These are some 57's and 58's I found under my bed. I never did understand why law enforcement did'nt use these formidable hand cannons.

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J. Mark McCarver

Are you interested in selling any of them? I'm looking a Model 57 or 657

i don't know why they were never that popular. i have 44's and 41's, like them both, and really see no advantage to using the 44. it will use slightly heavier bullets but i never needed to load anything that heavy.

Ive seen a few .41's and it just to me something to have. I wouldnt mind owning a .41 myself. I seem to own alot of .38s, .357s and .22s. I want a .41 soon though hah. You should sell some or trade

Nice Model 57's and 58's that were probably glad that you remembered you had them. I like the model 57 but I've really not shot it nearly as much as I shoot my 44 Magnum.

"I never did understand why law enforcement didn't use these formidable hand cannons."

I think you answered your own question with the last 3 words. Most cops are not gunnies. Many are women. The 41 was simply too powerful to use effectively by the average cop. The revolvers were also very big and heavy.

I'm not quite sure what role the 41 fills. It's essentially the 44 minus 15%. Anything the 41 can do the 44 does a bit better. Supposed to fill the gap between the 357 and the 44, the 41 is much closer to the 44 but the wider ammo/bullet selection for the latter overshadows the usefulness of the former.

Having said all that, I do admit to owning a pair of 41s. I bought a police turn-in M58 around 1989 for $189. Had I realized that the 58 was destined to become a cult classic and command ridiculous prices I would have bought all that the seller had. By the way, I claim to be the one who coined the term "A Model 10 on steroids" in describing the 58.



A couple years ago I was looking for a 4" nickel 29-2. Couldn't find one at a price i wanted to pay but did locate this M57 in near perfect condition for $325.

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No life story has happy end.

Jeez, jmark1651, that sure is a great collection!

I agree.

It's a shame ammo manufacturers never made much of an effort to provide a wide range of .41 caliber cartridges. We could have had .41 light loads, a 185 grain LSWC bullet at 650-700 fps, a 210 grain JHP defense load at 950 fps, magnum loads for hunting, etc. Instead, we were stuck with hot and super hot loads.

If someone told me I had to trade in all my .357 and .44 N-frame Smiths for .41s, it would not bother me one bit.

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I like that model 10 on steroids,SaxonPig. Actually, I have had a long relationship with the 41 magnum. The 57 4" in the picture from 1966 belonged to an officer I worked with when I entered law enforcement back in the early 70's. He carried that weapon,shot on the pistol team with it,and was quite proficient. I always told him I wanted his 41 and he called one day and sold it to me. About six months later, he took his own life. I guess his was one of the first 57's in our area,and shortly after,the 29's started popping up. It is a great caliber. I am not interested in selling them. This was my first attempt at pictures,with the assistance of my friend,Kingpin1one. Hope everyone is having the start of a great new year. Mark

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J. Mark McCarver

Does my screen name give ya a hint?

Nope, can't say that I like them

KO

The 41 Magnum Police Load is nothing more than a Starting Load for a 215 grain lead SWC, which typically run about 950 FPS. In the Rugers, this load is mild and pleasant to shoot due to weight of the gun. It is a different stroy with the S&W 57 Mountain Gun or S&W 58 with stock wooden grips, because it hurts before very long. On more than one occasion, my S&W 57 has worn through the skin of my hand. No wonder police wanted nothing to do with it. If you reduce velocity to about 850 fps with that same 215 grain lead SWC, recoil is much reduced and the gun actually becomes pleasant to shoot. Bullet weight could have been reduced to 200 grains and velocity increased to 950 fps, resuling in a lighter recoiling round.

Had velocity for the 215 grain bullet been reduced to 850 fps and the gun been produced in an L-frame size instead of an N-frame, I think that the 41 (Police) would have been very successful. Even better yet, had the bullet diameter been reduced to 40 cal with a velocity of 950 fps, it seems that S&W might have had a real winner. Manaable size, recoil and penetration.

