Not trying to start a flame war here

Just curious what your thoughts are, as pretty much every shop where I live has stopped carrying it, because they feel it's an "obsolete" cartridge. It seems like it is easier to find .38 Long Colt here than .41 Magnum!

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Aaron Terry

Well, if it is then I am too.
Come to think of it, I probably am. I can live with that.

I can find ammo but it's costly. My last box of 20 Win Platinum Tips ran $30.00. That pretty much makes it a handloader's cartridge and there are plenty doing just that myself included.
Like the .44 Special it has followers and won't go away but likely will never be real popular either. The 44 special got a shot in the arm with popular cowboy action loads but don't see anything similar with the .41 any time soon.

I hope not,I am looking for a 41 magnum!

When I bought my .41, the dealer threw in a box of shells. I couldn't afford them on a cop's salary back then.

That's the last box of factory ammo I ever fired through a .41.

I'm like P@R Fan, The .41 mag and I may be obsolete, but we ain't got the memo yet.

Aloha,

The Wife has told me to Stop buying 41 mag guns. She says I have too many.....

I will admit that I do have a "few"

I have more 41 ammo than all the local gun stores here. All have very few boxes(if any) or none at all. I cleaned out one gun store of ALL their 41 cal heads. They had a sale and I told them to make me a deal I couldn't refuse. They did and I got their entire inventory of 41 jacketed heads. I also bought, I think, the last cast heads from another store. Not sure if he brought any more in as the 41 is/was a very slow seller.

Casting heads are the best way to go for shooting the 41. I have over a half dozen different molds. Including one or two using gas checks. Yep, got them too. Don't know if gas checks for the 41 are still availible.....

I do have a half a case or so of NIB factory loads. I find them to be a bit on the "blasty" side.

I've loaded the 41 so weak that 38 spl were stronger. And then, full magnum loads are less irritating than full 44 magnum loads.

Is the 41 obsolete? No, I don't think so. It's a thinking man's cartridge, as one gun wag put it. It can do a lot of things better than a lot of other cartridges and calibers. Can be reloaded to equal a 38 spl or almost a 44 mag.
Course, I also like the 44 spl and 45 (Long) Colt too.

I have a soft spot in my heart for "obsolete" or otherwise rare calibers. The .264 win mag, the .41 mag, 9.3x62 mauser, etc are all cartridges I find to be among the greatest at what they are designed to do. I tend to buck trends and enjoy shooting cartridges that aren't popular for the sole reason that they aren't mainstream and easy to come by. I am hoping to add a 10mm and a .38 super into the stable here in the next 3-5 years if time and finances allow just because nobody else I know owns or shoots one.

You cannot find that cartridge in any of the stores in the Nh & Maine areas. I suppose it not gaining in popularity.

I still see guns , componants and ammo being made so it's not obsolete. I recently saw new production PMC 210gr JHP ammo at a LGS for $25 a box of 50. Yeah , I bought all 5 boxes , but there was 5 more the next week.

I would guess with the current ammunition shortage/hoarding that many low volume cartridges are not being produced, in favor of .22 LR/9 mm/5.56 mm/.40 S & W. Low supply and/or demand, yes; obsolete, no.

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Alan
SWCA LM 2023, SWHF 220

It pretty much is, at least it has dropped to cult status. I love the round, have a nice M57-1, but few new guns or factory loads are made for it & while it will probably always be around, it will never be anymore popular than it is today.

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NRA Cert. Inst. IDPA CSO

It might be obsolete for some people, but not for me. Most .41 shooters I know of load their own ammo and with the unbelievable prices of factory ammo I'd say that is also the reason the stores can't sell any. I'd say that if the insanity ever ends and ammo prices become more reasonable it will start appearing on retail shelves again.

Or, if Hollywood ever made a movie that glorified the round it would be and instant "must have" caliber.

when I bought my first Model 57 ammo was plentiful. Now it's not. Good thing I handload.

It is for this reason I want another Model 29. I can walk into any gun store and get ammo.

