Accurate .41 Magnum Load

[GypsmJim]

My standard goto for my S&W Model 57 with Lee 175 LSWC was 7.3 Unique. That was after varying the charge over a range. When Unique was unavailable to me a few years ago, I successfully switched to 6.5 Bullseye and got equivalent performance.

I recently bought a quantity of Berry's plated 210 FP and have had lousy results with either 8.5 and 9.0 grains of Unique.

Looking for suggestions....Do I need to go higher or lower? Switch to Bullseye, and if so what's a good starting point.? Those are the only powders I care to inventory.

TIA for any help...

[tigweldit]

Never used plated boolets in my .41's, but I have had good results with 8.0 grains of Unique with Lyman 41031 and 410610 with both lube and powder coated.

[tigweldit]

That should have been Lyman 41032. That is in a S&W 57 and a old model Blackhawk.

[LUCKYDAWG13]

I just found two good light loads for my 41 now I'm using RCBS 210 gr boolits but give them a try 5gr of Win 231 and 7.2 gr of Unique
With the Unique load today I was shooting half-dollar size groups at 13 yards

[Wally]

I have a Model 57 w/ the 8" barrel....almost any load that I shoot in it is very accurate. The .41 Magnum is an amazing caliber in my book because of its' inherit accuracy. I primarily shoot cast bullets in the 200~210 grain weight at 1,000 FPS using HP-38, Bullseye, Titewad, Promo, or W-231 powders. I have found it makes little difference which one that I choose.

[GypsmJim]

Thanks for all the comments. I just checked my bullets and found they are 0.408. I suspect that's the problem. More work to do on my end.

[JMax]

I have a 4" M57 that loves 6.2 gr Unique with a Bear Creek moly coated 210 gr .411 SWC bullet. I shoot DA standing only and fired this 10 shot group at 15 yards. Very pleasant to shoot and accurate with my 70 year old eyes.

[knifemaker]

If you want to use plated bullets, try X-Treme plated bullets, They are double striked and I have found them to be more accurate over the Berry's bullets. I have some X-Treme plated 210 gr. flat points and they are a full .410 in size. They are also rated to a full 1500 fps. Get on their email list and several times a year they have price reductions and sometimes free shipping.

[fredj338]

I think the issue with plated is always the crimp. No crimp groove, roll crimp into the plating, good chance it cuts it & the plating spins off. You can check for yourself shooting into a paper target at about 8-10ft. If you find little shrapnel marks in the paper, that is exactly what is happening.