Model 41 - Buy new or risk old?

[nathanours]

Hello everyone,

I’d like to get a model 41, but can’t seem to decide between a new or used pistol.

I know the older ones are generally considered to have a better build quality and finish.

I’d like this to be a shooter, and am concerned that I wouldn’t have much recourse if an older example from Gunbroker didn’t run reliably.

What do you all suggest? Do you have any examples of how the old ones are better beyond the markings, solid grips, and cocking indicator?

Ideally I’d love a pre A serial prefix gun but am hesitant.

Thanks for helping me make up my mind!

 

[Highmaster]

You will have more problems with a new one than an old one !

 

[nathanours]

Is there anything in particular I could check on an older one visually?

Do you all recommend a spring change to refresh an old gun that will be a user? Anything I should look out for in particular?

 

[Model52guy]

Buy old or Risk new. Would have been a better title.
I don’t own one past 1980 but have looked at them. Old ones have better fit and finish. New ones look OK and should work.

 

[tlawler]

Model 41 - Buy old or risk new?

There…fixed it for ya!

 

[skwchock]

buy old. New seems to come with lots of "improvement" problems. Not worth the trouble. Plus, craftsmanship is in Old. New is only cnc

 

[Bald1]

I’m glad the group collectively feels this way. I’ll be listing a 1978 vintage 5 1/2” model 41 very soon. Probably tomorrow.

 

[nathanours]

Do the troubles only plague more recent guns, or does the lack of craftsmanship go back to those made in the 90s?

 

[Drm50]

Buying Target Pistols is a lot like buying sports cars. Many are bought by ordinary guys who only shoot a few hundred rounds a year. They bought it because they wanted the best and they take very good care of them. These are the ones you want to buy. You can be pretty sure a 50yr old gun that
looks new on the outside has innards to match.
The pistols from completion shooters can have serious wear & tear. There is also the old pistol that falls into the hands of some infidel that has no respect for a quality pistol. These are the ones that are iffy buying on line.
I’ve bought around 15 old models in last 5yrs, most on line and all high condition pistols, with no problems at all. Bought 4 new models from 1990s
and had no problems with them either.

 

[pabicyclist]

I have no experience with the new ones. But, I have one from around 1962 (serial 46xxx) that my Dad bought when I was in high school. I used that in competition for many years. I couldn't begin to guess how many rounds it's fired. Still runs fine.

 

[Exaviator]

The Model 41 is a very robust firearm, but, like everything in life nothing lasts for ever. I purchased my 1984 model some five years back and shoot around 250 rounds per month, so far without any problems. I also took the opportunity to purchase a few likely spares, but they remain unused.

 

[dogmaw]

I don't recommend newer 41's after several newer competitive shooters had problems that weren't getting fixed properly when they sent them back (early 2000's). Started my son with a Ruger Mk. II back then. Mine is from the early 80's with all three barrels (7.5" Field, 5.5" Field and Bull). Many thousands of rounds in Gallery competition over 20+ years with a steady supply of CCI Standard and change of Wolff springs. Rarely cleaned it. When it hiccupped a pen knife cleaning of lead off the breech face was all it took to go again.
It ran with the Walther GSP crowd at the NRA sectional for the Bronze. If you can find one like that you will never regret it.

 

[Baxter6551]

I’m glad the group collectively feels this way. I’ll be listing a 1978 vintage 5 1/2” model 41 very soon. Probably tomorrow.

^^ There you go problem solved. Wait for the listing and buy his !

 

[Troystat]

I have a early 70's model 41 that I bought about 8 years ago, it was and still is in very good condition, maybe a 98% gun and I have since put over 10k rounds through it and have had no problems. I would not hesitate to buy an older one. That being said model 41's seem to come in two varieties. The first kind are a joy to shoot and will shoot almost any ammo, the other kind are a pain in the backside and only like certain ammo and often need the attention of a good gunsmith to make behave.

