There's not a ton of info on the LCR 327 out there and even less on how the gun shoots with various cartridges so I thought I could add some value with my experience so far.  I note that one question I saw a lot when doing my research was how bad is the recoil with certain loads.

To start with, I purchased a S&W 638 a few months ago.  It's in .38 special, of course.  I had owned a 642 decades ago but had forgotten why I got rid of it.  The 638 reminded me.  I loved how easy it was to pocket and carry around the house and I even liked the looks of it, although I hated the lock.  However, that gun was one of the most painful guns I have ever shot.  No matter what grips I tried (and I tried a lot) it couldn't stop the discomfort.  This affected my shooting considerably.  My last range trip I couldn't get through a cylinder of 5 standard pressure range ammo without experiencing significant pain.  I had attributed this to me being recoil sensitive, but I think it had more to do with the way the J frames fit me.  They just don't work with my hands.

I've also owned two LCRs before.  A 9mm and a .22.  The 22 I couldn't hit much with.  The trigger isn't that great.  The 9mm I found too painful, much like the J frames, and got rid of.

I went to the LGS with the 638 with the plan to sell it and maybe see what else might strike my fancy.  I still needed small gun but I don't trust micro-sized autoloaders based on previous experience.  The LGS had the hammerless LCR in 327 there that caught my eye.  It ended up coming home with me.  I knew a little about the 327 and given my experience with the 638 I figured I could shoot 32 Longs or maybe H&R mags so that I wouldn't end up in pain.

Finding ammo, especially now, was difficult.  None of the various cartridges this revolver shoots appear to be all that popular.  I still haven't found range ammo for this revolver.  I'll end up ordering some 32 Longs online as I could only find a box or two at the LGSs I visited for about $60 a box.  I didn't bother at those prices.  The gun store I did get the revolver from had a small hoard of the 327 Federal Low Recoil load (85grn) and I bought almost all of it (9 boxes in total).  I ended up ordering some ammo from Buffalo Bore as well - the "heavy" 32 H&R and the "heavy" 327.  I really wanted to find the Gold Dot as well, which is reportedly the "best" ballistically.  As luck would have it, I found another gun store and was able to purchase 4 boxes of it.  It was the newer 100grn loading, but it was new old stock from 2017 with tarnished brass cases.  It's not pretty, but it runs.

I love the Hogue Tamer grips that come with the revolver.  They fit my hand very well and do a great job of distributing the recoil forces all over your hand, as opposed to centralizing it into a narrow band.  With my first range session, I fired a 20 round box of the Federal 327, as that was all I had.  I was pleasantly surprised to find that I didn't mind the recoil all that much.  It didn't hurt at all.  It didn't numb my hand or cause pain in the webbing.  It kicked a bit but that's about it.

The most exciting part for me was the accuracy.  I think this gun just fits me well, and so I was able to ring out some practical accuracy that exceeded some of my service-size pistols.  It had me rethinking my carry lineup since I could get fullsize performance out of a pocket gun.  I wasn't dealing with the typical limitations of a pocket gun, where I'm sacrificing practical distance or going to a lesser caliber.  I started at 5 yards and kept moving the target back, as I was drilling out the center of the target.  I put most of the box downrange at 25 yards and was impressed to see that I kept everything in a 5 inch circle at this distance.  As I said, I struggle to do that with larger guns.  I'm guessing that this had more to do with fit that anything, as well as the incredible trigger.  I think this gun just fits me like a glove.

Emboldened by this experience, I began searching for some loads that would give me the full magnum experience.  I figured I could handle it.  So I got the Buffalo Bore loads and the Gold Dot I talked about above.  The punch line is that the recoil wasn't that bad with any of them.  I took my Federal Low Recoil, 32 H&R, "heavy" 327, and Gold Dot to the range and fired them side by side.  The Gold Dot had more oomph to it, but it wasn't markedly so in my hands.  In firing a mixed cylinder with all the loads I had trouble identifying one from the next.  The upside is that the full house magnums aren't that much worse.  The downside is the the Buffalo Bore H&Rs aren't that much better in terms of recoil.  

I could see this gun becoming my primary carry given my performance with it.  It'll certainly be a go to in the summer at the very least.  Two thumbs up!

A Ruger LCR with .327 Fed is my EDC.  Lightweight, easy to CC.

I save the other cartridges for the range.

What load do you carry?  Is that the Federal low recoil?

Have you fired 32 acp through it?  I have heard conflicting reports.

I've been wanting to pick one of these up ever since the luckygunner video on it 327: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rz_m4M8CAe0

The ammopocalypse makes it not worth my while right now. But at some point I'll probably end up with one.

They have a vid on 32acp in 32 revolvers too: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YCEvzxa5yr0

The big thing is that the 32acp projectile is a hair smaller in diameter than the 32 revolver calibers, which leads to destabilized, tumbling bullets, killing accuracy. You can see them keyholing in the video.

I love mine, but it is still a little too big for pocket carry. The 642 is so much easier. Maybe I can find another holster that will work better in the front pocket. If I have to carry on the hip, I might as well go back to the Hellcat. 14 rounds beats 6 every time.

I have the LCR and a full size GP100 with 4 inch barrel.

This cartridge really shines for the reloader. I use the 32 SW Long to introduce new shooters in particular.

