Initial Shots: S&W Model 58...

[Stephen A. Camp]

Hello. At the last gunshow, I was shopping for a clean or NIB S&W M10 w/2" bbl or the stainless counterpart if the blued could not be found. I did find one, but it was a bit too high for the condition it was in.

However, a very clean S&W Model 58 whispered to me. The price was OK, but got better with a cash offer.

The revolver would mean nothing to a collector as it had obviously been reblued and the hammer sides had been polished. The service stocks were dinged up a bit, but the yoke fit the frame tightly, the single-action didn't push off, timing was fine, no drag marks on the forcing cone and no flame cutting. The screws were not buggered up so if they'd been removed more than once, it was done right. The double-action was fine. Examination of the bore showed it to be clean and pristine. As I intend to shoot and carry the gun, the fact that it had been reblued didn't matter and in fact, made it a "no brainer" as this particular M58 is not a collector's grade gun.


As is the case with all S&W magnums of this era, my M58 has the pinned barrel and recessed chambers. The narrow trigger is grooved. I'm told the gun was made in 1966 or so.

The guts looked fine and the only "customization" I did was to stick a better looking set of services stocks and Tyler grip adapter on the revolver.

Ammunition: I could only come up with two factory loads to shoot in the gun:

PMC 210-gr. TCSP and Winchester 175-gr. STHP's. This stuff has a healthy tariff, but like the .38 Super, this one will wind up being fed handloads the vast majority of the time.

I chronographed 10 shots from each load and the muzzle of the gun was approximately 10' from the chronograph screens.

PMC 210-gr. TCSP:
Average Velocity: 1251 ft/sec
Extreme Spread: 75
Std. Deviation: 25

Winchester 175-gr. STHP:
Average Velocity: 1150 ft/sec
Extreme Spread: 193
Std. Deviation: 54

I was surprised at the extreme spread on the Winchester load, but also realize that the .41 Magnum has not received so much tweaking and refining as has other handgun calibers such as 9mm and .45 ACP. At the distances I fired today, it made little difference and I can remember when a standard deviation of 50 ft/sec or so was considered "good."

Shooting: Today, I was pressed for time and it was extremely windy. For these reasons, after chronographing the above loads, I fired each for group at 15 yards. Each group of five shots was fired standing and w/2-hand hold. I fired in single-action.


The STHP's hit a bit low and left, but not by much. I suspect this was become more obvious at 25 yards and quite a bit more so at fifty. POA was the smaller center dot and the hold was dead on.


The PMC load, though faster, impacted a tad higher for me. I guess the heavier bullet rocked the gun back in recoil more than the lower dwell time could influence its hitting lower. Either way, the group is satisfactory.

Even though I do not intend to use this gun for self-protection, I fired 15-shots at 10 yards double-action. I used the PMC ammunition as its recoil was significantly greater than the Winchester's and would represent a "worst case" situation between the two loads I had available.


Two full cylinders plus 3 rounds were fired as fast as I could operate the double-action while staying on target. I'm no Miculik to be sure and would estimate the cadence at roughly 1 shot per second. This revolver with this load could be used for serious puposes if required.

Observations: It's been a number of years since I fired a .41 Magnum and it was a 6 1/2" Model 57. I do find it less recoiling than the .44 Magnum with full-house loads by a significant degree. I realize that felt recoil is subjective to a degree, but that's how it seemed again today and that's as I'd remembered it from years past.

Ammunition for this caliber is costly. I'll be reloading for the gun as I now iintend to keep it since the fixed sights are "close" and a handloaded bullet of 210-grains at something like 950 to 1000 ft/sec should be both "on" and easy to handle while delivering significant "pop" to the target. This gun will be used in the field and such a load will handle anything in Texas needing handling.

There were no malfunctions or failures to fire. All rounds ejected cleanly and without undue effort although the PMC cases were a bit tighter than the Winchester's. No big surprise there; the PMC was the hotter load and they swelled more.

I believe that the .41 Magnum's too much gun for a newer shooter with full-house loads and that includes the Model 58 and its heavy barrel. With the old police load of a 210-gr. SWC @ 950 ft/sec or so, it's really delivering .45 ACP ballistics and the 1911's probably a better choice for serious matters. That said, for folks preferring a revolver this one should do nicely if one can find a factory load in that power range. With loads in the 200-gr. range at around 1000 ft/sec, the .41 Magnum should be in the same ballistic ballpark as .45 ACP and .45 Colt depending upon loads. I was surprised at how much lighter-recoiling the 175-gr. Silvertips were. These could be handled easily. I have no idea how much penetration that load provides.

So, my 58 will become very similar to my .45 Colt Mountain Gun for the bulk of its shooting, i.e., 210-gr CSWC's or 210-gr Hornady XTP's at around 1000 ft/sec.

It is nice to know that it can be cranked up a bit should that be desired.

The gun is kind of plain and looks like a Model 10 heavy barrel on steroids, but I like it.


Though some will disagree, I still find the N-frame S&W's appealing and still prefer the old classic lines for them to the newer versions. This old thing was never all that popular with the police officers it targeted as a primary user group. I'm surprised that the guns were bright blued. I'd have expected the matte finish of the Model 28 Highway Patrolman.

Best.

[jerry]

Nice.

Thanks for the well done gun related post :right:

Mr Stephen A. Camp sir ? :target:

[Stephen A. Camp]

Hello. I don't have a stainless K-frame or any L's, but I will do one on a Model 19. Do you prefer 2 1/2 or 4" barrel for the gun?

Best.

Hello Mr Camp..seen some tempting prices on police trade in model 66 Smiths:target:

[Stephen A. Camp]

Hello. It's a deal. I'll do one in the near future.

Best.

:target:

[Jesse]

Nice S&W 58! They are rare now... don't see many around anymore!

[PAPA G]

good report Mr. Camp, i appreciate it. i also will be looking forward to the Mod19 report, mine favored 125 gr JHP's.

[Stephen A. Camp]

Hello, and thanks. Got a lot of irons in the fire, but I will do the thing on the M19. I may do a comparision report between the snub and the 4".

Best.

[Stephen A. Camp]

Hello. I finally got the opportunity to shoot some of Corbon's excellent 170-gr. JHP through the Model 58. As has been the case with many of Corbon's loads in other calibers, the actual velocity was higher than the advertised.

Corbon 170-gr. JHP:

Average Velocity: 1333 ft/sec
Extreme Spread: 54
Std. Deviation: 19


Fired into water, this bullet expanded to 0.75 x 0.64 x 0.41" tall.
The recovered bullet weighed 163.4-gr.


...another view of the expanded bullet and a loaded round...


This 5-shot group was fired from a rest @ 25 yards.

I had expected this ammo to have a lower POI than POA, but was very pleasantly surprised. Recoil was "all there," but it is a magnum from a 4" revolver. It would move the hands quite a bit, but was not uncomfortable like some full-house .357 Magnums fired from the J-frames; no "sting."


The primer was flattened, but not excessively. All cases extracted smoothly and without undue effort.

I've not used this load on any living creatures nor spoken with anyone who has used it against felons, but I tend to believe it would be very effective for the latter and plenty good for the size deer we have here in Texas.

I think it's a very good load and of the three I've tried in .41 Magnum, it's been the best overall in my opinion.

Best.