Should I?...

[Idaho Sharpshooter]

I am a Colt SAA and Bisley man, always have been.

However, I horse traded into a NIB Ruger 41 Magnum w/5.5" bbl. Along with it came the complete set of parts for a Bisley grip conversion. A friend was going to do this, and lost interest.

My plan started off innocently enough; ream the cylinder to a tight throat 45 LC, and have my gunsmith make me an octagon barrel and ejector rod housing for. Little smoothing on the action, and a very nice 4.75" bbl packing pistol with bear killing loads. I do NOT own anything in 41M, but this voice in my head keeps whispering what a fine cartridge the 41Mag is.

Help...

Rich

[Armorer]

Man I have that same little voice...and he can get expensive in what he wants. Which is usually EVERYTHING when it come to guns, boolits, scopes, powders...the list goes on and on.

My ¢2
Armorer

[NMBillB]

Rich,
I have a .41mag Ruger Blackhawk, and it's a sweet shooting pistol. Please reconsider what you're about to do. If nothing else, see if you can trade it to someone who'll appreciate that beasty.

[Kskybroom]

Three out of Four Voices In My Head Are Prying For You ...

[mtgrs737]

Sorry, some things prayer can't help! The 41 Magnum IS a Fine cartridge, consider yourself lucky to have it! Listen to the voices.... grasshopper!

[Good Cheer]

Seat the 41 out to the front of that cylinder and then get a 41 single shot rifle chambered to fit the cartridge. Yeehah! Much better use of funds!

[Watergoat]

Horse trades work out strangely sometimes. That's how I got my Glock 32 last summer, on a trade that i just could not pass up. Still not a Glock fan, and I don't like the grip, but I shoot it well. And if it gets scratched or dropped, I don't much care; it was ugly anyway...........

[9.3X62AL]

There's a lot of merit to the idea of a 45 Colt cylinder cut with minimum chamber and throat dimensions. The NICE thing about the Ruger Blackhawk 41s is that they already have very good dimensional integrity, right from the box. Mine have, anyway.

Your gun, so it's your call. For my own part, I'd leave it in 41 Magnum caliber--but I already have dies and moulds to service it.

[Artful]

Well a custom revolver can be a beautiful thing, But before you spend the money to convert I'd at least try it. I don't own a 41 but I have had friends that had the plain jane S&W and Ruger BH's and I even at one point cast several thousand for my one friend who loved a medium plinking load and we'd shoot a coffee can of ammo at a time most days out.

It shoot flat and I didn't see much difference in impact results over my 44 mag. So I say give it a fair trial before you change it.

[EDK]

How many SUPER BLACKHAWKS did I convert to 5.5 inch BISLEYS?
How many of my 357 and 44 VAQUEROS are BISLEYS?
How many of my 22 SUPER SINGLE SIXES are BISLEYS?

You might be better served, regardless of caliber, to keep the 5.5 inch barrel length. Almost all of the above mentioned guns are 5.5 inch (except for the 7.5 inch 44 VAQUEROS WITH HUNTER grip frames) and they work a lot better than the 4.75...for me anyhow.

You could put a DRAGOON or a HUNTER grip frame on the gun. Then you could give the BISLEY parts to your beloved older brother.

[BorderBrewer]

Rich,
I have a 5.5" stainless bisley blackhawk from a run that Acusport did a few years back. 41 mag is a great cartridge especially in a bisley. Put the bisley conversion on it and see how you like it.

[Matthew 25]

I think you should leave it as a 41. If a bear comes out and kills you, make it a 45 next time.

[exile]

I have a .41 and like it. My thoughts would be keep it as is and convert something else that needs some TLC to begin with. A .41 single-shot? Where can I find one?

exile

[Bullshop]

..... the 45 is well known as the most perfect balance of all things sought after by those enlightened souls in handgunning. .....
handgun only?

[Char-Gar]

I have owned one 41 Mag, and it was a Smith and Wesson 57. If was one of the most accurate handguns I have owned and had plenty of power for anything I wanted to shoot. Even so, I sold it in favor of 44 Magnum handguns.

When a man gets a hankering for a custom sixgun, he should not let logic and need stand in his way. Do what brings you joy!

[David LaPell]

Please don't do it. Please from us .41 fans leave it be. There are some very nice .45 Colt revolvers out there. (I know of a near flawless NM Blackhawk in .45 Colt 5 1/2 inch barrel that will cost you the price of the conversion). I have shot and lived and loved many .41 Magnums and .45 Colts, and now instead of trying to figure which I wanted, I have both.

[theperfessor]

A .41 mag w/a 220 gr SWC at 1200+ fps is nothing to sneeze at. I'd leave it alone. We all need to buy new dies and molds from time to time...

[bhn22]

9 out of 10 of the voices in my head think you should convert it to 45 Colt, if that's what you want to do. I've had a couple of 41 mags, and felt that their limited performance was a waste of the necessarily large revolver frames. The 41 is a good cartridge, but you can load down a 44 or 45 to match the .41 level of performance, but the 41 can't come close to the maximum performance of the 44 mag or the 45 Colt. A 45 Colt with a tight, custom chamber is everything a sane man really needs. Now the 41 Special, however...

[Dan Cash]

Convert and you will be sorry. I have both calibers, several of each. Each has its place but if I want something thumped I will pull my six inch nickle Smith .41.

[bhn22]

Ruger probably made tens of thousands of 41 mag Blackhawks. If it were a Redhawk, I'd advise against it, but it's a run of the mill production Blackhawk. It's nothing special. Now a custom 45 Colt Blackhawk, with tight chambers, that's special.