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Olympic Sport Pistol with a S&W Model 41


99gski

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First of all, I apologize if this is in the wrong place but in my searches on the forum I didn't find much. I was wondering if anyone could point me in the right direction to get my S&W Model 41's optimized for Olympic Sport Pistol. I plan on shooting a couple of sport pistol matches this year but haven't been able to find much information on the topic. I realize the Model 41 isn't high on the list of guns shot in this sport, but I thought it would be a very good starting point. Any suggestions are GREATLY appreciated.

Thanks again and wishing everyone great shooting in 2010!

Julie

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Julie: Don't let AlamoShooter fool you he knows alot about model 41's. Jamie can tell you who the right people are to work on them or get parts. I know he told me a while back that some pistols like certain types of ammo but you will have to ask him which ammo is the best. Makes me want to buy one now :cheers: I am sure you will do great at that type of shooting as well. Thanks, Eric

Edited by Aircooled6racer
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You can add a few things to a 41 to make it more competitive, but I'm wondering if you're not better off trying to get hold of a used Pardini SP, Benelli WC, Hammerli SP20, or similar, to get a gun that's ready out of the box. I suspect that a good shot like you will out-grow your 41 pretty fast.

If you're still set on modifying the 41, here are a few things I'd do:

* Get a new grip for it, something like this: http://mactec-militaryarms.com/cgi-bin/ima...lates/SW113.jpg

* Get a good trigger job, getting the trigger close to 1000g

* Get a few types/brands of ammunition and a ransom rest and figure out the best ammunition for your specific gun.

Apart from that, I'm not sure if there is that much more that's worth doing. With those two changes you'll at least have something to get you started.

Edited by gose
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You can add a few things to a 41 to make it more competitive, but I'm wondering if you're not better off trying to get hold of a used Pardini SP, Benelli WC, Hammerli SP20, or similar, to get a gun that's ready out of the box. I suspect that a good shot like you will out-grow your 41 pretty fast.

Since Julie is employed/sponsored by Smith & Wesson, there may be an incentive to shoot the Model 41.

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Thanks for the info!!!

The Model 41 is the best bet for me right now considering its what I have and I am not sure how serious I will get into this shooting sport. It's my "production" gun if you will before I decide to jump into the high end gear.

Thanks again. Any other suggestions are VERY welcome!!!

Julie

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Thanks for the info!!!

The Model 41 is the best bet for me right now considering its what I have and I am not sure how serious I will get into this shooting sport. It's my "production" gun if you will before I decide to jump into the high end gear.

Thanks again. Any other suggestions are VERY welcome!!!

Julie

Things that the other guns have, that might, or might not, be beneficial for you are:

* adjustable trigger weights (for both first and second stage)

* adjustable length of first stage

* adjustable trigger position

The above ones might not be needed if you get a custom trigger job.

* Straight trigger. Most people seem to prefer this on Olympic guns.

* Barrel weights. Might make the gun too heavy, but playing with weights might help you get the recoil behaviour you want, especially for the 10s strings

* Adjustable rear sight blade notch. Can be beneficial to compensate for different light conditions. Some people also change the width of the notch between the slow and fast strings.

These three might not really be needed until you get really serious though...

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I would think that ammo would be the most important thing. Once you find the brand/production lot that your gun shoots the best, all the rest is fine-tuning.

One thing I do recall, back when there was some talk of USPSA/IPSAC shooters getting into Olympic Rapid Fire was that by our standards, the pistols and ammo being used were shockingly casual in accuracy. Things might have changed, but you can't have too much accuracy.

Then, get the trigger down as light as the rules and mechanism allow. Practice, and remember, there is not choice between Weave and Iso in Olympic shooting!

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I would think that ammo would be the most important thing. Once you find the brand/production lot that your gun shoots the best, all the rest is fine-tuning.

+1 buy and test as many different loads as you can. When I first started shooting my Pardini I tried 14 different types of ammo. The range of group size was amazing, and price was not always an indicator of accuracy.

Also, Clark Custom Guns have built S&W 41 Bullseye guns for a long time. There are quite a few people where I shoot using them.

