Smith & Wesson 41 Instructions Manual

11
AMMUNITION
GENERAL PRINCIPLES•A firearm and ammunition are a system and must work 
together. Their performance is closely related. There are 
different types of ammunition for different types of firearms.
Your firearm has been designed for ammunition of a 
specific type and a specific caliber. It is important to select 
the proper ammunition for your firearm.
Different combinations of bullet velocity, bullet weight and firearm
weight can have major impact on felt recoil.
For example:
• Gun Weight:...

12
AMMUNITION  CONT’D.
•You are responsible for selecting ammunition that meets 
industry standards and is appropriate in type and caliber for 
this firearm.
•Locate the caliber designation 
marked on the handgun. This 
information indicates the ammunition 
caliber that should be used in this 
firearm. (See figure #1).
HANDLOADED OR RELOADED AMMUNITION
WARNING: NEVER USE NONSTANDARD, RELOADED
OR “HANDLOADED” AMMUNITION WHICH  HAS  NOT
BEEN SUBJECTED TO INTERNAL BALLISTIC PRESSURE
TESTING. RELOADED OR...

13
AMMUNITION  CONT’D.
•Additional ammunition calibers can be fired from the
following list of select calibers.
Caliber on Barrel
Can also Fire  .45 Colt .45 Schofield, .45 S&W, 
.45 S&W .45 Schofield
.45 ACP .45 Auto Rim (in revolvers only)
.44 Magnum  .44 Special  
.357 Magnum  .38 Special, .38 Special +P  
.22LR   .22L, .22 Short, .22CB, .22BB 
(in revolvers only) 
•In some cases, a round of ammunition not specified on your 
handgun may fit into the chamber or cylinder. Firing 
ammunition not...

14
MODEL NUMBER
IDENTIFICATION
MODEL NUMBER
FIGURE 2
FIGURE4
Trigger Guard
Trigger
Grip
Magazine
WellMagazine
Release
Front Sight
Frame
Slide
Slide Stop Rear Sight
BarrelManual 
Safety
SERIAL NUMBER
FIGURE 3       

INSPECTING
YOUR PISTOL
PRIOR TO FIRING
When you inspect your pistol, you should first check for yourself
to ensure that it is unloaded. To do this, grasp the pistol with
your finger off the trigger and outside the tr
igger guard, point the
pistol in a safe direction, depress the magazine release, and
remove the magazine (Figure 5). With the pistol still pointing in
a safe direction, grasp the
serrated sides of the slide from
the rear with the thumb and
fingers as shown in Figure 6,
and briskly draw the...

16
LOADING
• Do not load the pistol until you are ready to use it.
• Keep your finger off the trigger and outside the trigger guard 
until you are ready to fire.
WARNING: PISTOLS WITH A MAGAZINE SAFETY
ARE DESIGNED TO DISENGAGE THE TRIGGER LINK
AGE, AND THEREBY  PREVENT THE TRIGGER  FROM
FIRING THE PISTOL WHEN THE MAGAZINE IS
REMOVED FROM THE PISTOL. NEVER PLACE YOUR FIN
GER ON THE TRIGGER OR IN THE TRIGGER GUARD WHILE
YOU REMOVE THE MAGAZINE. DOING SO COULD CAUSE
THE HANDGUN TO FIRE. AFTER INSERTING A...

17
WARNING: VERIFY THAT THE FIRING PIN IS NOT PRO
TRUDING FROM THE BREECH FACE. (Figures 7 & 8)
WARNING: NEVER ATTEMPT TO LOAD THE PISTOL BY
INSERTING A ROUND INTO THE CHAMBER THROUGH 
THE OPEN EJECTION PORT.
WARNING: ALWAYS LOAD A ROUND INTO THE CHAM
BER BY FEEDING IT FROM THE MAGAZINE. FAILURE
TO FOLLOW THIS WARNING CAN RESULT IN SEVERE
INJURY OR DEATH TO YOU OR OTHERS.
Hold the pistol in one hand while pointing it in a safe direc
tion and with your finger off the trigger and outside the trig
ger...

CLEARING MISFIRES
• If, during firing, a cartridge fails to fire, the chamber must be 
manually cleared. Wait ten seconds while keeping the pistol
pointed in a safe direction. Verify that the manual safety is in 
the safe (up) position.Press the magazine release and remove 
the magazine. Grasp the serrated sides of the slide from the rear and briskly pull the slide fully rearward to eject the misfired round.
Keep your finger off of the trigger and out of the trigger 
guard. Do not obstruct the ejection...

WARNING: ALWAYS FOLLOW THE FIELD STRIPPING
INSTRUCTIONS EXACTLY. NEVER DO ANYTHING
BEYOND WHAT YOU ARE SPECIFICALLY INSTRUCT
ED TO DO IN THIS MANUAL. NEVER ALTER OR MOD
IFY THE PARTS IN YOUR PISTOL.
WARNING: SAFETY GLASSES SHOULD BE WORN
DURING THIS  PROCESS.
• Point the pistol in a safe direction. Make sure your finger is 
off the trigger, and the trigger is in the at rest or forward 
position. Depress the magazine release, and remove the magazine. (Figure 9)  With the barrel still pointing in a safe...

FIGURE 14
• Make certain that the chamber is clear.
• While holding the pistol in the shooting hand, rotate the
trigger guard down. (Figure 11)  
• Make sure the pistol remains upright so that the barrel 
assembly will not fall off when released, lift off barrel 
assembly (Figure 12).
WARNING: YOU MUST CONTROL THE SLIDE AND
SPRING DURING REMOVAL TO PREVENT INJURY.
• Push back on the slide and raise it slightly (Figure 13).
• Move the slide assembly forward to complete disengagement 
(Figure 14).
• Remove...