.41 Magnum

T

tjhands

New member
I'm looking down the road a bit, but I think my next gun may be a .41 magnum. I love the idea of filling the gap between .357 magnum and .44 magnum, even though this gun will most likely be limited to target practice and plinking.
I have been browsing on gunbroker.com and have seen some GORgeous S&W Model 57's.
Can y'all give me your opinions on this caliber or your particular model? I'd like to stick to those who actually own a .41 or have shot one extensively. This isn't meant to be a flame thread. Include pictures if you have them. I'm open to all brands and will be reloading my own ammo, so cost and scarcity of ammo will not be an issue for me. My funds will be around $600. Thanks, as always! :p
 
Tjhands,

First, congrats on your decision to buy a .41 Mag. You'll find them fun to shoot and maybe find yourself getting spoiled by them!

I've owned a pair of S&W Model 57's and a Model 58 (M&P model). All were excellent shooters and nicely built. I've fired one of the Taurus 415T revolvers - a 5-shot, medium Titanium alloy framed 2" .41 Magnum! With the ported barrel and the Taurus grips it wasn't as bad as most people might think. Stout? Sure. But no worse than a .357 Mag snubbie and perhaps more controllable.

I've not even seen one of the fabled Colt Anacondas in .41 Mag. Nor have I fired any of the Rugers - either the SA model or their Redhawk. I do have one of the Marlin 1894FG carbines in .41 Mag and it's a delightful shooter.

With moderate loads, the .41 Mag is about like firing a .45ACP +P load. Not exactly a mild range load, but acceptable and not punishing. Accuracy depends on several factors (see below) but when factory ammo is used the .41 Mag can maintain good groups out to 75+yards with iron sights.

Let's talk ballistics a moment.
You'll hear .44 fans say there's nothing the .41 can do that the .44 can't do better. Well, almost. Ballistically speaking, there's not a huge difference between the two rounds. I believe the edge for penetration goes to the .41 however, as every test I've made with factory ammo shows the .41 penetrating anywhere from 1/2" to 1.75" further, depending on the medium.

There are a lot more loads, bullet weights & designs for the .44 Mag than for it's "Little Brother" the .41. However, the .41 seems to be staging something of a comeback. Speer is offering it's Gold Dot ammo in .41 Mag and S&W has just produced 2 new guns for the caliber. Marlin brought back the .41 lever gun for another production run. Hunters are the primary user of the caliber and claim it's very good on deer sized game. Plus it's potent enough for most bear.

The standard loading is the 210gr bullet at 1300fps / 788 ft-lbs for a jacketed hunting round. Federal has a newer 250gr Cast-Core hunting load at 1250fps / 867 ft-lbs. Speer's 210gr Gold Dot JHP runs 1280/764ft-lbs. Winchester's 240gr Platinum Tip (PTHP) flies at 1250fps/833 ft-lbs and their "lightweight" 175gr SilverTip (STHP) speeds out at 1250fps for 607ft-lbs.

Handloading for the .41 offers a wider variety of bullet choices using cast lead bullets and some jacketed ones. I've used LSWC 200, 215 and 220 grain bullets in the .41 Mag with good results.

The .41 Mag is an unusual critter, in my opinion. If you drive the bullets too slow (under 850fps) accuracy suffers. It seems that the "sweet spot" for most of the bullets tends to be between 1150 and 1450 fps. This may be because of the length-to-diameter ratio of the bullet, but I'm only guessing. At around 1300fps with a 210gr bullet the .41 is plenty accurate, if a tad stout on the wrist.

One local ammo reloader/manufacturer here in CA that I've dealt with who is reasonable is Load-X. He has .41 Mag (new) with 210gr XTP bullets for $14/50.

Pictures --
M57M1894.jpg

Marlin 1894FG .41 Mag rifle and S&W Model 57 (1984)

M57ch.jpg

Close up: S&W Model 57 (1984) Recessed, not pinned.
 
Do you already have a .357 or .44mag? Do you have a favorite caliber? More important, do you want to protect your opinion of .357mag and/or .44mag? Stay away from .41mag at all costs!!!!


I bought a S&W 57 about a year and a half ago and it has been terrible.

Long before I got my first gun .357mag was my caliber. It was definately my favorite. When I started shooting I couldn't wait to rent a .357mag and when I did it solidified my view of the caliber. Soon into gun ownership (within 6-8 months) I had my first .357mag. I've had four of them and currently own 3. By far it was always my favorite caliber...until I shot the .41mag.

Darned .41mag, it is about halfway in power between the .357 and .44mag and more than enough to handle anything I'll encounter in my part of the country (certainly "good enough" for black bear defense), the recoil is also about halfway between but I think the way it recoils may be more pleasant than .357mag (heavier, but a slower push, much less snap). Everytime I fire one I can't wipe the darned smile off my face.

