.327 Federal Club thread

This is a thought that came to mind. Could Ruger make a 10/22 pattern rifle in 327? Their 22 mag version had problems and was discontinued. But it would be a nice gun and with a higher capacity magazine kind of fun.

I don't know if it would be viable from an easy engineering point of view or would sell but I can dream.
 
I would buy a 10/22 in .327. Heck, I'd buy one in .32 ACP.
But as long as we're dreaming, how about Ruger bringing back the Model 96
in .327?
 
I stumbled across this USFA revolver with the 32-20 and a 327 cylinders last month. I had a little bidding war, and won!! The people at USFA drove me nuts, they would advertise revolvers in 327 and made very low quantities if they made them at all.

I had a 632-1 in my hand and put it back on the shelf, I caught myself standing there and wondered how to close that dang port and how to move the front sight to the end of the barrel, where it belongs!!

I am still hunting for a S&W 632-2. If anyone sees one let me know. I am in Bagram Afghanistan fixing Army computers and missed the chance to buy one.
 

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S&W 632

There were two on Gunbroker yesterday - seemed to be holding out for pretty high prices. They got bid up into the $500-$600 range, but that was not enough to meet the reserve.
 
Well, I am not a single action kind of guy and I definitely don't follow the market, but you'd have to be living under a rock to not know the kind of price points that the (now long out of production) USFA revolvers command.

I don't even like single actions but if some seller were letting a USFA go for six bills, that one sells in under an hour easily. The USFA revolvers were premium idea.
 
Being a single action guy, I’ve been looking for a single action revolver in 327 magnum. I finally found a Ruger Blackhawk at a reasonable price. I considered the Single Seven, but I really wanted to maximize the potential of the 327 magnum, so the Blackhawk with its beefier frame and cylinder seemed to be the way to go.

I tried several heavy loads using H110, CFE Pistol and Alliant 2400. The best accuracy seemed to be from the 2400. There isn’t much published data on 2400, and most of what I found seemed pretty anemic. However, Brian Pearce tested the Single Seven in Handloader 294. His maximum load was 13 grains of 2400 behind the Hornady 100 grain XTP. I figured the Blackhawk would be stronger than the Single Seven, so I worked up to that load. Accuracy was pretty good:



There’s no pressure data on this load, but extraction was easy (some of the cases fell out of the chambers when the barrel was tilted) and no excessive primer flattening. Next time I’m out at the range, I’ll chrono the load. I'll probably settle on 12.8 grains of 2400 - slightly below the max, but still a potent load.
 
Here's a clip from the 2016 Alliant reloading guide for 327/2400:


Cartridge/Bullet, Powder, Primer, Case, Min OAL, Max Chg, Velocity
100-gr Hornady XTP 2400 Fed. 200 Federal 1.470 14.3 1618
100-gr Speer JHP 2400 Fed. 200 Federal 1.450 14.1 1628

Didn't see what barrel length they used but this listed max load looks pretty lively.
 
Thanks, Low Friction!

That's really good information. I had looked on the Alliant web site, but didn't think to look at the latest reloader's guide.

For all you 327 magnum aficionados, here's what Low Friction is referring to:

-------Bullet---------------Powder------Primer------Case-----Min OAL--Max Chg--Velocity

 
Happy new year fellas.

I have a question I figure those here would know and it's about loading a 60 grain Hornady XTP into the .327 case. This XTP is meant for the .32 ACP, so it lacks a cannelure. Is it possible to load this bullet into the case? Do I need to crimp the bullet? Is it safe to do?
 
No crimp needed.
But don't push it very hard.
That bullet was never intended for use in a revolver, and shouldn't be used at more than about 1,000 fps.
 
The 60gr XTP is a dual-threat to the well being of a .327 Federal revolver. As-is, it is not constructed to handle the pressure but it has the added characteristic of being nearly half-weight so it will reach speeds far beyond it's ability without hardly trying.

The bullet has the potential to deform in the jump from cylinder to forcing cone, ruining the barrel. You can certainly use this bullet (I have successfully used 71gr FMJ and 71gr Plated-RN) but keep the speed near it's original design.
 
