Mod. 41 Magazine Disconnect Operation

[GeeTen]

I've done a couple of SEARCHes on the Mod. 41 magazine disconnect operation but can't find an answer to my questions.

1. What part of the magazine overrides the mag disconnect? In other words, can I just insert an empty magazine body (with baseplate, of course) to drop the hammer at the end of a course of fire? Or is the follower (& spring) required to comply with the "If clear, hammer down and holster" command.

2. How can I disconnect the mag disconnect feature on my Mod. 41? Or should I?

Inquiring minds want to know.

TIA for your replies,
"Point Blank" Frank

 

[civil1977]

Take the grips off and insert the mag. You'll see the magazine disconnect move on the right hand side of the frame. I believe there is a nub on the mag body that hits the disconnect.

 

[JF Priest]

A friend of mine (Gunsmith) has disconnected the Mag Safety's in both My 41's.. The trigger is Phenomenal..Prob in at about 4 to 6 ounce pull..If you continue to need help I will ask him to post what he did ..

 

[GeeTen]

Hey JF Priest,

Yes, please. Inquiring minds want to know.

TIA for your friend's reply,
F.

 

[JF Priest]

Hey JF Priest,

Yes, please. Inquiring minds want to know.

TIA for your friend's reply,
F.

AOK.. I may see him tonight or tomorrow..(We are going to the gun club shooting tonight)..I will have him post on here.. Take care..

 

[wimcollaris]

You can disconnect the magazine safety by putting the spring, which pushes down the magazine disconnect, under tension by turning it the other way, so the disconnect is held upward. The spring I mean is the screw spring inside the gun not the v-shaped one, which sits on the side. More info about the operation of the magazine disconnect: Model 41 maintenance . Remember: disconnecting the magazine safety will end your warranty and put you in danger of shooting yourself when not following the right safety rules.

 

[GeeTen]

Hey wimcollaris,

Thanks for the info and the warning -- now where did I put my tool box??? You did know small children start to cry when I have tools in my hands, no?

Happy and Safe New Year to you and yours,
"Point Blank" Frank

 

[wimcollaris]

Thanks for the warning. What do the kids do when you handle guns?? Duck and cover????

 

[CantStopaGlock]

Hello all ! I'm happy to have just joined the forum, hopefully I have some useful knowledge to share with you fellas / gals.

I'm replying here at the request of my friend ( JF Priest), about disabling the magazine disconnect on a S&W M41. I've done many, and the M41 is quite simple. Actually, I disable them on all of the guns I own that are equipped with this annoying "feature".

The procedure is as follows: Remove the R side grip from your M41. Locate the Magazine Disconnect (shown in the attached image). With your fingers, or light tweezers, wiggle it around the trigger bar, and free of the frame. (avoid excessive force and DO NOT PRY on it, it will come with some wiggling. There will be a round spring either attached to the disconnect, or remaining in the hole that you just removed it from, remove this spring and file it in your shoebox of misc. stuff that we all have. Re-install the Magazine Disconnect back into the frame by wiggling it in place (minus the spring of course). Re-install your grips, and function check the weapon. Your magazine "safety" is now disabled. Hope this helps !

~~JD

 

[PeterM]

And this will improve trigger pull? For the life of me, in just studying the mechanism on my M 41, I can't see how it would make an easier pull.

 

[CantStopaGlock]

PeterM,

It does slightly reduce trigger pull. Disabling the disconnect reduces the spring tension and friction that the disconnect applies to the trigger bar. Even when a magazine is installed, the disconnect often "Rides" the trigger bar still applying a gentle pressure to the bar. Therefore, increased friction will definitely be felt in the trigger pull.

Disabling the Magazine disconnect will often be felt in the trigger as well, sometimes not.

~~JD

 

[PeterM]

I may have to give it a try. I've got nothing to lose since I'm not in any sort of sanctioned matches that would require it. Guess the worse that would happen is nothing. Thanks for your information.

