.30 Carbine Blackhawk v. .327 Fed Mag Blackhawk

Always makes me laugh (in a genuine condescending manner) when folks talk about what does and does not "make sense."

.45 ACP chambered revolvers made a helluva lot of sense when they arrived on the scene in a very necessary fashion and long afterward have made a ridiculous name for themselves in competition revolver shooting.

Likewise, Ruger has made a PILE of money over decades by offering a .30 Carbine Blackhawk, brought to the market specifically because tons of milsurp ammo was cheap and available and when you put them together, it just works, whether or not some armchair forum warrior believes it to be so.

The .30 Carbine Blackhawk -- brought to market by Ruger even before a Blackhawk in .45 Colt.
 
COZ, "The 327 magnum has way more bullet/ load options."

You've got to be kidding? The .30 Carbine is an .308 bullet. The assortment of bullets available far exceeds what is available in .312 !

I can go to any of the umpteen makers of cast bullets and choose from a WIDE variety of bullets. I can go to Berry's and select plated bullets there. And on and on and on ...
 
You've got to be kidding? The .30 Carbine is an .308 bullet. The assortment of bullets available far exceeds what is available in .312 !

I can go to any of the umpteen makers of cast bullets and choose from a WIDE variety of bullets. I can go to Berry's and select plated bullets there. And on and on and on ...
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You left out one little detail. There's not enough room in the .30 carbines case to fit those UMPTEEN different bullets and enough powder to get any sort of decent velocity while still keeping the COL short enough to chamber them. Your pretty much limited to the 100-110g range.
 
Hey dont get me wrong. I never said I would not buy a BH in 30 carbine.
If one got put in front of me. I might just have to buy it.

But since I also dont have BH in 327 magnum. ( I have a SP101, Single7, and a Taurus M327)
If both got put in front of me and I could only buy one.( I would sell something to get both) It would be the BH in 327 magnum.
But I am Biased some what.
 
fourbore said:
If you own an M1 carbine, sure. Anyone else, it makes zero sense.
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Cheapest .30 Carbine ammo on Ammoseek is 23 cents each. Cheapest 327 Mag is almost twice as much (43 cents each).

Why doesn't it make sense to shoot a more powerful round for half the price?
 
If one reloads for .327 the price isn't a concern anymore.

But if someone doesn't reload, then sure, .30 is more economical. Hope the results are good as all .30 Carbine is designed to be shot from a 16+ inch M1 Carbine barrel, not a short handgun barrel.
 
I looked for MY .30 BH. The day after I bought it, the issue of Gun World hit the streets with notification of the .32 in a Single Six being available.
I've never been sorry I bought it, but...I would have been happier.
I am told that the .32/20 cases can be firer in the BH and that would take care of my only objection. Maybe some day I'll try it, but since I have over 2k cases, it won't be soon...just NO need. (What does NEED have to do with anything?
I use several 100-115gr cast bullets, and two 85-90gr cast bullets in my Carbine, and it'll do anything I ask of it, all I do is change alloy, and powder/charge.
I live in the wide-open spaces, so the BH with it's 4 5/8" barrel, don't interfere with my walking, or driving around in my pickup.
The extra power of the Carbine, doesn't REALLY have any advantage, so if you choose to buy a .327, I'll support you. But, for MY money, if I were to buy another small-caliber revolver, I'd buy another Carbine.
Have fun,
Gene
 
Fourbore,

And the 30 is a rimless round! Not well suited to a revolver any more than those semi auto pistol rounds that can be fired in special cylinders like 9mm or 45 acp in a blackhawk.
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S&W's top marksman's favorite revolver is the 625 in .45ACP.
 
truthtellers said:
But if someone doesn't reload, then sure, .30 is more economical. Hope the results are good as all .30 Carbine is designed to be shot from a 16+ inch M1 Carbine barrel, not a short handgun barrel.
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Why do you believe that reloading doesn't allow you to use the .30 Carbine handgun data and components suitable for shooting from a shorter pistol barrel as a justification that all .30 Carbine is NOT designed to be shot from a 16"+ barrel, but it allows you to use it as a justification for cheaper ammo?

Seems to me that it works both ways.
 
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^ I was talking about factory ammo not being a good performer in .30 Carbine revolvers because the poster I was replying to got his jollies off saying factory ammo for .30 Carbine is cheaper than factory .327 Magnum ammo.

Obviously if one reloads .30 Carbine for use in short barrels it will be effective, but then if one is going to reload the .30 Carbine, they may as well not bother and buy .327 and reload that as the price will not be much different.
 
