First post and new Blackhawk

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Tag1

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Hello to all.

Took my brand new Blackhawk .41mag 6.5 barrel to the range this morning.
Had 100 rounds of Georgia Arms 210gr. Cowboy loads with me.

I've never shot .41mag. before and didn't know what to expect. Man was I surprised:what: This stuff was like shooting a "soft" .38. I really need to reload. I was hoping for some nice recoil:scrutiny:. I have a Lee press on order and all the other goodies needed to produce what I'm look'n for from this gun.

Accuracy was outstanding however! Shot at 7 yards and then out to 15 yards. I had 2 sets of grips to try as well. Used the original plastic "palm graters" first and then some Pachmayr Presentation "rubber snubbers".

The Pachmayr grips fit my hand better but with such little recoil really not needed.

I think once I get some "torque" out of this thing I may really like it.
 
Congrats on a nice new gun in an interesting caliber.

And yeah, you got exactly what MS said. Cowboy loads are just another name for mouse loads. Get some proper ammo or re-load your own. I suggest the reloading option. Any round size that starts with a "4" is just too costly to buy factory stuff for long.
 
OK, let me ask you this.

I got my ammo from GA Arms. I pay $23 per 50. Good price actually.

How much can I expect to save by reloading my own? I ordered the Lee Challenger Breech Lock Single Stage Press Kit. This will be my first attempt at reloading. I'll start simple and learn. Then after I get the hang of things I want to cast my own bullets.
 
+1 to what magnum shooter stated. Load that puppy up with Uncle Elmer's recommened 19-20gr of 2400 and his H&G# 258 220gr SWC and you will get some torque. I had enough good sense to stop at 19gr with that bullet, that load is just down right obnoxious in my 4 5/8" Blackhawk. Be sure that you visit the .41 mag association thread here, lots of good info is contained within.
 
Good choice in caliber! Make sure to get a reloading manual or three and read them before you attempt reloading. And you're now eligible to join the 41 Mag. Association started by 336A. The thread for it is back a couple pages in the "Revolver" section.
 
Tag1, up here in Canada where the price of reloading components makes you folks in the US drop your jaw at how high everything is it costs a buddy 21 cents to reload a .45Colt. My .38Spl costs 12 to 15 cents a round depending on my choice of bullet style and weight. And my .44Mag is about 18 to 21 cents a round for the same reason. .45ACP would be about the same as the .45Colt but right now I'm working off some bulk cast lead bullets I got for a song. So I figure around 10 to 12 cents each for now. But in something like 3000 rounds worth I'll be looking for another deal... :D

Down your way if you source the supplies such that you're buying the bullets in boxes of 1000 and your primers in cases of 5000 at a time you can likely cut my costs down by about 25%. So you'll excuse me if I still fine your "good deal" of 50 cents a shot not all that great at all. It'll cost you something around $150 to $200 to carefully gather the press, dies and other reloading gear for a modest system to start with. It's pretty simple to do the math on how long it'll take to amortize the loading setup. Just shop around your area for the places where the serious reloaders buy their bulk supplies. Often the best prices come from some garage sales sort of deal. I know I've got three home based local companies that specialize in bringing in and selling reloading supplies. Due to the low overhead the prices are great.. for Canada that is. Find your own local options and add up what they want for powder, primers and bullets. You'll need to buy some brass first time around. But with any luck you'll easily get 25 to 30 reloads before you run into any split brass or similar issues.

And if you shoot rifle rounds much at all you'll easily be able to load MOST of them for about 1/3 to 1/4 the cost of factory ammo depending on what calibers you shoot.
 
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couldnt give you an exact price on .41 mag because i dont have one. i do however load for my .44 mag and my cast reloads (factory purchased bullets) run me about $7.50 for 50. with the slightly lighter bullets you will be using in the .41, maybe $6.75-$7 per 50?
one thing is for sure, reloading is well worth it!
 
I reload my .41 for right at $8.75/50 rounds ($18.75/50 with new Starline brass), using 17.5gr of 2400 under Dardas 215gr LSWC/Keith.
 
