Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Single Shots These Contenders are addictive

I think it was three years ago that i ordered my first Contender. It wasn't my first single shot - I have some H&Rs and Rugers. I found that these carry well and shooting them is a delight.

I just got finished ordering another barrel. This one will be a 223 Wylde chamber, and is coming from MGM. 24 inch, stainless steel (bead blasted) barrel, 1 in 8 twist, Super 16 rifle foreend, full Bull contour (.810).

It will join a 30-30, 7.62x39mm (.308) and a 17 Hornet. The cost in Canuckian dinars is high for a barrel - $670 - but the exchange rate is at 1.35 right now.

Yes they are. Don’t even want to start telling my story

Hey Stev, Bill here. Is there someone in Canada to get complete contender? I've wanted one for awhile but never see any, Epps has never had any that I've seen, & none on line most other places I've looked. Would like one in 17 fireball so probably would have to order the bbl. after I have one in hand. 670.00$$$ for a bbl. but it won't cost much to install, so not so bad?? Have seen Encores but no contender. Thought I might hunt one down in 223 & then order the 17 from MGM , same extractor etc... ! What's the paper work like? Ok just fill it out & (wait)! Bill out. 🐾👣🐾👣🇨🇦

I ordered my action from irunguns.ca. I emailed them and they did all the work. I simply told them what I wanted. It took two or three months to receive it. You have to provide your PAL no. and other information.

There are several other businesses that import the actions.

The barrels were all ordered through nine35.ca

Hey, Steve thanks!!!! , Going to get serious about finding one, Thanks again. Bill out. 🐾👣🐾👣🇨🇦

Steve, there is no known cure.

Bill,

No problem. You shouldn't have any problems at all. Ron at nine35.ca is a good guy to deal with. He went the extra mile after some problems getting my 7.62x39mm barrel working properly.

Dan,

I really like how they carry and come to the shoulder. You might remember that I had some initial problems with a few minor things - no hinge pin with the action and a Commie barrel (7.62x39mm -.308) with a bad extractor. It also didn't want to line up properly with the hinge pin, but they were corrected. No problems at all with the 30-30 or the 17 Hornet. I expect no trouble with the Wylde chamber. They are fun, accurate and tickle my need for single shots.

https://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbt...nder-action-wont-open-fully#Post12831618

Thinking about a 357 Max...

Canuckian dinars. I'll have to remember that one.

I only had a mild case of the disease, mainly because I was afflicted (and still am) with Ruger No. 1 Syndrome.
I currently only have 4 barrels for my G1 carbine; no pistol barrels anymore. Two are factory (22 Match, 22 Hornet) and two are from the custom shop (32-20, 357 Max.). It would be hard to part with any of them at this point, even though I don't shoot them as often as I should.

Must be, as much trouble as you go to to get 'em.

I'm going in a different direction. I have a Henry SS .308 in the pipe, and want to see how versatile I can make it using light loads, sabots, and eventually some cast. About 30 years ago I played with SR4759 and 110gr Speer HPs, which were just deadly on a couple of chucks and a big fox. Those bullets are dirt cheap now, so I'm gonna lay in a few and see what happens. Still have that can of 4759, but also a bunch of Trail Boss. .32/20 on the cheap. Also have a couple hundred .22/.308 sabots and the seater. Most who play with those seem to be trying to make a .22/250 out of their .30 cal. I'm thinking of something in the .22 Mag or Hornet range, or even lighter.

Another nifty item is the chamber adapter that guy in Alaska sells. Someone gave me a box of .32 H&R ammo, and I also have plenty of .30 carbine on hand for my as-yet unfired (by me) Underwood.

You will like the max Steve. Super 14 and carbine barrel here. Cast friendly too. That big old 220gr rn lyman bullet shoots well. Can't remember the number. Not going out in the rain to the shop to check. Maybe later.

Next thing you know the government will mandate stamping a warning on Contenders and Encores......... "WARNING - MAY BE HABIT FORMING".

Allow me to list a few reasons to avoid having a Contender:

If you have a frame and stock/forend you can have a .....

.30-30



Or a .30 Sneezer...



Or a .22 RF....or CF...in LR or Short







It's horrifying I tell you!

They are a dream to tote around all day long, but you may reach a point where you need a barrel bearer and maybe a bullet boy. You have to carry so many different kinds of ammo it can get confusing. If you differentiate with barrel diameters and finish/scope style etc, it helps sort things out. Read awhile back about some poor (really!) fella with 4 frames, six stocks/grips, and 30 barrels! You just know a scope for each barrel is mandatory, right? May Zeus have mercy. I hope they don't repossess his truck.