Unfortunately, at the time people were looking for higher and higer velocity in everything. 850 fps is so old fashioned, just like the 45ACP- so no real advantage seen by the public. What was overlooked is the fact that most people and police were shooting revolvers at that time and they needed something that combined the stopping power of the 45 ACP with reasonable size, weight, recoil and limited penetration. 950 fps gave the public the idea of a more powerful round than the 44 Special or 45 ACP.

The 44 Special could do exactly what I proposed, but Old Elmer Fud had been out there wrecking 44 Specials in his experiments that resulted in the 44 Magnum and pretty well ended production of 44 Specials. Everybody wanted a Magnum, not a Special.

This trend resulted in the 125 grain 357 Magnum load, which gained a reputation as the ultimate manstopper, but a terrible over penetrator as well. The 357 overpenetration combined with the failure of S&W to produce a 41 Police in the L-frame resulted in a switch to 9mm semi-automatics.

The 41 Magnum is really a refined 44 Magnum, which combines the best qualaties of the 357 and 44 Magnums for hunting purposes.

In every way...but the price of premium ammunition

I bought a model 58 in 1966 because it was cheaper than a Combat Magnum, and at $390.00 month cop's pay that made a difference.

I carried it 13 years and it served me well.



I've got a couple more now.

I am an ardent fan of the .41 Mag but only own one, a 4" 57 I bought about 10 years ago at a major chain sporting goods store. I think they wanted to get rid of it,I only paid about $250. For some reason I like the "middle ground" stuff. I have 4 .40 S@W pistols and I LOVE my 16 ga. Model 12 Winchester.
If the .41 had come out between the .357 and .44 Mags I think it would have been more successful. In 1983 Skeeter Skelton wrote in Shooting Times that he, Elmer Keith and Bill Jordan pestered S@W to make the .41 a reality. But they had hoped it would be built on a frame size between the K and N. That was in the early 60s, before the L-Frame came about. S@W didn't want to tool up for new frame size for something they weren't sure would be successful, and you know the rest of the story.
Fortunately there are enough of us out there who like the cartridge and guns, so I think it will stay with us. Now, if only S@W would follow Taurus and build a 5-shot L-Frame. See my recent thread on this for my fantasy revolver.

Ya sort of answered yer own question. Back when it came out , the Mod.58 was a handful , even with the so-called police load. That load used a rather soft swaged lead bullet which leaded bore quickly. The rather light (for a big bore magnum) Mod.58 still kicked pretty good with this load , and there really wasn't any good aftermarket grips then.
Just for kicks (!) , I installed a set of Magnas on my 4in Mod.57 and fired a few of each rounds 210gr SWC and full power 210gr JSPs. Won't try that again! Can't imagine trying that with the even lighter 58. Thank you Mr. Hogue!

A few depts did try issuing the 58 , but many (most?) cops don't or can't shoot beyond basic qualification , and just couldn't handle the big sixgun. As much as I'm a big .41 fan and owner , it really didn't offer any advantages over a milder recoiling .44 Special. Still a big and relatively heavy hunk of steel to be wearing 8-10 hours a day. Plus , the 60s was the time when by design or quota , women started joining the forces.

Response my dad got when he tried to convince the powers that were that something more than the .38 Special was needed. He wasn't necessarily advocating going to .41 Magnum, but at least upgrading to the .357 Magnum. At least then the officers that couldn't handle noise and recoil of the .357 Magnum could choose to use .38 Special ammo.

A few years ago Dad gave me his model 58 that he purchased from Gopher Shooter's Supply for $62.16 on December 27, 1964.








KO

Nice picture, that long barreled 57 sure looks familiar. I sold one just like it to a well know author and police expert from your area. I still have 3 41's and it is my favorite revolver and round. Of course, I reload. Probably couldn't afford to shoot if I didn't.

Yes! In my very humble opinion the .41 Mag is the perfect magnum for an N-frame. It will not beat up the gun like the .44 Mag will, but preforms almost as well. I have nothing against the .44, but I think it is better suited for a stronger revolver like a Ruger Redhawk than a Smith.

