What is your go to varmint caliber for your contender? I recently had ordered a custom barrel in 20 tactical and the maker couldn’t get it done so now I’m rethinking the decision want recommendations please

I sold my Contender gear some years ago but you might look at MGM, Match Grade Machine.

They list 20 Tactical and 20 Practical among others in their chamber list.

Let us know what you decide!

Did you try www.Bullberrylegacy.com

Haha I will only say Bullberry won’t be the to get the job. I already the dies and brass is sized and primer and a few different bullets to try. I waited 10 or 11 months and finally just wanted my deposit back.

I have a couple of barrels that MGM made for me. I am very happy with them. They are not varmint calibers, 7mm-08 and a 45-70. but they shoot very good. I would not hesitate to order another barrel from them.

I have 2 from mgm and they seem top notch a 6.5cm in the encore and a .22lr match in the contender. I agree with the mgm responses!

Currently .22 magnum (10") and .357 magnum (also 10"). I had a 14" .204 which was a failure. Abusive blast, not much accuracy. I feel the same way about .223 in a 14" barrel. Something like the older tapered 16-1/4" barrels on a handgun frame might be better. If I were buying today I'd pick from .17 Hornet, .17 FB or Mach IV, or .221 FB in a 14" barrel. Maker .. hard to say. MGM probably. I'm thinking of ordering a barrel but I'm not recommending my choice .. .25-20 WCF. Not set on it so .. better to waffle before spending than after.

I donno. A 14” .223 seems alright to me:




Guess it depends on what it takes to be satisfied.

Yep. Noticing that's at 200 yards, I'd be pretty happy. Looks like maybe 1.25"? That was about the best I could manage at 100 yards with mine.

Thinking of long barrels .. at one time I owned a 24" bull barrel for a TC chambered in .17 Remington. I stuck it on a contender handgun frame and hung a harris bipod out toward the end of the barrel. It was goofy looking but it'd shoot pretty well. I think the limit was optics.

When I had a Contender I had a barrel in 7mmTCU. With a 120 gr Nosler BT it was accurate out to 200 yards. Took several deer and coyotes with it. It is strictly a hand loaders round but very effective

I’m not right now where I can pull that target for measurement. But, I’d say that 4 of the 5 could maybe confirm your guess. It’s that 8 o’clock stray which likely opens things up to about 2-1/2” (still easily Minute of Coyote). Thinking back on that sight-in session, I seem to recall that the previous five looked closer together, but all outside the black. The ammo for that session was A-USA 55 V-Max factory loads, which have proven surprisingly precise, a disincentive to try to beat them through handloading.

Good trigger control and consistency of grip can make that sorta thing happen pretty regular-like. The adjustability of the Contender trigger, of that vintage, certainly helps, too. The Leupold 2.5-8x32 EER is getting close to the maximum useable magnification for such a pistol on varmints. Much more, and there’s a tendency to lose track of the critter outside the limited field of view.



Edit: Because you got me curious this morning, I just had to pull the target when I got back to the house. The tight four were a wee bit less than 1-1/4” (1.1-something), and the stray opened the group to a bit over 2-1/2” (2.6-something).

That’s a good looking target to come from a short barrel this is the reason why I ask the question it’s better to ask experience than go to college (pay for the item first)

One should never sell Contender pistols short (pun unavoidable). Accuracy and precision are far more dependent upon sighting and having enough gun to properly hold onto, than they are upon barrel length (within reason, of course).

i have a Bull Berrry 17 Remington , 22 K-Hornet ,and now on order a 17 Hornet 18 inch . i have rifles in each of these chamberings but i think the 17 Hornet is going to be the funniest for me and very little recoil ,cheap to shoot . good luck with your choice,Pete53

Because its magnification, elevation and parallax can all be quickly adjusted for different range or for when searching out targets, this Burris Veracity 2-10x42 on my 14” .22LR Match barrel represents a good maximum:



5 shots using LAPUA Center X on 6” steel @ 200 yards, with elevation at 24 MOA above its 50 yard zero. So, there’s absolutely no way this could ever reasonably be called “flat shooting.”

WARNING: As this particular scope is a rifle scope, with correspondingly short eye relief, its use on a pistol with any appreciable recoil would be just asking for eye or forehead injury. While I wouldn’t hesitate to use it on a .22WMR barrel, and possibly even a .17 or .22 Hornet barrel, its use on a .223 barrel is certainly out.

But, Burris also makes a 3-12x32 handgun scope, with appropriately extended eye relief, one of which I’ve mounted on my 14” .30 Herrett barrel. While I’ve not yet had the opportunity to shoot with it, in bore sighting it, I can already tell you that it’s very easy to lose track of a target at 12x. So, its only real advantages over my Leupold 2.5-8x are its parallax adjustment and the elevation hash marks on its reticle:


Those longer yardages seem mighty optimistic.

That’s awesome do you find the bipods better than a bag?
And .22lr really isn’t the idea flat shooting lol. Pete53 I still don’t own any .17cal for some reason not sure why.