Only thing I can add, is that after sunset whiskey helps. Or a red dot sight if so disposed...

Its a shame you haven't learned how to shoot yours well...

You mean like this?

Sheesh Dan, you missed the target 4 outta 5 times.

Stuff happens ya know. -Shhhhhh-

I believe these targets disprove the theory that the man is the nost important part of my shooter's triangle. It obviously must be the gun.

Now wait just a dang minute there Steve.



Ya see, they are all in the black. I was shooting with my eyes closed.



Wait a minute, wrong target. Here ya go.

This my Mod 70 Bobby and everyone knows Mod 70s aren't all that precise. It's 5 shots. At 100 yards. There's 2 groups 'cause a rattler started gnawing on my left ankle after the 3d shot.




And will your 10/22 do this? I din't think so.



You ever see a bunch of rifles under one roof that would do that? When I told them it's my way or the highway they all quit pouting and knuckled down....

Dan



PS: I just use the Contenders to kill stuff.

I believe that owners of single shot rifles are generally more intelligent than the rest of the shooting world. Why?

SS users are better shots. They don't need the crutch of multiple cartridges poised as back up. We're not overseas anymo'.
Most are contemplative, not hot heads. They have to because it takes a tiny bit longer to reload and fire...if they even need to.
SS users have a superior ability to assess and act on any hunting situation. They are working without a net so to speak, and must be able to quickly make to the proper decision.
SS users have superior hand/eye coordination. They have to be able to confidently work the action, extract the spent case, reload and fire again without any mechanical help.
SS users are not like lemmings. They don't follow the crowd, pursuing the latest "cool thing".

P.S. I don't own a 10-22.

I have a little bit of every kind of gun .I find that shooting my tc pistol two h&r handi rifles a lot more relaxing than the rest .muzzle loaders next

My latest Carbine barrel just arrived, .357 Herrett. Other barrels are .25-35 Win and 6.8 Rem. Thinking a .414 Super Mag might be next...

I'm shocked.

How do you amuse the grandkids?

I have a fair number of SS guns actually, and a few of all the other kinds as well. Front stuffers, back stuffers, ratchet-slappers, and a few bolts cover most of it in the world of rifles. The one I'm trying to get settled out at present is a .45-70 Highwall. You don't wanna be trying the loads I'm shooting in Thumper with a Contender. Trust me.

I'll get if figured out one of these days. BP and cast bullets be fun.

That's a fine looking piece of kit!



With a Model 60.

My oldest grandson has had a long attachment to it.

When are you going to introduce him to the Contender?

SCGunNut, how you liking the .25-35?

I already have.

He has fired my 30-30 and 17 Hornet. This is him with the little 17.

Good on ya!

I think it's a perfect cartridge in a lightweight Contender. It's a Fox Ridge barrel I ordered in 2003 because I had given up on finding a clean lever gun so chambered. A couple years later, Winchester did a small run of Angle Eject 94's in it and I bought one of those too. I've only killed one deer and one coyote with the Contender, using the factory Winchester 117gr load and it performed as expected. I hope to do more hunting with the Contender this year than I have in the past, with all three barrels. I forget how handy it is until I pull it out of the safe ever so often.

Haha...yeah, something more like that.

Well done.

Taking the Super 14 in .35 rem to the range tomorrow.
It's the limit for me w my bum wrist.

You need a stock and a longer barrel is all. Don't fight the addiction, there are ways around problems like you're experiencing.

I've been trying to shoot some groups with my Contenders but I keep having these dang coyotes and chucks getting in the way!





Definitely addictive rifles. Picked up my first one in 17 Hornet just a couple years ago with wood stock and promptly added a Choate folding stock. Then bought 3 more barrels in 223, 204, and 17wsm. Then figured I needed a second frame to minimize the barrel swapping. Then decided to get trigger jobs on both frames to put them both right at 2lbs. Now thinking it would be cool to have a 410 or 28 gauge MGM shotgun barrel..... help!

Back a few years before TC offered the Carbine in factory form, i was shooting a custom version by Kendrick , called the Texas Contender...it was a light tapered carbine & i had barrels in .222 and .357. Guess that was about the late 70's , or early 80's maybe. It might have weighed 6# scoped, and it shot pretty well. I began to enjoy the weight & handling, and started carrying that carbine a bit.

As soon as TC offered it in a factory version I ended up with 2 of them: a Hornet, and a .223, soon to be followed up with an extra barrel in 30/30...It was about that time i got interested in playing around with wildcat calibers & the TC platform was an easy option for doing so. So, lots more followed. And i started hunting with carbines more.

