Originally Posted by armorer951

Anyone know the current method S&W uses to rifle the Model 41 barrels? Could the imperfections in the barrel be due to an error either during, or while using an incorrect ECM/EDM procedure?

I can't imagine an artifact in a barrel looking like that after broach cutting or hammer forging, etc. Looks to me like the imperfections are on the surface of the bore, and on the lands??

Please excuse my ignorance of the techniques used in the various and currently used rifling processes.

Originally Posted by jim1K

I really think they should close the doors because they are not capable of building match grade guns. I never had a S&W with barrels that looked this bad. Two in a row, my barrel is going to be relined by Ten Ring.... Jim

Originally Posted by Larks

I do love my M41, after about 10 years of ownership it is still probably my favourite handgun despite its faults - and sadly there are one or two.

They really are tremendously accurate - mine makes me look like a much better shooter than I think I really am. And they just feel so nice in the hand in weight and balance and grip and are a delight to shoot.

In regards to the problems that you’re experiencing:

The trigger guard barrel release will actually free up quite quickly with use so don’t worry about that one. If like me you clean a .22 handgun after every use you’ll probably find by the 4th clean that it is fine.

The safety is indeed a problem on these firearms being very stiff, small, sharp edged (I filed my edges) and not at all user friendly. You can ease up on the detent screw (?) to make it a bit easier but it’s rather hit and miss and not a satisfactory remedy.

I really wish someone would produce an after market extended safety lever (somewhat like on a competition race gun) that’d improve the leverage, positivity of movement/position, comfort and usability.

In regards to the barrel - I really think that S&W are dropping the game here. When I bought mine about 10 years ago I found that I was seeing a number of tumbled rounds on paper targets. I could feel when swabbing the barrel that the swab would "free up” briefly about 2/3rds of the way down the barrel and than tighten up again for the last half inch or so.

I sent it back to the Australian S&W importer (Grycol) and S&W acknowledged that the barrel was faulty and replaced the barrel without any hassle at all (Grycol had loaned me a good used replacement barrel while S&W were considering it so I was very happy with their service and S&W’s response).

Sadly the M41’s are notorious for ejection failures and you’ll read all sorts of advice on what ammo to use, fitting after market ejectors, lubricating the breech, lubricating rounds and so on. I’ve stuck with CCI standard velocity and have swapped out the ejector and I’d say that it is “reasonably” reliable. I still get an ejection failure every now and then but I’ve found that I can usually clear them quickly enough not to suffer in most competitions other than in Steel Challenge comp’s.

The only thing that I haven’t tried is slightly reaming and polishing the breach as some have suggested on various forums.

My local well respected gunsmith has also suggested that the breach length can be a tighter tolerance on these competition guns (ie shorter so that there’s no open breach space between the ammunition case and the rifling) causing some spent round casings to bind in the rifling at the head of the breach and so causing the ejection failures....?

He has had experience and success reaming the breach very slightly further forward on other model pistols with a similar ejection failure issue and suggested doing it to the M41 - I’m a little hesitant to try it but am considering it.

Other than that - personally I really wish someone would come up with a direct mount for a red dot (specifically the Leupold Delta Point Pro) onto the gun using the top mount screw holes that are there rather than via an additional “Weigatinny" rail and then a quite high Leupold cross slot mount that takes the red dot quite high and makes it harder to “acquire”.

Enjoy the gun mate, I really think they are worth the effort to get right - it’s just a real bloody shame that S&W don’t get them right before selling them.