Speer publishes a load for .32 S&W Long with a 60 gr bullet meant for the .32 Auto. They set the length to allow crimping just over the ogive. I tried it, and it worked fine, yielding similar velocity to the auto round. I have not loaded any more; seems like a novelty to me.
 
I've developed some plinking loads for the 327 using the 71 grain Berry's plated bullet. I use a taper crimp instead of a roll crimp, and keep the velocity below 1200 fps.
 
The 60 gr XTP is a fun bullet to use "outside the box" ... but I won't touch it for my .32 revolver loads - not even with the short .32s. The jump in the chamber is too long for my liking, especially with the short bearing surface of the 60 gr XTP.

Now... if I had a .327 Federal rifle, it would be a different story. And, it's a very fun bullet to use in .30 WCF specialty loads.
 
How do AE100 SP's or 100gr XTP's fair in 327 long guns pushing rounds well above 2000 fps? Might be relegated to gas checked hard cast for the 20" Henry lever action.
 
I don't think we have a member active here that owns a .327 Federal rifle - even a stubbed and rechambered Handi-Rifle.

...And I haven't really looked into it. (I just want!)
Your best bet for real-world test results, I believe, would be the NEF/H&R sub-forums at MarlinOwners or GBO.

But I suspect the bullets would hold up fine in the barrel and be rather explosive upon impact.
 
Powder coated bullets

I am new to the 327 game (4.2" SP101 aquired last November).

I am a cast only shooter and my primary intended use is highish volume offhand target practice with lowest achievable cost. For this gun I made my own 55 gr mold (see attached images).

They shoot pretty good, but I am still working on some issues (low volume charges that give big velocity swings between barrel down prior to firing and barrel up prior to firing). I will post more on this later.

However, as I was going over this short thread (he said sarcastically), I noted the absence of a discussion that I expected. The 327 is a great platform for polymer coated cast bullets. The guys at Castboolits who figured out what we call ASBB PC coating have enabled me to fire my 12 BHN cast bullets at full power (or close to full power for a few such as the bottle neckers) for all the handguns I load for (30H, 30-30, 327 fed mag, 357 mag, 357 max, 44 mag). With potential use that involves terminal ballistics (4 or 2 legged), a hardness in the 12-15 BHN is probably about where you want be.

For those that do not make their own projectiles, I had no trouble finding multiple vendors. These below seemed pretty good:

http://missouribullet.com/details.php?prodId=337&category=5&secondary=20&keywords=

https://www.badmanbullets.com/OnlineStore/products.php?cat=32+Caliber+100+Grain+RNFP+Polymer+Coated
 

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CAUTION: The following post includes loading data beyond or not covered by currently published maximums for this cartridge. USE AT YOUR OWN RISK. Neither the writer, The Firing Line, nor the staff of TFL assume any liability for any damage or injury resulting from use of this information.

JayCee (and others that assemble light loads).

My gun shoots my 55 gr bullets OK regardless, but it would probably shoot better if I find a way to reduce velocity variations.

I new that the long skinny case would result in very low powder density for my target loads. When I got around to the long drive out to where I could use my Chrony, I went looking for the dreaded "excessive velocity variations" associated with powder forward vs. powder to the rear. I found just what I was looking for :(. Back when I worried about this issue in 38 Sp, I had switched over to TightGroup as it is marketed with claims to be better. From the Hodgdon web site:

  • Unlike pistol powders of the past, powder position in large cases (45 Colt, 357 Magnum and others) has virtually no effect on velocity and performance

My actual results are

Charge.......Avg Vel
3.1............636............Barrel Tipped Down
3.1............926............Barrel Tipped Up
3.7............745............Barrel Tipped Down
3.7............1164...........Barrel Tipped Up
5.0............1040...........Barrel Tipped Down
5.0............1406...........Barrel Tipped Up
5.5............1345...........Barrel Tipped Down
5.5............1543...........Barrel Tipped Up

Note that the 3.7 gr charge is clearly subsonic one way and supersonic the other.

Caution, both the 5.0 & 5.5 gr tipped up were hard to extract.
 
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