TC Contender questions

[Three-Fifty-Seven]

Howdy all! [smilie=s:

I just got my first contender off gunbroker . . . http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=233408876

My concern at first was the rear of the receiver area? It seems pretty scraped up?

I then saw the rifling, and it seems pretty "thin" or shallow, is this normal for TC barrels? My Sako has at least TWICE as deep grooves . . .

Do you think this gun was misrepresented?

I kinda feel like I got took . . . but . . . I have never had or fired a Contender either, so wanted some input before complaining to the seller . . .

Here are some pictures . . .
http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s220/ShawnVT/Guns/TC%20Contender%20222/IMG_0006.jpg

http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s220/ShawnVT/Guns/TC%20Contender%20222/IMG_0007.jpg

http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s220/ShawnVT/Guns/TC%20Contender%20222/IMG_0008.jpg

http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s220/ShawnVT/Guns/TC%20Contender%20222/IMG_0009.jpg

http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s220/ShawnVT/Guns/TC%20Contender%20222/IMG_0010.jpg

http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s220/ShawnVT/Guns/TC%20Contender%20222/IMG_0012.jpg

http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s220/ShawnVT/Guns/TC%20Contender%20222/IMG_0021.jpg

http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s220/ShawnVT/Guns/TC%20Contender%20222/IMG_0001.jpg

http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s220/ShawnVT/Guns/TC%20Contender%20222/IMG_0003.jpg

I did not scrub out the barrel, just ran a bore snake through it once . . . it was oiled quite heavily . . .

To me, it seems that the gun is not in "VERY GOOD" Condition . . . or has an "EXCELLENT" bore . . . what do you think?

[Ole]

I have owned 4 TC barrels and they never had scrapes like that.

It almost looks like someone tried to pry a stuck case out from the breech end.

The rifling looks OK/normal to me.

Is there something wrong with the ejector/extractor? I can't tell from the blurry pictures.

[LUCKYDAWG13]

i dont think you got the best end of the deal that is in old tender
you may wont to look on( graybeard outdoors ) the oct barrels are just to thin for me
i would look for a round barrel and forend to match sell that barrel off to help recupe
your loss but if you look at it like this sell that barrel off $110 you got a nice frame
for $265 bucks thats not to bad

[jhalcott]

I agree with OLE that it APPEARS some one pried a stuck case out of the chamber. For that price though ,it ain't in bad shape over all! I have 2 (had 3) 7TC/U barrels from 10 to 21 inches. There is a definite difference in bore and chamber sizes. 2 of the 30-30 14" barrels have different twist rates! One .35 Rem barrel was so bad I had it rechambered to 358JDJ. I'd shoot it before I cussed the seller, you can't tell how good they are by looking at them!

[Rick459]

from the picture the breach end of the bore looks ok. i would say the scratches on the breach end of the barrel are either improper use of feeler gauges to check barrel to frame gap or the action would not open and some one tried to pry the action open. by looking at your photo yours looks to be a early model with the pivot pin on the frame up foward where it made opening the action sometimes very hard. so if you send the gun back to TC they will do the conversion of moving the pivot point back for easier cocking as you can see of mine in the photo. the pivot pin is right above the trigger. as for the overall rating of the gun i would give it a fair condition. how is the rifling at the muzzel? HTH
Rick
http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o301/rick4570/Picture301.jpg

[Rick459]

123.DieselBenz,
from those new photo's that you posted it sure looks like some one could not get the action to open squeezing the trigger guard and then proceded to try and pry it open. as posted in my first post... the eariler TC's with the foward piviot pin was a flaw in the eariler design to where some of the pistol's after firing were very hard if not impossiable to break open. mine was such the case as i could not get it to open and sent the whole gun back to TC to be fixed and had the conversion done. i think they charge $50.00 for the conversion now but they also go through the whole gun and replace all springs and trigger and also thw newer style hammer with the safety on top of the hammer which is also the slector from rimfire to centerfire. HTH excuse the dog hairs.... those look like pits in the muzzel end.....after looking at your latest photo's i would downgrade that pistol from fair to poor. the seller needs to refund you some money back...go shoot it and see how it shoots then go from there. HTH
http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o301/rick4570/Picture302.jpg

[blaser.306]

The type of frame that you have ( not easy open ) is I am led to beleive the one that people are after ! Before I sent it away to be destroyed ( altered ) to the easy open model I would check for interest in it the way that it is . I am led to beleive that they have the superrior triger of the contenders ! I know that my trigger is very nice !!!

