Smith & Wesson Model 57
The Smith & Wesson Model 57 is a large frame, double-action revolver with a six round cylinder, chambered for the .41 Magnum cartridge, and designed and manufactured by the Smith & Wesson firearms company. The gun was designed as a weapon for law enforcement agencies. However, due to size and recoil it found more favor with civilian target shooters and hunters. Development In the early 1960s, Elmer Keith, Bill Jordan, and Skeeter Skelton, all noted firearms authorities and authors, lobbied Remington Arms and Smith & Wesson to introduce a new .41 caliber police cartridge with the objective of filling a perceived ballistic performance gap between the .357 and .44 Magnums, thus creating a chambering which they believed would be the ultimate for law enforcement purposes. In April 1964 Remington responded by introducing the .41 Magnum cartridge, and in concert, Smith & Wesson launched the Model 57 revolver chambered for the new ammunition. Elmer Keith originally proposed the name ".41 Police" for the new cartridge, but Remington instead chose .41 Magnum, hoping to capitalize on the notoriety and popularity of its earlier Magnum offerings. Features First introduced in April 1964, the Model 57 was produced with 4", 6", 6-1/2", and 8-3/8" barrels in both highly polished blued and nickel–plated finishes. Using the S&W large "N" frame, the Model 57 was one of the companies’ premier products, offering superb fit and finish, basically the same pistol as the famous S&W Model 29, except in .41 instead of .44 caliber. Like the Model 29, the 57 sported a red insert front sight with a white outline adjustable rear iron open sight, as well as a target trigger, target hammer, and oversized wooden target grips. Model 57 variants Ammunition Remington originally offered two ammunition loadings in its .41 Magnum cartridge lineup. The first was a full-power 1300-1400 ft/s hunting or heavy-usage load using a jacketed soft point bullet which rivaled the stopping power of the mighty .44 Magnum while boasting less recoil and a flatter bullet trajectory. The second loading was a less powerful 1,150 ft/s 210 grain lead semiwadcutter intended for law enforcement usage. Market response Due to a number of factors the .41 Magnum unfortunately never became the "next great police loading" that its developers and supporters envisioned. First, the majority of departments and rank and file officers were perfectly content with their traditional .38 Special revolvers, and if more stopping power was needed, cartridges such as the popular .357 Magnum were available. In addition, when senior police officials could be convinced to evaluate the .41 Magnum, many complained that even the lighter .41 Magnum "Police load" was unpleasant to fire, while the .357 Magnum offered adequate performance without the bruising recoil and muzzle blast associated with the .41. Also, the marketing decision by S&W and Remington to dub the cartridge a "Magnum" ended up working against them in their desire to address the law enforcement market. Police organizations found the connotation of a high-powered "Magnum" hunting-type weapon to be unpalatable in