 

[PeterM]

I went ahead and removed the spring and reassembled. It may have improved trigger pull over what I have had-but it's not so much that it's very noticeable, at least on my gun. If nothing else, I got rid of a damn lawyer device. Actually, the best thing I did for the trigger on my 41 was to take 1 1/2 coils off the hammer (main) spring. The result was quite noticeable. I have had no light strikes with CCI Standard Velocity ammo. I never do this on any of my guns without having a standby main spring in hand-a $3.00 item-in case I blow it.

 

[CantStopaGlock]

PeterM,

Glad you're happy with your efforts. The M41 trigger can be made to be quite extraordinary with a clip or two of the hammer spring, a few strokes of a extra fine ceramic stone, and some jeweler's rouge. Glad I could help.

~~JD

 

[rogerstg]

Interesting thread which lead me to do a bit more research on the reasons to disable the magazine disconnect. It appears that it had been already disconnected from my used 41 since it always dry fired without a magazine. Also, the disconnector just falls out of the gun when the right side grip is off.

I'm curious: is there any reason that I would want to replace the spring and enable the disconnect? Or have it on hand in case of???

Thanks,
Roger

 

[PeterM]

As I understand it, some organizations (NRA) that sponsor matches require the gun be completely intact if you want to compete. You may want to keep and re-install the spring for that reason or if you had a buyer who thought he had to have it. But I'll bet it's a bear getting it back in. As for me, I'm an old fart and will never sell mine before I'm dead and then my daughter or son-in-law can figure it out.

 

[wimcollaris]

There are two reasons why there is a magazine disconnect feature in a gun:
1. To prevent accidental discharge of the gun when the magazine is out of the gun and the user has forgotten to check and remove the bullet which is still in the chamber. Or the user drops the gun after he removed the magazine and before he could check and clear the bullet from the chamber.
2. This is more a feature usefull with self-defense guns. If you are attacked by someone and he/she gets hold of your gun, you can drop the magazine out of your gun and the attacker has a not-working gun in his/her hands. He/she needs a magazine to make the gun go BANG.

 

[sjmjax]

Wanted to take a minute to thank CantStopaGlock for the information on disabling the disconnect.

Did that last night and I am extremely pleased with the result. My issue was not trigger pull but that the mag disconnect was not allowing the trigger bar to reset 3-4 times every magazine [five different units].

I would have to take a small screw driver and fiddle with the trigger mechanism to get it to reset.

Took the gun to the range this afternoon and ran over 300 rounds of various brands ammo without a single malfunction. I'm a happy camper. I'd stopped shooting this gun out of frustration. Forgot how accurate and how much fun it is to shoot.

Followed your advice with one addition. I noted that if you put the safety on, it exposes the hole for the pivot shaft of the disconnect. By using gentle pressure with a 1/16 pin punch, it was very easy to wiggle the disconnect loose.

I imagine the real problem is a worn contact on the disconnect where it engages the magazine boss or a worn magazine catch that is allowing the mag to "droop" in the gun. However, feeding is flawless with every brand of ammo I've tried.

Only down side I've seen is that without the extra spring pressure of the disconnect, the magazine drop is sluggish. Before removing the spring, the magazines were "ejected" from the gun on pressing the mag release.

Thanks again! Happy shooting!

 

[TOM BECKWITH]

This has been a very interesting thread. The WHY is more interesting than the HOW. Based on the confusion over missing cocking indicators, this should get real interesting in the coming years (depending on how many are removed). "Did the factory - - - , Were all 41 shipped - - - , What does it look like and where do I get it?, - - - Did it have a spring?, - - - - What idiot would remove the, - - - What about the 46s?, - - - ETC. But that is why we have S-W Forum

 

[earplug]

When clearing the pistol after shooting at Steel Challange or other such match, occasional a round won't extract. Its easier to shoot it out then pry it out.
No need to look for a empty magazine.