Certainly easier to pack around.

I’ve got an alternative pistol grip screw which has a sling swivel stud on the end, in place of a regular slotted or Allen head. If I swap it in, I can then fasten one end of a carrying sling to it and the other end to the bipod. Talk about convenient portability for long walks through acres and acres of ground squirrel infested alfalfa fields …


Both the .22LR and .223 barrels saw extensive combat during the Eastern Modoc County Squirrel Wars of the late 1990s. For some fun reading, Google “Modoc County Squirrel Wars.”

TOM: I have to disagree somewhat with your condemnation of the Thompson Contender's in 223 Remington.
I have two friends that bought those 25+ years ago and I watched them shoot Colony Varmints (Rock Chucks and Prairie Dogs) with their 223's out to amazing distances (300+ yards on occasion!).
I was so impressed with their performances that I went way out of my norm and bought myself a T/C Contender pistol in 223 Remington with a 14" heavy barrel and a Burris 3x9 pistol scope for it.
I was amazed at how well it and "I" could shoot with that rig.
Admittedly this is a somewhat small "test group" but all three of these T/C 223's shoot so very well.
This T/C is the only one I have ever owned but I am sure thrilled with it.
It took me a while to "adjust" myself to being able to find Colony Varmints in the smallish field of view of the Burris scope but I learned.
I use good quality ear protection when I shoot my T/C - no problemo. If I am shooting prone it WILL kick up some dust as well - but again livable for me.

So for the original poster (Nathan 30) I do NOT wish to talk him out of a 20 caliber Contender - in fact if the 20's had been available (and the reloading components) back then I may have chosen one of them.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

I shoot a 20 TAC (TOP 22 inch Bull Barrel shot as a Pistol) and a 20 VarTarg (BOTTOM 16 inch Step Barrel also shot as a Pistol). Both are dum-dum accurate at 100 yards. I would not hesitate to shoot at 250-300 yards with the VarTarg and 400 + with the 20 TAC. Both are OTT barrels. 20 Calibers are hard to beat in a Contender.
Safe Shooting
Doug

I have a 20 Vartarg 20” MGM barrel that will shoot 3 shot groups almost as good as Tred’s . I like the Vartarg better than the larger .20s like the Ruger as the muzzle blast, while still significant, is less and it allows you to mark your own shots. Pretty handy in a prairie dog town. A

bi-pod works well for me and a longer tri-angle piece of wood with some type of rubber matting glued on the wood to hold the bottom of the pistol grip.

Not a short barrel but I was fortunate enough, At least I think, to buy an unfired 23" heavy carbine barrel chambered in 204 Ruger. It will be a while before I have opportunity to try it out but I'm hoping it is accurate, and I think I can call it flat shooting. I bought it on March 1. The seller shipped it to me on March 26th and It was delivered on April 20th. I'm not sure what the postal service did with it for over three weeks.
Take care,
Rick

i have a TC Encore with a 23" MGM factory heavy barrel in 20 Vartarg. i was in my "1 hole" phase when i did .173" at 100 yards with 5 shots/bench. i did 10 shots at 100 yards that was .213". it was a 32gr Hornady V Max with Reloder 7 and a CCI Benchrest SRP with reformed 221 Rem Fireball brass.

nowadays, the 20 VT is around 1/2 - 3/4" group at 100 yards (5 shots/bench) with 34gr Midway/Midsouth HP with Reloder 7 and any SRP. it is great for taking out groundhogs, foxes and 'yotes.

WOW!….um…WOW!…. That is phenomenal shooting for “off the shelf” bullets and brass.

I love my Contender but really wish it had the no-turn chamber. As you get older you are less willing to give up time doing things you don’t want to do. Turning necks is not a great way to spend time.

weighing brass, turning necks, trimming brass to the exact same measurement, weighing bullets........it got tiring. after a while, the "1 hole" wasn't for me. i did Remington 221 rem fireball brass because it was the only one at the time. Lapua, Norma and Nosler wasn't even a scratch in their pants. i spent a lot of time at my bench rather than the shooting table. i shot Hornady, Nosler and another brand i just don't remember about 3500 - 4000 rounds out of the 20VT. it still shoots tight and groups great. i have a TC Contender in a 10" barrel with the 22 Hornet. i still have to shoot yet, but if i go 1 1/2 - 2" at 100 yards (5 shots/bench), i am satisfied.

Get you a 6-.223 from Bullberry or MGM. I've got one I got from JD Jones in 1983 and it is my favorite after all these years.

In the Contender, I have a couple of varmint barrels. The 17 Hornet and a 223 Wylde chamber for the 223. If I was going to get another barrel, I would probably go with a 20 Practical. Great BC, plentiful brass and no kick.

https://www.accurateshooter.com/cartridge-guides/20caliber/

Thanks guys for keeping them coming if anyone wants to sell a 20tac barrel pm me since I have all the reloading stuff on hand !