Now, I find I shoot far less .357 than before. While I always shot quite a few .38s out of my .357s than magnums, now they are almost exclusively .38spls. If I want to shoot magnums I'll shoot .41mag. The only drawback of the cartrige is they aren't that easy to find and they are certainly not cheap. You will need to reload.

As for the S&W 57, mine is a first year model (I forget if it was 63 or 64, but I remember when looking into it I found it was the first year they were made). The bluing is georgeous, fit and finish perfect, feel in the hand is incredible (N-frames seem about perfect in 6"), it is amazingly accurate, and the trigger pull is pure heaven. Otherwise, it is a pretty average handgun.
 
There's nothing wrong with the .41, but there's really nothing it can do that the .44 doesn't do a bit better. There's a wider selection of loaded ammo for the .44 and a bigger choice of bullets for reloading. The .41 ammo is also less common if you find yourself needing to pick up some store-bought at the last minute.

On paper the 41 is about 15% less than the 44 and that's what it feels like when I shoot it. Due to the cost and scarcity of factory fodder the 41 is a caliber that really needs reloading.

If restricted to one or the other, I think the 44 is the better choice. I have both, because I'm an American, dammit, and it's my God-given right to own guns of all calibers.

Sorry, got carried away.

I bought this 4" nickeled M57 last year for $325 off AuctionArms. I think that was a good deal. I was willing to go $400 but nobody bid against me.

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Got this M58 in the late 1980s when some dealer was dumping police trade-ins. I don't know what department used this one, but they had a bag full of them at $189. I should've bought them all.

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i first came upon the .41 mag several years back when a buddy of mine had one. i was intrigued, but it remained largely forgotten until about 2 years ago. i was looking for a new .45 and told the guy i carried it in the woods for bear protection.

he says, .45 will just make 'em mad, you need a .41 mag. the spark ignited the previous memories and the search was on.

only current production model i could find was the taurus tracker. picked up one of the titanium jobs, kindof an impulse buy. not a bad gun, but it just didn't feel solid to me.

after a bunch more research, i ended up with this one:
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this one i really like!

BillCA, if you don't quit posting photos of that 57 i'm going to have to start charging you for keyboards. everytime i see it i drool all over mine!

buying .41 mag also got me into handloading, since the factory ammo offerings are slim and slightly pricey. check out this bullet:http://www.castperformance.com/user...d984e7913114af146919880239c16bfe&Iit=61&Ict=1
now that one is a thumper!

i just happen to be a little eccentric, so the .41 mag floats my boat. hope you enjoy yours!
 
pick my 6" blued 57 up a couple of years ago, 425.00, seemed a bit steep at the time, but seems to be the going price in my neck of the woods.
 

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One thing you notice about the .41s is that they aren't real choosey about ammo. They shoot most brands or any decent handload rather well. They do bridge the gap between the .357 and the .44, but they are much closer to the .44. Ammo has always been the sore spot with the caliber as there isn't much of a variety in factory loads compared to the other magnums. It comes into it's own with handloading. When I first started shooting the .41 about 25 years ago you could count the factory loads on one hand and have a finger or two left over and then all stores wouldn't have any in stock. Handloading was almost a neccessity.
The guns can be like candy and like the others I have a few of them. 3 M57s (A 6" and 2 4"), a M657 (3"), and 2 Ruger Bisleys (7.5" and 5.5"). I would like to find a blue Redhawk w/5.5" barrel, a Dan Wesson (Monson), and have a Marlin lever action on order now.
If you do the .41 a few times watch out. It can become highly addictive.

BTW.....Colt never put the Anaconda or Python on the market in .41 mag.
 
Person of Interest:
You just avenged Redhawk41 for the drool on his keyboard. I just drooled all over mine at your Nickle M57! And for $325 - that's a great deal. Here in the PRK, I'd have quickly gone to $500 for that gun (in Excellent cond.) and I'm not a big fan of nickle guns -- but I'd love it in a .41 Mag. The M58 is a great gun too. Mine had a very smooth, slick trigger and was dead on target from 10 to 25 yards with the Remington 210 LSWC loads.

Redhawk41
See my comment to POI above. :D Nice Redhawk! How's the accuracy? Also, there used to be some 220gr LSWC bullets available with one big cannalure for lubing and longish noses. These were hard cast and when driven about 1200fps were "right on the money" at 50 yards. And they'd drill right through a 6x6 or a 56 DeSoto door like it was butter. :eek:

Majic
My local gun dealer showed me his "blue book" guide for firearms. I didn't get the title of the book but he was looking up Colts at the time. He knows my penchant for .41 Mags and said that Colt made only 410 Colt Anaconda's in .41 Magnum, all in stainless steel with a 6" barrel. If you can find one, be prepared. "Excellent" condition specimens will fetch $2750 and NIB $3200! I suspect there are some 300 safes somewhere with these stashed away.

