Your experience with .327 magnum?

I have been curious about this round since I first read about them some years ago, but have never had a chance to use it. I keep thinking I want a Ruger sp101 3" in this caliber. I wonder if the recoil is pretty heavy but maybe not so much power, if that makes sense. I like the fact that there are several other rounds that can be used in it, too.

I am just asking opinions from those who own it or have shot it.

 

I like mine (Ruger Single-7 w/5.5”bbl).
It’s a great cartridge that nobody cares about!
It is either a renaissance of the rifle load for the .32-20, or a rimmed .30Carbine. Depending on your frame of reference.

It’s largest drawback is it has all the “bark” of the .357mag, but not quite the bite. Meaning it’s LOUD, but not anymore than the .357mag or .30Carbine. Power is a little less, but so is recoil.
About like the .38Super or +P 9mm.

It’s biggest attraction is Magnum power from a 6-shot small frame revolver. And, the ability to fire .32S&W, .32S&WLong, .32H&RMag, and in most instances the .32Auto. (Small rim of .32auto not compatible with some makes of revolvers extractors).

Ammo availablity is an issue too!

I reload and cast, so ammo is no problem at all.
Except primers!

 

Yes, I know about the problem finding the ammo, but my lgs has about thirty boxes and nobody is buying it. It makes me want to grab it, but I don't have the gun.

 

In my pocket most of the time.

632-2again by dickydalton posted Mar 16, 2021 at 12:40 PM

 

I I am a fan of the 32 caliber revolvers. I have a number of H&R revolvers in 32 Smith & Wesson long. I also have a Ruger single six in 32 H & R Mag, and another single 7 in 327 Magnum.

It is a fantastic cartridge. Highly underrated. That said, it is hard to find. Marketing was not done well. It should have superseded the 38 Special.

I've always wanted an LCR in .327.

Loud report. It ain't no slouch

 

I owned a Taurus M327 some years back. Good +1 capacity advantage over the same sized revolver in 357Mag. Recoil was pretty mild in the Taurus and I expect it will be the same in a typical, heavy revolver. Obviously worse in something light weight.

 

I have a Taurus M327, a Ruger Single Seven, an SP101 3" and a Henry carbine to go with my 632-2. I love them all.

 

It's as loud as full power .357, but it does have less felt recoil, enough that I do prefer to shoot it compared to .357 in smaller revolvers like the SP101. Really, the .32 and .327 are the perfect calibers for the LCR, SP101, and Single Seven, but because .32/.327 are not .38/.357 and the ammo isn't cheaper or as available most of those you'll see post on forums don't like it.

I'm starting to get the suspicion that the real reason they don't like .32 revolvers is because most revolver people are really S&W fanboys and because S&W doesn't make them anymore and they don't want to pay over a grand for a used .32 Mag J frame. I know the ammo is tough to get for some, but I think brand loyalty is another issue.

Anyway, OP the question is should you get one. If you like the SP101, sure, but if you've never owned or shot an SP101 before go with the LCR and use 85 grain bullets for carrying. .32 S&W Long is affordable and available online during normal times and that is fine practice ammo or even light recoil carry ammo.

 

People tell you a .32H&R is underpowered, but let me tell you a tale.

One day my old mentor and I were out on a turkey hunt. He's packing his old side by side and his K32. We're both tired and hungry and haven't seen a bird yet when out at about 3 hunnderd yards steps the most beautiful ten point buck you ever seen. It's gettin dark and the sun's long behind us and I'm sittin there at a loss with a scattergun in my hands, and the old salt whispers that we could have venison leg for dinner. I tell him there's not a chance in all the hells of heaven and Earth that he's gonna kill any deer with that old K32. He winks at me and tells me to fish him the Altoids tin out of the pocket of our diddy bag. He tells me to open it, and he quietly ejects his rounds from his Smith. Inside the tin are seven .32 shells, all his own handloads. He reaches for one that's a little different - got 3 red X's writ on it with marker down the side of the case. He takes it and chambers it, easing the cylinder over to line 'er up. Now I figure this crazy old coot is gonna have us stalk down there and try to get inside of 50 yards, but I'll be danged if he didn't nudge me back behind him before taking a knee and lining up on this buck! A 300 yard shot, easy! I think he's yanking my chain, as old men are wont to do. But he sits there steady like for what feels like an hour before he tells me "Put yer hands over yer ears and keep yer mouth open wide." I do it kinda halfhearted and look down at the buck. And that's when he fired.