 

[6string]

To the OP, Nathanours,

You don’t mention much about the nature of your interest beyond saying you’re looking for a shooter.
This would be my advice:
Look around locally for gun clubs, if you don’t already belong to one. Try to find one where they hold monthly Bullseye Pistol matches. (Hint: ask around on the Bulleye-L forum!) Then, go visit and participate!
Bullseye shooters tend to be very helpful to new shooters.
They will certainly offer you lots of help and opinions on acquiring a good shooting 22 pistol.
Mention the S&W M41 and you can expect to learn a LOT.

You’ll probably get to try a few pistols.
And maybe you’ll land a good example of a used model 41?

Honestly, I can’t think of a better way to be sure you get a good pistol.
After everything I’ve personally seen and experienced with the model 41, I would never buy one, new or used, that I hadn’t shot and examined.

 

[chief38]

I general, older Smiths are much better made, higher quality, better fit and finish and usually work much more reliably. The blued finish on the old guns is also the original and will stand up better. They also used mostly forged steel parts, not MIM parts. My newest S&W was made in 1994 - that's the last year S&W made anything I'd personally buy. After that the Company started turning out products below my personal standards. I'm waiting for the day their new production quality and customer service proves me wrong! BTW, I get no pleasure in saying that either!

 

[Tom S.]

I have both new and old, and accuracy-wise, I can't tell them apart. The newer one is more ammo tolerant and came with a rail so mounting optics is a lot easier, especially if you buy an older one that hasn't been drilled and tapped for mounts. Older ones do have a substantial price advantage over new, but you don't know what you're getting reliability-wise, and it has no warranty.

 

[Rick H.]

Buying ANY firearm new or used is a **** shoot for the most part unless you know who you are buying it from. Don't buy into the belief that older is better from a shooting position. They all have issues. It is true that older ones have a better finish, but that's about it. I have a PC Model 41 that had some issues and they were corrected by the factory and the pistol runs fine now. Our biggest problem seems to be ****** ammunition these days with a severe lack of quality made USA .22 ammo. Eley, Lapua, or RWS seem to be the best made ammunition these days if you can afford the price. I bought into the tall tail of buying an older Model 41 and got a paperweight for my hard earned cash that I lost money on. I swore off ever buying another S&W Model 41 until I encountered the PC version. I fell in love with the pistol but it needed a trip to the factory. Got it back in great condition and never looked back. The best shooting ammunition in that pistol without going foreign is CCI Green Tag. It will now run non-stop to 75 rounds at a time with no failures. I don't shoot more than that without cleaning it as it serves no purpose.

I will offer this, if you buy used look hard at the barrel with a bore scope. More damage is done to quality .22's by improper cleaning than anything else. Make for darn sure you have right of return if it is a used pistol regardless of make, unless you have money to burn. Would you buy a car that didn't run? If not than why would you buy a pistol that didn't work? There are far too many questionable firearm sellers that have gotten away for years with passing off junk with no fear of having to make good on what they sell. At least buying new you don't have to put up with that problem with a factory warranty. If you can't get your money back on a used pistol purchase walk away from it unless you can tolerate owning a paperweight.

Rick H.

 

[gdogs]

There is absolutely no way that I would risk buying a new one.

 

[Drm50]

I was in business for quite a few years. Trade ins were shot for function, cleaned and tagged. The gun was fully functional when it went out the door.
Said gun had no limitations on how old it could be. I know of no business that would take returns on guns that didn’t live up to purchasers accuracy
expectations. I can imagine the can of worms that would open the way people are today. As far as I know an FFL has to have the gun in his in book in inventory or listed out going.
We did some refunds because we didn’t want to go through legal hassles.
Everyone was a gun damage from barrel obstructions. Except one. A guy bought a new REM 1100 slug gun right before deer season. He came in after season screaming we sold him a piece of junk that wouldn’t shoot.
I checked it out and nothing was wrong with it. Short time later we heard him bragging about his free use of a gun for deer season and he even shot a nice buck with it. That’s what you have to contend with today.