Federal Adds Magnum Loads to Personal Defense Line

Respected manufacturer Federal Ammunition is taking the needs of all self-defense gun owners into consideration by expanding their Personal Defense lineup to include a pair of magnum loads: 327 Federal Magnum and 357 Magnum. The ammo maker is building what is one of their most popular lines of personal defense ammunition, giving shooters who use magnum loads a reliable and effective option for revolvers (and the occasional semi-automatic).

The latest addition to Federal’s Personal Defense line is 357 Magnum. Nickel-plates cases on the new magnum loads improve visibility in low-light situations. (Photo credit: Federal Ammunition)

Federal Ammunition Handgun Product Director, Mike Holm had this to say regarding the newest additions to the line: “When it comes to choosing a caliber for personal defense, the 357 Magnum and 327 Federal Magnum continue to be popular choices. A big reason for the continued popularity of these calibers is the preference to carry a revolver for everyday carry. We are excited to add these new loads to the already proven line of HST Personal Defense handgun ammunition.”

327 Federal Magnum is a new addition to the company's Personal Defense line.
327 Federal Magnum is a new addition to the company’s Personal Defense line. (Photo credit: Federal Ammunition)

“Users that want to carry a magnum caliber for personal defense, want to utilize the full benefit of them. The specially engineered 104-grain 327 Federal Magnum and 154-grain 357 Magnum HST Jacketed Hollow Points were designed to take full advantage of magnum cartridges with consistent terminal performance,” continued Holm.” The bullet still has to perform well in personal defense scenarios. This is why the HST JHP was built to pass through a variety of materials without plugging up. The bullet jacket and core hold together to provide nearly 100-percent weight retention through common defensive barriers.”

Features of these latest additions include:

  • Significantly reduced felt recoil
  • Superior accuracy and overall ballistic performance
  • Hydra-Shok bullet’s notched copper jacket creates consistent expansion
  • Center-post hollow-point design enhances reliable expansion
  • Nickel-plated case for heightened visibility in low-light situations

327 Federal Magnum was designed in 2007 by Federal Ammunition to create a more compact, larger-capacity revolver option for gun owners. The new 327 Federal Magnum load from the company is 85 grain with a jacketed hollow point bullet and manufacturer-tested 1400 feet per second muzzle velocity through a 4-inch barrel. Velocity drops to 1306 feet per second and 25 yards and 1221 feet per second at 50 yards. Muzzle energy is listed as 370 foot-pounds with a drop to 322 foot-pounds at 25 yards and 281 foot-pounds at 50 yards.

Energy results for 327 Federal Magnum from Federal Ammunition.
Energy results for 327 Federal Magnum from Federal Ammunition. (Photo credit: Federal Ammunition)

On the 357 Magnum side, the Personal Defense HST has a 130 grain jacketed hollow point and a manufacturer-tested muzzle velocity of 1410 feet per second. Their testing shows a 25-yard velocity of 1331 feet per second and a 50-yard velocity of 1258 feet per second. Muzzle energy is listed as 574 foot-pounds, dropping to 511 foot-pounds at 25 yards and 457 foot-pounds at 50 yards. As with the 327 Federal Magnum, Federal states ballistics testing was done with a 4-inch barrel.

The new Federal Ammunition Personal Defense HST 357 Magnum and 327 Federal Magnum join an already proven line of Personal Defense HST loads including 30 Super Carry, 9mm Luger, 9mm Luger +P, 357 SIG, 40 S&W, 10mm Auto, 45 Auto, and 45 Auto +P.

MSRP for a 20-round box of either cartridge is $35.99.