If it weren't for the .40 S&W..

[bsa1917hunter]

To my way of thinking the .40 S&W should have been called the 10mm S&W Special. I've been told (by a S&W executive) that that name hadn't even been suggested! Go figure.

I like 10mm short magnum better..

 

[bsa1917hunter]

I'm hanging on to my 4006, even though I just qualified with a glock 22.... I really like the 3rd gen smith. It tames the 40, even when shooting my handloads...

 

[Medic!]

I'm hanging on to my 4006, even though I just qualified with a glock 22.... I really like the 3rd gen smith. It tames the 40, even with +p loads..

OK. You lost me at 40+p ?

 

[MrRob96]

I'm hanging on to my 4006, even though I just qualified with a glock 22.... I really like the 3rd gen smith. It tames the 40, even when shooting my handloads...

+P comment aside, I'll say I have a 4006TSW CHP handgun and I think the recoil is snappier than my 10mm handguns. Something about the recoil impulse of 40 sucks.

Perhaps it is my ammo selection...

 

[Pandaz3]

Well now they have spare mags for the gun above for ten dollars each. I ordered Six even though I had enough.

EDIT well today 2/22/18 PSA has those same magazines with the extension sleeves for the Subcompacts at the same price, free ship with four or more, so I have four more coming.

I have shot my Sub Compact 40 with the extended magazine many times and I like that fine, but shooting my wife's 4" XD9 Mod 2 I did notice a difference in grip feel with a solid grip, now with my new 4" 40 I will be happier with range shooting.

 

[Pandaz3]

Well I will now have two XD40 Subcompacts Mod 2, one in FDE and one Bi-tone plus the XD40 Service (4") Bi-Tone.....and my XDS 40 and my Walther PPX 40 and my Charter Arms Pitbull 40 That's it for 40's for now!

PSA had the Subcompact for the same price as the service $330. Can't go wrong at that price.

 

[bsa1917hunter]

I like the 40. Actually just got done loading 300 180gr xtps for my 2 40's. Waiting on my new s3f match grade barrel thats out for delivery as we speak... i dont think the 40 will ever die, even though the little 9mm is the favorite at the moment.

 

[po18guy]

The .41 AE was developed by Action Arms (Philadelphia) VP Evan Whildin in 1986 (50AE in 1988). It is based on a shortened .41 mag with a rebated rim. The idea was that it could be fired in the same guns as a 9mm, with only barrel and spring change. I have two Tanfoglio TA-90s that can shoot the .41 AE. One is a convertible, both 9mm and .41AE and the other is called an Ultra IPSC, .41AE only. The largest user of the cartridge was Israel. They wanted a cartridge with more power for their Uzi's. Two of the major cartridge manufacturers were Samson and UZI, both Israeli. I am not sure who made the most pistols in this chambering, but the Uzi is the only carbine that I have heard of.
The.40 S&W came later and most ammunition manufacturers backed the .40 S&W, even though the .41AE had a slight edge in ballistics.
I love shooting the .41AE and stocked up on enough ammo, brass and bullets (170, 185, 200 and 210 grain) to keep me going - and maybe the Grandkids too.

If you should ever decide that you have too much of it, I seem to be unable (imagine that) to convince any brass maker to produce a short run. After wanting the caliber for decades, Last year I bought an Action Arms High Power conversion (barrel,mag, spring) plus 40 rounds of IMI HP ammo, about 40 handloads and 90 rounds of new brass for $140. Have emailed Speer, IMI/Samson, even PRVI Partizan in Serbia! So far no takers. Heck, I may have to start a .41 AE blog to get some interest. I note that, on the 30th anniversary of the cartridge, .41AE dies sell every time they're listed on eBay, so the shooters are out there. And, a 210 grain at 900-950 is pretty danged lethal.

I do know that the owner of Rainier Ballistics loves the .41 bore, so a plated bullet lighter than 210 gr. might be doable if enough members make contact.

