Model 41 - Jamming

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Hi, :redface: new to the sport so looking for some help. I picked up a used S&W model 41 that looks in pretty good shape and shoots nicely. Howerver since I've been using it the only problem I find with this gun is that rounds get jammed when she tries to chamber a new round or even the first one round gets jammed after I load a fresh clip an pull back the slide to load a new round. This is happening about 25% of the time. On the round you can see the lead scraped from the bullet were it meets the brass. So far I replaced the recoil spring, hoping that would help. :( unfortunately not. One recommendation to me is to try various .22LR. Currently I'm using Rem. Golden bullet.

Any suggestions, recommendation, thoughts or ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you
Denis
 
Smith 41's are like that. They're very selective about what ammo they'll cycle with and shoot well. Start by giving it a really good bath then try some different ammo. Mine only likes Remington Target and IVI Standard Velocity. Your's might or might not like these brands. You really do have to try a box of as many brands as you can with a 41. The price of the ammo means nothing either.
 
I swear, Smith and Wesson must be owned or owned by Remington ammo. My 41 only feeds Rem. T-22 target rounds consistantly. I've tried everything that CanTire, Wally World and Lebaron has to offer in 22 LR
 
the only stiff that jammed in my 41 was Ely. I have to agree with Sun Ray, a good cleaning will go a long way.
 
As a Bullseye RO, I see this problem on a regular basis with 41's. For some reason a buildup accumulates in the chamber. It can be completely scraped out but after another box of shells the problem starts again. I've worked with a couple of guys trying to figure this one out but so far no luck.

The guys owning 41's usually end up taking a page from the Hammerelli users, namely placing a drop of Kroil on the top bullet of each mag.

It works!
 
If you are having trouble chambering the first round it may be that the magazine lips are out of adjustment. I depends if the bullet is hanging up on the top edge of the chamber or the bottom. I will assume it is getting caught on the upper edge of the chambe as I have experienced this with mine every couple years. The fix is really quiet simple, you need to tighten the forward lips of the magazine a touch. This can be acheived by gently pushing the forward lips of the mag against a hard surface to tighten it up, do this a bit at a time to both sides. By doing this it will keep the nose of the bullet lower during feeding preventing it from catching on the top of the chamber. As I've said over time the mag lips will relax and problem will re-surface but it is a simple fix.
As for all the other issues with ammo preferance and chamber cleaning that have been mention I agree fully. I have also had good luck with using break free CLP on the first round instead of Kroil. The M-41 is a great little pistol as long a one recognizes it quirks. Mine is from the first year of production (47 years old/young) and it is still going strong.
 
ckid said:
If you are having trouble chambering the first round it may be that the magazine lips are out of adjustment. I depends if the bullet is hanging up on the top edge of the chamber or the bottom. I will assume it is getting caught on the upper edge of the chambe as I have experienced this with mine every couple years. The fix is really quiet simple, you need to tighten the forward lips of the magazine a touch. This can be acheived by gently pushing the forward lips of the mag against a hard surface to tighten it up, do this a bit at a time to both sides. By doing this it will keep the nose of the bullet lower during feeding preventing it from catching on the top of the chamber. As I've said over time the mag lips will relax and problem will re-surface but it is a simple fix.
Click to expand...

I'll have to verify where the jam is. My assumption was the bullet was getting caught at the bottom but I'm not 100% sure. I will check to make sure and check the magazine lips as you mentioned. I'm told my 41 is also and older model. I had ordered another magazine from Numrich when I ordered the recoil spring to have a second mag however they are out of stock on that item, and maybe that might have helped my first round issue...:(
Thanks for the advice
 
This is news to me!! My 41was new in '77 & has 30 some thousand through it - only jam was a competitor's empty in the left side of my open action. Happened at BC Summer Games in Richmond. This gun gets regular maintainance and takes anything I put in it but hyper-vel. & some high- vel. slam it pretty hard, a spring change would save it but it's only occasionally abused. My cousin has an older one, 3rd hand, bluing worn off front strap, inside & otside of trigger guard & trigger 25 yrs. ago & it has no problems & 100's of thousands through it. The wife & I used 2 1/2 - 3 cases of Eley Club per year. Oh, & Rem. doesn't make T22.
Strait Shooting, HOT270
 
:D Thanks everyone,,,the good cleaning and change of ammo worked like a charm. Seem this 41 doesn't like Remington's Golden Bullet. Pistol worked flawlessly with Winchester X, Remington Yellow Jackets and Federal (not one jam!). Now the only problem with the pistol is me and my aim
:rolleyes:
This forum Rocks:)
Thanks again for your advice
Den
 
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