I just saw a notice at my favorite gun shop saying Blue Dot powder should not be used in loads for the .357 Mag with 125 grain bullets or ANY .41 mag loads. I have been using Blue Dot ever since I started loading for the .41. I don't load hot but still the powder company should know best. Has anyone else seen this warning?

Yes, I've seen it. Like you, I've been using BD since I started loading .41 Mag MANY years ago.

Perhaps they've reformulated it slightly and they no longer consider it fit for use in those applications.

blue dot is a powder i quit using in all of my handguns. When you get to top end loads with it it just isnt stable. I goes from no pressure signs to beating out cases with only a half a grain differnce in charge weight. It works fine in pistols even the 41 mag if your looking for mid range loads but ive found better powders for both midrange and top end loads so I just quit using it.

I don't load top end loads with it. I just like how clean it is so I am guessing I am safe.

I haven't played with a lot of it, but have a few handloader friends that refer to it as "twitchy" at the top end. That is enough for me to stay away from it.

Don,

If you get a chance, try some AA #9. It is my favorite powder for my 41s.

Thanks Terry will do.
God Bless+

Back in my younger days of mispent youth i cut my teeth on a 41 magnum and Hornady 210gr.bullets with blue dot powder & rcbs rock chucker outfit and life was good until i started to go for some middle power upper loads for a wild boar hunt i was going on for a week in the swamp river bottoms...sleeping outta puptent and living off the land with plenty cold beer and whisky around the campfire at night with my hunting friends,life was good ...all i wanted to do was Hunt & carry the old 41 on my hip or shoulder holster during my many wild adventures....then one day i tried for the mid level loads..they were so hot i had to beat my cyclinder rod against the nearest tree to unjam the emptys out! Hot wasnt the word ..every other primer was pierceing and fire was blowing out a foot from the barrel of the old s&w model 57 with 8 3/8barrel/half the cases split..I never reloaded another 41 magnum round again ...but shot at lest 100 of those hot loads getting rid of them/which i wouldnt have done today being older and wiser and not as bullet proof anymore..I get all the power i need from factory remington 210gr. soft points and the old smith will group em together all day long ...so i just quit reloading for the old girl,she had a ton of reloads run thru her with the blue dot and start loads and everything was fine until i tried to stoke it up a bit...I didnt even think about blue dot after that episode...& i wasnt no where near book max...If i were to reload for the old smith again and only had blue dot powder it would be with start charges only for sure...measured by hand..not dumped from a hopper.Good Luck,That S&W model 57 41magnum has been my go to gun for over 25 years...I have never felt undergunned with it at all & would recommend it to anyone who seeks more power than the 357magnum..I love the 38spl.,357mag,45acp,44mag.but the 41magnum holds a special place in my heart...with many fun memories..I will always own one. For me its the best#1 alltime shortgun round.

I wonder if there has been a change ?? When I was very active in metallic silhouette and hunting and reloading I used 16 gr Blue Dot [max IIRC was 17 gr] for target and hunting in my 44 mag with the old Speer 225 JSWCHP .Great accuracy, great performance on deer.That clocked 1260 fps from my 6.5" M29. The only problem I ever had was with a single lot of primers which gave great pressure variations.

Blue Dot is "sensitive" to high pressure. It also has erratic pressure below 20 degrees Farenheit. Speaking from experience in my younger more foolish days. Good shooting.