327 Federal is the best small revolver cartridge for defense

Henry has recently introduced leverguns in .327 Fed. Mag which may help the popularity of this round.

ArchAngelCD said:

IMO the .327 Magnum would make a much better cartridge for a Levergun and SA revolver than an SD gun. It would make one heck of a field/woods combination much like the .357 Magnum combo I carry now.

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I would love to see a pump-action rifle in 327. I am not handy with lever action rifles.

for self defense I'll agree with Bob Wright my 45 is my choice, but a revolver not, the 1911 lays so slim and flat for inside the waist carry, even the sp101 didn't take long for me to realize it's to uncomfortable and thicker than the Valor VBob with less stopping power.

I do have a 327 coming, but it is a full lug 6" GP100 for varmint and small game. I am just hoping it will have enough stopping power for that,, I doubt Coyote but am hoping up to ground hog's? I wouldn't ever stake my life on it though, that is what the .45 was made for, and over the years it has proven to have no piers.

SteadyD said:

I can buy 38 special hollow points for about 50 cents per round online. 327 hollow points tend to be $1.

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Okay
http://www.sgammo.com/product/327-m...rican-eagle-85-grain-jacketed-soft-point-ammo

I see no real advantages to it over 38+p other than you get another round in a similar sized gun.

Now if they made a revolver round with some serious power that you could fit 5 rounds into a cylinder that's less than an inch thick, I would be all over it. Something like a 25 caliber that could push a 70 grain bullet around 1400 fps from a true micro snub.

Not my first choice, but would and have carried this and other .32 variants when is was my only choice.

ArchAngelCD said:

IMO the .327 Magnum would make a much better cartridge for a Levergun and SA revolver than an SD gun. It would make one heck of a field/woods combination much like the .357 Magnum combo I carry now.

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Yes, because then you can wear hearing protection. I like my 327s, but like 357 or 9mm in 115 gr, it is too loud to shoot unprotected. My winter carry is 41 Special (that's right) in a 6 round, 3" GP100, while my summer carry is an SP101 in 32 H&R Magnum. Neither gives that pressure shock or high frequency abuse you get from the magnums. Both guns carry 6 rounds. I also have a 32 S&W Long, which makes a nice J frame six shooter.

js8588 said:

Okay
http://www.sgammo.com/product/327-m...rican-eagle-85-grain-jacketed-soft-point-ammo

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That's a soft point not a hollow point.

BobWright said:

Sorry, but I'm of the big diameter/heavy bullet school of thought. When even the .38 Special is iffy, can't see going to a smaller bullet.

Bob Wright

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Somewhere out there is a study on over 600 police and criminal shootings. The average was 2.2 shots.....didn’t matter if it was a 22 or 45 to stop the fight.

It's a good cartridge. I like it. I don't personally feel that any SD cartridge is "the best". 327 is one that I feel is effective and I feel comfortable with it.

oldfortyfiveauto said:

Somewhere out there is a study on over 600 police and criminal shootings. The average was 2.2 shots.....didn’t matter if it was a 22 or 45 to stop the fight.

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The average is 2.2 shots. That means some took less, some took more. There's the old illustration of the man who drowned in a river where the average depth was only six inches.

I'll stick with my .45.

Bob Wright

If I remember a smaller percentage were the larger bores. Better to hit with a 22 than miss with a 45.

Many years ago I heard a story told by a widow whose husband had left her a Ruger Super Blackhawk in the drawer of a table in the entrance hall, and it loaded with Winchester 240 gr. JHP Magnum cartridges. One night a drug crazed hulk kicked in her front door, frame and all. She whipped out the Ruger and fired one shot point blank at her attacker. The surprise blast/impact knocked him back through the door opening landing flat on his back on the porch. He got up and tried to run but collapsed in the yard where he died.

Don't think the results would have been the same with a little .32.

Bob Wrighte

A 32 to the head and he would have simply fallen over dead. There are also may reports of over 10 poorly placed 45 rounds still leaving the perp alive and fighting. Placement matters way more than size. We had an incident locally where the guy took over 15 rounds of 9mm and bunch of buckshot. Lived another 15 years after getting out of prison.

