Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Single Shots What chambering for woods deer in contender carbine?

I have wanted one for a long time and Just pulled the trigger on a stainless G2 frame.

I am trying to decide what to do for a first barrel. My intention is use the carbine to hunt woods for deer with a very small chance of bear. Typical ranges would be 50 yds, but with a rare possibility of up to 125 yds or so.

I have been thinking of 30.30 35 rem or 357 Max, is there some other clambering I should consider?

I see there are a couple of companies making contender barrels is there any reason to prefer one over another? any to avoid?

For your intents, the .35 Rem seems tailor made. The .375 Win or .38-55 would be worth considering if you handload. The .35 is much easier to feed though.

Any of the rounds mentioned here would be fine, but only the .30/30 can be easily fed, either by factory ammo or by handloading. Ammo and brass for the others ranges from scarce to unobtainium and that situation is only likely to get worse. If you take the hard road and get one of the problem children, at least the G2 won't toss your brass in the weeds.

If you handload, bullet choices for the .30/30 are much wider too, although some may be too tough to expand reliably at lower speeds.

357 Herrett if it were me - but I just like odd stuff lol

or one of the JDJ's

I could dig a .30-30 on a G2 frame.

I am not sure of the limitations of the action but my knee-jerk reaction to your question was .358 Win.

One of the JDJ's would be cool too as Jeff said.

Of the three you mentioned, I would probably buy a .357 Maximum from MGM. You can load it with .357 magnum brass, according to Mike Bellm, and can do so with carbide dies or a Lee Loader. And you can shoot .38 Special wadcutters in it during the off season for practice and small game, and get really expert with it.

Either the .30-30 or the .35 Remington would work fine. So would the .44 magnum and the .45-70, for that matter, or the 7-30 Waters. No bad choices here (except maybe the .358 Winchester, a great cartridge but probably too much for the G2, sorry War Eagle).

I have a 30/30 (pistol), but; probably the conventional wisdom might be 35 rem. to cover the bear. The 35 was popular back n the G1 days. I would suggest a tree stand for the latter

Hogeye mentioned 44 and that seems a sound option.

If I go 35rem or 357 max it looks like a custom barrel. Is there a consensus on who to make the barrel?


I see there are couple SSK, MGM, EABCO, bulberry.

SSK's look a little more pricey, but the others seem to run pretty much the same. I see some bad reviews on MGM and Bulberry. EABCO says lead times are long on their website.

My experience is with Encores, but:

My first was from SSK. JD can be a little prickly to deal with,
but he liked what I proposed (a 9.3x74r) so he was pretty agreeable with what I wanted, that time at least.

T'SOB scope mount is a work of art! I bought a blued barrel,
and the blueing is beautiful. Worthy of a fine custom gun.

A little pricey, but worth it in my opinion.

Have a couple MGM barrels, professional looking with the etched logo and caliber markings. Owners were terrific to deal with, love those folks. Most accurate Encore barrels I have.
Only negative is that at least to me, scope mounting is sort of an afterthought with them? They offer a mount base of their own that is very nice, but only four screws offered on a sporter weight barrel, and it hangs out in the air at the front, a gripe of mine with Encore scope mounting in general.
It WILL flex if you push on it, I don't like that.

Mike Bellm, have one barrel from him, a Bergara 308 he poked out to 300 H&H. He has an acceptable if not pretty fix for the scope mounts, he adds two more screws if you request, one tapped into the barrel, and the other snug down against the barrel and lock-tited. It works.

My sample of one, the caliber marking is hand stamped, and not very neatly... used a hyphen stamp to make a "+" so it reads
300 H+H, and pretty sloppy at that.

MGM makes extremely good barrels and they are great people to work with. My G2 Contender barrel is in 17 Hornet and it's a hoot to take out.

I'm a fan of the 357 Maximum for the reasons mentioned above and also that you can, with proper loads, take that 150 yard + shot, if needed.

You can also fire regular .357s and .38s in it in a pinch, which is where you'll find yourself from time to time.