[Rick459]

The type of frame that you have ( not easy open ) is I am led to beleive the one that people are after ! Before I sent it away to be destroyed ( altered ) to the easy open model I would check for interest in it the way that it is . I am led to beleive that they have the superrior triger of the contenders ! I know that my trigger is very nice !!!

my gun started out at first as not easy to open to not opening at all. as for the trigger ...the trigger now is much smoother and crisper than the orignal. no fun shooting a TC when you have to strain to get it to open and i use this to hunt making follow up shot's iffy before the conversion. my conversion was done back in 97 so unless TC has since changed their triggers due to product liabilty i can't see a problem with doing the conversion. so my gun was not destroyed by sending it back to TC.. in fact it is a better shooting since the work was done. HTH
Rick

[Ole]

It may shoot well, but I would never consider that pistol in "very good" condition.

[Ed in North Texas]

At best this pistol is fair to good as far as the barrel goes (exterior and bore combined). The exterior is fair (yes, it does look like it was dropped, hitting on the front sight base). It is hard to tell from the pictures, but it looks like there is at least roughness (if not pitting) in the bore near the muzzle.

I'd contact the seller about it. You may have to get an "appraisal" from a local dealer/smith if you have to go through the folks at GunBroker to get satisfaction. It does not look like "Very Good" with an "excellent" bore (I've seen turn of the last century military firearms rated "very good" which (other than normal finish wear) were better than this. My 1939 Savage 99 has honest carry wear, but doesn't have the damage this barrel exterior has.

[fryboy]

it has honest wear , the barrel however is ...a bit rough , i'm guessing a feeler gauge and accidental grit , are there corresponding/similar scratches in the frame ? IMHO the 222 in the short barrel isnt the best option but at least it isnt some bruiser in the ocotogon , the barrel may shoot fine , with the exception of the rust? in the muzzle the leade looked ok ( from my limited vantage point , if it's never had another barrel on it it shouldn't be too abused , there is a point to that easy opening , there's also some style of locking lugs that do just that and switching them can help , bellm's tc has alot of info

http://www.bellmtcs.com/store/

congrats on the 'tender ! and fair warning - they tend to breed - with startling regularity and at great cost , nothing else has expanded my handloading knowledge as my first one , mostly it wears heavy pach's and a bull barrel and in carbine configuration they are a lite quick handling joy

[leadman]

The seller stated no rust or pitting, which appears to not be true. That is probably the worst bore in a Contender I have seen, and I have owned and seen alot.
Having had many of the older oct. barrels I do not even consider buying them now. I find much better accuracy with the 14" on up barrels. Only had one or 2 really good 10" bull barrels.
That gun appears to have been neglected/abused. I would try to get some money back so you can at least replace the barrel. Sending the frame to T/C might be iffy right now as I think they are in process of moving. A phone call will confirm their status.

[secondshooter]

The barrel may been painted black, in some of the pictures you can see over spray on the rear sight, the scratches on the chamber face may be where the paint has worn off? hard to tell from the photos but thats my impression.

[leadman]

Benz, take the screw out of the forearm and remove the forearm. Open the action and slide the big pin out that goes thru the frame. This holds the barrel.

[LUCKYDAWG13]

get the 14" barrel and dont look back

[TCFAN]

If I understand your question,the square thing on the hammer slides right and left. It should push a pin out to keep the hammer from hitting the firing pins.

I have the same frame as yours and find nothing wrong with it being the hard to open old style frame.

