Today was the day! Finally a S&W model 57

rjm6120 · Mar 16, 2023

My jaunt down to Lexington was very fruitful today. Acquired a very nice CS40 Chief's Special, which I have posted in the semi-auto section.

But, the main reason for my trip was to snag this beautiful 57 no dash, 1979 date according to the "Bible". A rub down with an Eezox cloth really shined this up nicely. Yes, it is magnaported, but IMO very well done and did not affect my desire to get it. This was my acquisition goal this year.

SuperMan · Mar 16, 2023

Have a great time with that one and if you are new to .41s...welcome to the Cult...

1964-2014...The .41 Magnum

.41 Magnum / 41 Special Load Data Center

I have a couple of Mag-Na-Ported .41s and they don't bother me either...

Bob

Retired W4 · Mar 17, 2023

i usually don't care for Magna-Ported guns but in this case I will make an exception. Nice find.

Sea Bass · Mar 17, 2023

Very nice! Where in Lexington did you find it if you don’t mind me looking? I am in Elizabethtown.

series guy · Mar 17, 2023

That’s as nice as they get. I love .41 Magnums. Congratulations.

Roofuss · Mar 17, 2023

You'll love the model 57. I bought a 57 no dash { 6" bbl, 3T's , box and paperwork } here on the forum a couple years ago. Great caliber.

Hawg Rider · Mar 17, 2023

Congratulations on your acquisition! But since it's only March, you have plenty of time to think about your next handgun goal this year. LOL! The .41 Magnum is a great caliber, and the Model 57 is an outstanding revolver. It was actually the first revolver I ever purchased- back in the late 70s. Unfortunately that one was stolen when my apartment was burglarized. Over the years I assembled a modest collection of .357s, .44s, etc., but for some reason I never replaced the .41. I remedied that situation late last year when I picked up this minty 4" nickel Model 57 ca. 1980 (I still had the presentation case from the revolver that was stolen). I think you'll really have a great time with your Model 57 and I wouldn't worry too much about the Mag-na-porting.

rjm6120 · Mar 17, 2023

Sea Bass said:
Very nice! Where in Lexington did you find it if you don’t mind me looking? I am in Elizabethtown.

Sea Bass......it was an Antique & Modern Firearms on Nicholasville
Road.

max · Mar 17, 2023

I have 2 57's and they are fine revolvers. I shoot light lead loads in them and whoever gets them after me, will fine they don't have a lot of wear.

AC Man · Mar 17, 2023

I have a 6" with presentation case box and papers 57 unfired, a 1970 and 1966 S serial number diamond grips. 8 3/8 also unfired and presentation case. What I really want is the 1964 first year. I have bid on two of them. No luck.

Rusty parrot · Mar 17, 2023

Three months into the New Year and you have already checked off a bucket list gun, outstanding.
Have fun and have to ask “What’s next” ?

rjm6120 · Mar 18, 2023

Rusty parrot said:
Three months into the New Year and you have already checked off a bucket list gun, outstanding.
Have fun and have to ask “What’s next” ?

Rusty parrot......maybe a model 58 to go with it!

rjm6120 · Mar 18, 2023

Now a follow up regarding shooting it...I do plan on shooting this gun, but sparingly. Maybe a cylinder full or two at most whenever I decide to take it out. With the Magnaporting, I have read conflicting info regarding whether to use lead or jacketed bullets, reading that lead bullets can shave off pieces of lead into and around the ports.

Will the occasional use of shooting lead bullets cause any issue, or should I just play it safe and use jacketed bullets?

stansdds · Mar 18, 2023

I could see lead fouling building up in the ports, making for a bit of a mess to clean. If the ports do cause a fouling issue, then just use jacketed bullets. Since it has been modified, there is no collector value in this Model 57, so it is definitely a shooter grade.

BigMuddy · Mar 18, 2023

Very nice 57! Definitely one of my favorite cartridges that can easily handle any job needed from a handgun. No need to shoot it “sparingly”. I shoot mine a lot and they are none the worse for wear.

With regard to the Mag Na Port and lead, I’ve owned a few ported guns and shot both lead and jacketed from them. The lead bullets never harmed the gun and the ports never got clogged, but I always did get some lead build up outside of them at the sight base. Required some extra scrubbing in that area to clean the gun.

Enjoy that one and as Bob said “welcome to the cult”. The links he provided have some great 41 info.

Dan

msp2640 · Mar 18, 2023

RJM - Congrats on your find. I have a duplicate of your 6" without the RR front sight and porting, that I was able to find 2 years ago. This is my 2nd N Frame and 41, as I picked up a 657 4" about 30 yrs ago, 2nd hand at a LGS. The reason I responded, as I have now been there and done that with both ported/ non ported - lead and jacketed. The 657 had some fine surface scratches when I got it, so I sent it to S&W. This was pre PC days - I asked to have them bevel the leading edge of the cylinder, magnaport it and bead blast the finish. It came out great, still one of my favorites, but somewhat regret having it ported now. I reload and made the jacketed ammo about factory level, maybe a shade faster. Lead was always loaded mid range. What I noticed thru the 657, was jacketed that was full spec made for a nice upwards blast/ flame - lead, obviously less, but made cleaning it a mess, it would "get caked" around the edges of the porting and always concerned me about messing up the matted finish when trying to clean it off. The 657 is now fired with just medium velocity jacketed stuff to keep the blast/ flame to a minimum. No more lead for that one. The 57 6" sees the same jacketed ammo and occasional lead ammo at moderate velocity. Hope this helps with your ammo choice. Bill in MA

rjm6120 · Mar 18, 2023

Stansdds, BigMuddy & msp2640....thanks for your replies and the education on jacketed vs. lead. Your responses gave me some valuable information.

captaint · Mar 20, 2023

msp2640 - Just a suggestion - you might try loading lead boolits with gas checks on the base.. Could be where your lead is melting... maybe worth a try since you do load yer own..

SuperMan · Mar 21, 2023

rjm (those are my initials also)...have two Mag-Na-Ported S&Ws. a 657 3" and 58 4" that has the Quad-Ports...zero issues with lead bullets other than the above mentioned slight leading at the base of the sight.

If you reload try the 210 grain Berry's plated bullets..no issues with any kind of fowling at all and they are fairly inexpensive compared to jacketed bullets. 8.0 grains of Unique will run about 1025 fps from a 6" and very accurate.

jem102 · Mar 21, 2023

Very nice! M57's are great revolvers.

Today was the day! Finally a S&W model 57

Member

Attachments

Member

US Veteran

Member

Member

Member

Member

Attachments

Member

US Veteran

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Similar threads