The quote below is from a retired gunsmith and Ruger Forum moderator concerning the .30 Carbine Blackhawk v. .327 Fed Mag Blackhawk:

Raw power .... the 30 Carb wins hand down .... and it is also very accurate. Versatility in different platforms .... the 327 Fed Mag wins .... don't know about accuracy. I sold my 30 Carb Blackhawk .... it was a tack driver and would drive VERY LARGE tacks at a considerable distances.
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It is just a matter of personal preference. The 30 carbine has about 10% more case capacity and the 327 mag runs at 12% higher max pressure. In actual tests with chronograph data, they are very close. That is a little surprising as the longest barrel 327 I think was offered was the 5.5" Blackhawk? The 30 carbine I know was available with a 7.5". The 327 mag test used a 5.5 Blackhawk and a 4.2" GP-100 so you can see the speed difference. 2 more inches of barrel would make a marked difference if there was 7.5" 327 mag.

Here is some data found in a search. The 30 carbine (7.5 barrel) with common factory ammo and some handload data that was included:
Federal 110 - 1517 fps
Remington 110 - 1546 fps
Winchester 110 - 1323 fps
Speer 85 (HL) - 1874 fps

The 327 mag (5.5 barrel):
Federal 100 - 1610 fps
Federal 85 - 1587 fps
Federal 115 - 1441 fps
Cast 118 (HL) - 1656 fps

The only one of these velocities I can verify is the 327 Federal 100 grain. It clocks 1607 fps from my Blackhawk. The other rounds I have not shot myself. I have loaded for both but it has been many years since I loaded for a 30 carbine revolver and it was before I had a chronograph. The two things I remember about it; it was accurate and loud. :)

I like the 327 in that the bullets can be crimped into place and they do not move under recoil. Case length is much more critical with the 30 carbine as it seats on the case mouth. If I came across a deal on a 30 carbine I would buy it. If it was a choice between one or the other, I like the 327 as it is very accurate and versatile; 327 mag, 32 H&R mag, 32 S&W Long, and 32 S&W short from the same revolver. In any case, two very good revolvers.

The tests I referenced are linked below.
http://www.shootingtimes.com/long-guns/longgun_reviews_30_carbine_combo_042111/
http://www.gunblast.com/Ruger-327s.htm
 
Saleen, the Ruger Single Seven can be had with a 7.5 inch barrel. That would allow a pretty close apples-to-apples comparison on a chronograph. I'd like to see that result with some handloads to maximize performance.
 
...Ruger Single Seven can be had with a 7.5 inch barrel...
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I did not know that, thank you. I have a single six in 32 H&R Mag. It would nice to have the 7.5" in the Blackhawk. The cylinder is longer in the Blackhawk and I have loaded some 153 grain cast gas check bullets in it. That is a sectional density of about .225. I don't know the exact length of the cylinder in the Single Seven but I am sure I read somewhere it is shorter than the Blackhawk.
 
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Here's just the puppy that can resolve this question:

8162.jpg


MODEL NUMBER: 8162
CALIBER: 327 FED MAG
Grips. Hardwood
Front Sight. Ramp
Barrel Length. 7.50"
Material. Stainless Steel
Capacity. 7
Rear Sight. Adjustable
Twist. 1:16" RH
Finish. Stainless
Overall Length. 13"
Weight. 43 oz.
Grooves. 6
Available From. Lipsey's

http://www.ruger.com/products/newModelSingleSixSingleSeven/specSheets/8162.html

Versus:
attachment.php
 
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Seems to me like this is all a reinvention of the 32-20 Winchester-Center-Fire. The 30 Carbine makes sense only because of the millions of M1 Carbines out there. The 327 Federal and 32 H&R magnum are essentially revolver cartridges with limited long-gun support, thus making the least sense. The 32 WCF has a long history of fairly popular use in both long-guns and revolvers, so it remains relevant. Whether it matters or not, the one thing that the 327 Federal and the 32 H&R magnum have going for them, is the ease of reloading with carbide sizer dies. If there were widespread support in terms of customer demand for both long guns and revolvers, then the 327 would have a real go of it. As it is, what all of these calibers have to contend with is the overall superiority of their main rival, the 357 Magnum, which makes a lot more sense than any of the others.
 
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I disagree. The 327 is the cartridge the 32 H&R should have been. Both have advantages over the 32-20, which you outlined in your post. If you've ever loaded the 32-20 heavy, you know that case life is dismal.

To my way of thinking, the 327 makes the most sense. The 357 shouldn't even enter the equation and I'll take a rim every time so throw out the 30M1 as even being an option. There's half a dozen reasons why the Single Seven is a better option than any 30 or 357 revolver.
 
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