Don Davis said:
$475 to 500 seems to be the going rate for SP at moment. Does not seem long that they could be had for 3xx. I am in Indy area - need to customize profile. A lot of people around here are considering 32 mag to replace 38 - more power and one more shot. I think this will be a very popular caliber in the coming years.
That would be great, but as an early adopter of the .327 magnum I have my doubts.
On another forum there was a discussion a few months ago about the advancement of revolvers. The premise was that there were no semi-auto guns available and all we could own were revolvers. The question was what advancements we would like, and expect, to see. Many of the posts included the desire or expectation for smaller diameter and more powerful cartridges that would allow for higher capacity guns with little to now increase in size. In my mind, that is the .327 Magnum. A powerful little round that allows for an increased capacity without increasing the overall size of the gun. Heck, Smith and Wesson crams 8 rounds of .357 in a N-Frame; how many .327's could they fit in there?
So people want the .327 in theory, but in practice it appears not so much. My LGS told me last year that there are a ton of them sitting at his distributor and that he can get one anytime he wants but whenever he does they sit for months before anyone will buy one. So he leaves them sit at the distributor. My LGS also stocks .327 ammo but that too sits on the shelf for long periods of time.
Nobody wants to be an early adopter. They complain that there aren't enough loads available and that the price is too high. They say they are interested but will wait until it becomes popular. Unfortunately while everyone is waiting the round is dying. It is disappointing but not unexpected I guess. Look at the .41 Magnum and the .45 GAP. Those are some great cartridges that are not as popular as they should be IMO. But nobody wants to adopt anything that they can't find in bulk sitting on the floor of their LGS or on the shelf at Wal-Mart. Even fantastic cartridges like .357 Sig and 10mm are almost in that group though they seem to be mildly popular at least.
It also didn't help that shortly after this cartridge was released there was an election that caused a panic and it became impossible to find many types of ammo. The ammunition manufacturers all went into maximum production mode to try and keep up with the demand and I doubt that .327 magnum was at the top of the production schedule. So when the supply of .327 dried up, it dried up. It became very difficult to find .327 ammo during that time and it seemed like .327 was one of the last cartridges to come back when the panic started to end.
I hope I am wrong and I hope that in a few years people start to see the light, but I don't think I am. That isn't to say that you shouldn't buy one though and I am not trying to talk you out of it. Ammo is still available and while it may be higher priced it is most likely going to be available for a long time. For a SD gun the .327 still makes a great cartridge. It doesn't have to be popular to work very well and if I ever have to shoot someone I am won't really care about how much the bullet cost me or how many rap songs it has been mentioned in. I still like the .327 very much and regardless of my predictions of its future I will never get rid of mine.