BCRider said:
Tag1, up here in Canada where the price of reloading components makes you folks in the US drop your jaw at how high everything is it costs a buddy 21 cents to reload a .45Colt. My .38Spl costs 12 to 15 cents a round depending on my choice of bullet style and weight. And my .44Mag is about 18 to 21 cents a round for the same reason. .45ACP would be about the same as the .45Colt but right now I'm working off some bulk cast lead bullets I got for a song. So I figure around 10 to 12 cents each for now. But in something like 3000 rounds worth I'll be looking for another deal... :D

Down your way if you source the supplies such that you're buying the bullets in boxes of 1000 and your primers in cases of 5000 at a time you can likely cut my costs down by about 25%. So you'll excuse me if I still fine your "good deal" of 50 cents a shot not all that great at all. It'll cost you something around $150 to $200 to carefully gather the press, dies and other reloading gear for a modest system to start with. It's pretty simple to do the math on how long it'll take to amortize the loading setup. Just shop around your area for the places where the serious reloaders buy their bulk supplies. Often the best prices come from some garage sales sort of deal. I know I've got three home based local companies that specialize in bringing in and selling reloading supplies. Due to the low overhead the prices are great.. for Canada that is. Find your own local options and add up what they want for powder, primers and bullets. You'll need to buy some brass first time around. But with any luck you'll easily get 25 to 30 reloads before you run into any split brass or similar issues.

And if you shoot rifle rounds much at all you'll easily be able to load MOST of them for about 1/3 to 1/4 the cost of factory ammo depending on what calibers you shoot.
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I assume you're in the YVR area??? Do you know anybody in Bellingham that would hold shipments for you and you could clear customs a little bit at a time? We get a bunch of people from eastern BC and southern Alberta buying locally (Spokane). I believe they raised the limit to $800.00 once you've been here 48 hours.
 
Domino300 said:
Good choice in caliber! Make sure to get a reloading manual or three and read them before you attempt reloading. And you're now eligible to join the 41 Mag. Association started by 336A. The thread for it is back a couple pages in the "Revolver" section.
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Weren't the dues for new members raised at our last meeting of the association?
 
Welcome to the .41 club. My hands-down favorite revolver cartridge. You'll enjoy that Blackhawk, but be warned...more will follow. The 4.62-inch .41 Blackhawk would be a natural.

In addition to the romp'n'stomp 18-19 grains 2400 load, I might suggest 8-9 grains Unique with a 210 cast bullet. It's accurate with good power, but easy enough on your hand to let you burn a couple hundred rounds in a session without getting the recoil jitters. 7.5 grains pretty much duplicates the old "Police" loading's advertised ballistics. (210 LSWC/970 fps)
 
Bush Pilot, I guess you didn't get the memo. The US side would put me and anyone that held such shipments for me away for a LONG time if we tried this. Reloading components such as primers, powder and bullets are on the prohibited list for casual export. Such items require a butt load of permits to be purchased and shipped. It simply isn't worth the trouble to do it right when there's folks that have already done such things. And it certainly isn't worth the risk to do it the sneaky way.
 
I'm surprised nobody said it yet... You won't save any money, you just shoot more. Rick
 
BCRider said:
Bush Pilot, I guess you didn't get the memo. The US side would put me and anyone that held such shipments for me away for a LONG time if we tried this. Reloading components such as primers, powder and bullets are on the prohibited list for casual export. Such items require a butt load of permits to be purchased and shipped. It simply isn't worth the trouble to do it right when there's folks that have already done such things. And it certainly isn't worth the risk to do it the sneaky way.
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You're right, I didn't get the memo. Can't you import rifles/shotguns with a permit from the mounties? Taxes and such paid of course. I have seen people from the Okanogan loading up on loaded ammo at the Wal Marts and heading home, assumed they were above board.
 
Buying ammo from a US Wally World and bringing it over the border is definetly a big No-No these days and has been since shortly following 9-11 when the US side began changing the rules on what can go and what can't. Not as far as Canada Customs is concerned but if the US side should stop them they'd be in a world of hurtin'.

Now if they were down there for a scheduled match and were going to shoot the ammo at the match then that's a different thing. They went down with their guns and papers and a set amount of ammo to use. They can restock and come back with the same amount and not be illegal by the US rules as I understand it.

There is a process for folks to apply for export permits to bring guns and other prohibited supplies in. But for reloading components it's unweildy to the point that it doesn't make sense unless we're going to buy a pallet load of stuff. And I simply don't want to have THAT much sitting around for the amount I'd save.

For rifles and shotguns it's the same thing. It's not OUR side that cares so much as it is about getting YOUR side to let the stuff by. The dealer in the US has to have the proper export permit for the items. Then when we get it up this way we simply pay any applicable taxes in the case of a shotgun or rifle. It's a bit more complex for restricted firearms such as handguns and some "evil" rifles but it's still not too bad other than jumping all the hoops.

Oddly enough with the current pricing on MOST guns we're actually on par. Particularly when it comes to the nicer used handguns. In many cases we're paying a little less for a nice older S&W than you folks to the south.
 
Ah! Didn't catch the Canadian location. Yeah. Handloading is a problem when the government doesn't trust its citizens. In Greece, primers are considered to be detonators, and are strictly verboten. Such is the world that we live in.
 
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