Just checked Midway and Grafs for ammo and brass. Midway's got squat, but Grafs has Jamison ammo and brass in stock, priced reasonably I'd say. If you decide on this one, better hop.

If you have no caliber restrictions I think either the 7-30 Waters or 30-30 would be my choice. I had a standard TC Hunter(muzzle brake) 30-30 handgun barrel that shot very well. A Waters with 120gr Ballistic Tips would seem to be a great lightweight deer rifle. I have fired a Contender Carbine in 375JDJ that shot very well but the recoil was a bit sharp and in my opinion, more bullet that really needed for deer.

I used to have some friends that played with a lot of Contender and Encore rifles and handguns (mostly handguns) and they tried easily a dozen different barrels and chamberings from TC Custom Shop, Bullberry, EABrown, SSK and MGM/Virgin Valley (VV was their original name). Chambers included 17 Mach IV, 20PPC, 222, 223,6PPC, 6BR, 30BR, 30-30, 357Max, 41Mag and 44Mag. Our experience with MGM barrels was fantastic and they are my first choice.

For those who have shot the 357 Max's were you able to shoot magnums and specials with reasonable (soda can busting at 50/75 yds) accuracy? did the front of the chamber get nasty?

Pappy thanks for the 357 brass tip, that helps.

The 357 Mag shoots well for plinking. You may not experience accuracy like you want with the 38 Specials. Bullets need to make quite a jump from the short cartridges.

I've fired a lot of .357s and .38 Specials in my MGM-barreled .357 Maximum G2 carbine and the only thing you have to do is clean the chamber now and then, just like you would have to clean a .357 revolver after shooting a lot of .38s in it--except it's ONE chamber, not SIX.

The problem isn't rust--unless you're one heck of a slob and only clean every other decade. It's fouling just ahead of the shorter case, and right in the front of the chamber where the front of the longer case sits. If you let that area get too gunked up, it may cause extraction problems. I've never experienced any such thing and think you'd have to let it get pretty cruddy to have a problem.

And don't discount the regular .357 Magnum for deer in the woods. I killed many whitetails and a couple pigs back East with a .357, mostly a handgun. Any decent hit with a good bullet will do the job. A .357 rifle is easier to hit with and MUCH more powerful.

I had given 357 a thought, I would be pretty comfortable with it for deer in the woods, but I felt that it was a little light for a bear (not that the bear here are very big).

The Maximum is about the minimum I am really considering. I like its flexibility. I am set up to reload 357 mags so the maximum would be easy to add reloading wise.

30-30 is a safe choice, we all know it would work like a charm at the ranges I am looking at, there are lots of proven bullets (and I have a little itch to try the 140 monflex). I am set up to load the 30-30 as I have a 94win.

The 35 rem of course would work, but brass is scarce these days. and I don't have dies. Its also the one with the most recoil. As I want to keep the carbine as light as practical I wonder if it won't kick a bit in 35 rem.

Many thanks for the comments. I committed, a 21" stainless 357 Max barrel from MGM and 200 cases from Grafs.

Now to decide on bullets.

180 Xtp and 180 swift A frames are what I'm gonna play with in my maximum. I was planning on a 24" barrel from MGM

I set up a Contender in .30-30 a few months ago. I got a deal on a new TC barrel.

If it doesn't shoot I'll get a MGM.

I already have some of the 140's to load up when I get some brass emptied.

Those would be my choices as well. The A Frames are priced like gold nuggets, but should be good for the occasional bear. I'd also add the Speer 170gr Gold Dots, but have yet to actually see any for sale.

+1 here. Good choices. The 180's are good medicine in the Max.

In the late 80's early 90's I had 21" Contender barrels in .223 ,7mm TCU, 7-30 Waters, 35 Remington, 357 Maximum and a 16" ported barrel in 45-70, they all killed deer and coyotes .

The 45.70 weighed less then 4.5 lbs with a peep sight. Was just the gun for those tight willow thickets.

I also had a Gonic .45 cal barrel that I could use for muzzle loader season.

F

I think I will start with the 180 XTPs, I have a couple of boxes speer 180's too.