Not ever getting rid of my .41's though. They're my first love.

I think you'd have to reload in order to shoot a lot of .41. But that's OK - it's party of the shooting experience. Nice this about revolvers is you don't have to case your brass

Color me obsolete - I have a 4" and 6" Model 57 (both P & R) , both are very accurate, and fun to shoot. And it goes without saying that you definitely want to "roll your own" for this caliber ........

I sure hope it isn't going to be obsolete but the chances are good that it will be. A lot of good calibers are going dormant because of the introduction of all the new calibers in the last decade or so.

If it is, somebody better tell S&W -- they have been making new Model 57 & 58 "Classics" for over a year now.

I roll my own 41 mag so I don't consider it dead

The 41 mag obsolete?.........yeah, yeah it is, please forward any unused ammo, components, and reloading dies to me for proper disposal

I have 'converted' several folks over to the dark side (10mm and 41 mag). Smith and Wesson is making them today....in fact, they just came out with a new Ultimate Defense Revolver with a 2 5/8" barrel. Better get one while you can. Lots of folks overlook the 41, but some of us have seen the light. Heck, I heard that Dirty Harry actually carried a Model 57 in some of his movies....probably just a nasty rumor though

No, it is not dead, obsolete or going away anytime soon, and sure as heck, I am not giving up on mine.

Just because a cartridge isn't amongst the half dozen or so "annointed ones", doesn't mean that it is obsolete. If it's performance didn't put it on par with the better contemporary cartridges, then it would be, IMO. The .41 magnum is by no means outdated. Although I have never owned one, I think it is an excellent caliber.

If availability or no of ammo at the gun shops is the definition we will have to add the .44 spcl and .45 Colt to the list. There is none on the shelves around here. After haveing said that, I really like the .41 and so far have never bought a box-O-factory fodder for em. I hate to say it here but my favorite go to .41 is my Ruger BH, it really outshoots both of my S&W's sad to say.

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Stay safe people!

Even though the ammo is hard to find there is a larger variety of .41 ammo available now than any time in history. When the .41 first came out all there was for ammo was the Remington 210 JSP and 210 Lead... Then Winchester came out with a 210 JHP and a 210 Lead...that was it.
Then came the Winchester 170 Silvertip, 210 Federal JHP and the ball has just kept rolling...

CorBon..three loads
Buffalo Bore....three loads
Federal...three loads
Speer..one load
Winchester...two loads
Remington...one load
Georgia Ammo...three loads
Reids Ammo...several loads

And what about new .41s.... S&W brought back the 57 and the 58, Ruger just had two limited edition Flat Top .41s released this year and Taurus still has the stainless Tracker and now a Raging Bull...


If it wasn't better than the .44 Magnum it would have died a long time ago...

Bob

It looks like the only reason there is more available is because there are more manufacturers, which if there weren't there'd be fewer loads available then at first.

The sad part is that there have been some really nice jacketed bullets available to the handloader that have been discontinued. And the fact that all the experts in the field killed the .41AE that had a couple bullets made for them that are gone now too is disheartening.

But, I have plenty of moulds and like cast bullets better anyway. Plus I've played around with some specialty stuff, have made a couple different types of shotshells and am working on a buckshot load...as of yesterday.

It's really a very competent round from many standpoints. I can truely say the most accurate revolver I have been around happened to be a .41 Magnum. All of us who were allowed to shoot this good friend's Blackhawk were amazed by shooting our very best compared to other guns we were using at that particular session. I would love to find a nice model 57. Good ones at decent prices don't grow on trees like bananas anymore, at least in my neck of the woods.

I sure hope not because I have a 57 that likes to be shot, yes factory ammo is a little rough to find.

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Take it easy. Chris

I'm excited that Federal has a round using the 210gr Swift A-Frame bullet.
I would like to see more bullet choices for the reloaders, especially the Swift A frame.

i just purchased another 41 mag.the model 657-0 3"barrel i'm probably most accurate with my 41's and reload for them as well...i have noticed however that my local gun dealer keeps a good stock of factory 41 mag.ammo in stock...the store bought is pricey however!