As to its place in the world of shooting, I like to think of the .41 AE as the 40 S&W turned up to 11.

 

[Captain O]

CCI-Speer Reloading Manual (1978) "If magnum performance is desired, a handgun chambered for a magnum cartridge should be chosen."

Running a .40 S&W cartridge/pistol at magnum levels will commensurately shorten the life of both. What's the point?

 

[BATTERY]

The best part about .40 guns is that hey are much cheaper than 9mm and 45s used.

Now i don't own a .40 but if I wanted a cheap glove box gun I'm sure I could pick up a decent Glock for under $400 or an M&P for $300.


Nah. Lol

 

[Pandaz3]

I am up to six 40's three XD's of some description, one XDS, one Walther PPX and my first 40, a Charter Arms Pitbull revolver And two 40 derivatives a G-33 and a XD357 in 357 Sig. I like both calibers, but 40 S&W is easier to find.

 

[Pandaz3]

The best part about .40 guns is that hey are much cheaper than 9mm and 45s used.

Now i don't own a .40 but if I wanted a cheap glove box gun I'm sure I could pick up a decent Glock for under $400 or an M&P for $300.


Nah. Lol

I picked up the XD40 3" Mod 2 and 4" Mod 2 for $330 each both new.

 

[Pete F]

If you should ever decide that you have too much of it, I seem to be unable (imagine that) to convince any brass maker to produce a short run. After wanting the caliber for decades, Last year I bought an Action Arms High Power conversion (barrel,mag, spring) plus 40 rounds of IMI HP ammo, about 40 handloads and 90 rounds of new brass for $140. Have emailed Speer, IMI/Samson, even PRVI Partizan in Serbia! So far no takers. Heck, I may have to start a .41 AE blog to get some interest. I note that, on the 30th anniversary of the cartridge, .41AE dies sell every time they're listed on eBay, so the shooters are out there. And, a 210 grain at 900-950 is pretty danged lethal.

I do know that the owner of Rainier Ballistics loves the .41 bore, so a plated bullet lighter than 210 gr. might be doable if enough members make contact.

As to its place in the world of shooting, I like to think of the .41 AE as the 40 S&W turned up to 11.

I like the Sierra 170 grain and 185 grain (Reeds) best. The heavier bullets seem to bulge the cases enough to make chambering in my Ultra difficult to impossible if you are not careful. It took me several hours to remove a cartridge that my brother loaded with the 200 grain Remington and bulged the cases slightly. The chamber is very tight - not so much on my convertible.

There is a .41 expert on GunBroker (fishdude65) who was making .41 AE with .41 mag cases. It is not hard to do with the right equipment. He was selling them $49/50. Reeds may have some too (internet).

There used to be a .41 AE forum that tried to get Starline to make a run of brass. It never amounted to anything.

 

[po18guy]

I like the Sierra 170 grain and 185 grain (Reeds) best. The heavier bullets seem to bulge the cases enough to make chambering in my Ultra difficult to impossible if you are not careful. It took me several hours to remove a cartridge that my brother loaded with the 200 grain Remington and bulged the cases slightly. The chamber is very tight - not so much on my convertible.

There is a .41 expert on GunBroker (fishdude65) who was making .41 AE with .41 mag cases. It is not hard to do with the right equipment. He was selling them $49/50. Reeds may have some too (internet).

There used to be a .41 AE forum that tried to get Starline to make a run of brass. It never amounted to anything.

Thanks! Are those bulged cases IMI or other? 210 is a pretty long bullet, and seating it to the correct COL may cause it to engage the taper to the web of the case, thus bulging the case. As to fishdude, I bought a polygon bore Jericho conversion kit from him for my son. Those are cheap, as the kits seem far less in demand than those for High Ppwers and clones. Fishdude was looking ahead over the past two decades or so, accumulating .41 AE components and is a true market capitalist. As limited as the market is, I simply don't like the rather opportunistic asking prices. Not on a pension and SS Disability, anyway.

