41 Magnum
Is this a load that lives up to all the graet things I've Read? If so why hasn't it caught on. It has been around forever. It looks ballisticlly(if that is a word)fantastic.
Dave
Dave
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You can thank "DIRTY HARRY" for that .41 magnums are for whose who reads an knows just what he wants.
rusty10 -
The 41 mag is as good as it appears. Wonderful hunting caliber but it is overshadowed by the 44 without the advantage of interchangeable calibers like the 38/357 or 44Spec/44Mag. It filled the gap in performance between the 357 and the 44 just not many people figured out why.
AN ARMED SOCIETY IS A POLITE SOCIETY0 -
I have used the 41 mag for hunting in a couple of different handguns. The Ruger Blackhawk and the Desert Eagle. In the Ruger I have put a 265 grain cast bullet completely through a Musk Ox at 80 yards. For those that have never seen a Musk Ox, they will run from 450 pounds for an average cow up to about 750 for a big bull. I have also taken a Moose with the 41 mag from the Desert Eagle using the Sierra 220 TMJ bullet at 17 yards right between the eyes. Yes it is as good as some say it is. One of my favorites. Also have a Marlin 1894 in 41 mag.
AlleninAlaska
http://www.outdoor-o-rama.com
He who dares not offend cannot be honest.
-- Thomas Paine
Edited by - aglore on 12/16/2002 03:39:140 -
I agree with Allen, the .41 Remington Magnum is a great hunting caliber. I have a 270 grain, hard-cast gas check load that is truely amazing. I have yet to shoot a musk ox but it does wonders on both elk and mule deer. My Blackhawk will launch it at 1550 fps and put 5 rounds into 5 inches at 100 yards (the 6th always strays out about 7 to 10 inches, can't seem to cure it).
Originally developed as a police round, it never caught on but it really shines as a hunter.
Quod principi placuit legis habet vigorem.Semper Fidelis0 -
THE 41 RUGGER IS ON A SMALLER FRAME THAN THE 44 SUPER BLK HAWK AND I THINK IT IS FLATTER SHOOTING THAN THE 44 MAG, EXCELENT CAL, IT'S NOT ADDVERTISED A LOT ( THE PROSTATUES OF THE PRINTED PAGE DON'T WRITE ABOUT IT ) I THINK IT IS THE BEST CAL FER A HAND GUN WE HAVE. 0 -
Dirty Harry never saw a .41 magnum, he had a .44. I carried a Model 58 for a duty gun for years. Probably the finest and most versitile revolver round ever made. I miss it and am looking for another. Many PD's used the .41 including San Francisco, San Antonio and others. In San Antonio they had 27 shootings with the .41 Mag and needed 28 shots according to Tom Ferguson who was a gun columnist in Gun World and San Antonio cop until his death. 0 -
The .41 mag. is a good cal. I enjoy shooting it. The .44 mag. is everthing that the .41 is and more. That does not mean I do not like the .41, but the .44 mag. in my opinion is more versital. I have shot metallic handgun silhouette with the .44 mag. and have found it to be accurate beyond my ability. The .41 would be a good caliber for deer size hunting, but the .44 can cover that spectrum and enable you to take larger game. It is like dressing for cold weather, you can always take a layer off, but it is more difficult to add one when when if you need it. Just my 0.03 (inflation). 0 -
I don't hunt, but I keep a .41 Magnum loaded in the downstairs instant access safe. Recoil is a bit stiff from the 2 5/8" Bbl. of the Smith&Wesson revolver, but its tolerable.
Support your RKBA ... MatthewNRA Life Member opaliski@hotmail.com TheFirearmsEnthusiast0 -
I have to agree whole heartedly with Darrel, the .41 Magnum "should have been" the premier law enforcement handgun cartridge. As far back as the late fifties, there were a number of appeals for a handgun cartridge with ballistics superior to the .357 Magnum for police use. Attempts to adopt the .44 Magnum were pretty much a failure due to the heavy muzzel blast and recoil. One major problem with the .357 Magnum was that most factory loads of the day used only the 158gr. lead bullets, which in turn meant lower velocities to prevent barrel leading. The wide spread introduction of jacketed bullets for the .357 in the late 1960's increased its populartiy with LE agencies. The CHP used the .357 for many years.
In around 1964 Remington introduced the .41 Magnum and S&W brought out the Model 57 revolver. Later the less expensive Model 58 was added. Originally there were two factory loading for the .41: A 210gr JSP for hunting and a 210gr Lead SWC, the so called "police load" with about a 30% drop in velocity over the hunting round. Just as Darrel mentions the cartridge had excellent "street" performance, particularly if the hunting load was used. The down side was that the recoil was still rather harsh and not all officers could handle it. You must keep in mind that most cops in those days were armed with a 4" Colt or S&W .38 Special as their duty sidearm and training was not at all what it is today. The other problem was that the pistols chambered for the .41 were all pretty damned big (N Frame) and those with small hands found these pistols a true handful compared to an old Colt Police Positive Special or S&W Model 10.
Although a disappointment as a police cartridge the .41 had a very wide following as a hunting round. The hunting load was just about as effective on deer as the .44 magnum, the recoil slightly was less, and many experience shooters felt that the .41 Mag. had a flatter trajectory than the .44 mag. There are a number of factory loadings availible for the .41 Magnum today that simply were not around 30 years ago and they will cover a wide variety of game. I'd love to see S&W bring back the Model 57 or 58 and I think a Colt Anaconda in .41 Magnum would have been a very popular handgun.
I think that Darrel might agree with me that today there is a real need in law enforcement for a firearm with the ballistics of the .41 Magnum- more so now than in the 1960's. Of course the revolver has pretty much faded away as a LE weapon these days and the .40 S&W automatic pistols are pretty much the "hot ticket" handguns in LE circles around the country. Most street cops today have never even handled a wheelgun and would shudder at the idea of giving up their semi autos and high capacity magazines for a six shooter! Hey, two decades ago the .38 Super was just about dead and it has found new life. The .41 Magnum deserves the same rebirth!
Mark T. Christian0 -
Hey Mark What does LE mean? 0
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