[Odessa]

Great to see the forum back up again; just got back home from my AT (ARNG "summer camp") at Fort Riley KS - sure is a hot place in July!

Bought a 4 5/8" Ruger NM Blackhawk in .41 Mag the week before I went to AT and was able to hit a gun show in Topeka last weekend - got 200 cases of W-W brass and 200 bullets to go with them (Hornady 210 XTP's).

Anybody got any 'tried and true" Pet loads for this cartridge? Need lead bullet loads too (will order those from Beartooth soon). I searched the Beartooth site and didn't come up with anything from the past.

Thanks,
Odessa

 

[cast-n-blast]

Odessa,
Elmer Keith's old standby load of 20.0 grs. 2400, over a large STANDARD primer, pushing a hard cast 210-215 gr. SWC has always shown good accuracy for me. I'd drop down to 19.0 grs. for jacketed bullets. You'll be in the 1400-1500 fps bracket. Heck of a load !
Jeff
This is a safe top pressure load. I've always had easy case extraction with it.

 

[twillis]

I am partial to 18grs of Accurate Arms #9 over Hornady's 210gr XTP with CCI LP primers. Also like 16 to 17 grs of AA #9 over a 230gr Keith bullet from Dry Creek Bullet Works again with CCI LP primers

 

[Will]

No I don't have a 41 any more but someday I do plan on having another one.

There are 26 41 mag loads over on Load Swap. From 170 grain up to 280 grains. There might be some good ones on there if you go through them

Good luck and congrats on a new pistola....

 

[Old Jim]

I have just had a Blackhawk in .41 mag offered to me for sale at what I consider to be a reasonable price.
I'm wanting to get rid of a 45 ACP and this is an opportunity

BUT

I don't know squat about them and am real hesitant to jump without more information-

So

Can you .41 shooters give me more info?

thanks

 

[twillis]

Go over to the Accuratereloading.com bulletin board and look up posts by Crawfish and Still Crawfish. Lots of good information in the posts he responds to.

 

[Old Jim]

Thanks twillis,
I did go and look. Boy those boys over there certainly like to beat eachother up.
Crawfish is a character but I think I'll try to get the .41 based on what I have read

 

[twillis]

They sure do. I come here (and a couple of other sites) to learn and go there for the entertainment value. Crawfish is a good guy with alot of 41 experience. I number of years ago, he was limited to handgun shooting only and bought a 41 and that is about all he shoots now. This is one of his:
http://www.reedercustomguns.com/special_guns/images/green_machine1_small.jpg

 

[Bill Lester]

Jim,

I'm a .41 fan from waay back. I've owned and handloaded for the following:

Ruger 4-5/8" Blackhawk
Ruger 5-1/2" Redhawk
S&W M-657 4"
S&W M-58 4"
Marlin 1894S

Sadly I no longer have any but they were terrific guns excepting the Redhawk. I just couldn't get good groups from that one no matter what I did. The others were better-than-average to excellent shooters. The Marlin was a really super carbine and I'm sorry I never took it deer or black bear hunting, but when I owned it I was on a 10-year hiatus. Not only that but its collector status has almost doubled what I paid for it!

Two bullets that worked well for me, except that darn Redhawk, were the Remington 200-grain JHP and Hornady 210-grain XTP-HP. The latter was a new bullet when I had my .41's and I had to try it in them all at the same time. Backed by book maximums of Win. 296, it proved to be a very accurate projectile.

Give the unwanted stepchild of the Magnum family a try. I think it's a winner no matter what the sales figures say. It gives a substantial boost in power over the .357 yet doesn't beat up the shooter or Smith & Wesson N-frame like the .44 Magnum.

 

[Old Jim]

Thanks Bill,
Good information. Are the Smiths as weak as theRuger and Freedom Arms fans seem to think?
I haven't been playing with handguns or the web long enough to find the good forum sites. I have found this one, Accuratereloading, Marlin and a couple of others that were of very little interest. Got some good ones?

 

[twillis]

Here are some sites/forums I like:

http://loadyourown.com/
http://www.reloadbench.com/
http://www.handloads.com/

That said, I like this one and handloads.com the best.

 

[Old Jim]

twillis

I went and looked at the above forums and still like this one the best.
I saw on another one you were looking for a .41 cal bullet. Leadhead has a Keith style at 215 grs that really looks good.

 

[Old Jim]

Leadhead is at www.proshootpro.com

 

[Bill Lester]

Jim,

I believe that the N-frame S&W is a great .41 Magnum but a borderline .44 Magnum in terms of durability. My brothers and I have owned several .44 N-frames with 2-3/4" and 4" barrels and they really aren't strong enough for a steady diet of magnum loads in my opinion. They would agree. For example, I had one 4" M-629 that was purchased brand new go out of time within 1000 rounds of factory equivalent 180- and 240-grain handloads. The .41's on the other hand, plus another M-657 owned by my brother Jim, all stood up well to many rounds of fullpower 170 to 210-grain JHP's. As I mentioned in my first post, the .41 is much nicer to shooters and N-frames than the .44 Magnum.

As far as websites go I think you're at the best there is for good, solid information without a bunch of rude egotists running and ruining the show. I can honestly say that egos get checked at the door here. If I had children I wouldn't hesitate to let them read any post on this board. Considering the language and general nastiness at many boards, that's something I wouldn't do elsewhere.

 

[twillis]

Hi Jim,

Actually, several casters cast that bullet. It is a SWC with a bevel base. I have used Oregon Bullets Laser-Cast version and they do shoot very well over 18 grs of AA #9. It does deviate from in true Keith bullets in at least three areas.
1. The bevel base
2. The front driving band is more narrow than the other two.
3. The nose is shaped different and carries less weight forward.

Dry Creek Bullet Works' 230 is a true Keith type. It has shot better than any bullet I have used to date in my gun assuming thay are moving pretty well. Take a look at this review I did:
http://www.handloads.com/articles/dc41-230k.htm

Terry

 

[Bill Lester]

Not to dispute twillis' results or his word in any way, but I've never found bevel base designs to shoot as well as plain base or gas check bullets. Just proves that each gun is a rule unto its own.

 

[twillis]

Bill,

I was under the same understanding and was pleasantly surprised. It is a good thing they do well as there is not much else available in lower end cast bullets. The casters all seem to cast the same mold for the 41.

God Bless

Terry

 

[MikeG]

The Dry Creek bullets are top-knotch for Keith designs. Not to take anything away from Marshall, but Lynn is a heck of a nice guy and I have shot several of his bullets. Sizing options are more limited, though.

 

[bschulz]

I've got a late 1980's Dan Wesson 41 6" VH that I've always enjoyed shooting, especially with less than full power loads. Finding this site and the hard cast bullet crowd has whet my appetite for loading some heavy bullet hard cast loads for hunting. Any experience with the older DW revolvers and the heavy loads? I don't want to hurt this thing (or myself). Any comparison to the blackhawk / redhawk setup? Sorry to deviate from the thread, but sounds like a good bunch to ask.

Bill

 

[Bill Lester]

Bill,

I'm sorry to say I can't make any dan Wesson-specific suggestions. I've only handled a couple in gun stores and never fired a round through the brand. Possibly someone else?