The 32 H&R Mag provides acceptable self defense performance with a recoil force that most people can handle.

I find that true full power 327 Fed Mag, out of a snubby, is probably too much for many, but is certainly easier to handle than 357 Mag out of a short barrel.

I think that 6 rounds of 327 Fed Mag out of a backup gun provides pretty good odds when push comes to shove.

Luckily, I acquired components prior to the troubles...

Nice writeup OP. I've also recently got into .32 cal wheel guns via an old 3" Smith model 31 in .32 long. Haven't shot it yet but I wanted a lower recoil J frame without going to rimfire (with its stiffer trigger) and the 6th round should be nice. I imagine this will lead me to getting a .327 counterpart and trying some of the hotter cartridges.

I know it wouldn't be available in the People's Republic of California, but part of me wants to see a 3" LCR or LCRx in .327. Or even just .32 H&R and be a little lighter...maybe not though.

My wife loves her 327 lcr.

Of course she can't handle the full power magnum loads.

I reload for her carry and training loads.

She trains with the 32 s&w longs. I've made her a custom hot 32 h&r mag load, 100gr XTP, that approaches a 9mm defensive load performance with a milder recoil impulse.

I carry a 357 lcr with custom loads that duplicate 10mm performance.

We've been very pleased with the Rugers.

Have an SP101 in 327 and it’s a great gun, in all five calibers!  Hoping to add an LCR and a lever gun…if they come out with a side gate loading model!

For some reason, which Ruger won’t tell anyone why, they refuse to make a 3 inch LCR.

I guess they don’t like money.

I'm guessing 327 doesn't sell well. If it did we'd probably see a 3". I too was thinking that a 3" would be awesome. I'd buy one.

It's got me thinking about an SP101 in 327. The last thing I need is another handgun though.

I do love this little LCR.

They were making sp101s, gp100s, and single-sevens, probably why. Now none are available it seems. I have the lcrx .327 and it’s pretty nice. I have the regular tamer grip but prefer the longer hogue tamer w/o finger grooves. It shoots real well and  accurate, tolerable recoil with this setup. I agree the LCR is not really a pocket gun, much prefer a j-frame.

Which is weird, because I would think (meaning I don't really know and I'm guessing) that the barrel threads into the frame would be the same between the LCR and LCRx. So it should be trivial to put the 3" barrel into the LCR frame, if by some miracle I guessed right.

Is 327 dead?  I read some stuff about manufacturers listing it in their catalogue but not actually making it for years. I read somewhere that the Gold Dots haven't been made in 5 years. Don't know if that's true. Everything is hard to find right now so I don't know if it's just that or if the caliber is basically toast.

I would think so too.

For a gun that some think is not very popular, you’re hard pressed to find them on the shelves. Everyone who has one, loves it. The versatility is a big selling point. I think there’s plenty of demand to keep ammo companies busy.

Yeah.
And with a hammer spur.
I am going to try the tarass 327 3" if they ever make any.
$700 for a half plastic Ruger angers me too.
Prolly just clown world pricing still.

I have a 638 and love it. I wish S&W would make it in a six shot in 327. I would get an LCR like yours OP, but ammo availability  has kept me from it. Having said, I probably wouldn't shoot often so a box or two would go a long way.

I got a new to me S&W 31-1 .32 long.  So far I have only loaded commercial cast LRFP bullets over 2.0 to 2.4 grains W 231.  It makes me giggle it is such a mild pop gun.

I just ordered a 98 grain Keith style mold.   Hopefully I can soon get better than the Cast Perfmance brand bullets lack of quality, wrinkled bullets, un filled bases, misaligned bullet halves.  

SP101 conflict???

I’d much prefer a model 16 4” six shot but a Sp 101 could easily go home with me.

Attached File

LCRx

They make the LCRx in 3". Which is a straight-up SP101 competitor. The regular LCR, "hammerless", is not so direct a competitor.

Like the OP, I find that the lightweight J frame Smith & Wessons sting quite a bit when I fire them. My daily carry is a S & W Model 10 but in my old age I'd like something lighter. The three inch LCRx in .38 Spl +P caught my eye and the YouTube reviews are mostly positive so I'll be buying one soon.
See the link for the various offerings of the LCRx.
LCRx models.

Five shot .38, not a six shot .327 which is what some folks want.

If the "X" was available in a six round 327, I'd have one.

Now that I have Hogues on my 101, shooting 9x19mm out of it is fun.  I've heard the LCR platform seemingly reduces perceived recoil compared to lightweight unitary metal framed revolvers, but it's interesting that OP ditched the LCR in 9x19mm.  The .327 is an interesting cartridge, I hope we'll see some conversions to .30 SC moonclips soon.

The 9mm LCR was painful. But the 327 with magnums is not a big deal. Can't explain it.

I'm wondering if part of my previous issues were that the other LCRs had an external hammer. I have a theory that this may have a negative impact on DA pull because this is the first LCR that has wowed me.  The lack of a hammer may have allowed me to get a higher grip which helped recoil.

In the end I can only tell you my experience. I can't necessarily explain why .

Or maybe my 327 got sprinkled with magic fairy dust.  I can hit so well at distance with little effort. It's great.

My other 38 snubs are on the chopping block now.