six with 357 Magnum and I do carry a SW686-6 with full power loads. But I would much rather carry my SP101 3+". I also have that gun in 357 Magnum, but it is limited to 5 rounds and needs special grips to make firing it reasonable. I don't carry it with 38s because I have other nice 38Special guns.

Many of my guns are sized to be able to carry them concealed. My preferred length is 4". I do have my big range guns and a couple heavier wilderness guns with carry length barrels. The 327 is one of my everyday guns and is a welcome break in weight and bulk from my usual SW696 with 5 rounds of 44 S&W Special.
 
It's a great cartridge....ammo is available, but limited. I wish there were more revolvers
available for this round, and more companies would jump on the bandwagon.
 
If the porting is such a problem then thread the port and put in a setscrew....not rocket science. If anybody has a ported 327 they can't stand send it my way and I will punish myself with it.
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Threading scadium may not be as easy as it seems...
 
..but the same hitting power as a 357 magnum? lets not get carried away now...
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It gets in the same ballpark with up to 1600 fps with a 115 cast bullet for about 654 ft/lbs of energy. A lot more loadings are available for 357 magnum giving it a big edge if you buy all of your ammo. However one has to remember that SAAMI max for a 327 mag is MAP of 45K PSI where a 357 mag has a max of 35K which gives the 327 mag more pressure to make a lot of power.
 
Versatility will be the 327's strong suit

From the 32S&W mouse fart loads for shooting rats in the barn, to the 32 long which seems to drive tacks and women find charmingly docile, to the 32 H&R as the best all around small game load, then the 327 Federal high pressure monster with no recoil. In a pinch, even the 32 ACP will do, although not the accuracy king in a revolver. This caliber suits the shooters needs most of the time. It also acts as a viable replacement for the .22 LR in this time of scalpers prices and empty shelves. It's cheaper to shoot 32 reloads than 10 cent a round rimfires. It's always been the logical choice for transitioning a shooter from rimfire to centerfire.:cool:
 
Not as far as I'm concerned.

I am a revolver guy, and a handloader. I own and load for .41 Mag and .45LC (as well as others) and I have no desire for a .327 anything.
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If you were a 22 rimfire revolver fan and couldn't find ammo at palatable prices, then choosing to reload your own, the 32s might become more appealing. How else does one avoid blowing small game to pieces or filling it with shot?
 
Just do your best to ignore those !@#$%^^ and understand that the 327 is indeed a powerful cartridge not only good enough for self defense, but for deer hunting.
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Now, some know-it-all is probably gonna chime in...
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despite the know-it-all naysayers who have nothing better to do with their time than to bitch about something that many, many, many others shooters are very passionate about.
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Just a tip. Insulting the people who disagree with you and name-calling is generally not a great way to prove your point or bring them around to seeing your perspective.

And I'll add that I like the idea of the cartridge and really was rooting for it to take off. However, calling it a deer round from a revolver is a bit... much. You may have seen deer "go down within sight" but that doesn't mean a whole lot without know what your sight range was. Besides, I'd rather a deer go down right there rather than trotting off to die "within sight." Plenty of deer have been killed with .22lr to the head, but that doesn't make it ethical and doesn't make the .22lr a deer hunting round.

If I weren't already all set for carry guns, I would definitely consider an SP101 3" in .327 as just about a perfect carry gun.
 
I think it is a lot more viable now than when it was first introduced to the market. More and more people are choosing to carry a gun for personal protection. Just think how many threads you see on THR asking "Looking to buy my first handgun, advice?" "or "My girlfriend wants a gun, recommendations?"

The market for small concealable and simply operated handguns is better than ever. I think the industry is really missing out on a chance to revive the cartridge and come out with some firearms chambered for it.

If an LCR was introduced or an SP101 was reintroduced in .327, I might jump on either of them.
 