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SWCA#2208
KK4EMO

The .41 mag is a favorite of a lot of folks here. Yes, its a handloaders cartridge, but so is the 44 Mag if you want any money left for retirement.

So you do what most of us have done. You start scrounging. I've been doing that for years, also for the 22 Jet. Hide some extra money in your wallet. When you see components for sale cheap, or partial boxes of factory ammo at a small fraction of the retail price, you buy it. All of it you see.

My son's hate going to the OGCA shows with me, knowing full well I'm on a buying binge for components I need (they dispute the need part.)

Buy virgin brass when you find it. Sometimes you can even stumble upon once fired brass at giveaway prices. Stash it, hide it, bag it, do whatever. Bullets are the other component on my must have list. I bet I've found a thousand bullets over the last year or two. Hint: they're heavy to carry, so bring along someone with a strong back and weak mind to tote your stuff (I have heart trouble, or so I advertise when there's something heavy to haul.)

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Dick Burg

If you want reasonable cost 41 ammo, you must reload.

41 ammo is available but definitely hard to find on the shelf. Better luck online as many outfits do carry it.

I think prices are not much worst than other large calibers. Have you priced quality 44 magnum or 454? Fortunately I reload for all my handguns.

I think a lot of this hand wringing and teeth gnashing is being done by those lacking in perspective. First, keep in mind we've just endured one of the worst ammo shortages since WWII. If you want some background, read Skeeter Skelton and his trials and tribulations as a young teen during WWII. Ammo was just unavailable. The war effort siphoned off all the supplies and manufacturing capacity.

What we've just endured over the last 18 or so months wasn't as bad. But people are more affluent now and expect/demand "just in time" convenience. They first laugh at those of us who sock things away, then criticize us for creating the shortages. Too bad, read about the squirrel and the grasshopper, or any of the other parodies. Those who save (be it ammo, food, fuel, or money) always seem to weather shortage situations better.

This cycle was clearly caused by a panic situation when those hostile to our rights were elected in mass. So those of us with a few extra bucks (the ones we didn't spend on music, concerts, over priced coffee, etc) went to the store and bought what we figured was enough to get us thru the crisis. Then when store shelves went empty, as they always do when people perceive a problem, those who didn't plan ahead began weeping and screaming.

The business community responded as they usually do. They're in business to make a living and profit. The stores discovered they couldn't get any replacement stock, so they raised the prices on what they had to make it last. The distributors also raised their prices, and as usual, took care of their friends and better customers first. The manufacturers did the logical. They started working overtime and even increased utilization as much as practical. But they also devoted their attention to the high profit, high volume products.

Then the lower volume items were swept from the supply chain by even more panic buying. After that, those with profit as a motive began scouring their closet shelves, selling on the secondary market anything they could double or triple their original money on.

.41 Magnum ammo is just one of a fair number of casualties. Those of us with adequate supplies barely noticed the blip. Those who felt a partial box was enough started to worry. Driving down to the gunshop and buying another box was the first response. But the merchants all took a look at the new price sheets from their supplier and the next column that said "out of stock". So by the time the poor guy with the 41 got to the store, the guys who'd planned ahead already emptied the shelves, or ran the stock way down. The merchant had doubled the price on the box of 50. The non-planner takes a look at the $50 price for an item he'd paid $22 for last year and gets mad. He's not paying that price (so he's not shooting.)

The calibers we define as obsolete will come back. Even Jet ammo sometimes turns up. And we all know from time to time Hornady rolls out a lot of .222, and Remington sells slick bags of 100 Jet brass. We went thru that same ordeal back in the late 80s with .45-70 ammo. Some of it had languished for a long time on dealers shelves. I went to a gunshow downstate in 1990. A buddy went along, just for the day (he later kind of regretted it.) At the first ammo laden table, a guy had factory 300 grain ammo for $5 a box. But he instantly came down to $4, and said if I took it all, he'd let me have it for $3! Wow!