Any body try the XPD 140's or will they just loose thier petals at 357max speeds

357 Max, 30-30, 7-30 would be my suggestions.

Funny you say this, I have a Win 1885 in .30-40.

The TC barrels have that screwed-up chamber, with no throat, that works, or not.

I would look at a 44 mag or 45 Colt barrel. MGM will make you a 444 Marlin barrel.

30.40 Krag

I had a 357 Max barrel made by MGM but it was a 14" handgun barrel. I shot one mule deer and one antelope with it. I lost interest and sold it. Both animals were shot at about 100 yards.
I thought it was a very good cartridge but brass can get hard to find.

I just made the same choice and picked the .35 Remington in an MGM barrel. I will probably shoot the Hornady Leverevolution factory loads and reload the brass. New Hornady brass is available now at Midway.

I like the EGW picatinny rail with aluminum TPS rings.

Good luck with whatever choice you make.

The most common question of all. And the answer is the same one offered by all the sages. The 7-30 Waters!
Granted, the only commercial loads available are Federal 120 gr. but I assure you that bullet will do everything the 30-30 ever dreamed of and at a heck of a lot further distance.
Reloaders realize the full potential of this round.
More people have been won over to the contender with this round than any other. The handgun that thinks it's a rifle... and in a carbine, it's precision can only be described as surgical.

EABCO makes brass, or used to, for the 7x30 from .30/30 by hydraulic pressure, I believe. Also .375 Win. Don't know how it compares with the real stuff, strength-wise.

At least with the Contender you aren't stuck filing the ends off Ballistic Tips.

I had a Contender back in the day with 14 inch barrel, 4 power TV Lobo scope in 35. Wish I had that one back. Now I still go for stuff a little different. I'd go with a 300 Savage. I knew guys long ago with 300'a in there Contenders. Ammo is still available at Bass Pro and on line. But, like most Savage rounds that can change any minute, Joe.

That was a T/C Lobo scope but my smart phone changed it, Joe.

I was pretty torn on the cartridge choice. In the end I choose 357 Maximum, but every day or so my mind would swing in a different direction.


One factor which I didn't bring up was Ohio and legal cartridges there. of my choices the 357Max was the only one that was Ohio legal.

I bought a couple of boxes of the Hornady 180 XTP to get started. I think the Hornday bullet is only rated to 1700 or 1800 fps, and I hope to see 2000fps or so in my 21" tube so I may give the 180 Swift a look as things develop. If I am lucky I can practice with the Hornady and hunt the swift. I also have some of the 180 speer FN, but they might be a little tough for the Maximum.

I am curious as to what the 140 XPB would do in the Max.

I would vote 7-30 waters, I have shot more then a couple of animals with it's ballistic twin the 7mmbr out of pistols and rifles and all were quite dead. The reduced velocity makes ballistic tips ( either 120 gr or 140 gr) perform like premium bullets. With all the new powders in the appropriate burn rate , this could be a fun experiment....

Over the last few years i've played around quite a bit with assorted custom barrels in .357max, .414supermag, and .445supermag. My .357max barrels are a 21" factory, and a 22" custom shop stainless tapered carbine, and both shoot fairly well with plinking loads (.38spl and .357mag).

i tried the Barnes XPB in my 357max barrels, but accuracy in my guns was not as good as i got with the hornady 180gr XTP, or the Speer 180 FNSP. Have shot a few deer with the speer 180 running close to 2000fps from the .357max, .357herrett, and .357B&D; had no issues and they performed well at around 2000fps.

If you can find the, also give the Hornady 180gr single shot pistol bullet a try; it has been suspended from production but i see them show up now and then.

Super 16 in .35 Rem.
Was not keen about the short bbl.
Added weight to synth forend to help stabilize it.
Worked great.
Shoots good, and is paid for.......so am just gonna run it.
2 for 2 so far.

Nice setup. Factory rynite stock with a paint job?

Factory stock. Had camo'd it, but changed my mind so stripped and redid in what I thought a kind of old school color.

