Anyone loading 41 mag revolver with plated bullets
- Thread starter Iroquois
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AABEN
Member
I have loaded my 41M with Win 231 and was happy with it. I do not member the powder weight but I have some loaded waiting to be shot
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Iroquois
Member
ATLDave: Thanks, it will be interesting to hear your results.
AABEN
Member
I an not a hand gun shooter I have my hand guns for my safety. I shoot at 15 yards and at 4 yards and that is what I make shore that I can keep a 1 inch at that distance I carry my 380 & 9mm around home and when I go to the city I carry a 40 and my 41 is my room gun.
Charlie98
Member
Ruger cylinders are notorious for having undersized, or mismatched cylinder throats. I actually sold my .41 Bisley because of abysmal accuracy... this was before I found out about having the cylinder reamed. I bought a .44SPC Flattop, sent the cylinder off, and the machinist reported that the throats were all over the place, and all undersized. Looking at your photo, it's obvious your cylinder's throats are not all the same, I would recommend having them reamed.
I would be curious as well to see if the copper was stripped off, either in the throats, or after finally making it to the forcing cone.
I would be curious as well to see if the copper was stripped off, either in the throats, or after finally making it to the forcing cone.
What do they measure?
Just did some checking.
My X-Treme 210 Gr TrFP bullets would not push through my .41 Redhawk throats. They measure a hair over .410. Neither would some Sierra 170 gr JHPs. My .410 (+.0000/-.0002) Pin Gauge will barely pass the throats. The .411 will not. I have shot plenty of these bullets in the gun however, as well as some XTPs.
Both bullets will pass through the throats of my M-57. The .411 Pin Gauge will pass all the throats, but the .412 will not.
I would not be overly concerned with your midrange loads and a soft, plated .410 (.410+?) bullet
My X-Treme 210 Gr TrFP bullets would not push through my .41 Redhawk throats. They measure a hair over .410. Neither would some Sierra 170 gr JHPs. My .410 (+.0000/-.0002) Pin Gauge will barely pass the throats. The .411 will not. I have shot plenty of these bullets in the gun however, as well as some XTPs.
Both bullets will pass through the throats of my M-57. The .411 Pin Gauge will pass all the throats, but the .412 will not.
I would not be overly concerned with your midrange loads and a soft, plated .410 (.410+?) bullet
OK, I checked. My Xtreme 210's do not drop through the throats of my 1985-vintage S&W Model 57-1. They will fall far enough in for the nose to stick out the front of the cylinder, but the full-diameter part of the bullet definitely hangs. I tried applying a bit of pressure with the eraser end of a pencil and reached the point where I thought application of more force in an un-locked cylinder would be asking for trouble. I have no doubt I could hammer them through, but I do think it would take some force. Six randomly selected examples all mic'ed at .410. I got essentially identical results when I tried the same with 6 Hornady XTP JHP's.
Iroquois, you'll have to make up your own mind, but I personally would have no great concern in loading up and firing some of those bullets. Maybe take some comfort in the fact that most plated bullets are very soft, and will swage down about as readily as non-hardcast lead... minus all the leading. (One of the reasons I shoot mostly plated!)
Iroquois, you'll have to make up your own mind, but I personally would have no great concern in loading up and firing some of those bullets. Maybe take some comfort in the fact that most plated bullets are very soft, and will swage down about as readily as non-hardcast lead... minus all the leading. (One of the reasons I shoot mostly plated!)
Fine Figure of a Man
Member
215 grain SNS coated bullets will not drop through the cylinders of my 41 SBH.
Use your own judgement but I wouldn't be concerned about loading them.
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Iroquois
Member
Walkalong, ATLDave and Drunkenpoacher, thanks for taking the time to measure and experiment with your firearms and creating the information. I appreciate your experiences as well. I have measured the Rainier bullets at the bases and have come up with .404 - .408. The interesting thing is the Hornady 210 XTP’s go through all the cylinders with little or no pressure at all and measure .404 at the base. I will re-measure them in the largest diameter area of the bullets and see what I get. I believe the Rainier bullets are not perfectly round and that could be the problem. Since some of the bullets you all mentioned do not go through your cylinder throats and seem safe to fire I will load some and try them. I did talk to Rainier today and they were surprised that they would not pass through. They are sending me some replacement bullets to try. I think that it great customer service and want everyone to know they do stand behind their product. I’ll post a new thread once I load and fire them. I see ream job in the near future. Thanks again.
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