Looking for advice on buying a Mdl.41 7"

[jrprich]

I am new to the S&W forum and to S&W firearms... but not new to gun forums

Most of my handguns are Colts and a few Rugers.

I am interested in buying a Model 41 .22LR with the 7" barrel.

I would appreciate any advice on what to look for and avoid with the 41.
I am looking for a shooter not a safe gun.

Thanks in advance for any wisdom you care to share

Jim R

 

[jrprich]

So was it my mention that I own Colts that caused nobody to respond to my question???

I would expect that there are quite a few out there who own Model 41s. I would really appreciate some info on the 41's strengths and weaknesses as well as things to look out for on a used 41.

 

[gdauth]

I am new to the S&W forum and to S&W firearms... but not new to gun forums

Most of my handguns are Colts and a few Rugers.

I am interested in buying a Model 41 .22LR with the 7" barrel.

I would appreciate any advice on what to look for and avoid with the 41.
I am looking for a shooter not a safe gun.

Thanks in advance for any wisdom you care to share

Jim R

You looking for used or new? I have a PC model 41 with the 5" barrel. It took some time to break it in and to find the best ammo. I use CCI SV, but early on I had good luck with Eley, other brands not so much. My 41 likes to run wet and I use Moble 1 5W20 on the slide, that made a big difference in how it operates. Also, because of the design, make sure you finger does not touch the slide as it can cause FTEs. The only other thing is enjoy, they are real tack drivers. Good luck.

 

[jrprich]

You looking for used or new? I have a PC model 41 with the 5" barrel. It took some time to break it in and to find the best ammo. I use CCI SV, but early on I had good luck with Eley, other brands not so much. My 41 likes to run wet and I use Moble 1 5W20 on the slide, that made a big difference in how it operates. Also, because of the design, make sure you finger does not touch the slide as it can cause FTEs. The only other thing is enjoy, they are real tack drivers. Good luck.

Thanks so much for the info.
Likely used, I would buy new but there seems to be none available at present.....at least I cannot find one.
I like the 7.5" barrel versions. So yours doesn't like the usual Federal or Winchester .22LR that are usually sold in 325-525 round bulk? That is what I most often shoot target with and have thousands of rounds stored So that would be a consideration. Would you know if the newer model 41s handle modern high velocity .22 ammo better than the older versions?
Thanks again, still trying to learn more before I buy one.

Jim

 

[hdfinder47]

Both my 5" and 7" seem to prefer lower power ammo and are very accurate. I somewhat prefer the balance of the shorter barrel but that may be due to the muzzle brake on the longer gun. Both are "A" models (older models with the cocking indicator on the rear of the slide). Great guns.

 

[AKRuss]

I have an old 5" model 41 with extendable front sight that I've shot quite a bit. I have tried a number of different types of ammo and found my gun to be ammo sensitive and I've heard the same from others. My gun loves CCI Standard Velocity Target ammo, as gdauth states above, and that's all I use. I shoot my gun "dry" and use regular gun oil of any variety I have at hand when I clean it. It's a super target gun. I wouldn't expect much luck with bulk ammo but who knows. It would be sort of like putting low octane gasoline in you Ferrari, JMHO.

 

[kas9412]

I have a '97 vintage 41 which I bought new. I have both the 5.5 and 7 inch barrels and prefer the 5.5. Mine likewise likes the slide to run wet, and since I started using SV CCI a few years back, it is problem free. Most 41's don't seem to run well on the high velocity stuff, and mine is no exception. I have several handguns and my 41 is hands down favorite.

kas

 

[fungunnin]

41s are not intended for high velocity as ammo. A target gun should be fed target ammo. If you want to dump bulk pack through a 22 get any 22 under $500 and have fun.
Sent from my Motorola Flip phone.

 

[4barrel]

I have owned a pile of target 22s. I bought the gun you wont in the early 70s. I do not have it any more. They are picky & take higher dollar ammo. Buy a High Standard target pistol --a 106 or 107 & they will shoot anything you put through them & a lot easier to clean & shoot as good with fewer problems. Unless you can shoot at least a 97 or 98 standing at 25y with 1 hand you cant tell the difference. An older Mark 1 or 11 Ruger bull barrel will give them a run for the money in the right hands. They will feed all 22 ammo also. A 41 does not like bulk ammo. They like 40 gr. standard & picky on the brand. My buddy has one that will drill holes on the bench but when he stands to shoot it jams on the first or second shot. It does not jam when I shoot it. I guess it hates him. Not trying to talk you out of buying a 41 but you will have to learn what makes them tick to get along with them.

