S&W41 barrel: should I import from USA?

adam3

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Hi all!
Im looking at getting a Smith&Wesson 41.
I found a shop that has one with a 7" barrel for 165$ less than the 5.5" version.
My preference is for the 5.5" but I suppose it would be nice to have both.
So I'm thinking of getting the 7" version and putting the 165$ towards a seperate 5.5" barrel.
But where to buy it In Canada?
How complex is importing a barrel to Canada From the USA?
If its more hassel than its worth i ll just stick with one 5.5" barrel and pay the 165$ extra that it costs.
Can anyone help me decide?

Basically my choices are:
A)Only get the more expensive 5.5"
B) Get the 7" and buy a seperate 5.5" barrel
C) Only get the less expensive 7"
D) Get two complet guns, a 5.5" and a 7" šŸ˜‰

Im not really interested in C), and D) is out of the question Lol

Thanks in advance for all your input!
 
I have just bought a brand new one with the 5.5 inch barrell. It should arrive in a few days. Before buying, I hesitated between the 2 barrell length. I ended up buying the 5.5 because I prefer the looks of it. It will probably be more accurate than me anyways...

Gilbert
 
Having shot both - the balance is better with the 5.5 in standing over the 7. The 7 might be better when supported.
 
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The barrel is a major firearm component, and as such requires an individual export licence from the U.S.A. State Department, an end-user statement, and an import certificate from our side. This adds costs and time to your order.

No 5,5" barrel listed as a part on Brownells [dotcom], but the 7" is at $400 USD with sights, or $280 and add a sight. They will add shipping and a $250 licence fee (and then you have the Canadian customs charge).

You may find another vendor with the 139mm barrel you want, or buy used (Gunbroker maybe), but then need to use a separate export/import service. Prophet River and IRunGuns are two sponsors here who do it for a fee.

If looking for both barrels, you're probably better off waiting for a used set. If you *must* have the shorter one, I would say buy it like that.

Something to consider is whether you will eventually want to use the gun for target competition. Even in-formal club matches and leagues will try to stick to the ISSF's rules (or the Shooting Federation of Canada's, which are basically ISSF). Sometimes they'll let you get away with anything at the club, until one person complains then all of a sudden it's by the book. Formal competition, however, will have strict checks of equipment specifications.

NRA rules (Bullseye) and open matches will permit the longer Model 41.

For the Olympic style your Standard pistol must fit inside a box to instantly verify it matches the dimensions. The ISSF box is 300mm long, with an allowable variance of only +1mm in constructing it, and the long 41 is too big by like 5mm. But even if it passes the box, you can't have a barrel longer than 153mm (6") or a sight radius of 220mm, and it won't pass either of those.
 
Thanks everyone! That helped, I'll go with the 5.5". Now I have another problem though. The regular version..or the Performance Center version. Lol just kidding. . The PC is over my budget anyway. I always wondered why they made the shorter barrel gun in a PC version and not the longer one... it must have to do with the competitions you all mentioned.
 
PC Model 41 is fugly IMO. Hate the front sight too. Way too overpriced at almost $2000 in Canada. Probably shoots just as good as a standard 41. I'm thinking that they don't make a 7" PC because of the different profile barrel. It would be impossible to machine the picatinny rail.
 
I have a few model 41 pistols, 7" with factory comps,7" without comps and the standard 5.5" models.
The 5.5"standard model barrel are great. There was a time when you could buy them with both barrels
for a reasonable price.
It is to bad these guns cost so much now plus the cost of the spare barrel. Beretta 89 22 pistols are close.
I have these also and are nice guns.
 
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