The blast sent my eyeballs in 4 different directions and I felt the ground buckle a foot down under both feet and come back up to slam me in the heels. There was a flash of white light where the deer was standin' before the whole horizon behind it lit up red orange like sunrise. I took a moment to compose myself before lookin at the old man. The barrel of the .32 was glowin' cherry red and bent into a full U-turn right in the middle, and so was pointin' at the wrong end and back over the old coot's shoulder! He fans the smoke away from his face and says the magic words: "Think I got 'im!" About that moment I heard rustling up above us, and felt somethin hit me on the shoulder. I look down and it's a squirrel, stone dead. Then all around come fallin down a shower of twigs and dead leaves and dead birds of every shape and color, and squirrel after squirrel crashing down from the canopy. It musta rained that flotsam o' carcasses for a solid half a minute, and as I was lookin around and marvelin at it, that was when I noticed that all the trees around us were white as snow. The bark had all been blown clean off the sides that were facin' us, up to a height o' fifteen feet! We waited there about 45 minutes for the fireball to fade, and walked a straight path, flat and smooth as any highway where that grass had been, up to where the deer had stood. Upon surveying of the crater we found his antlers in the Northeast corner, and one shank off each of his four legs, with the skin blow'd off, the hooves melted away, and the meat cooked right to perfection.

..............................

Moral of the story is, if you handload your .32s, you don't really need a .327.

 

I like my .327mag and I handload for mine also. I don't shoot different calibers in mine, I just load down the .327mag cases I have so if someone else wants to shoot it, it doesn't ruin their experience. I load from 32 S&W power to full 327mag power depending on my mood and who's with me.
My granddaughter likes the 32 S&W loads. full blown .327s are loud as hell but the recoil is easy to handle if the grips fit your hand.
I went through three sets before I found a set that shoots everything comfortably.
The right grips completely changed the way it feels to me with magnum loads and took it from a wan-a-be punisher, to a pussycat as far as recoil goes. You just have to get over all the noise.
one of my favorite things to do with my 3" SP101 is shoot 25yds with it standing, off hand, unsupported with very low powered loads and wad cutters.
It's fun as hell and I actually hit the target! The case is long enough that wadcutters fit right in there with no problem.
I usually shoot 90 gr SWCs that I cast myself and they shoot just as well.
These were Acme button nose wadcutters back when they were still in stock.

 

I have a bunch of 32 revolvers. My 327 is a 4" Ruger SP101.

I disagree with the posters who feel that 327 has considerable recoil.

Maybe it's because I have a 4" steel revolver. but the recoil of 327 magnum doesn't impress me.

It's a bit loud, but the recoil isn't any more difficult than warm 38 special loads, IMHO.

Ruger SP101 327 by Tallball posted Feb 23, 2018 at 9:01 PM

 

The only load to date in 327 I have tried is the 100 gr Gold Dot in my Ruger LCR. I simply can not handle or tolerate the blast. That is on me and not the gun or the caliber. The 32 H&R magnum and 32 Long are enjoyable and manageable experiences.

I chose to keep an inventory of Hornady 32 H&R magnum on hand for carry . And got into reloading the 32 H&R for the range.

 

I never shot one but as an outsider looking in I think it makes a lot of sense, especially in the smaller frame revolvers and if you weren’t a reloader.

 

Don't own one, have shot the Ruger Single7 a number of times.
327 revolver is sort of like a 257 Roberts; performs well,
just doesn't get the traction is deserves.
I think because it is so loud, the report is a downside.
Also, something in our collective psychic - the caliber needs
To be bigger to be effective?

 

It has no recoil to speak of to me. But then I’m
Shooting it through a big, heavy Blackhawk.

As noted by others here, it’s no more loud and blasty than a .357 Mag. Same with the .30 Carbine when shot from a Blackhawk.

