Unfired '87 41 mag Redhawk - shoot or save?

I let loose a few rounds today from my unfired Smith 27-2. Yah she is not unfired anymore but she still looks like new and damn she shot good. She shot better than my 627. I think guns are made to be used. But thats up to you! if you want to keep the gun unfired thats your choice. If it was a gun that would bring a great deal of money being unfired I think it would stay unfired.
 
Awhile back found a Ruger GP100 new still in the box made about 1988-89 didn't even think about it went out and shot it :D
 
Blued Redhawks with 5 1/2" barrels chambered in .41 mag aren't seen that often NIB or otherwise. Something to think about if you have one and you are about to pull the trigger.
 
I would shoot it for sure. But remember this: There were only about 5,000 41 redhawks EVER MADE total production. Figure the percentages of blued VS. stainless, 7.5" VS 5.5", and with or without scope rings. You could have something as rare as a 1 in 500.

So yeah, shoot it. But remember, you won't easily replace it IF the unthinkable happens.

FWIW: I have a pair of stainless 7.5" 41's. Tons of fun, and very accurate.
 
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Ben, do you have the numbers on the .357 and .45 Redhawks. I am curius to know their production numbers. Thanks.
 
1st - good to hear it is comparatively rare.

2nd - GREAT shooter - .41 magnum was awesome! Heavy piece - recoil felt better then my ltweight XSE Commander I was shooting. Shot about 18 rounds of 240gr GD and 175 ST - even let my 8yr old son shoot a couple. The gun remained remarkably clean - I was expecting a lot of extra flash and powder like a .44 - but it was a real pleasure.
 
Here goes:

From what I understand the redhawks in 41 and 357 were only built from 1986 to 1991. The 357 was dropped because ruger felt it was WAY overbuilt for the caliber(weighs more than the 44 due to the smaller bore) and had low demand. Basically the same story for the 41 mag version as well.
45 colt redhawks are in rugers current production line, IIRC.

Total production numbers were around 5,000 in each caliber. Now devide that by: w or w/o scope rings, 5.5' or 7.5" barrel, and blued or stainless.

See how quickly it gets really tough to put a "matched" pair together?


Word is though that they have a tendency towards exellent accuracy due to the light wear on production tooling giving generally very tight tolerances. This seems to be the case with mine.

I shouldn't be posting this, as I'm just making my hunt for more of them harder. :(

Oh well. Now you know.
 
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Shield20,

Ok, try and figure out how I would vote on the issue....

Several years ago, my child bride bought me a limited edition Elmer Keith commemorative .44 Magnum revolver, flush with gold inlays and engraving, in a pristine wooden display case. The gun had never been fired. A true virgin firearm.

Until I carried it to the range the next week and ran a box of 50 rounds though it (I had to fight the rangemaster, who begged me not to shoot it!). And I have never fired it again.

But it is mine, and I have shot it. And I would not own a gun that was not a "shooter."

Boarhunter

Ps: In my humble opinion, virgins are overrated (and overpriced) anyway.
 
Bought a Python a few months back, blue, 6", unfired, in perfect condition. First thing I did was take it to the range and put 200 rounds thru it.
Having a gun and not shooting it is like being married to Miss America and having seperate bedrooms. Why bother? ;)
 
For whatever its worth, here is my opinion on owning guns and not shooting them.

You can't take them with you.

I have no use for a gun I can't shoot. If by chance I came to own a gun that is unfired and worth a million dollars. I would sell it to by stuff I can shoot.

Now, range/safe queens....yes, I have those. But they all go to the range.
 
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