Chaim
If your M57 is a first year production model it will have an "S" serial number prefix. The "S" serial numbers run from S227750 to S333454 and can add 25% to 75% to the gun's value! Keep that bad boy in good shape!

Your description of the .41 Mag recoil is pretty good too. It's more than the .357, but more like a big push instead of a snap. I've likened the difference to a bare-handed catch of a line drive baseball (.357) vs. a softball (.41).
 
Also check recent related thread

Another thread has covered this recently also with good info
 
The .41 Mag is the lower threshhold of the "do it all" handgun calibers. By that, I mean that if you shoot a critter with the right .41 Magnum load, and it doesn't go down, then you probably shouldn't have been shooting it with a pistol in the first place; one of the old Cor-Bon 265gr LFN's @ 1325fps has the steam and the sectional density to plow clean through most any critter this side of Africa.

The .41 Magnum is indeed a little more expensive to shoot than the .44, and bullet selection isn't as great, but recoil is a little milder while giving up very little in performance. Plus, not everybody and their grandma has one. A little bit of exclusivity on the firing line is worth a couple of extra bucks to some folks... :)

The gun below started its life as a plain old Pachmayr-wearing 6" square butt Model 57.
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1) Replace 6" barrel with 4" quad Mag-Na-Ported barrel.
2) Bob hammer.
3) Perform service action job.
4) Round-butt frame and restore serrations on backstrap.
5) Red-ramp front sight and add white-outline rear blade.
6) Re-finish in matte blue.
7) Replace trigger with smooth combat trigger (not yet done at time of photo.)
 
WELL! It appears as though the mighty but often-ignored .41 Magnum still has a solid fan base! Nice pictures all around, people - thank you very much for the advice. I love tapping this pool of experience and informantion. Thanks again, and hopefully in a few months I'll have my own pic to post. :D

Have a good weekend, y'all.
 
Ruger Blackhawk, 6 ½" barrel
Ruger Redhawk, 5 ½" barrel
S&W M57, P&R, nickel, 6" barrel
S&W M657-4, 6" barrel

About the only load I've ever used in any of them is Elmer's old standard of 20.0 grains of 2400, CCI-300, and a cast 220 grain SWC. It works quite well in all of them, so I've never changed.
 
Chaim
If your M57 is a first year production model it will have an "S" serial number prefix. The "S" serial numbers run from S227750 to S333454 and can add 25% to 75% to the gun's value! Keep that bad boy in good shape!
Click to expand...

Mine is S249xxx. Any extra points for being near the beginning of the production run :cool:
 
Here are my 2 nickled M57s. I'm working off a new computer and I don't have any usable pics of my 4" & 6" blue 57s and my M58.

The one with the pearlite type grips is a -0 and the other is a -1.

Just as a point of interest for you guys who have or are thinking of buying an "S" series I saw one at a gunshow last year. 1964 maybe 6" all accessories. $1000 which was a bit high and the dealer knew it. He would have given it to me for $800 cash. I passed but that wasn't a good move.

Anyway I posted it on a forum and I was contacted by someone from my old job who need that particular gun for his collection. I was able to put the 2 together but the deal fell through. Then he bought the same gun from another dealer I know. No idea how much but my point is there are people out there who are looking real hard for these guns, both "S" and "N" prefix
5ww56d
 

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LOL at dakota! :D


Chaim, I tell ya what. I am offering you 250 dollars Americano for that gun o' yers. But only if you throw in a box or two of cartridges. Deal? :rolleyes:
 
Just as a point of interest for you guys who have or are thinking of buying an "S" series I saw one at a gunshow last year. 1964 maybe 6" all accessories. $1000 which was a bit high and the dealer knew it. He would have given it to me for $800 cash. I passed but that wasn't a good move.
Click to expand...

I got mine on Gunbroker going on 2 years ago. I won the auction for less than $500 and with transfer and shipping I was only a little over $500. I saw a later model M57 (not a first year gun) at the local store that did the transfer for around $750 asking price, it was there when I set up the transfer.

Mine isn't mint, but it is in darned good condition. There is a little bit of finish wear at the muzzle, but that is about it.

I guess I got a good deal :D

Chaim, I tell ya what. I am offering you 250 dollars Americano for that gun o' yers. But only if you throw in a box or two of cartridges. Deal?
Click to expand...
I'm a nice guy, but not that nice a guy. :D

Seriously, should I ever be in a situation where I have to sell off my guns, one of the last to go would be this M57
 
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