Isher2000 said:
A friend is selling a nice stainless "SSM" Single Six with white grips in .32 H & R magnum.
I have heard of reputable gunsmiths that are converting .32 H & R SP101 revolvers to .327 Federal by lengthening the chambers. By all accounts these are working out quite well. However the SP101 has a .357 mag. length cylinder and is built with more metal in key areas.
The "SSM" was born before the .327 Federal came on the scene as I recall.
What is your opinion on the:
1. Safety
2. Practicality
... of boring out the chambers on an "SSM" to .327 Federal length and shooting full charge commercial .327 Federal cartridges in it. This could include the full charge Speer 100 and 115gr. Gold-Dot and I suppose even the Buffalo Bore 130gr. hard cast loads.
Is the "SSM" cylinder long enough to support the .327 Fed. with an adequate safety margin? Is the cylinder heat treated to take the jump in pressure?
Do you know of anyone trying this and if so what was the outcome?
Yes I know recoil would get a lot worse but I shoot these loads in a 3" S&W 632-1 Power-Port J-frame now so it couldn't be much worse than that. http://www.rugerforum.com/phpBB3/posting.php?mode=post&f=12#
Yes I also know Ruger offers (on a limited basis) the .327 as a SP101, Blackhawk, GP-100 and even an LCR I think though finding any of these seems to be difficult.
Thanks for your comments.
Rick
Hi Rick,
Welcome to the forum.
There's many opinions but few backed by real experience. After having reamed a dozen or so Ruger SSMs to 327 Fed mags in the 10 years prior to Ruger's release of their Single Seven shot I can honestly say I've had no problems whatsoever.
1. Safety -
Ruger's 7 shot may have been designed to squeeze another round out of their single six platform (it's the same frame size as the 22.). Ruger seems to have a penchant of late, to have as many chambers in a cyl that will reasonably fit, i.e., the single nine, single ten, 8 shot 327 on the large frame Blackhawk, and most recently the single seven .327 Mag.
Or the 7 shot may have been because an odd # of chambers moves the cyl notch from being centered on the chambers where it's the proverbial weak point of any revolver chamber, to the notch being located between the chambers. That extra strength is one reason that big bore custom revolvers have 5 chambers in most cases.
Therefore if you want to load hot, experiment with longer heavier bullets, and/or experiment with "Ruger Only Loads", I suggest buying a Single 7.
2. Practicality -
Yes, the Ruger 327 S7 cyl and the customs are longer than the 32 H&R SSMs. The cyl uses the entire length of the frame window.
Custom 327 Rugers are very expensive but you get what you pay for and WAIT for. This is a very personal preference only you can decide. Personally, I'd rather have three production guns for the price of one custom.
Even the Bearcat has been converted to a 5 shot 327 by the top pistol smiths.
If you really want a stout 327 that will handle any load you can think up and with any length bullet, I'd recommend the 8 shot stainless Blackhawk or the 6 shot Blackhawk "Buckeye" 32 H&R/32-20 convertible model by reaming its .32 cyl to 327 mag. I've done a few of these. Neither are still produced but they can be found.
3. Recoil -
in the small frame Ruger S6 or S7 can be stout with ROLs but still a non-issue IMO.
4. 32 H&R conversion -
It is true that all the 'professional' conversions use a longer new made cylinder that fills the cyl window and no barrel protruding thru the frame. But after speaking with a few custom builders, they had no concerns over cyl strength.
I do not build cylinders and did not like the price of custom built cyls. I decided the .32 Mag cyl would have to do. Factory loaded .327 Mag cartridges are only ~.003" longer than the factory 32 H&R chambers. Originally I thought I'd have to run the factory loads thru my seating die and seat the bullets a couple of .001" deeper in the case, but didn't have to. Believe it or not they function perfectly by taking advantage of the barrel/cylinder gap spacing. I know it might be counterintuitive but as they say, truth can be stranger than fiction. Even though the .327 Fed mags in the 85 Gr HP Hyrda shock and 100 gr FP loads are longer than the .32 H&R Mag chambers, the ~ .005" bar/cyl gap is sufficient for the loaded cyl to rotate w/o interference.
So after reaming and shooting my first five .32 H&R Mag cylinders converted to .327 for several years, I've yet to experience any problems. I shoot full mag loads and some medium reloads. I've never tried to hot rod the cartridge in my conversions. If one reloads with heavier bullets the extra length is usually at the base of the bullet and goes in the case rather than having a longer nose. Even if the nose is a bit longer, the bullets can be seated in the cases a bit deeper so they don't exceed an overall cartridge length of 1.460" the maximum 32 H&R cyl chamber length. Of course use caution to avoid compressed powder charges.
Reaming is extremely simple because such a small amount of material is removed to extend the chamber shoulder: .130", just a bit more than 1/8" deeper (better a little extra than too short). It's a 20 minute ream job in a drill press on the slowest speed setting but some less expensive drill presses may not go slow enough. You can also mount the cyl squarely in a vise and use a variable speed hand drill or a 'T' handle to turn the reamer by hand.
Pacific Tool Makes a 327 reamer:
http://shop.pacifictoolandgauge.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=135
http://shop.pacifictoolandgauge.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=135_427&sort=20a&page=15
$119
A reamer can be rented as well.
New Model SSM conversion with stainless grip frame:
Some of my local friends wanted Old Model 3 screw single sixes converted. Of course they are all rim fires so a simple firing pin conversion is also required:
Had to enlarge the loading gate chute slightly for the larger cases.
In these two shots, you can see where I plugged and re-drilled to lower the RF firing pin and recoil plate for center fire.