.44 Special N-frames are, of course, the ultimate.

siiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii

HEY JMARK1651, WHEN I GOT HOME TODAY FROM YOUR PLACE, I DECIDED I WOULD TAKE A LOOK UNDER MY BED TO SEE IF I COULD FIND SOMETHING NICE LIKE YOU POSTED, BUT AS YOU CAN SEE HERE THERE IS A CLEAR AND DISTINCT DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A GATED COMMUNITY AND A TRAILER PARK. NOWHERE NEAR AS NICE AS YOUR GUNS, BUT THEY COULD MAKE YOU FAMOUS FOR A DAY. (ON THE NEWS)

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I'll take a .41 over a .44 any day of the week. You just need to reload for the round. It will do everything a .44 will do with the right bullet and load with less recoil (some rounds are stout!). My old 6" 57 has 38 deer to it's name over a 32 year career. Some were taken with handloads I got off of J. D. Jones back when I was stationed in Kodiak Ak. back in the mid 80's. They will shoot from stem to stern on a deer and are HOT.
I carried it as a bear gun to back up my Ruger .338 Win Mag.

Jmark, So sorry about your friend. I lost my best friend who was an Alaskan State Trooper 6 years ago. He too took his own life. His name was Trooper David A. Glamamn. There is not a single day that goes by that I don't think of him and the great hunting trips and times we shared. He was a great man and THE best friend I've ever had. May he RIP.

Sincerely,

Roger

Here's a chart for starters on a great cartridge:

41 Magnum Load Data - Handloads.Com

Here's my three and I'm looking for a 8 3/8" to add to the collection like TDC's.

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Roger / SG

The .41 magnum is one of my favorite calibers. So far, my only Smith in that caliber is a model 657 no dash from 1987. You just don't see the .41s for sale around here!

There's a really nice blued 6in Mod.57 gathering dust in the case at Claytons on 611 near the Willow Grove Naval Air Station. At least it was there on Thursday.

Thanks Roger. It seems that far too many officers end up taking that permanent solution to a problem that is temporary. John was a great guy,but his nerves got real bad near the end. Thanks everyone for the input and thoughts. Jason,I owe you one for the RG in this classy thread. Max, I knew you would recognize big,shiny boy. Take care. Mark

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J. Mark McCarver

Nice guns! I like them alot also. I too have a few laying around the house.

Yes I like 41's. When the 41 magnum first came out I just had to have one. I even purchased two boxes of ammo before I found a revolver to fire them in. I bought a Ruger with 4 5/8" barrel with a 4 digit serial number starting with 8 back in 1966. I do not remember the rest of the SN and that one is long gone. Here is a photo of the first Smith I ever purchased (top) and one of my purchases early last year (bottom). I have a total of 6 model 57's and a gnarly old 58 I bought at Longs Drug store in Anchorage back in 1977. I used the 57 in the top of the photo to drill a couple of holes in a piece of culvert while doing field work in the bush of Alaska in 1975 after finding the portable drill had been left back in Anchorage.

I like the .41 because the cylinder walls and forcing cone are just a teensy bit thicker, and that makes me feel better.

I have 57s, 58s and Rugers, love em all.

I cut my teeth on reloading my uncles M57 8.375" when I was 18 or 19 and then went out an bought a 6" M57. Had several other Smith 57/58/657s over the years. Only have one Smith M58 left along with a 14" .41 bbl for my Contender and a Marlin 1894S in .41. Almost ordered one of the new M57 Classic over Christmas but will look for a used one without the lock when I get home.

CD

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I likey.
Here is a Hamilton Bowen Custom built M-58.
BB

This is one of the best threads I've seen anywhere on the .41 Mag. It has long been my favorite all-around caliber from long ago duty days to now. I carried a 6" Mod. 57.

Great comments from a lot of people who own them and have the capacity to truly evaluate them based on "real experience". When actual personal comparisons can be made by those who own both the .44 and the .41s, the caliber get a fair analysis...

Great collection of .41s... You've just gotta find one of these though!!

Terry

I have a model 58 and a 41 mag TC Contender barrel. I love shooting both. My dad has a model 657 and one of the newer PD model S&W 41magnums. He is always trying to get my model 58. Joe

I love .41 mags! Unfortunately, I only own four at this time.