I still hunt with them a fair bit, in all sorts of configurations, and an excessive number of calibers. and they are probably my favorite "walking around" gun for popping at crows & stuff, deer hunting, and general woods walking.

Lost a lot of my pix back when photobucket went belly up, especially of various handgun hunts & various TC's in pistol format, but will post a bunch of assorted pix.

For those thinking about maybe giving one a try, while they wouldn't be my first choice for sitting on a dogtown busting PD's all day, as a light hunting rifle they have worked pretty well for me. And, i've had scores of barrels that were very accurate.

Still on the prowl for "one or 2 more", though at this point its most definitely a "just cause i aint got one" sort of thing.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

MGM 30/30 20" semi-bull 30/30 carbine, with an 8 point...that carbine shoots the Speer 130HP pretty well, when paired with CFE223..and that bullet is a pretty good deer/hog bullet at 2400-ish FPS.



TC Custom shop 7x30 waters, 24", Barnes 110TTSX with H335 ( @ about 2700fps or so)


One of my favorites, a .25x30/30 Ackley Improved, with 80gr TTSX's at about 3000fps...killed a lot of stuff with that combo, in both pistol & carbine versions.



32mag carbine.......Trophy Trash Panda , 7.0gr AA#7 with the Hornady 85gr HP.


Coons -versus- K-Hornets:

Hollowing out pack- rats around deer camp, with a .17Fireball.


White Tails, with the .445 SuperMag Carbine, shooting 265 FTX's seated out long, over a case full of reloder7:


Hogs with the 25/35:


SSK 45/70, Hornady 350FP:


25x30/30ackley again:


whackin yotes with the Hornady 150SST from a 30/30Ackley Improved:

.411x444 Carbine:


my 358JDJ, and the blued one is a friend's Encore in .257 Roberts


.414SuperMag:


up a tree, with the 45/70:


5.7x28 carbine, with my squirrel hunting load...speer 46gr FN bee bullet at about 1200fps:


tupperware stocked .375 win carbine comes in at 5.7# scoped.

25-45sharps carbine, Speer 87's shoot pretty fair:


32/20 (really a 30/20) carbine:


25x30/30Ackley, this one in 15" tube:


41mag shorty carbine:



6.5TCU carbine...carried this one around a bit last fall...27.7gr AA2230, with the 100gr Nosler Partition gives 2650fps from the 22" barrel.

There's one in .30 Herrett on GunBroker right now ...

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/812610082

WOW !



You are a loony !!

i didn`t think there was a lot of interest in T.C. contenders ? Very nice Contenders and pictures posted. i think this summer i am going to take a inventory on what contender stuff i have and sell it in a package ,i know i got 3 or 4 frames one is silver frame,6 -10 or barrels all good stuff, i just don`t use it anymore.

If any of the barrels are short carbines (like 16-20") I might be interested to buy. Can PM me if so.

I've accumulated several frames, barrels, stocksets over the years. Around 15 frames, 20 something barrels. The biggest thing to be watchful for is a disease known as B.A.D., Aka barrel acquisition disease, or barrel acquisition disorder. There is no known cure. The slang name for this disease is simply "barrel whore" .

Seriously, I've bought barrels online with my phone, from the men's room at work. Several, actually. and a couple complete carbines from gunbroker, too.

I can quit anytime I want. 😁

Just drug my Super 14 to the range today.
Inch and a half high at 50 yards. 35 rem 200gr Hornady Leverevolution.
3 shots at/under an inch.
w 2X scope resting on half arse bag.

Thing shoots plenty good enough for me!

Contender, easy open frame,
Try it at 100 when not so hot.

Your shootin' stinks fella....

I have an old-ish box of Win. 25-35 ammo in good shape, and wander up thru the Carolinas from time to time. Lemme know if you have room for it.

Dan....that one was one of very few that didnt spray when i capped him, he wandered around below my climbing stand for a while , and that .250gr .414 slug severed his spine right behind the noggin & angled though the chest cavity. (still didnt smell sweet though)

i moved the climber after that.

ahhhh, the deliciously sinful delights of wretched excess.
Heard about a place that could cure you for a nominal fee, them i said screw it & quickly decided the loot was better spent on more frames & a few extra kegs of powder.



6.5x30/30ackleys, for the twisty barrel...




6.8, and 25-45 sharps:


.32mag, and 32/20

waiting for hogs, 7x30 waters....


.35rem, makin meat.


making shiny .30herrett brass:



6.5TCU carbine:


.30reece (.30x357)

You Sir, are an enabler. thank you for the great barrel hanging idea...

