41 long colt ideas
- Thread starter rimfire458
- Start date
The only obvious part you might be missing is that the proper bullet for a .41 Long Colt is a .406".
Friend Jethunter makes them and they are very good, both the in-case .386 Minie-type and the .406" Heel-type. Brass is available from several sources; even Budget stocks it.
Dies are another matter but, once you have 30 or 40 sets..... hey, what's another set of dies, anyway?
OTOH, you can always wreck a nice original gun.
That seems to be very much the fashion these days..... in some circles, anyway.
Reaming the chambers is gonna cost you $20 a hole x 6 = $120 + taxes + what you have taken off the value of the gun.
That is MORE than dies and brass are gonna cost you.
Cheaper to keep it original.... and MUCH more fun.
Friend Jethunter makes them and they are very good, both the in-case .386 Minie-type and the .406" Heel-type. Brass is available from several sources; even Budget stocks it.
Dies are another matter but, once you have 30 or 40 sets..... hey, what's another set of dies, anyway?
OTOH, you can always wreck a nice original gun.
That seems to be very much the fashion these days..... in some circles, anyway.
Reaming the chambers is gonna cost you $20 a hole x 6 = $120 + taxes + what you have taken off the value of the gun.
That is MORE than dies and brass are gonna cost you.
Cheaper to keep it original.... and MUCH more fun.
`what smelie said X100
Reaming cylinders = Bubba
The only thing I would add is that you should slug the barrel to verify the diameter. There is lots of variation in the older guns and you might be surprised at how far off what you expect they can be.
Reaming cylinders = Bubba
The only thing I would add is that you should slug the barrel to verify the diameter. There is lots of variation in the older guns and you might be surprised at how far off what you expect they can be.
Very good tip. I was surprised by the variations in my guns.
As for reaming, I would only do that to a Colt SAA if I had a spare cylinder. Anything else you seriously devalue the gun plus make the chamber walls thinner and they are OLD steel.
I once purchased a nice little antique Belgian Bulldog. I was told that it was in caliber 380 Revolver (.360 diameter) but that I could shoot 38 S&W through it (.359).
It slugged at .345
Needless to say I ordered a custom mold for it and I now slug all my barrels.
It slugged at .345
Needless to say I ordered a custom mold for it and I now slug all my barrels.
"...missing the obvious..." The .41 Mag uses.410" bullets. And you wouldn't be reaming 'em.
The Mag's rim diameter is .492" vs the .430" of the Colt. Lotta work to convert 'em.
This might be of some use to you though. http://harryo.sixshootercommunity.org/
The Mag's rim diameter is .492" vs the .430" of the Colt. Lotta work to convert 'em.
This might be of some use to you though. http://harryo.sixshootercommunity.org/
You are missing two obvious things.
First is that there is nothing fancy about .41 Colt brass. It is just the size it is.
The second obvious thing, is that you need to know which .41 Colt you are dealing with, as they changed the specs along the life cycle, and went from the heeled bullet to a more or less normal (to modern eyes) bullet that was the same diameter for it's full length. They changed the barrels used in production along with. You need to know what the bore diameter is, and work with that, if you are not putting a new barrel on.
Add to that, the less obvious, which is that the cylinders and bore are a product of an era in manufacturing where tolerances used were nowhere near as tight as modern production technology. Bore diameters and rifling depths vary a lot, and anyone that tells you he has the whole thing figured out is a fool.
Each old gun is a entity unto itself. If you want them to work well, you pretty much have to muck about a bit.
The ideal situation would be to be able to start from scratch, and put a properly matched barrel and new cylinder on the gun, with it all properly and accurately indexed to align correctly, and with the cylinders throats correctly matched to the barrel as well as to the choice of case and bullet to be used.
Then you get to muck about until it all works, same as before.
Cheers
Trev
Reaming out those old cylinders wouldn't leave much meat between your face and the chamber. Those cylinder walls are thin enough already, I don't think I'd be crazy about reaming them out any more. I've picked shrapnell out of my face and hands and I'm a tad more cautious than I would have been 30 years ago.
If one were to build a new cylinder with modern steel and metallurgy, then reaming cylinders to take a larger case to accomodate a .406 or larger bullet would be an interesting idea, but not a very practical one.
The 41 colt is an impractical cartridge and that's half the fun for some of us. If you want something more practical then get something chambered for 44 Russian, 455 Webley, 45 Schofield, and others. It will make you happy without having to alter it and destroy a piece of history.
If one were to build a new cylinder with modern steel and metallurgy, then reaming cylinders to take a larger case to accomodate a .406 or larger bullet would be an interesting idea, but not a very practical one.
The 41 colt is an impractical cartridge and that's half the fun for some of us. If you want something more practical then get something chambered for 44 Russian, 455 Webley, 45 Schofield, and others. It will make you happy without having to alter it and destroy a piece of history.
Pretty good recipe for a blown up gun.
VERY much higher chamber pressures in the modern cartridges. Very much better steel in the modern guns, too.
Cheers
Trev
