.327 Federal Club thread

I've had a 77/327 in the back of my mind for quite a while.

Back on page 28, I had two posts discussing it:

I still think a 77/327 would be a great rifle, but do fully support the lever action concept.

I've been keeping my eyes out for a beat-to-death 77/22 Hornet or 77/44, to convert to .327; but nobody ever sells them. And if they do, the shop still wants MSRP for the POS.
A new breech block (forward half of the "bolt"), .22 Hornet magazine feed lip modification, and a barrel should be all that would be needed. ...if I ever find a donor.
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And, after "tjh" offered some second-hand musings about pressure levels, from a gunsmith:
I don't buy it. I think they're shooting from the hip, and never bothered to actually check it out. A few quick calculations will give you a general idea of whether it will work.

The .327 Federal runs 45,000 psi.
The .44 Mag runs 36,000 psi.
The .357 Mag runs 35,000 psi.
The .22 Hornet runs 45,000 psi (same as .327 Federal).
The 5mm Remington Mag runs 33,000 psi (quite high for a rimfire).
And, for comparison, the .22 WMR runs 24,000 psi.


Bolt thrust with those cartridges would be:
.327 Federal - 4,970 lbs
.44 Mag - 7,469 lbs
.357 Mag - 5,321 lbs
.22 Hornet - 4,329 lbs
5mm Rem - 2,720 lbs
.22 WMR - 1,673 lbs

Force exerted on the chamber walls would be approximately:
.327 Federal - 47,642 lbs
.44 mag - 51,685 lbs
.357 Mag - 41,673 lbs
.22 Hornet - 50,893 lbs
5mm Rem - 21,480 lbs
.22 WMR - 6,040 lbs

The .44 Mag exceeds the .327 Federal in both regards, and .327 nearly matches the .22 Hornet. I would have absolutely no reservations about putting the .327 Federal in a centerfire model.

As for the 5mm Rem... I probably wouldn't chamber it in one of the old v-block-barrel rimfire versions of the 77/22; but I wouldn't hesitate to convert one of the newer threaded versions (they're all heat treated, threaded, and torqued now) or one of the centerfire models.
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Hello
I would Prefer Marlin to come out with The Federal .327 Magnum in a Bolt rifle. I feel a Bolt rifle would be supreme as far as accuracy Goes with Marlin's Mico-Groove rifling and a Good Piece of Glass Parked on it it would make a Hell of a Woodchuck Gun, I would even use it for Deer up to 50 Yards It would be a Tack driver for that Task... I have a Nice Vintage Marlin 883 chambered in .22 W.M.R. That Pretty Much shoot's One Ragged hole if I do my Part right as shown below, This Target was shot at the 100 Yard Line using CCI-Maxi Mag ammo, sighting it in. The Last Three shot's were dead center and one Ragged hole. It is Tube fed with a 3-9 scope Parked on it. I would Love the same gun chambered in 327 Magnum...;) Hammer it







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A327mag rifle would be a nice groundhog / varmint gun . bolt / lever or semi , wouldn't matter to me . may just have to get a encore barrel made in 327 mag.
 
I still point to the actual .312" component jacketed slugs we have available for this round. Are they up to the task of the velocity we'd be pushing them to in a lever action or bolt action rifle?

Hornady says their 85gr XTP says their best performance is in the range of 750 to 1,550 FPS. And their 100gr XTP at 800 to 1,800 FPS. It doesn't say these numbers are a "MAXIMUM", but it does specify clearly that these are the optimum ranges.

I have been specifically warned from an "official" source that I can damage a revolver if I push an incapable bullet too fast, but the warning was very general and not at all specific. And I don't know if that "harm" would extend to a rifle. (unlikely?)

I'm not saying you guys shouldn't run the .327 Federal from a rifle, but I am saying that your bullet selection may be a factor. And because I don't hunt, I have no opinion on handgun bullet performance at what ends up being a BLISTERING rifle speed.

Remember that all the component jacketed .312" bullets on the market right now, with the exception of maybe the 115 grain Gold Dot -- weren't even designed with the .327 Federal from a handgun in mind... these bullets preceded this cartridge. These bullets came around to be loaded in to the very weak .32 H&R Magnum.