The 32 fam is great if you're into reloading. Cheap to reload since you're throwing a lighter projectile, plus can do several other rounds from the .327. Going to go load some 32H&R today for mine.

I love the thought of a 327 but I can’t imagine the blast that it would have inside of an enclosed area such as a car or bedroom. All guns are going to be loud, but I think I want to stay subsonic for a defensive gun. Give me a heavy 9mm, 38spl, 380 etc. I use my 32swl with HBWC for defense because of the noise. I see no point in trading an almost guaranteed hearing impairment (hopefully temporary) for a little bit more velocity.

As long as we're fantasizing, I'd rather see a .41 Special in appropriately sized 6 shot and 5 shot revolvers. And when I say "Special" I don't mean mediocre.

Cooldill said:

Acceptable performance perhaps, but I'll stick with my .500 Linebaugh single action.

There's no replacement for displacement.

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You have fun with that.

.44 Rem. Mag. is about all I can stand. (I don't own one either)

I carry a Med.-Compact 9MM. Taurus PT-111 Millennium Pro. 12+1

And hunt with a GP-100 6" Full Lug .357 Rem. Mag.

Big7 said:

You have fun with that.

.44 Rem. Mag. is about all I can stand. (I don't own one either)

I carry a Med.-Compact 9MM. Taurus PT-111 Millennium Pro. 12+1

And hunt with a GP-100 6" Full Lug .357 Rem. Mag.

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Jokin', brah.

I pack a .38. I think the hot .327 is a great round a mite easier to pack than either a .500 Line or a .45 Colt single action. This is the small revolver thread right?

The.327 Federal might be more successful, and interest more gun makers, if they could just interest more women to buy .32's again ....

Versatile? Yes! The guns shoot 3 other calibers( .32 S&W, .32 S&W Long, and .32 H&R Mag.) Very easy to start shooters out with, and .32 H&R Mag. and .327 Fed Mag. are good SD calibers.

My best friend bought an SP101 .in .327 for his wife and had .32 S&W and Long for his Nagant revolvers; We shot all four calibers. (He bought some .32 H&R also) Very good gun to teach with. She also has a G19, she's well covered for SD/HD.

As for the Best? Maybe for you, and that's great. I prefer .38 Spl for revolver, and .45 Acp for auto. But I will say I wouldn't feel undergunned with a .327.

fastbolt said:

The.327 Federal might be more successful, and interest more gun makers, if they could just interest more women to buy .32's again ....

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That might be best limited to 32 H&R Mag and done with snazzy grip panels to make it "cute". Didn't sell very well before and was dropped, but I don't know that all these custom grp panels for the SP101 were available. The S&W 32 didn't have the style.

Ain’t many problems a man can’t fix, with $700 and a.........327 Federal?

That just doesn’t flow at all.

Ain’t many problems man can’t survive, with $700 and his Colt 45.

See how it’s just nice and smoothe?

The 327 should have been left in the small block Chevy world. It just doesn’t offer anything substantive to insure it’s survival. It will go the way of the 357Sig, 45 GAP, 480Ruger and others. I’m all about bringing something new to the table. But bring something that’s a real, honest improvement over what’s out there.

You can claim all day that it fills this niche or that niche. But in the end, it’s niche. When you look at a Henry rifle and see a 357/38 or 44Mag/44Spl, why would you even consider a 327Fed? Cheaper to feed? Nope. More power? Uh...nope. You can make silly rhymes with the name? Darn, can’t even do that. Well, you kinda can.

Guy with a 327 Federal started to brag, till I pulled out my Redhawk...in 44mag.

I wish there was a THR rule against using the word "best", just like the rules against foul language.

327's a good round on paper. I'm interested in it. "Best"? I dunno.

.327 Magnum seems like a fine cartridge. I think a six-shot steel J-Frame in this caliber would be pretty nifty. But 'the best' small revolver cartridge? I don't think there is one 'best-' except the one that does the job when you need it too. Pretty sure .327 has a spot in that club, but it's as one of many possibilities.