Saleen322 said:
It gets in the same ballpark with up to 1600 fps with a 115 cast bullet for about 654 ft/lbs of energy. A lot more loadings are available for 357 magnum giving it a big edge if you buy all of your ammo. However one has to remember that SAAMI max for a 327 mag is MAP of 45K PSI where a 357 mag has a max of 35K which gives the 327 mag more pressure to make a lot of power.
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I dunno. All the max loads and velocities I have seen for the .327 with a 115 bullet are no more than a .158 gr outta the .357. Lighter bullet making a smaller hole. The .327 is a good round, and is viable for a good many folk, but it does not make the .358 obsolete, nor does it mimic it. A caliber to be successful needs to stand on it's own merits, and not be be referred to as almost a .357. I agree, it would be a great SD caliber, but as a legitimate deer handgun hunting round, it will always be lacking. It would also be a good small game/varmint round outta a carbine.

It's success is up to a fickle bunch of gun enthusiasts, regardless of how well it looks on paper. The gun rags were full of praise for it when it was first introduced, but make little noise about it now.
 
A caliber to be successful needs to stand on it's own merits, and not be be referred to as almost a .357.
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Oh, I think the 357 is the exception, with people wanting to carry a stout round but preferring not to handle the punishment from the 357 and preferring to have more than 5 rounds. Up steps the 327, rightfully discussed relative to neighboring calibers.
 
I read somewhere that duplicating the performance of factory ammo with handloads is difficult if not impossible. Is this true? Not that it matters to most people.
 
It has been stated that real world energy of the .327 Fed Mag meets or exceeds any .357 magnum load out there. I firmly believe this to be true. What I mean by "real world energy" is not concerning the ballistic numbers involved, but rather the actual performance of the said cartridges to to the job they were meant for, and in that regard, .357 has virtually no effectiveness boost vs. .327 Fed Mag.

I too am upset that this round didn't gain more traction in the US. Sometimes people can't see a beautiful thing even when it's right in front of the noses.

-Same power as .357 magnum for all intensive purposes
-Less recoil than .357
-More capacity than .357
-Less muzzle blast/flash than .357
-Cheaper to reload for than .357
-Same .357 sized guns can take one or more .327's per cylinder
-Light recoil makes lighter .327 Fed Mag guns easier to shoot
-Terrific small AND medium game cartridge
-Flatter shooting than .357 magnum

The list goes on, and on, and on. Quite frankly, the only advantage .357 magnum has over this round is that some people get there panties in a bundle a think <2mm of difference between bullets somehow makes the .357 better. It simply is not, at least on planet Earth.
 
Cooldill said:
It has been stated that real world energy of the .327 Fed Mag meets or exceeds any .357 magnum load out there. I firmly believe this to be true. What I mean by "real world energy" is not concerning the ballistic numbers involved, but rather the actual performance of the said cartridges to to the job they were meant for, and in that regard, .357 has virtually no effectiveness boost vs. .327 Fed Mag.

Quite frankly, the only advantage .357 magnum has over this round is that some people get there panties in a bundle a think <2mm of difference between bullets somehow makes the .357 better. It simply is not, at least on planet Earth.
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The .357 Magnum has a well earned and documented track record of actual performance in use against humans. There are almost no documented uses of .327 in combat situations, so i question claims of the .327's performance as being comparable. No doubt a 115gr. bullet zipping along at 1400+ fps is going to have an effect, but it's hard to say how much less or more than the .357.

As for the claim that the .357 has no "real world advantages"...the .327 has a very limited range of loads, and the heaviest common bullet in a .327 is about the same weight as the lightest .357 bullet.
Many people would argue that the ability to throw a 200gr bullet vs a 140(?)gr. Bullet is in fact a very real advantage
 
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Never figured out why no manufacturor never made the 327 with a 6" barrel with adjustable sights for hunting and target use?
 
its not really viable.
the only new pocket pistol ive seen in the last year was a ported snubnose from sw at 1200.00.

to be viable it cant cost more then a normal sw jframe. make it as inexpensive as a charter arms and youll have demand.
 
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