Is the .41 magnum an "obsolete" cartridge?

[TIMETRIPPER]

Obsolete, by definition, is something no longer used or needed. The 41 magnum may not be used by many nor may it be needed by most, but I do not consider it an obsolete cartridge. If fact, I consider it to be a rather useful handgun hunting number. It has a lot more oomph that the 357 mag but is easier to handle than the 44 Mag. I am comfortable shooting the 41 Mag. The 44 Mag sometimes make the arthritis in my wrist cry havoc.
Personally I don't care if most consider it obsolete or unneeded. and I know others out there agree with me. We are just marching to to sound of a different drummer.

John

 

[STORMINORMAN]

Of course I would agree that it is not "obsolete" by any means... But, if one already has both a 357 Magnum & a 44 Magnum is might be a bit superfluous, though?

Also, I do think the resurgence of the 10mm has given it more competition than it used to have...?

Cheers!

P.S. Were there ever any carbines/rifles chambered for the 41 Magnum?

 

[SAFireman]

P.S. Were there ever any carbines/rifles chambered for the 41 Magnum?

Heck yeah!

Marlin has had several iterations over the years. I would bet that there are more

 

[jdh]

P.S. Were there ever any carbines/rifles chambered for the 41 Magnum?

Henry big boy series is currently shown chambered in 41. I’m holding out for a Marlin but I may have to lower my standards and settle for the Henry.

 

[GSP Fan]

I hope it doesn't become discontinued I have recently bought 2 M57's. So far I like it much better than my M29. 4 inch barreled 41's VS 6.5 in the 44. Some of what I like about it is that it's a bit different than the norm but I like my 275 Rigby, 6.5x55 and the Savage's 250 & 300 as well

 

[pantannojack]

Large Pistol primers still fit in the pp. Unique still burns predictably, lead still melts at temp and solidifies desirably, lube still lubricates. What is the problem?

 

[biku324]

Heck yeah!

Marlin has had several iterations over the years. I would bet that there are more

If Ruger would build a 77/41, I'd buy one.

 

[dobegrant]

Don’t think so, but have all the components in bulk to reload .41 mag till I die.

 

[Critch]

I've been shooting .41 Mag since 1973 or so. I reload it and I enjoy reloading for it. I currently have a New Model Ruger Blackhawk and I'm looking for a double action .41, I just haven't seen any in my price range. When I'm on my farm I always have my .41 Blackhawk, always.

I've thought about a lever action .41 Mag, but I deer hunt with my old Ruger M77 257 Roberts most of the time..

 

[Engine49guy]

Love when a Lazarus post rises from the past,

Obsolete may be too subjective a term, unpopular yes.

41 had good numbers on paper but its name alone relegated it to live in the shadow of the .44 Magnum which sounds more powerful and has a baby brother that is easier to shoot at paper targets aka .44 Special.
The timing of .41 was not ideal either as many of my older shooting friends related to me that they wanted Dirty Harry's gun when the film came out, when offered a .41 instead they said no I want the .44 , after all Harry Calahan said it was "The most powerful handgun in the world and could take a man's head clean off".

I liked the idea that .41 should have been a .40 Magnum ..
I guess they kinda did make it a few years later but they called it 10mm and its rimless to go in the more popular autoloader.
On paper my .357 is close enough to 10mm so I'm good there,
the idea of .40 SW revolver does sound fun, so does a K frame 9mm .

 

[Dave Workman]

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!

Not a chance in hell! What has always given me a chuckle is how the .41 Mag goes through ebbs and flows... it falls out of favor and people start reading psalms over the grave, and then suddenly it surges back to life and regains popularity among a whole new bunch of shooters.

I've been a chief proponent of the .41 Mag for decades. It shoots flatter than the .429, and with comparable loads will do anything the slightly larger gun will do. It also does it with about 20% less felt recoil.

 

[1sg]

Love my M57 & M58. I haven’t searched for ammo for awhile as I have 1k plus that I purchase many moons ago when it was both plentiful and relatively cheap. Am a fan of the soft shootin’ big Boom in the N Frames

 

[Hair Trigger]

the nicest workhorse revolver for backpacking and horse backing in remote country is the lowly Model 58 loaded with quality 210 grain JSP or JHP.

I wouldn't argue with that at all.

Things keep going downhill when it comes to guns available in .41 Magnum...it is down to:
Ruger Blackhawk in two barrel lengths
Freedom Arms 97 and 83 in several barrel lengths
S&W 57 Classic in 6"

There's still plenty of original M57's and the odd M58 around, although finding one that someone's willing to get rid of, and then being willing to pay what they ask, is another thing.

Of course I would agree that it is not "obsolete" by any means... But, if one already has both a 357 Magnum & a 44 Magnum is might be a bit superfluous, though?

Also, I do think the resurgence of the 10mm has given it more competition than it used to have...?

Not superfluous at all, it's the logical progression, and shooting the .41 half a day at the range is much less painful than the same with a .44.

And 10mm, good as it is, doesn't quite approach .41 Magnum; it's more akin to a hot .357M. I have all three to compare.

Love my M57 & M58. I haven’t searched for ammo for awhile as I have 1k plus that I purchase many moons ago when it was both plentiful and relatively cheap. Am a fan of the soft shootin’ big Boom in the N Frames

That's the sad part about .41M; it's a reloader's caliber, not much choice or availability with factory loads. Starline so far as I know, is the only company now that makes empty brass for it. It's good quality. I bought 500 cases just before the bottom fell out, hope I can keep finding LMP's and bullets for it. Even when available, I rarely buy factory ammo for any of my guns except .22LR and .22MRF.

 

[Bumpus13]

Eleven years later and while it’s not obsolete, I’m not sure I’d call it thriving either.

 

[Frontiersman_]

Hard to tell with the comparative lack of ammo out there today. I don't know that I'd call it obsolete, but merchants tend to stock what they sell. I expect it will be a while before we see it - after they catch up on more "common" cartridges.

A great excuse to handload.

 

[derek45auto]

uh.....what was the question ???

 

[bmcgilvray]

It's not obsolete here.

Relative popularity is not important. I esteem the .41 Magnum and enjoy the Smith & Wesson Model 57 kept on hand here.

Hey, if the .41 Long Colt isn't considered obsolete here with two .41 Long Colt revolvers, ammo, and loading dies on hand, then the .41 Magnum is certainly in my personal limelight.

 

[Jeromejr]

41 mag

No, I have several. Shot my 57 8http://portal.criticalimpact.com/vm2/c71f00ab9af091593947229f28c3afba/27261/deb684a7c512e880a6473c7b9fa19141 3/8 very well. accurate, of bad recoil. Ammo is out there. I got some from a loader in Montana. 44 mag off of gunbroker.

 

[tdan]

My 2 cents on the 41 Mag as I do own one. This is a CULT caliber.......mainly kept alive by gun mag writers.....Dick Metcalf comes to mind. The fans of the 41 Mag will tout that it shoots flatter and recoils less than the 44 Mag. They are always comparing apples and oranges. A 210 gr bullet from a 41 Mag does shoot slightly flatter than a 240 grain bullet from a 44, but that goes away when a lighter bullet is used in the 44. There is no significant difference in recoil between the two unless you launch 300 grain bullets in the 44. Whatever a 41 Mag can do, a 44 Mag can do better.......PERIOD!

 

[Hairtrigger]

I hope not….. had a Marlin lever and a Ruger, sold both but still have tons of ammo and brass…..
someone needs to sell me their obsolete handgun!