Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Single Shots 41 Mag TC Contender

Looking for opinions re a 10 or 14 inch 41 mag barrel for my G2. If any of you use the 41 mag, let me know how you like it and which length you prefer. My main use would be deer hunting.
Thanks,
Don

Have had a T/C Contender with a few different 10" barrels (.44 Mag, .22 Hornet, .22 LR, .357 Mag) and some 21" carbine barrels, but never in .41 Mag. Have had a few .41 Magnums but never in a T/C Contender.

The 10" closed breech barrel will wring all you'd want from the .41 and it balances and handles nicely. A 14" barrel is a little too much of a good thing and turns a nice handgun into a very front heavy hand rifle. For a .30-30 or something the extra 4" would be worthwhile, just not in a .41.

JMHO

Ditto on the above answer. I've had lots of barrels and 3 frames. All the deer I've taken with the .41 tho, have been
with Blackhawks or Smiths'. I took a bear with a 10" .30-30
and it worked well at close range. If I were to get a .41 for
deer hunting I would get a 12". I had a 12" .30-30 which looked
pretty cool and handled well(but the muzzle blast was like 'OUCH', even with headphones). It had a 'muzzle tamer'
which looked neat without the front sight and had a scope. The
blast may have been less without the'tamer'. If I got a .41, it
would be a 12". I currently use a 14" .30-30, stainless as my
'bad weather' gun, and from a stand it will reach out to my
maximum range of about 200 yds. If your new to contenders, be
aware that if your hunting in a wooded area and walking as
opposed to sitting on a stand there will be a little lag time
getting on target if you use a 'long' eye relief scope. Alot
of the guys that silihoutte shoot use rifle scopes, but,
usually on the lighter calibers due to the possibility of
getting 'scope eye'. I missed a close-up buck once while
walking because it took me that extra nano-second to get on
to him(not) with the 10" and 2X pistol scope. If you put a
pistol scope on, think about one with a wider objective bell
as opposed to a straight scope like I had. As they seem to be more forgiving.
I suppose this was more than you needed to know.---Good luck!

The first Contender I bought was a Super 14 in .41 Rem Mag. I put a 2x Leupold on it. It would shoot under an inch at 100 yds with some 215gr lead Keith style bullets. Made a 150 yard shot on a fox squirrel with it and a couple of deer at 100 yards. Great gun.

Ironically, the 1st Contender I ever owned was a 14" .41 MAG. Like a former poster says, it turns a nice handgun into an unweildy hand-rifle... I subsequently purchased two 10" bbls that I like MUCH better. I had a 'smith cut my 14" to 12" and it is much better, I own a number of the 12" barrels with the muzzle tamer on them. I like them ALOT... In fact they're my favorite for a hunting gun... Unfortunately, they were never chambered in .41 Mag. IIRC, only .223 Rem, 7x30 Waters, .30-30 Win, .35 Rem, .375 Win, .44 Mag, and .45-70 Govt. (Other calibers may have been available from the Custom Shop...)

The very worst recoiling Contender barrel I ever owned, was the 14" .35 Rem... Not for the faint-of-heart... Trust me!

GH

I prefer the 10" model. I prefer it because it is simply easier to carry than the 14" model. And as far as a handgun cartrdige they are going to easily be effective to 100 yards or so. What possible performance extras would the 14" model provide over the 10" model?? None I can think of.

However make mnie a 45 Colt, not the 41 Magnum. I prefer the recoil in a Contender in 45 Colt over the 41 or 44 magnum. The 45 Colt is not as snappy. And it makes a bigger hole, with no performance or tajectory difference in a woods handgun. Tom.

My friend has a .35 Remmy barrel which he had cut to 12" and
Magna-ported. He still claims it kicks to much, and is now down
to using 150 gr.(hard to come by) or 180 gr. bullets.
The biggest T/C I've shot was a 14" .444, 200 gr. w/full house
loads and a rifle scope. I declined to shoot the 300 gr. loads.
A .30-30 is as much as I find 'pleasant' in a Contender.
I'll take my .35 in a Marlin.

I have a 10" OTT barrel in 41mag. but mine is on a Encore frame. As above the 10" barrel will make the 41 shine. You will not lose much performance by not going with a longer tube with this round and the 10" barrel will make it much nicer for packing in the field. Also if you want the best performance try Hodgen Lil- Gun powder.

David

I have been trying to locate a 41 mag barrel preferably 10 inch but have not had much luck so far. 44 mag barrels are a lot more available than 41 mag. If any of you know of a 41 one let me know.
Thanks,
Don

Look on the Specialty Pistol Forum. I have seen them over there. They sell a bunch of Contender and Encore barrels on that forum. Just do a search on "Specialty Pistol". The forum willpop up. I have bought 3 barrels over there in the last 60. Including a hard to find 10" 45 Colt(only) barrel. Tom.

Found a 10 inch 41 mag barrel. Just waiting for it.

Try "Ed's Contenders" out of Oklahoma City(?). I think Ed is
still around.