Model 41

Edited by Brian Gonsalves
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Julie,

I don't know if this will be of any help... When I was shooting for S&W I had Derrick Martin sleeve a Model 41's barrel with a used piece of an Anschutz rifle barrel - man, did that turn that pistol into a shooter. (And, it looked factory on the outside.) It's unbelievable. Doug Koenig offered to buy if from me for any amount of money every time he saw it. :) But I'll never sell it. :(

be

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Julie,

I don't know if this will be of any help... When I was shooting for S&W I had Derrick Martin sleeve a Model 41's barrel with a used piece of an Anschutz rifle barrel - man, did that turn that pistol into a shooter. (And, it looked factory on the outside.) It's unbelievable. Doug Koenig offered to buy if from me for any amount of money every time he saw it. :) But I'll never sell it. :(

be

Alex Hamilton offers a similar service. He sleeves the barrel with a German-manufactured liner and cuts a Betz chamber. He guarantees 1" at 50yds with match ammo. I've been meaning to send him an old barrel I have just to see how good it will be...not terribly expensive.

http://tenring.com/contact2.html

Edited by G-ManBart
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Julie,

You've probably crossed this bridge, but sometimes the obvious may not be so clear.

Track down Elizabeth "Libby" Callahan from the US Shooting Team and USA AMU. You may also want to try to get in touch with Ruby Foxx. Both of these ladies are seasoned world class shooters in International Pistol Comp and may be able to help you.

Even a call to NRA HQ, to track down some of the old timers who shot pistol games before IDPA, IPSC and NRA AP.

Of course PILK guns, Larry's Guns, maybe even Gil Hebard maybe a place to gather knowledge in the International Pistol Community.

USA AMU & USMC Pistol team at Quantico may be other possibilities to chase down info/guns etc.

Go for it, I loved to see you win a GOLD MEDAL at the Olympics :cheers:

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Good luck with it, Julie. Please keep us updated on how it progresses, if you do dive into it.

If you can get it done with a 41...all the better! I think that would be cool.

While I am a big advocate of "holding it in the center" and letting the chips fall where they may, I did find this article to be a great resource: http://www.bullseyepistol.com/cstomgun.htm

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Good luck with it, Julie. Please keep us updated on how it progresses, if you do dive into it.

If you can get it done with a 41...all the better! I think that would be cool.

While I am a big advocate of "holding it in the center" and letting the chips fall where they may, I did find this article to be a great resource: http://www.bullseyepistol.com/cstomgun.htm

Wow. More GREAT info. Thanks so much!!!!

Julie

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If I remember correctly, only the 5 inch version of the Model 41 will fit the specs for the Sport / Standard Pistol. Recommend being sure you can see the sights adequately. Some versions of the 41 have rear sights without much notch depth, which may be a detriment for some indoor ranges. I would recommend finding a smith that an put a roll type trigger on the .41. That's the closest you can come to a 2 stage type trigger to compete well against the Euro pistols. That will help the continuous press / trigger pull needed for a good rapid fire shot in the duel stage. Finally, there are lots of grips (orthopedic / custom fit style) for the .41. Try out a few and see which is best. A good fit for the grips will be a asset in the rapid fire stage. However, I like the CMM Shooting Sports version that mimics the .45 grip.

Keep your cool, focus on the front sight and everything else will be a breeze.

Cecil

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When I first started Pistol Shooting I used a slightly modified Model 41 for about three years, it is fine for ISSF Standard Pistol and will work more than adequately for Sport Pistol, which is the Centrefire match with a 22lr. I still have the gun 20years later.

It worked best with anything 1080fps on the packet (T22, CCI Std, Federal Gold Medal 712??) or faster, AS LONG AS IT WAS 40Grain. It should come out about 1000fps in the handgun to ensure reliable functioning with the std springs. Lightening the slide and adjusting the recoil spring weight is something I wanted to try but then discovered IPSC etc etc.

Trigger was smoothed and slightly adjusted to 1100grams. Standard Pistol rules allowed 1000gram but I played it safe. Clean and crisp break on second stage, with about 80% of the takeup on the first stage seemed to work for me, your own prefference to be taken into consideration

Remove the useless and annoying magazine safety. Get a bunch of magazines and ensure that you have three that work perfectly all the time. I have set of anatomical grips, not sure who does those anymore, mine were Skelton from Australia, but they added about 10points to the score the first week I tried them. The gun as it is not the perfect ISSF gun but until you are really cracking into the 530+ it will serve you well. I used to run into the 540's occaisionally but to stay above that all the time I just needed a better gun. I am not sure that it was the guns fault!!

Good luck, see you in May at the Cup.

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