Where can I learn more about Model 41's?

[Drew816]

Howdy, long time S&W owner here and before I go off and spend bzillions of dollars hot-rodding a Ruger Mark .22 I thought I'd educate myself on the Model 41. Where can I learn more about these? Are there certain era's to avoid? Is it hard to mount a scope on some of the uppers? Are the 5.5" and 7" uppers easily swapable (it certainly appears that way and how cool is that!?).

I'm looking used and I see a few out there that really interest me in the $7-8xx range but I'd hate to make this leap only to find that the $900 'newer' or whatever model would have worked better for me.

What do I intend to do with it? Really just range target shooting, I have shot competitively in the past in a variety of calipers (and weapons) and I just want to get back into the groove and not mess around getting there!

I'll post a shot of my S&W 1911 and 686 Classic Hunter another time.

Thanks and Happy Holidays!

[civil1977]

You've come to the right place. Try clicking on the "Tags" at the bottom of the page which will bring up all of the threads about Model 41s. You can also check out rimfirecentral.com under the S&W section........lots of good Model 41 stuff there too.

I think the Model 41 is the best American made target rimfire and you'd be hard pressed to beat it. If you're looking to mount a scope or red dot, you'll want a newer one with a barrel that is drilled and tapped. S&W started drilling and tapping Model 41 barrels around 1994 so look in that range.

I wouldn't call them uppers, at least not in the sense that AR's have upper receivers and lower receivers. On the Model 41 its the barrel and yes the different lengths are interchangeable. Over the years S&W has made barrels in 7 3/8" with muzzle brake, 7", 5.5" heavy, 5.5" EFS (extendable front sight) and 5" field configurations. There are also some aftermarket barrels from Clark and others that are intended only for use with optics.

You should be able to pick up a nice used one in the $700-$800 range. For the most part these are expensive guns and owners tend to take good care of them.

[markush]

Let me google that for you ...that's always my first stop when I'm looking for information. You can even refine the search to look in forums or search for reveiws, ETC...the sky is the limit.

[BruceB]

I'll bet you can find a nice used late 60's M41 in the Classified here, if you look a bit. (hint hint)