.41 rimfire shooting thru a 1" pine is very impressive. I always remembered the tv shows with cowboys flipping a table over and using them as cover in a gunfight. I thought boy thats' dumb, until I took ond of my 44's and a .36 out for a shooting one day. I had several pieces of 1" pine material that I was shooting and was really surpised at howmany didn't penetrate the lumber. Now the lumber had a few knots in in but didn't think that would matter much. But in fact using round balls some didn't even penetrated and others just made it thur . Maybe the cowboys knew something I didn't think of.
I'd definately worry about what was being lobbed at me if'n I was using modern (even vintage?) tabletops for cover, but, you know, I truly think I'd rather have ANY sort of cover rather than none.
You'd get to wondering whether those .41 rimfire you are shooting are marked .41 short ? or otherwise.
I just got done reading Keith's book "Sixguns", and recall his rememberences in the book about .41 rimfire derringers and how the slugs could often enough be found inside the folds of heavy clothes and such of the recipient of said gun shot.
That was one caliber/gun combination that he just didn't have much good to say about.
I will quote him from page 279 of the original edition of "Sixguns by Keith" :
" This brings us to the .41 caliber. The old Remington double derringer and many another derringer and Colt house pistols chambered for the .41 short rim fire were primarily surprise weapons for very close range. The load has little power and will not even penetrate a tin can unless it hits it squarely, owing to its low velocity. The little guns were very popular,and still are, as hide away or vest pocket guns but have little actual stopping power. Thier power is as much psychological as anything else, for anyone hit with one is in immediate need of surgery. They will drive a grease pointed slug into a man, but very seldom if ever with complete penetration and they must be dug out by a surgeon. They carry a lot of dirt, lint, ect. into the wound and like the .22 Long Rifle or other .22 rim fire, are apt to cause infection. For this reason real men fear getting hit with one of these little guns far more than a more powerful cartridge that leaves a clean wound."
Now maybe Mr. Keith and his compadres had access tin cans of a more stout measure than we experience today, but he seemed to be unequivocal about .41
short rimfire , but then, those shells in your photo seemed to be a bit long for anything I've ever seen that were labeled "short".
Oops, my bad. I looked at your photo again (just the thumbnail !!) and see that the shells I thought were mighty big to be labeled "short" were actually the .44-.40 you mentioned alongside the .41s and thier rimfire gun.
Seems as if you got some MIGHTY powerful 70 year old .41 rimfires to be doing that sort of penetration to a 1" pine board.
