Model 41 Ammo - Accuracy and Function

[dapster]

I'm waiting in CA to take delivery of a new Model 41. Are CCI's Mini-Mags too hot?

During this time I'd be interested and appreciative to know from you Model 41 shooters which brands of ammo and loads within those brands have provided the best accuracy as well reliability of pistol functioning.

 

[dapster]

I'm waiting in CA to take delivery of a new Model 41. Are CCI's Mini-Mags too hot?

During this time I'd be interested and appreciative to know from you Model 41 shooters which brands of ammo and loads within those brands have provided the best accuracy as well reliability of pistol functioning.

 

[H Richard]

Nearly all .22 RF pistols are "picky" about the ammo they like. Two Mod 41's may not like the same ammo. I would recommend Standard Velocity ammo, then try several brands of decent ammo and see which one groups the best in your gun. I recommend shooting off a sandbag rest to eliminate the human error factor in evaluating your ammo. I would not recommend Remington Target, as it has had too many misfires, and a long reputation for that problem. CCI Standard Velocity is good, and Winchester T22 is a low cost option.

 

[wbw2]

For what it's worth, I have a circa 1961 model 41, and it likes the Wolf match ammo the best.

It likes CCI green tags second best, but it hates Federal gold medal match.

 

[JoeHatley]

I broke my gun in with many, many thousands of rounds of Winchester Super X high velocity rounds. I've not tried any Mini Mags.

After trying just about every "target" type .22 ammo I could find, I've settled on CCI Standard Velocity and Federal Auto Match (bulk). The CCI SV is slightly more accurate, but the Auto Match is much less expensive, and is as accurate as I can hold anyway.

Good Luck...

Joe

 

[johngalt]

CCI standard velocity works well in mine. Federal Champion (no longer available) was also very good.

You should not need to use high velocity for the 41 to run. I had to send mine back to S&W many years ago after shooting lots of high velocity, S&W told to me to quit doing that.

 

[dapster]

"I had to send mine back to S&W many years ago after shooting lots of high velocity, . . "

Just curious, which high velocity rounds were you shooting? Thanks.

 

[bad_man_ one]

I have a 5.50" and a 7.00" and I use Wal-Mart's Federal 550 rd. Value Packs, 36 gr. Hollow Points.
Have never had even one failure, can't say the same for the Remington's, they are not reliable.
I'm sure there is a more accurate ammo, But I don't need it, I'm happy with one ragged hole.
Regards,
BM1

 

[johngalt]

Originally posted by dapster:
"I had to send mine back to S&W many years ago after shooting lots of high velocity, . . "

Just curious, which high velocity rounds were you shooting? Thanks.

It's been many years ago, but I think it was Winchester Super X. For target shooting, SV is the way to go. It is more accurate, and HV is completely unnecessary for shooting holes in paper.

I would avoid Remmington. The last I tried (in the blue and green box) had lots of misfires and failures to extract.

 

[Alan Quackenbush]

Factory uses CCI Standard.

 

[johnnywitt]

Winchester Dynapoints are the best SV ammo for the price in my book. They stay SS even in a 16" barrel most of the time. They are a 40gr HP.

Anybody had any luck shooting Aguila SE Subsonic 40gr solids in a 41? I don't have a 41 yet, but my Ruger Mk shoots this stuff really well suppressed. It is pretty accurate and super quiet ammo. Be aware it smells funny because of the Eley Prime.

For those that want to shoot cheap bulk Wally World High Velocity ammo for plinking, doesn't Power Custom make a Drop In Buffer for the 41?

 

[MSC]

I had a 41 a while back, and it seemed as only CCI Std Vel would function 100% (tried the Wolf spring kit and all). Wasn't as accurate as I hoped with it, either. Ended up selling it.
Another one came up at my club recently, for a great price, so I picked it up. Accuracy is much better, as is functioning. So far I've tried CCI Std Vel, Federal Gold Medal 711B, and Wolf Match. Benched at 50ft, CCI held well within a dime, all shots touching. Federal a little better, and Wolf, a single hole with enough distortion to let you know it was a couple shots. Very impressed, as it was better than my Euro guns shot with these brands (I don't even tease myself with the Eley Tenex, etc... Maybe when shooting give s me a paycheck!