 

[Jimbo41]

There is supposedly a buffer available that helps a m41 run HV ammo, but that doesn't answer the question "why?" And it won't make it as accurate as it can be with SV ammo.

I run CCI SV through mine. Also prefer the shorter barrels even though I liked the idea of the longer.

There is a like new one for sale at ncshootersclub, but I think it's a 5"

 

[Steve Dunnington]

I find the 41 to be quite finicky. It doesn't seem to fire, feed, and extract anything in the right caliber. :S

 

[jrprich]

Thanks for all the info guys, I do appreciate your time. Based on the posts the 41s seem picky with ammo which is a very important detail to know. I currently shoot a Ruger MkIII Hunter SS that I have customized with lots of Volquartsen parts. It is so accurate that it is boring to shoot at my local range. It likes bulk Federal red box just fine and has not had a single failure on Federal in over 2k rounds.
I was thinking that the 41 would be an interesting upgrade........but perhaps not.

Thanks again for your knowledge,

Jim

 

[Jimbo41]

I really like the grips on that MkIII!

To be honest, I have several MkII's that I can't shoot to their full potential, and I can't get everything out of the 41 either, but I enjoy it and do not find it picky at all. Some folks say that you need to put a drop of oil on top of the first round in each mag, but I've never had to do even that and don't recall a meaningful number of failures of any type, certainly not 1 per brick.

Someone near you has one that you can try, just gotta find them. I'm in NC.

 

[jrprich]

Jimbo,

Thanks, tried several grips and these really fit me well. I will look around for a 41 to try.
I am in oregon so we would have to try hard to be any further from each other ;^0

 

[VTHokiesDuckHunter]

So was it my mention that I own Colts that caused nobody to respond to my question???

I would expect that there are quite a few out there who own Model 41s. I would really appreciate some info on the 41's strengths and weaknesses as well as things to look out for on a used 41.

No, it was the fact that you posted at 3 a.m. and nobody had a chance to respond yet!

This is a great and friendly forum, and has very good traffic relatively speaking - especially in the smaller subset of pistol owners that are S&W 2nd and 3rd gen enthusiasts, but not to the extent of what you would find on ShotgunWorld (one of my favorite gun sites), or The High Road, etc.

I'd offer to help but the one kind of S&W I don't collect, shoot, or have much knowledge with are the .22's. Love them- they're great guns, I just haven't owned one!

I started off in .22 pistols with the Browning Challengers and Buck Marks, and Ruger Standards and Mark III's. and kind of stuck with those.

Good luck- you'll get a lot of help here and welcome to Smith-Wessonforum.com!

 

[AKRuss]

When I got into NRA bullseye shooting, I tried a couple of Rugers, though none as nice looking as yours, and a few fancy High Standards before getting a model 41. It seemed like a natural evolution of sorts - I guess partly due to cost and availability. Of all of them, I found I shot the 41 the best. However, they're all good guns so try them all! I'm really sorry I didn't hang onto them but back then I had to sell one to get another.

 

[Barrie]

You will find that most of the longer barreled M41 are 7&3/8" long and not just 7" long. They are one of the finest target pistols ever made and shoot straight CCI SV ammo only in them. You won't have any trouble by doing that no matter what age the gun that you buy is. Only the M46 has the 7" barrel on them and they do not interchange. I have one of each and they will not change over except for the mags or grips it seems.

 

[jrprich]

No, it was the fact that you posted at 3 a.m. and nobody had a chance to respond yet!

Opps, great point! Sorry about not paying attention to the time difference

The responses have been great and very helpful.

 

[AlaskaDawg]

Model 41 5 and 7 inch barrels

I have had my Model 41 since the the early 1980's when it was bought in a store north of the Arctic circle. Mine works with several types of ammo but it much prefers RWS biatholon. Once I found the connection I bought several cases of the same lot - for less than generic stuff today. The big treat is having bought a couple of 5 inch barrels a number of year ago. I have a Leupold pistol scope on the seven inch with Conetrol mounts. It is a working pistol for bird, rabbit, arctic hare, fox, etc. Really is a favorite pistol. The magazine release button is a bit high for a field pistol and so bought an extra button and had the spare lowered. The barrels switch in moments with no tools. Beautiful design, quality and accuracy. This Model 41 is a lifetime keeper.

 

[ladder13]

My 41 is the last S&W auto I'd ever sell.