So I bought all he had. About 2 aisles along, some guy saw us toting all that obsolete ammo and asked where we'd gotten it. We told him, and the price, and he asked if we wanted 10 boxes more at that price. Yep. Soon it was time to make a trip to the truck.

Same situation with the old Remington .30-06 Accelerators. A year or so later they were everywhere. I just assume none had been sold for a long time and the merchants brought it in to dump it. If anything is cheap enough an I might use it, I'll buy.

Last year at the OGCA show some guy had over 300 .41 mag bullets on his table. $8 a hundred! No, not per 50, per 100! He wanted $25 for the lot, and it included the plastic reloading boxes he brought it in (50 size boxes, but you can get 2 bullets per divider.) Sounded too good to be true, so I bought them. Before that, I'd been buying the old style 100 count boxes whenever I'd seen them. Suddenly I went to put all the **** away and kind of straighten it out. I discovered over 1000 bullets not where they should have been. A nice problem.

The reason for this sermon is simple. If you plan ahead, these little one or two year blips in the supply chain doesn't cause you anguish or heart ache. When you take a snapshot of the current situation, its easy to conclude we have not just obsolete calibers, but calibers like the .455 where we'll never see supplies again. But if you step into my reloading room, you get the idea all is well in the world. It is, in my world.

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Dick Burg

Ammo is certainly not plentiful, but still around.

My friends and I reload for the .41, so it's not a problem. While I shoot .44's and .45's, I'm still a bit of a .41 guy! And...probably always will be....

With all due respect to the .41 Mag lovers, there was no need for this caliber when it was developed. All situations were covered by the calibers that existed already--ie--.38 Spl, .357 Mag, .44Spl, .44Mag, and .45Colt. Handloaders could tailor anything that they needed from one of these. There was NO void that needed filling---IMHO, of course.

I almost agree with you. The .41 magnum wasn't intended for the handloader market, it was introduced as the ideal law enforcement cartridge and I feel it still is. However, it wasn't anything that couldn't have been accomplished with the .44 magnum. Many felt the .44 spl. was too light, the .44 magnum was too heavy and the .357 was too small for LE use, the original .41 mag. 210 gr. LSWC fell between those and was about as perfect as you could get. They could have made a .44 spl. +P load or a reduced .44 magnum load, which was made eventually, but Remington chose to back Elmer Keith and other writers of the time and introduced the .41 instead. Apparently Elmer knew what he was talking about though as the .41 magnum is about as good as it gets.

It didn't work out with the LE market as it should have due to the large size of the firearms that shot it and some agencies chose the hunting load instead of the LSWC, probably because it used a jacketed bullet which everyone knows is much better than lead. The lighter loads didn't sell well enough and were dropped from production, leaving only the hunting round which caught the attention of many hunters. Others that had experience with the light loads, knew how they shot and didn't have a problem with the large N frames, started loading their own ammo, as did the hunters.

Many people think the .44 and .357 magnums are a better choice because they can shoot shorter, less powerful loads in them for practice. This isn't really as much of a benefit as it is marketing hype. You can load your magnum brass to any power level you want and not have all the extra fouling in the chambers that shorter cases leave behind.

I have handguns of many different calibers, but my favorite is, and probably always will be, the .41 magnum. It seems to be more inherently accurate than the other "magnums" and is just as versatile, maybe even more so. Peope who dismiss it because of the lack of factory ammunition don't know what they are missing, but then they probably don't care about things like that anyway.

Obsolete? Hasn't even come into its own yet, and it needs to do that before it can begin the downhill slide into obsolescence! Ask this question a century from now.

Lots of things are unnecessary at the moment of their introduction, and then a few years later we wonder how we got along without them. I still think the numbers on the .41 Special/Magnum concept pair look better than the numbers on the .38 special/.357 Magnum duo. This whole .38 +P thing is just an attempt to goose an underpowered round up the performance levels you wouldn't have to stretch for if you just went with a .41 in the first place.