Of course, y'all could go with a cast or gas-checked cat bullet, too.
 
There are also jacketed .311 rounds for .303 British rifle bullets. They hold together above 2500 ft/s. I'm not sure of the weights available, but if they're at all comparable to the .308s, varmint rounds would fall in the 110-120 grain range. Of course, it might be that suitable bullets would follow the introduction of such a rifle on the market.
 
Of course, y'all can squash the ever-lovin' juice out of a piece of .25 ACP brass around a thin lead rod and swage some dinosaur killers, too! :eek:
;)
 
Looking at the .303 rifle bullets available, I found this one

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/643442/sierra-pro-hunter-bullets-303-caliber-77mm-japanese-311-diameter-125-grain-spitzer-box-of-100

but apparently, other bullets made for the SKS are also suitable despite a nominal diameter of .310. That includes these

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/424624/hornady-v-max-bullets-762x39mm-310-diameter-123-grain-boat-tail-box-of-100

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/326869/speer-hot-cor-bullets-762x39mm-310-diameter-123-grain-soft-point-box-of-100

The slightly smaller diameter shouldn't be a problem. I've shot .308 bullets through my 303 Brit and had good accuracy. The weight of these is troublesome. They are short and fat and without the oomph of a necked cartridge, their range won't be great. It would be nice to get a lighter faster bullet, but that would mean shorter and that's bad for accuracy. I think a saboted .17 would be a better option.
 
Finally!

My Taurus snubby arrived and I shot some American Eagle 100 gr. JSPs through it. Ouch! This cartridge is a beast in that little gun! I love it! I think I'll get the Hogue grip to tame the recoil some. I also plan to get the Wolff spring kit and work on that trigger a little. I also put some of my 32 H&R mag reloads through it and that seemed like a good load to use for practicing.
 
I'd be a bit concerned about a Wolff spring in a .327 Federal revolver if it might ever be used for defense. The .327 round uses small rifle primers and I've had some DA fails with a lightened hammer spring in my GP-100.

If just for funning, try it & report back. If for defense, I don't think it's a great idea.
 
At the very least, the gun should be thoroughly tested in BOTH SA and DA after the new hammer spring is installed.

The hammer strike from a revolver's DA pull is generally less energetic than the hammer strike from an SA pull and therefore it's not enough to test it in SA only.

I recall reading a self-defense encounter where the defender had "enhanced" his revolver with a lightened hammer spring and apparently hadn't tested in DA. When he got in a jam, predictably, he shot in DA because he was in too much of a hurry to cock the hammer. He got a number of misfires. Fortunately it didn't cost him his life.
 
Thorough testing is definitely in order.
It was the first order of business, after changing springs in my (wife's) Blackhawk, and (later) the GP-100.

I wasn't worried about the Blackhawk, but...
The GP-100 does see some SD/HD use. So, I wasn't going to tolerate even a hint of light strikes. Everything went well, of course, so it still occasionally finds itself on guard duty with 115 gr Gold Dots (factory). ;)
 
The .327 round uses small rifle primers
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The Hodgdon tables specify a Federal 200, a small pistol magnum. I'm planning to use CCI 550s.

I plan to test it thoroughly. Some people leave the factory hammer spring in and replace the other two and get the desired results.
 
I'm waffling between the 100 gr Gold Dot and the 115 gr Gold Dot for SD ammo. Neither are available at "normal" prices or otherwise, so I'm using the 85 gr Federal Hydra-Shok for now.
 
Use whatever you can get. They're all decent loads.

I just prefer the 115 gr Gold Dot over the other loads I've tried - even with its 'low' muzzle velocity.
 
The Hodgdon tables specify a Federal 200, a small pistol magnum. I'm planning to use CCI 550s.
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Directly from Ben Amonette at ATK, the .327 Federal factory ammo is loaded with a CCI small rifle primer.

We've gotten enough evidence to know that the CCI small pistol magnum and the CCI small rifle non-magnum are the same primer. As for Federal, that jury is out.

I think it's a good idea to use the CCI 550. I would never consider using the Federal regular small pistol non-magnum.
 
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