I would still kind of like to find an SP101 or a Single-Seven in .327. But not for what they are getting on Gunbroker these days.

 

I have the 4.2" SP-101 327.

I shoot it a lot. Mostly loads just a tad bit above 32 H&R.

With a fast burning powder and a 78 gr bullet, a 22,500 psi load (according to Quickload) has enough bark to satisfy but way less than the blast of a full power 327. I load these in bulk as they are a great practice load. The 1250 fps and the light bullet would probably do for self defense in a pinch, but it is easy to do better.

With a slower powder (SW Heavy Pistol) and a 85 gr bullet, I still get gets over 1250 fps at 20,000 psi and is something I consider better for self defense. Blast is not bad, but is definitely more than the fast powder load.

 

I have an interest in 32 caliber revolvers and have one or more chambered in 32 S&WL, 32 H&R Magnum and 327 Fed. Magnum. I've worked mostly with 32 S&WL level loads and wish I could find a S&W K32 or Model 16 K-frame.

I do feel that a full power 327 Fed Magnum from a 2" barreled revolver is a waste of energy and noise just like 357 Magnum from a short barreled revolver.

But, a J-frame or SP101 frame size revolver with a 4": barrel would be a good option for 327 Fed. Magnum revolver. A bit smaller framed gun that would be easier to carry than a 38 with reasonable power.

I have some problems with ground hogs around my hobby horse farm. After some mediocre results dispatching one or two with a 22 RF revolver, I've brought out my 32 Fed Magnum SP101 with 32 H&R Mag level loads for ground hog service. We'll see how it does.

The advantage of the SP101 over a 38 caliber K-frame revolver is it fits easier in the pocket of my coat when out feeding the horses.

 

I would have been interested in 327 magnum had a large frame S&W revolver been chambered for it, and if there were better bullets available for it. Ruger did put out a 7-chamber GP100 for it, but there's nothing compelling about that when I can have a 7-chamber 357 686. Why saddle myself with a oddball cartridge to which there is no advantage? As it turned out, it was really only seen as allowing a six-chamber cylinder in the LCR. Kimber came up with a better solution for that, and the 327 is pretty much dead. If it weren't dead, we'd see enough demand for more bullets for it, and we don't. Not many rifles for it either. Dead.

 

SP 101 3" .327Fed

LOUD!
recoil is target .38Spl, 10yo grandson shoots it
Easy to conceal and carry
Perfect SD weapon

 

Hahahahaha.

 

You're right about the lack of reason to choose a .327 7 shot over a .357 7 shot in a 686 or GP100 sized revolver, at that point the .32 caliber is lacking, but that size revolver is not what the .32 caliber is for and never has been and that goes back to the introduction of the Colt Pocket in 1849.

The .327 LCR will still have less recoil and better ballistics than the Kimber .357, not too mention be a lighter, less costly revolver.

The .32 Mag, the .327 Mag... they're not dead, they're just not the solution to everything and that's why Ruger has mostly dropped it in the GP100 and discontinued the Blackhawk.

 

Always enjoy the conversations about any 32 caliber handgun. I readily see the pros and cons and know that no amount of talk would change anyone’s mind either way. Below are my short barrel 32’s, 32 magnums, and 327 FM’s. Only ones I carry are the LCR and LCRx. I simply enjoy the 32 caliber and have a good amount of ammo and reloading supplies for all of the varieties except 32acp.

 

I think the power to recoil ratio is very good. Some platforms better than others. I have a 4” SP101 that has minimal recoil for the energy it produces using the 100 grain American Eagle, which is about as hot as it gets. That same load in the Blackhawk or GP100 is pure pleasure to shoot.

 

Good idea, poorly executed.

They started with what they wanted for muzzle energy and ramped up the pressure to get the advertising numbers they wanted. To hell with practicality.

The result? A 45,000 PSI cartridge that was supposed to be chambered in small, lightweight revolvers. Yea, no. It's LOUD and the guns need to be heavier to stand up to that pressure. They SHOULD have held it to the 35,000-36,000 PSI of the 357 Magnum and 44 Magnum. Then let the muzzle energy numbers fall where they may.

327 out of a rifle? Loads of fun.