Two #57's, a #58, and a #657 MG. I had to have the MG, we have a mountain house, so to me, it was a natural purchase.

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LEO just knew they were no good . You should dump them . PM To dump one of the Blued 4" mod 57 .

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Idaho , Elmer and Milt

NICE hogleg Terry! I'm looking for one like yours right now. I'm betting that's a shooting machine if it's like my shorter barreled models.

Regards,

Roger

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Roger / SG

Sportsterguy I sent you a P.M. with info on a #57 in Georgia.

Hi, JMark1651:
Law Enforcement didn't use S&W .41 Magnums because you had most of them.
** Seriously, I owned several Model 58s in the past and carried one while employed at a rural S.O. Used Winchester Silvertips as service ammo.
Changed to a Model 29 because ammo was easier to locate.
Jimmy

7 1/2" 657-5. It was tuned for competition before I bought it. Single action trigger pull 2lbs. No slack in trigger. If you put any pressure on the trigger it will fire. It took a little getting use to but, I like it now. Double action like glass.

I'd Like to Have That RG, Whats the Magic number on it?

La. Joe. I like that long barrel hand cannon. You didn't get that from your little,I mean younger brother,did you?

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J. Mark McCarver

I really,really "really" like the the .41 mag.Here is a photo of my S&W 57 4"


Thank you,
BRUNO1911

Great picture, Bruno1911... I love seeing the bright blue guns under different lighting conditions... and LouisianaJoe... I'm going to have to look into one of those.

Sportsterguy... I hope you find your 8 3/8. Actually I don't hunt with the pictured 8 3/8 but keep it as part of my new and unfired collection. I use a 57-0 6" as a hunting/shooting revolver. I've had it for over 35 years. The 6" is a "tack driver" as many .41s are, and it has never let me down.

Shhhhhhh.... Don't tell anyone I said this guys, but I think people who own .41 Mags are smarter and better lookin' than people who own other calibers too.

Terry

I got it from Bill along with Hornady Reloading dies, 1600 rem 200gr bullets, 500 210 gr Nosler Bullets, 500 210 gr Sierra bullets, 1000 loaded bullets, 1000 primers, 1000 Starline Brass, 2 lbs N110, 2 lbs Blue dot, 1/2 lb 296 and 12 caseguard boxes. The price would make you cry. Bill likes to liquidate a caliber on occasion and I like to be there when he does.

I did sell some of the bullets to my younger brother.

Thank you TDC,thought I share a photo of the same 57 in the daylight!



BRUNO1911

Joe, you're holding out on the .41 mag bullets. I expect to see some when you come up for the next show. Jason has apparently sold all of his guns AGAIN, except for the one pictured. Good thing he still has an issue weapon (or at least I hope he has) or he'd be defenseless AGAIN. I see Barhog is still sniffing around for some scraps and Max is wishing he'd never gotten rid of the big shiny. Jmark, most of those .41 mags look very familiar... Hmmm.

Thanks guys for all the positive info on the 41 Mag. I just purchased one from one of the members here in December, a S&W (of course) M57 Nickel 6" and haven't shot it yet due to the %&^%* weather here lately. With the reply's here, I just might make it out next week, blowing 30 or not!. Thanks for all the pics also, great looking guns.

Here are my .41 babies. Next up for the collection will be a 3" 657 once I save up enough pennies.

Nice collection husky. Love the BH and it's grips. Redhawk is a looker too. You'll love that 3" 657. They are great for packing and VERY accurate for their semi snub barrels. Mines a kepper as are all of my .41's!

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V/R
Roger / SG

But this one's okay....



Hangin' out with a couple of it's cousins....





I kinda like 58's too.... this one's kinda neat.



But this one's my favorite...



What I like the most about this 58 is that it's a .44 Magnum!

Sebago: Saying that boxed 58 is kinda neat is like saying Baby Jesus was a fairly good baby. Kinda neat to be sure!

I can't say I'm really a big .41 guy because my wallet won't even let me try. I've got only one but I like it a great deal:

joe....i have the same 41...great gun and i shoot it better then any handgun i own!

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