Reeder Custom Guns - 401 powermag

Gary do you have reamers for the Herters 401?
Thinking of an auxiliary cylinder for a
401 GNR.
Any of you guys have any info on this cartridge, I've read all that Google has to offer, such as how to make brass and how with the 41 magnum there is no need for the hardships!

and you'll get all the info on the cartridge you'll ever want to know.

I have a Buckeye special Blackhawk in 10mm & 38-40. I had Gary make a 3 cylinder in 401 GNR. The 10mm and 38-40 are good cartridges, but the 401 GNR is a great cartridge. I have shoot WB's 401 Herters. Go for it, if you want the extra trouble. Get a 401 GNR and be easily satisfied.

I bought a Herter's .401 powermag cheap because some knucklehead tried to ream out the cylinder with a dremel tool.
Maybe trying to get .41 mag in it? Who knows?
I bought a cylinder from Numrich for $58.50. Seems like a perfect fit. Reeds Ammo sells loaded ammo in 2 or 3 weights
at 1350 fps in converted .41 mag brass for $35.00 to $39.00 per 20. I bought some but have not tried them yet.

forget the 401 Herters. It flopped when it came out and now it is just an old flop. Why go to all the trouble when there are several 10mm cartridges out there that are better?

For a new build by all means the .401 GNR and an extra cylinder in whatever floats your boat. Gary made me one with a .40 S&W cylinder. Then I had him make me a .38-40 on an OM Ruger chassis.

While I have done it, I think loading the .38-40 to magnum pressures is a little irresponsible. What if one got away, you died, and left a box, etc. Someone shot one in an old SAA or New Service, 1873 etc. It would be a grenade! Gary's .401 GNR on the .44 Magnum case solves that.

I love old guns and enjoy making obsolete cartridges to go with them.

an original Herters on the way, but wanting the 401 in other pistols as well. Maybe even a little lever action in the mix.

Even if misplaced, zeal. Not trying to fan flames. It costs Gary more to do odd things than mainstream and time is money. I never push him on strange things and prefer whenever he can work them into the schedule.

I can help with brass if you get in a bind. I also make .401 Winchester Self Loading from .41 Remington cases, using long nosed bullets to feed and headspacing off the semi-rim. You can make them from many others too. Best is a 7.62x39 blown straight.

The .401 is unique, not offering really any more than the others, but fun. Another fellow made a .401 Bobcat from .220 Swift brass that is basically the same thing but loaded to really high pressures. As far as I know the Herter's Powermag was the only gun chambered in .401 Herter's. Gary should be able to make a cylinder for a 10mm Ruger Blackhawk if you can find one reasonable. They are really nice all steel guns. Gripframe and ejector housings are steel on those, I think.

You can see how close they are, the .401 Herters and .41 Remington (Starline). The Herters pre-dates the Remington by maybe 3 yrs. Both are just older than me.

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Have them made. Figured it would be pretty straightforward, only variance from the other builds would be the chambering, intend to use .400/10mm projectiles.

the reamer depth, perhaps with a made up spacer to use a .40 or 10mm auto reamer and go deeper to 0.125". Very unlikely you can find a .401 Herters cut reamer, could have one custom made ($$). Maybe someone has a 10mm Magnum Auto reamer that would work too. Cylinder and Single Shot reamers have a stop shelf made into them where they stop cutting. Some other reamers for rimless ctgs. do not, and you have to go slow using go/no go gauges. I have done a teeny bit; none, zero compared to GNR's crew.

Little different than grabbing a common .41 Remington cylinder reamer and running in six times till it stops. A good Gunsmith can do about anything, if he has time, and you have money and patience.

With many cartridges. The 44 Special, 45 Colt up to 50,000 psi in 5-Shot Cylinders, 45-70 and many more.

too much stuff and if I croak out I hope they pull bullets! LOL I try not to mix up hot and soft antique loads. For a while I loaded only jacketed ammo hot in old cartridges for identification. Then I loaded wild cast that "I" would recognize for that they are. I can easily tell a vintage 170 gr. Ideal bullet .38-40 from a 230 gr. WFNGC in the same case, but who else would know?

It's a big what if, and more related in concern to my specific situation.

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frustration.

Dimensional it is basically a 10mm magnum (1.25") with a rim. .40 S&W reloading dies work fine for the duty. Normal 10mm or .38-40 Win. bullets are what you use. .41 Magnum starting load data works pretty well if you wade in easy and respect bullet weights. Ditto for 10mm auto load data. The pressures are lower in the longer case.

One could use a .40 or 10mm reamer, to go longer in a cylinder, but a recessed rim would be another matter. I full length size .41 Remington Mag. in a .40 S&W die but this will not size down the solid case web that is protected by the shell holder. I made a mandrel to hold cases and turn this area down one by one. Shorten from 1.28" to 1.25". The Herter's gun has recessed rims in the cylinder so lot to lot you might have to trim the rims a little. You can also use .30-30 win to make brass but it's no cake walk either. Trimming and reducing rim diameters. But once made they last a long time.

George Herter was a bit of a nutt. He rubbed a lot of folks the wrong way and was not well received by the gun industry mainstream click of the late 1950's and 60's. The gun as made by the Germans and actually pretty nice if a bit ahead of it's time. The cartridge was brilliant but chaffed the S&W project and Keith's pleading etc. Herter was not one of the "boys" and got the cold shoulder. The .400 lead loads were loaded hot and tended to lead bores from what I have heard from guys shooting it back in the day. I think it would make a fantastic re-issue caliber. It is more closely in the middle of the .357 to .43 (.429) magnum range than the .410 Magnum. A 10mm revolver could be modified to fire it. I was gifted a very rare extra .401 cylinder by a special friend, he knew what I wanted to do, have Gary make me a .38-40 re-chamber for a second cyl. in my Herter's.

Dick Williams took my gun and did an article for Shooting Illustrated a few yrs. ago. Look for ctgs. loaded with Remington Golden Sabre 10mm JHP bullets, lol. They were my old loads.

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