So say I.

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David Wilson

When you do get it nailed down...I would love to see the results....and the recipe

I have seen some rat shot type of home brew loads, but nothing that really impressed me. I can't wait to see what you come up with.

I do believe the .41 Magnum was unnecessary had someone designed a .44 Magnum load with a 200 grain lead bullet at 800 fps for police use.

But I'm glad they didn't.

I do know that MY .41 Magnums are obsolete, simply because no one is is going to get them for a long, long time.

I would like to add to Rburg's post on "hoarding". If anyone after about 1973 [maybe even after GCA68] wasn't "hoarding" for the potential day when a lot of this will be outlawed, I have no sympathy for them.

As well as hoarding simply because the factory will eliminate favorite components because they don't sell. I like the old Speer jacket semi-wadcutter bullets, in all calibers. When I find them I buy them.

Hence, when I buy a sixgun, I quickly work up a favorite load. Then I go out and buy a lifetime's supply of components necessary for that sixgun.

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Have guns...will shoot'em.

Bullets, brass,primers and powder are all available. I own 3 and lots of components for home brew. Would never hesitate to own another if the price is right.

I have 2 model 57's and one 657 and not a one of them has ever tasted a factory round, all they get are light reloads. Jeff

I love asking the nitwits at the Walmart ammo counter if they have any .41 Magnum ammo. Some have even informed me there was no such thing.

I hope not. While it one of the few cartridges I haven't owned a gun for, I'd like to someday.

One of my old Criminal Justice instructors was a retired San Fransico cop. According to him, they were one of the first to adopt the 41 mag as a standard round.

This guy claimed to have been in several firefights and I don't doubt him. Said it was a heck of round and saved his life numerous times. Laughed at the 357 as a pip squeek round.

Maybe someday...but I'll reload for it.

Good morning
Only to those who do not shoot one !
Notice Companies still produce them.. Ruger, Taurus, FA, BFR

Along with the 41AE and 10mm.

been loading for it since 1969. don't think any of my 41 cal guns has ever fired a factory load, at least not when i have owned them. have always tried to plan ahead too.

.41AE is obsolete? Wait till I tell the boys...they thought they were just on vacation.

That's sort of like asking if the 22 Jet is an obsolete cartridge.

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Incoming fire has right of way

My 41 and 10 are obsolete. Damn, next you are going to tell me the 38 Super and 7.62X25 are also. Wonder which of my other guns are soon to be useless.

To some if it ain't 45ACP it ain't worthy of shootin'.
Maybe not obsolete but pretty near extinct, in my opinion are all the AEs, Widley Magnums, 9mm Largo, Styer, Baynard, and the other 9mms that came out to make Major in the assorted shooting games. .30 caliber Luger, Mauser and 7.62x25, and the 30 Nagant.
I'm not saying the guns that fire these rounds are worthless. Anybody still shooting .32 rimfire? How about the 41 rimfire? Things just naturally evolve and some survive other go extinct. Now where did I put my buggy whip?

Your right mike, many gun owners don't know squat about the guns or ammo they carry, other than what they read about... or see in a movie.
If a gun or cartridge doesn't get celebrity endorsements, they are doomed for extinction.

I haven't bought any factory centerfire pistol cartridges in over a decade (course been deployed most of the time). However, I cut my teeth reloading for my uncles M57 8.375", then came about a dozen M57/657/58s from Smith, a 14" TC bbl and a Marlin 1894S all in .41. Heck, I'm giving my oldest son my only .44 Mag! Missed out getting a 357PD but would love to see Smith come out with a 357XL Steath Hunter.

Smith is currently cataloging M57s 4"&6"(blue/nickel), M58 (blue/nickel), 2.5" M657, 2.5" M357NG which ain't bad for a obsolete cartridge when they dropped the only one .41 mag that they were making (657, 7.5").

CD
aka .41 nut

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De Oppresso Liber

Obsolete - nope; but good luck finding any 210JHP's at the moment. (and that's unloaded bullets)