Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Single Shots contender accuracy

contender accuracyy of the encore rifles in 357 and 44 magnum. groups at 50 And 100 yards. are there any other single shots that aee more accurate.

Is there an intelligible question or point to your post? Are you complaining, and if so, what are your actual results? Loads?

Contenders are one thing; Encores another. Which do you have?

For reference, both can be very accurate, but as with most rifles you have to get the recipe right and do your part.

just seeing whether a single shot rifle would be more accurate than a lever gun or a ruger bolt gun.

Too many variables to answer a question like that.

I have owned and shot Contenders for almost thirty years in a number of chamberings in factory and custom barrels. I shot two Encores last year with Bullberry barrels that were as accurate as any factory bolt rifle I've ever shot.

I currently have two factory Contender carbines that will shoot right along with bolt rifles.

If I were looking at a single shot .357 or .44 magnum I wouldn't hesitate to buy a Contender or Encore. For maximum accuracy potential, I would buy either a Bullberry or MGM barrel for it.

An 18" barrel carbine in either .357 or .44 magnum would be just the ticket for deer hunting under 150 yards.

Ed

I've worked with several Contender barrels and one carbine. I still have the carbine - a .30-30. It shoots very well. I've had both good, and lousy barrels.

If you buy a new gun/barrel I think it will likely be good. MGM or Bullberry customs have an excellent reputation. I'd be leery of used barrels, especially older ones, unless they were known good shooters or were guaranteed.

They suck.

Especially if you shoot them at 5 meters.

Ed

what caliber is that gun? How hard would it be to get an 18 inch .44 or .357 to shoot about 1.5 inches at 100 yards?

Which frame should I buy if I want to put an 18 inch pistol barrel on it?

whoa. Just stop right there. No 18" pistol barrels. That's illegal. I'm not sure where to take this so I'l leave it to others to comment.

I meant on a rifle...18 inch barrel with a rifle but stock

That wasn't 5 meters. It was almost 10. Elbow rest. I'm bragging.

79, I was fuggin' with ya. It's a Contender carbine chambered in .22 short. It sucks.





The other barrel is a .30-30 and it runs 100 yards sub MOA for 5 shots routinely. Sierra 150 grain Gamekings or Hornady 170 RN. Or 150 grain Nosler BTs. Given a decent barrel and bullets, properly loaded, the .357 or .44 will do the same. Prior advice about Bullberry is spot on.

OTOH, the Ruger 77/44 will do the same with 300 grain paper patched lead.



That came from a dead deer shot thru the heart at about 80 yards.

It's a conundrum, I don't know what to recommend. I prefer the Contender myself but they both work.







They all suck. Ask the pigs and deers, they'll back me up.

This came from another single shot. It's a toss up I guess.



It's a muzzle loader, you probably are interested in that.

This is my favorite single shot.



Almost 30 yards. Offhand.



It's only a .177 BB shooter though, a fella might be accused of stunt shooting if he were to bag bambi with it.

My .30-30 carbine. The buttstock is a Bishop, which I like better than just about any of the other Contender carbine stocks. The forend is a late T/C. One of these days I'd like to refinish them so they match finish wise. They look decent together.

I've tightened mine by replacing the hinge pin with a standard .500 dia dowel pin, cut to length. S&W no longer supports the TC customer shop, and the "easy open" conversion is no longer available from them. This one is really stiff to open with that barrel, and I need to fix that one of these days.

Here's a thread from last winter about the capability of a certain .30-40 Krag Contender Carbine;

http://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/8399969/1

Ed

Not sure about the carbine bbls from T/C, but they cut the handgun chambers with a forcing cone instead of a throat. Whatever you go with, if using a handgun round, make sure the chamber is cut with a regular throat instead of a tapered cone. Morons. Oh well, my 44 still shoots amazingly. Better than I can hold. I've got a few other contenders. Aftermarket bbls are pricey from makers like Bullberry, but they are worth every dime. Have a 22 cal Bulberry that I use to head-shoot grouse. Longest shot so far is about 110. It is accurate.

No it isn't. There's no illegality to an 18" pistol barrel. If you don't know, don't guess.

Same here. My G-1 Contender carbine w/ Custom Shop .30-30 tube routinely embarasses my bolt guns.

I have a Contender in 30/40 Krag, 23inch barrel. It's a MGM barrel and shoots well with 180 grain Remington factory ammo. Also have a
375 JDJ that shoots well and like this alot. And have a TC 23" 44 mag re-chamber to 444 Marlin that is accurate but takes its toll out of the shooter.

There are different lever guns and different bolt guns. I would say Contenders generally can be made to shoot better than the majority of lever guns and a lot of bolt guns.

You also have to understand cartridge limitations. Take a 17 HMR for instance. Groups could easily be in the half inch range at 50 yards and more like 10 feet at 400 yards. It's hard to get things like the 44 Remington Magnum to shoot consistently under an inch at 100 yards but easy with a 204 Ruger.

At present I have 3 Contender Carbine barrels. The .22 K Hornet shoots well under MOA with preferred hand loads. The 7-30 Waters is still in the load development/case forming stage, but it is giving 3/4 inch groups with case forming loads. The .30-30 AI is also sub MOA with several hand loads.

Is that specific to your state or the OP's state? If not, please show me a USC or CFR reference that validates your claim. Here's how USC Title 18 Part 1 Chapter 44 Section 921 defines "handgun:"

(29) The term �handgun� means�
(A) a firearm which has a short stock and is designed to be held and fired by the use of a single hand; and
(B) any combination of parts from which a firearm described in subparagraph (A) can be assembled.

CFR Title 27 Chapter II Subchapter B Part 478 Subpart B Section 478.11 defines handgun the same way. The CFR also defines "pistol," "revolver," and "semiautomatic pistol," but there's no reference to maximum barrel length in the USC or CFR to my knowledge:

Pistol
A weapon originally designed, made, and intended to fire a projectile (bullet) from one or more barrels when held in one hand, and having (a) a chamber(s) as an integral part(s) of, or permanently aligned with, the bore(s); and (b) a short stock designed to be gripped by one hand and at an angle to and extending below the line of the bore(s).

Revolver
A projectile weapon, of the pistol type, having a breechloading chambered cylinder so arranged that the cocking of the hammer or movement of the trigger rotates it and brings the next cartridge in line with the barrel for firing.

Semiautomatic pistol.
Any repeating pistol which utilizes a portion of the energy of a firing cartridge to extract the fired cartridge case and chamber the next round, and which requires a separate pull of the trigger to fire each cartridge.

Again, I'm unaware of any USC or CFR guidelines related to maximum barrel length of a "pistol" as you referenced. Please show me the language here or provide me a link.

I beg to differ. The cartridge is fully capable of sub MOA precision. The gun and/or shooter may not be. Were I inclined to purchase a .44 barrel for the Contender I'd be gravely disappointed if it did not run under an inch at 100 yards.