.41 Mag or .22 Mag for CCW

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slik pak

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I have a few firearms at my disposal, but most of them are .44 Magnum and up. I recently inherited a Ruger .22 Magnum revolver, I don't know what model it is. It's seen better days.

Ive decided recently to defend myself and my country by acquiring a CCW license in the next week or so.

I really don't want to use a .22 magnum for CCW, and I was looking at either a Ruger single action .41 mag (ruger doesnt currently make a double action .41 mag) or a smith and wesson model 48 revolver.

If it were a .41 Mag, it would be chambered with lesser to medium loads.
 
is this a serious question? You have .44mag's and you're contemplating a .22mag or buying a .41mag?? What's wrong with the 44's you already have?
 
Assuming these are all single action revolvers you are not going to gain much in concealability by going down in caliber.

For CCW there are much better choices than the ones you are considering.
 
CC is a specialized job and calls for either a lot of dressing around an oversize gun or a specialized gun

take a good look at compact guns (not little bitty mouse guns in .380/.32/25/.22) and find one you like that is somewhat common (makes getting holsters and mags/speedloaders easy)
 
bigfatdave is dead right. A whole new generation of guns evolved as more states legalized concealed carry. Kahr is an example of an entire brand that developed to fill the specific needs of people who carry on a daily basis, and every major long existing manufacturer has created carry friendly firearms.

While you could carry just about anything in concept, I think you would find few who would make .22 mag, .44 mag or .41 mag a first CCW pick, and fewer yet who would opt for a single action revolver. Do a search on the best concealed carry gun and/or caliber and you can spend the entire day reading about what people do recommend.

I don't carry a small double action revolver, but I can say that by trial and error I found that an auto that 1) is flat, 2) is light weight, 3) has a short grip length is important, and in that order, for comfortable concealed carry. Finally, as a smaller gun it has to be shootable in the caliber you have chosen - not necessary your first pick for a day at the range, but something you can grab, hold, aim, and shoot well. For me, it's a Kahr PM9, but as you will see there are more choices of suitable calibers and models than anyone could list in a single place.
 
.41 for CCW?

I am a devoted big bore shooter and if I had to use a handgun for defensive purposes would prefer a .357 up caliber, but for CCW? My choices are .38 stubbies and single stack compact autos. I'm 6'3" and it is hard for me to conceal a M57 S&W unless I am wearing a heavy coat. However, a SIG 239 40 cal goes nicely inside the waistband.

CCW is one of the areas you need to choose the correct tool for the job and an N frame size handgun is not it.
 
Thanks for the replies. I was never seriously considering a .22 mag as ccw. I have a S and W model 500 ( 8 and 3/8 inch barrel)and a Ruger Super Redhawk chambered in 454 casull. Ive never entertained the idea of using one of those as CCW, but I have thought about one of my .44 mags. They're all 6 inch barrels more or less. They're big, and i don't how well I could conceal it.

As far as going out and buying a .41 Mag, I love guns and theres always room for another gun in my book.
 
I carried a S&W model 58 .41 Mag as a duty sidearm for 13 years. It is a POWERFUL round that does what is needed in that circumstance.
I would not reccomend it for CCW. It is too powerful even loaded down a bit and durned heavy to pack

There are better options.
 
There is nothing wrong with a N frame Smith in .41 Mag with a 4" barrel, if you can hide it. There are choices that are easier to hide, there are choices that hold more capacity, but there are not many choices that have a better mix of power and accuracy.

Occasionally, I carry a 4" .44 Mag 329pd, loaded with .44 specials. It is very light, but I find it harder to conceal than a full sized autoloader. It is mostly a woods gun, but I am not uncomfortable when I carry it in town.

If you are going to buy a new gun, I would suggest something other than a single action. I would also suggest that a full or mid sized auto would be a better choice, if that is an option avaliable where you live.
 
I carry a 3" bbl Ruger SP101, in .357 magnum, IWB very comfortably in fall, winter, and spring, and a S&W 642 Airweight 38 special in the pocket of my cargo shorts in summer time in a Desantes nemesis pocket holster. Both conceal easily and carry comfortably. You may want to look into them.
 
A S&W 41 mag snubbie might be one heck of a carry gun for you since you seem to lean toward larger framed guns.
 
You can always load .44 Magnum rounds down to a stiff .44 Special power. A 240gr bullet @ 900 to 1000 fps would be great protection IMO.
 
You can always load .44 Magnum rounds down to a stiff .44 Special power. A 240gr bullet @ 900 to 1000 fps would be great protection IMO.
Click to expand...
all of that is true, which doesn't make the OP's 6" barrel .44mag guns any easier to CARRY. They're heavy, wide, long, and low capacity for their size. And while carrying a 6" .44mag is surely possible, it will require more effort and "dressing around the gun" than a CC-designed weapon.

Somewhere between those big revolvers (or what I'll call "duty size" autos) and silly little mouseguns, there exist compact guns easy to carry and easy to shoot, if you're willing to wear a good belt and a reasonable holster ... and practice shooting once in a while.
The "J-Frame" class of revolvers are almost pocket guns (some do use them as pocket guns), there are dozens of perfectly cromulent compact and subcompact choices in autoloaders tailored just for convenient and discrete armament for citizens. (I'm not a wheelgun guy, so any compact 5-shot .38/.357 revolver is a "J-Frame like revolver" to me)
 
The OP said: "Ive decided recently to defend myself and my country by acquiring a CCW license in the next week or so."

I'm guessing he does not live here and there are probably limitations on what he can carry. Because of the calibers he's talking about I'm guessing he can't carry a caliber that could be considered a "military" caliber. That was the reason I suggested .44 Special loads for his .44 Magnum.
 
ArchAngel, I took his comment of defending his country to mean that he intends to defend the 2nd Amendment through participation... That was my guess, anyway.
 
Since you already have a .44 magnum, maybe a .44 Special Charter Bulldog would do the trick. If you reload, it's less components you'd have to buy and less dies.
 
As far as going out and buying a .41 Mag, I love guns and theres always room for another gun in my book.
Click to expand...

Ruger Blackhawk, 4 & 5/8" barrel, 38 ounces (2.5 oz less than a 4" S&W Model 58), chambered in .41 Remington Magnum; Single Action fun, hella strong, and very accurate. Also very affordable.

10306.jpg

Winchester Silvertip 175 grain, 1250 fps. It's a pussycat load out of a Blackhawk...a lot like .44 Special, mid-range .357, or .45 ACP in terms of recoil. The most controllable factory defensive load for the caliber.

http://www.winchester.com/Products/...x/silvertip-hollow-point/Pages/X41MSTHP2.aspx

There are certainly better choices for dedicated fighting (and CCW), but there are certainly a lot worse...
 
slik pak said:
I have a few firearms at my disposal, but most of them are .44 Magnum and up. I recently inherited a Ruger .22 Magnum revolver, I don't know what model it is. It's seen better days.

Ive decided recently to defend myself and my country by acquiring a CCW license in the next week or so.

I really don't want to use a .22 magnum for CCW, and I was looking at either a Ruger single action .41 mag (ruger doesnt currently make a double action .41 mag) or a smith and wesson model 48 revolver.

If it were a .41 Mag, it would be chambered with lesser to medium loads.
Click to expand...
This doesn't even make sense. What is the question? I saw an "or" in the title.. now you see a yawn.
 
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