Kydex cheekriser, secured by Velcro. Works great.

Forend hollows filled with epoxy and 7.5 shot. Easy to shoot offhand well.

Nice one.

Where's the armpit of the Midwest? That's a new one.

Arkansas?

Indiana. Boring place.
Something in the water too.
My area, intellect inverse to income.
Yeehaw.

Tiny hunting spot. Saw a 4 pt and doe and nothing else on the opening morning. Got down to check for sign, looped back and saw him up ahead in decent timber section. He was within 75 yards of the Jeep and along a decent road. WTH he came from?

Saw a 100" 8 the next day, laying on ground with log headrest. Pushed a 140+ " past my bud, but he super picky on shot selection (won't do a thread the needle or take a neck shot).

Hopefuly I'll stick something decent with recurve this yr.

Love gun hunting, but a 125" net means I can give this stuff up and golf instead (another sport I'll suck at)

I'm happy with the .35 rem, but the to deer I popped, neither dropped at the shot. One went maybe 75 yards, straight line to drop (no spin out). The other ran 30 and high speed into a large fallen log and fell on her back dead. That one had no exit, I tried to get the 200gr Hornady to upset by clipping onside shoulder. Looked like a 2" endmill went through lung/liver. Biggest chunk o' bullet was maybe 50 gr. See where it dinked rib right ahead of diaphragm but stayed inside. The buck it made an OK exit (entrance in the pic).

No I don't expect my deer to drop at the shot, like all those other guys on other forums report. So far the round has performed for me similarly to shotgun slug kills. Less recoil and more trim/ergonomic package though.

Not unhappy with my choice. Started due to finding the bbl for $175.

Cartridges are trimmed to meet deer rifle spec (.35 cal min, 1.16-1.8 case length).

I'd love a 125"+ by recurve, or a 170" + net by gun.
But if 120-130" deer are coming by, I'll fill my freezer with them. Have eaten a lot of deer way smaller.
Tasted just fine.

May hunt bow opening of gun, we had a better one slide through the thicket 2nd day.

16.25" bbl.........just a little funky.
Kind weird seeing muzzle when slung.
Think 18.5" would have been perfect.

Based on the .35 pistol velocity figures I've seen, you're not losing much with the short tube. I would be concerned about he balance, but you've fixed that.

Nice little rig.

FWIW when I started out with a 357 Max I was shooting 180 gr XTP's at 2000 fps. I butcher my own deer so I get a chance to see what the bullet did inside. Deer died so ya can't really say the bullet failed, but at 2000 fps what I found was no exit hole, bullet nearly flattened out and jacket and core seperated. I backed the velocity down to 1700 and they work perfect at that velocity, usually exit or against the hide on the far side and still together. Accurate and mild shooting to boot. The Speer's have to jump pretty far in my rifle and are not accurate so I never shot a deer with one. Partition HG were awesome but no longer available. I think the Swift's would be great if you can find some, but expensive.

Shooting golf balls at the 75 yard bank at the range, taking a knee (in factory stock form) was a nervy deal, let 'er go on the 3rd or 4th pass.

Benched it shot fine.

1st yr I hung a bipod off the stud to help if for offhand. Worked but obviously was just a patch.

So it got the epoxy and 7.5 shot after season. Indeed it worked fantastic (and was dirt cheap fix).

I may go to a laminate stock set, but if so will have to drill and epoxy some lead bullets in the forearm to get it tamed back down.

Offhand golf ball shooting at 75 is a piece of cake. In fact when I shot the buck last yr, the gun was super solid on his shoulder (even after I had to boogy a bit to catch up to him). Bullet hit right where the crosshairs were.

Really was torn on the 16.25.........for looks. Said I was gonna rebarrel a #1 if I didn't pop something OK with the TC.

Little rifle has endeared itself to me

The gun is heavier than before, but still light enough that I drag it coyote hunting when the walks get long.

18.5" .222 barrel might mean a whole 'nuther TC rifle.

Little rigs are addictive.

A 30/40K or a 375JDJ will do everything you would want.