My Uncle just gave me a pistol and a carbine with various barrels in .22 LR, 221 Fireball, 222 rem, 223, 7-30 Waters, and 44. mag. I'm very grateful and excited to have them. I just hate that he 'outgrew' them. Time marches on. These will go to my kids when I am done.

A very nice gesture and a great collection of calibers.

Fyrepowrx,
If you don't mind, what is the brand of the stock/foreend that you are sporting on your contenders?
thanks,
kstockfo

the rifles are are all various versions of TC factory stocks, which TC used over several different generations of Contender variations. The more slender ones were standard issue on middle-production-period 'tender carbines, made by Choate stocks. i got tired of black & did some home-brewed camo on several.



The slightly wider beavertail stocks were the style used on G2 carbines, and are bit more hand filling:


have a few sets of laminates on handguns, by Georgia Jim, and i think some were by Dave Dolin, and a retired fellow who had a business called Otter Stocks. (John no longer is doing stocks though.

Lots of nice pix!

For those of you with several barrels, do you know of a hard sided case that could fit four or five 20 to 24 inch barrels?

That was a bit overwhelming G. I take it that is Mike's 257 rob. It is a beautiful thing all those tenders you got. Now post your CZ rimfires for our edification.

This is one of the cartridges that I've always wanted. Thanks!

Don't show too many of those or I'll end up with another barrel!

Wow!
😎

Yes, it is definitely cool to be a SS hunter.

Single shot rifles rock....



They can be particularly hazardous when 2 people are in the woods at the same time with such things.

You must be a strong person, Dan. It looks like you gave those pigs a run for their money. They look plum tuckered out after wrestling your rifle away from you.

Poor souls, they were just too high strung.

First one in 1967 or 68. Have had about eight over the years. Now, only three, one the last model before the G2 plus two carbines. Calibers: 22lr (dead nuts accurate from pistol or rifle), 222(still working on this old octagon 10 incher), 30-30(one 10", one 21" long one great, short one not so much), 357(like all I've had, super accurate and hard to lead), 44mag (dumb short hot shot thing), 45 Colt(octabon 10", my deer gun), 45/410 bull (used to be fun but the Colt part is useless with anything above factory speed), 223 in a carbnie barrel...getting MOA with some loads.
Addictive, and not too expensive if you watch the shops for used barrels. Most I've paid less than a C-note.

First one in 1967 or 68. Have had about eight over the years. Now, only three, one the last model before the G2 plus two carbines. Calibers: 22lr (dead nuts accurate from pistol or rifle), 222(still working on this old octagon 10 incher), 30-30(one 10", one 21" long one great, short one not so much), 357(like all I've had, super accurate and hard to lead), 44mag (dumb short hot shot thing), 45 Colt(octabon 10", my deer gun), 45/410 bull (used to be fun but the Colt part is useless with anything above factory speed), 223 in a carbnie barrel...getting MOA with some loads.
Addictive, and not too expensive if you watch the shops for used barrels. Most I've paid less than a C-note.

In an effort to circumvent the scammers, I'm putting this here. I have been looking for a carbine barrel and stock quite some time for a Gen 1 receiver. Looking something in the 30-30 7-30, 25-35 or even one of the JDJ's, though not looking for large calibers. Barrel wise, something in the 16-18" range with a thinner profile (not a bull barrel). For the stock, something functional (synthetic is fine). If you have something, feel free to PM me.

Thank you

My new Bbl should be here soon.......... ordered from bullberry.com .................. speak to Troy

Whatcha having built ?

18" 300 BLK, threaded for a muffler, 10" twist, intended for 200-220grn cast bullets, subsonic of course...................

I love slow motion splat in the morning.

brother-in-law had MGM do an 18" stainless fluted, threaded, 1-8" .300blk that he has packed around a bit over the last year, its been a very agreeable barrel to work with. It shoots lightweights pretty well too, and has done a good job on a few deer with the Nosler 125BT's pushed fast.

My BIL has a pig problem that I think I can help him with..............

Super accurate, light weight and fun to swap barrels. What’s not to like.

Put together a .22 Hornet carbine with a stock set, barrel and scope I found in the classifieds here.



Pretty stick of wood

Dat’s a cutie. How does it shoot?

Do I have to buy another barrel now? Hmmmmmm

Nice stock on that pretty thing.

Here's mine. MGM 22 K Hornet. 1-12'', threaded. I've not had it out but will as soon as this home isolation ends.

Nice 2x4 there OSU. Be Well, Rustyzipper.

Ha! I think the angle of the photo makes it look larger than it is.

That's a handsome rifle, OSU.

The latest addition. 22lr with the old Redfield Bear Cub Scope 2.5x.

Shoots pretty well, 'chucks hate it.