). All functioned 100% with the exception of 2 cases bouncing off the topstrap and jamming the next shot. Don't think that was ammo-related, though - as CCI was one of them.
Anyhow... CCI Std Vel is the recommended ammo for this gun, should always work. I'd stay away from high-vel, unless you change out to an appropriate recoil spring. No use beating the gun up.
Aguila was a no-go in my last 41, and I think anything subsonic wouldn't cycle it. Maybe give the Aguila Rifle Match a try, though. Higher velocity, and has been very accurate in past guns. I'll probably be trying some in the future.

 

[Roadster Guy]

I tried every brand that I could find locally, finally I ordered 2000 rounds of CCI Standard Velocity on-line since that seemed to be the ammo of choice on this forum. I couldn't be happier, so far no jams or misfires and great accuracy. The Federal Auto Match bulk works well also, but requires a slightly different zero than the CCI. I burn the other brands through my Ruger Charger, it doesn't care.

 

[stevieboy]

My wife's 41 does ok with CCI standard velocity, better, with minimags, and terribly with the cheap Federal ammo from Walmart. Of all of the ammo she's tried, the Federal bulk pack was the only one that produced failures to cycle.

What works best for her, by far, is Federal GameShock, which is, apparently, significantly peppier than the Federal bulk pack, but not so hot as is the minimags. When she switched from minimags to the GameShock her groups decreased instantly by more than 50%. An additional benefit from this ammo is that it appears to burn significantly more cleanly than the CCI ammo.

 

[johnnywitt]

Originally posted by stevieboy:
My wife's 41 does ok with CCI standard velocity, better, with minimags, and terribly with the cheap Federal ammo from Walmart. Of all of the ammo she's tried, the Federal bulk pack was the only one that produced failures to cycle.

What works best for her, by far, is Federal GameShock, which is, apparently, significantly peppier than the Federal bulk pack, but not so hot as is the minimags. When she switched from minimags to the GameShock her groups decreased instantly by more than 50%. An additional benefit from this ammo is that it appears to burn significantly more cleanly than the CCI ammo.

Where could an Old Boy lay into a mess of this Fed Gameshock?

 

[stevieboy]

We've purchased ours through our local range. But, I see it advertised on Midway on their 22 lr ammo page as "Federal Gameshock Hyper Velocity 31 Grain Plated" ammunition. Right now, it's advertised at $ 3.39 per box of 50, $29.49 per case of 500. By my rough estimate that makes it about 2x as expensive as the WalMart Federal Bulk Pack ammo. I looked closely at the packaging on the Gameshock that we've purchased and there are no specifications as to velocity. So, I don't know how it compares in that regard to the minimags.

 

[stevieboy]

Please disregard what I've just written. Looking more closely at the Midway page, the ammo that we've purchased is NOT the hypervelocity stuff, it is Federal Gameshock 38 grain high velocity ammo. That's also available at Midway at $3.49 per box of 50. The specs show a muzzle velocity of 1260 fps and muzzle energy of 138 ft. lbs. By comparison, CCI standard velocity is 1070 fps and with a muzzle energy of 102 ft/lb. Minimags are rated at 1235 fps with a muzzle energy of 135 ft. lbs. So, if these specs are accurate, the Federal Gameshock is roughly comparable to the minimags in speed and energy. Oddly, my wife's 41 loves the Federal and is just ok with the minimags.

Sorry for the confusion.

 

[johnnywitt]

Sounds like the Federal equivilant of the CCI SGB (Small Game Bullet). I'll have to try these out. I usually end up buying my .22 ammo from Midway too.