Ruger Single Seven .327 Fed Mag HOME!

[Hatchdog]

I’ve been looking for a 32 caliber magnum revolver and a local guy offered me his Lipsey’s Exclusive Single Seven. It’s a .327 Federal Magnum which means of course it will also shoot 32 H&R mag and 32 S&W Long. The Lipsey’s features are the XS Big Dot front sight, V notch rear, black Macarta grips and this particular model from Lipsey’s in only available in the 4 5/8” barrel. It’s a seven shot with an aluminum frame. Lipsey’s designed it to be a light weight but effective trail gun.

The cylinder is non-fluted which is not my first choice but as Shaky Jake mentioned in the weather topic his revolver is non-fluted too and probably all Single Sevens are. I read that Ruger designed the cylinder notches to land in between the chambers in order to retain cylinder strength. This probably explains why it is non-fluted.

It’s currently in background check jail and I should be able to bring it home in 6-10 days. I did take this picture but the shadows hide the sights somewhat. When I get it home I’ll post better pics. I’m starting to accumulate a modest collection of 32 caliber firearms and I’ll post up a family picture when the new baby comes home.

076ECF03-634F-40A4-BDB9-6A23E6B8412F.jpeg

[North Country Gal]

Congrats. You're going to enjoy that Single Seven. I had the stainless version with the 5 1/2" barrel and it did well with any 32s I fed it and my favs were the 32 H&Rs. It's definitely one gun I wish I had kept when we sold off many of our guns. If I found another one I liked, it would be hard to pass up.

[Travlin]

I think that you will find that the cylinder notches are off set because it is a seven shot. Five shot revolvers are the same.

[Hatchdog]

I think that you will find that the cylinder notches are off set because it is a seven shot. Five shot revolvers are the same.

That makes sense! I’ll take a closer look when I get it home.

[John E Davies]

I quite like the SIngle Seven in .327 but I had no luck with mine. I got one of the very first ones with 6 inch barrel in stainless. It would not run at all, the cylinder pin would work forward, locking up the cylinder. Empty cases would stick in two of the chambers. The timing was off and loading rounds was difficult due to the location of the notches and the too small gate opening. I did check it out before buying but none of these issues were apparent at the gun store. I sent it back to Ruger, said fix this please, they responded that they were “unable to correct the problems” and would I accept a revolver in a different caliber, like an SP101 in .357 Mag? I said no, I want a .327 Federal please. They could not provide an acceptable replacement in that caliber, so I demanded and got a full refund. After a while I bought an SP101 .327 4.2” and have been very pleased with it. All this happened in late 2014, I would be very suspicious of any Single Seven in this serial number range….

76D96D76-AF62-4154-B966-E883EAED8954.jpeg

I am sure that whatever the heck was going on with the early Single Sevens was quickly corrected, I am sure yours will be fine, but it does seem to me that Ruger is rushing guns into production without enough real world testing. I had a SRH in .480 that also had some serious issues, like factory ammo cases seizing and variable chamber diameters, and Ruger stopped making guns in that caliber entirely for a couple of years. They eventually replaced the six hole cylinders with five hole ones in that caliber and that corrected the case sticking problem. With these Rugers, you throw the dice and take your chances. I would still buy another, without hesitation, the customer service is stellar.

John Davies
Spokane WA

[North Country Gal]

John, when I was shopping for my Single Seven at various local shops, I saw a lot of examples of Sevens that never should have left the factory. I waited until I found a Seven that passed my personal inspection. That's the only way I will ever buy a Ruger revolver or any brand of revolver, short of Freedom Arms, but especially a Ruger. Hey, I'm a fan of Ruger single actions and when I've found a good one, couldn't be happier. Just have to be patient and wait till you find one.

[Hatchdog]

I have read quite a bit about the early Single Sevens and the problems with the loading gate and timing issues. I believe this Lipsey’s Exclusive was released in 2018 so I’m optimistic the early gremlins have been worked out. The guy I got it from had only fired it three times so was unable to give me any feedback regarding problems.

Thanks to you John and NCG for the info and I hope to report back that all is well in the Single Seven world

[North Country Gal]

Hope you get a good one, Hatch, because a Single Seven is a great single action when you do.

[Travlin]

Interestingly I have read tests on the Single Seven and the 5 1/2" barrel had a higher velocity than the 7 !/2" with all of the loads tested factory and handloads.

[North Country Gal]

Not surprised, given the 327 was designed as a self-defense cartridge and alternative to the 357. It was made with short barrel revolvers in mind.

[Hatchdog]

Picked up my Single Seven yesterday so I finally got a chance to handle it a bit more. One of the big complaints on the early Single Sevens was that the chambers didn’t line up with the loading gate very well causing some to have to rotate the cylinder all the way around for a second chance at loading that particular chamber. I’m happy to report that mine lines up perfectly with all the chambers and loading it was a breeze. Don’t know about unloading yet as I have not fired it but the loaded ctgs. dropped out easily. We’ll see once the brass is expanded after firing. It might take a bit of getting used to the V notch rear sight. One writer spoke of using the sight to allow for different ranges by placing the Big Dot front sight at different locations in the notch. I’ll have to go back and re-read the piece for a better understanding. Not really a big deal as the sight is adjustable. I’m partial to Hogue grips on my handguns so I’ll have to see about these Macarta grips. They are very good looking but seem a bit slick I think. Anyway, here’s some better pics.

64FA342E-9B97-4827-8BED-FE9537F8CDD2.jpeg

6807FB34-AB7D-471E-8A84-A37D26D4C34F.jpeg

7E3A0CE8-3C6C-4028-AB7D-E4DC6F5CB4F0.jpeg

BB1C63CA-2644-4A04-96AD-79EDFA5773B7.jpeg

The 32 caliber family.

A54866D9-E8CE-4A31-9123-A3B20BAD313A.jpeg

[North Country Gal]

Looks good. I hate v notch rear sights. First thing to go when I buy a gun with one. The theory of the V notch is that it is fast to acquire and use, but my experience has been exactly the opposite. It's slow and, not only that, not as accurate as a good standard set of open sights. The good news is that you can always just replace the blade pin Ruger sights or just replace the rear sight with a standard rear sight.

[Shakey Jake]

You're right about having to go a second time around on the cylinder to expel cases. It's a moderate PITA but it does happen once in a while. Enjoy your Single Seven. I just got some .32 H&R cases in today. I thought I'd try shooting some through my Single Seven and LCR to see how they shoot.
Jake

[BigAl52]

I wouldnt mind having an LCRX in 327 but when I looked for one the price of them had sky rocketed and I didnt think I needed one that bad.

[North Country Gal]

Note that the front sight on the 32 H&R Single Sixes and Single Sevens is not the same height as a standard 22 LR Single Six. It is taller, so don't replace it with a 22 LR Single Six front sight. Rear sight is the same, so I agree with PJM to just replace the whole thing if you don't like the V notch.

[Hatchdog]

Thanks for the advice NCG and PJM. If I don’t like the V notch I’ll take your advice and just replace the entire sight. I don’t want to mess with those tiny parts.

Al,

I got fortunate and bought my LCRX used from a local guy. He had replaced the front sight with a high vis and it had a CT laser on the trigger guard. I liked the laser but it’s my pocket gun and the laser made it difficult to get out of the holster so I took it off. It’s a handful with the full power 100 grain Federals but really nice to shoot the H&R magnums. I carry the Federal Hydro-Shok low recoil but they pack a pretty good punch too. I’ll save my 100 grain Federals for the Henry.