 

[Barrie]

My 1958 m41 is my main gun with my m46 as my backup pistol in case the main gun has a problem. Its a lonely life for the 46 I can say. It never seems to get used hardly at all. Just enough to keep the dust off.

 

[AlaskaDawg]

I have had my Model 41 since the the early 1980's when it was bought in a store north of the Arctic circle. Mine works with several types of ammo but it much prefers RWS biatholon. Once I found the connection I bought several cases of the same lot - for less than generic stuff today. The big treat is having bought a couple of 5 inch barrels a number of year ago. I have a Leupold pistol scope on the seven inch with Conetrol mounts. It is a working pistol for bird, rabbit, arctic hare, fox, etc. Really is a favorite pistol. The magazine release button is a bit high for a field pistol and so bought an extra button and had the spare lowered. The barrels switch in moments with no tools. Beautiful design, quality and accuracy. This Model 41 is a lifetime keeper.

Friend shooting my Model 41. She had shooting glasses while firing but NOT for a photo!

 

[824tsv]

I would love to comment on the pic, but sufice to say... nice Model 41

 

[FlyFish]

As others have indicated, the 41 is a good (not great, IMHO) target gun and extremely accurate, but, but . . . in my experience, most are ridiculously picky about ammo and are prone to malfunctions even with the ammo they shoot best.

I started Bullseye competition over 30 years ago with a 41, and I think I got lucky because my gun, which I still have and shoot from time to time, would feed just about any SV ammo I tried with it, as long as I cleaned it well after just about every match. I still got plenty of practice firing alibi strings. A few years ago I switched to a Walther GSP and the difference in reliability was like night and day. I clean the Walther only about once a year, before the start of the indoor Bullseye season, and only recently had my first FTF after tens of thousands of rounds fired, and it was clearly the fault of the ammo, which apparently had a spot on the rim that didn't get any priming compound.

There are several brands of target guns used by the guys on my current pistol team. I usually call at least one of the lines on any given night and so get to see plenty of alibis over the course of the season - although the 41s make up only about 25% or so of the guns in use, they account for the vast majority of alibis. I know guys who have tried for years to get their 41s to run and, even with the help of good gunsmiths, have finally given up.

I know it's heretical to say it, particularly on this Forum, but I think the 41 is vastly overrated and, compared to the top-of the line Walther, Hammerli and Pardini target guns, rather crude, with a barely adequate trigger (and admittedly less expensive, but still a pretty pricey gun). Sure, they're accurate, but can you really make use of that extra accuracy? If you're shooting High Master scores, probably - but High Masters are very few and very far between. Yes, you can get lucky and find a good one, as I unknowingly did many years ago, but why take that chance when there are so many other options out there?

 

[fungunnin]

Flyfish.
What would you say is a top choice $6-900 target 22?

Sent from my Motorola Flip phone.

 

[FlyFish]

Flyfish.
What would you say is a top choice $6-900 target 22?

In that price range, if it were me, I'd be looking for a gently used High Standard. You should also be able to find a nice 41, at least at the higher end of the range, and I don't mean to say that that you shouldn't consider one - only that my experience has been that many of them are unreliable. But they're pretty much all accurate, and some (like mine) will run dependably. It's just a bit of a gamble.

 

[fungunnin]

I've never gotten into any bullseye leagues but I have a soft spot for nice 22s but have stepped up the the 208 price range.
I have a 41 and have owned a Benelli 95.
My buckmark Target 5.5 is an awesome shooter so is my Sig Trailside.

I have been looking at a Bakal 35 and would like to build up a Volquartzen MKII. Any others that you would recommend looking at?
Or is it just time to spend 2k and get a serious target gun?
Thanks,

Sent from my Motorola Flip phone.

 

[FlyFish]

I have limited knowledge of 208s specifically and Hammerli generally, and at least in the leagues I've shot in they've been relatively rare compared to the Walthers and Pardinis, but I've never heard anything bad about them. I assume by Bakal 35 you mean the Baikal IZH-35M? They're very nice guns - my wife shoots the Walther KSP 200, which is just an IZH-35M with a much prettier finish. Nice trigger and very accurate, but parts and magazines are just about impossible to find.

If you're not actually competing but just like to shoot quality .22 semi-autos, you could look for a nice Colt Woodsman Match Target. They're fairly rare but certainly obtainable if you look around - I'd expect to pay about a grand for a nice example.

All I can say about springing for a world-class competition pistol is the same thing I'd say about every other one of my guns, and that is that the pain of parting with the cash fades quickly while the joy of ownership continues forever.