Speaking of Starline, I have 20 of what must be some of their more rare cases: 7.62X54R. Just prior to the Eastern European dams bursting, they made a pilot run of cases as demand was growing. They sent me 20 to try. Timing is everything, and the supply of cheap S&B, PRVI and other brass cases killed the idea.

The only hassle with making AE from mag cases is the large primer in the .41 Mag cases. Not needed in the ultimate sense.

Sometimes, it is costly to love an orphan, as cute as they may be.

 

[Captain O]

If you should ever decide that you have too much of it, I seem to be unable (imagine that) to convince any brass maker to produce a short run. After wanting the caliber for decades, Last year I bought an Action Arms High Power conversion (barrel,mag, spring) plus 40 rounds of IMI HP ammo, about 40 handloads and 90 rounds of new brass for $140. Have emailed Speer, IMI/Samson, even PRVI Partizan in Serbia! So far no takers. Heck, I may have to start a .41 AE blog to get some interest. I note that, on the 30th anniversary of the cartridge, .41AE dies sell every time they're listed on eBay, so the shooters are out there. And, a 210 grain at 900-950 is pretty danged lethal.

I do know that the owner of Rainier Ballistics loves the .41 bore, so a plated bullet lighter than 210 gr. might be doable if enough members make contact.

As to its place in the world of shooting, I like to think of the .41 AE as the 40 S&W turned up to 11.

At 950 fps at 210-grain slug is generating 420.9 foot-pounds of energy. That's pretty healthy. If one were to use a 150-grain Lehigh "Extreme Hunter" projectile blowing out the barrel at about 1200 and generating 479.7 foot-pounds of energy would tend to disrupt internal organs and bring a fight to a rather abrupt stop.

Don't you think?

 

[DuneHopper]

My experience the 40sw is a great choice, basically no recoil and inexpensive ammo.
That been my experience is its a over all nice rounds for varied situations.

 

[po18guy]

At 950 fps at 210-grain slug is generating 420.9 foot-pounds of energy. That's pretty healthy. If one were to use a 150-grain Lehigh "Extreme Hunter" projectile blowing out the barrel at about 1200 and generating 479.7 foot-pounds of energy would tend to disrupt internal organs and bring a fight to a rather abrupt stop.

Don't you think?

Precisely. 45 ball is at 370ft. lbs. and is considered the standard. The Sierra manual shows their 170 grain at 1150 for 499 ft. lbs. Impressive. Can do that with 7.2 Unique. Don't remember what Col. Cooper had to say about it, but 40/200/1000 was his magic formula for success. Evan Whildin was a visionary and cartridge genius IMO. Can you imagine any of the new mini poly 9s, like a SCCY with a .41 barrel? A more shooter-friendly semi-auto equivalent to the Charter 44 Bulldog (had a couple of those).

I just emailed Rainier Ballistics again to see if they would consider a 170-190 grain plated slug. They are just down the road, so I may stop by. Berry's is probably out, since .41 is a rare bird even in revolvers.

If the AE had been called the .41 S&W Special, history would be changed. But, Smith had $$$ invested in the 40 and so the .41 suffered from "not invented here" syndrome, I would guess.

 

[po18guy]

At 950 fps at 210-grain slug is generating 420.9 foot-pounds of energy. That's pretty healthy. If one were to use a 150-grain Lehigh "Extreme Hunter" projectile blowing out the barrel at about 1200 and generating 479.7 foot-pounds of energy would tend to disrupt internal organs and bring a fight to a rather abrupt stop.

Don't you think?

Yeah boy! Not to mention a 90-100 grain ARX bullet at, oh, way up there speed.

 

[Captain O]

The .41 Special had already been invented in 1980. They could have called it a .41 Auto.

KISS.

 

[Captain O]

Yeah boy! Not to mention a 90-100 grain ARX bullet at, oh, way up there speed.

The 150-grain Lehigh is already being loaded by Underwood Ammunition in the .41 Rem. Mag at 1754 fps for 1024.9 foot-pounds of energy.