I am on dial up here and can not see good quality photos that you posted but the ones that will come in look like you did not get what was advertised....I wish you luck in getting this corrected...............Terry

[uscra112]

I would say that your gun was grossly misrepresented, and at $375 is a ripoff, since that barrel is essentially scrap. Selling it to someone else is not an option if you have any ethics at all. The pictures on the listing seriously failed to convey the true condition. I would add another 100% negative feedback that guy's growing pile if he won't take it back.

FWIW, by way of comparison - I bought a barrel-less action on Gunbroker for about $275, after looking at Gen 1 'tenders for about a year at gun shows. I felt that I got it for a pretty good price. The seller was a local shop, with a good reputation, and of course I avoided shipping costs and FFL fees by just driving over to collect it. Mine was far less worn and abused than this one appears to be. (Is that rust that I see there?) I did find that mine had a chronic misfire problem, which is not unknown with these. The solution was simple and cost zero $. (It wasn't at all what Mike Bellm touts, either.) Now I have a piece that I really like, and already have three barrels for.

[rhbrink]

Well 'Benz looks like there is some severe pitting in the barrel up toward the muzzle. No doubt that sometime or other there was a stuck cartridge in the chamber looks like to me the extractor is clearly bent foreward you can see that in the picture above. The back side of the extractor should be flush with the back of the barrel. I would sure try to get some of your money back at least for the barrel it looks like a reject to me. The reciever looks OK and if you have to keep the barrel there is always the option of having it sleeved to another caliber maybe something mild. Probably cost as much as another used barrel just a idea. I did have a similiar Contender with a 22 rimfire barrel shot great and was a bunch of fun to shoot cheap too.

Good luck

Richard

[scb]

Benz.
If you don't receive satisfaction from this "gentleman" I would request that you post here:

The web site where "purchased"
The sellers User Name.
His real name and address.

That way the rest of us can perhaps not be scammed by the same "gentleman" as this was obviously grossly misrepresented. I would classify that barrel as JUNK. As to new barrel length, I personally wouldn't own a 14" barrel to hunt with. One might as well carry a carbine IMHO. But to each his own.

For a new (or used) barrel check here:
http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=119343&highlight=ed%27s
I can also add my endorsement to Ed.

[uscra112]

Just a word on 14" or even heavy 12" barrels - unless you have hands like a gorilla, you'll need to fire from a rest. I don't, what with age and arthuritis, and I can't hit a barn from the inside without a rest with my 14" Hornet barrel. Not complaining, mind you, it's just a factor in my planning.

[Black Prince]

Benz

Much of a persons satisfaction in receiving a firearm depends on their expectations before it comes. What did you expect for 400 bucks? In all fairness, if you expected a near new Contender, then you should also have expected to pay for it. Since you did not pay a near new price and yet seem to have expected a near new Contender, then you intended to pay less for it than it was worth. So you wanted to get the "better" of the seller and now you claim he did that to you. You can't legitimately complain about anything he did as long as you are trying to do the same thing. Well you obviously can, but that would make you a whiner when you get what you thought you were giving.

Since I am absolutely certain that you will reject being a whiner, that only leaves the possibility that you have unrealistic expectations of comming out on top of the deal when gun buying or trading and there is no cure for that particular syndrone.

Don't misunderstand my message. We offer help to those who ask for it at Cast Bullets and we are glad you participate with us here. You are always welcome and we try to be as friendly as we can be. But we have all made poor gun deals. If this is your first one, either quit doing it, or learn to live with it because if you keep doing it, it will happen again. I keep hoping to meet the guy who has come out on top of all of the bad gun deals I've made, but every gun trader I know is on the loosing side just like me. I take that back. I bought an old 94 Winchester when I got out of the navy. I sold it 42 years later for 30 dollars more than I paid for it. But given the inflation rate in the meantime, I still managed to loose money!

So welcome to the club. If misery loves company, you have plenty of company here. And you may yet be surprised at how good that barrel may shoot so you may come out on top of this deal after all.

All the best with your Contender. They truly are nice firearms.

[redneckdan]

That extractor is all bent to hell. Sorry to say it but about all that barrel is good for is a stubbing project.

[Black Prince]

Benz



I don't usually "make money" on guns, but . . . I enjoy them for a time, then sell them, and use the money to by something else to try.
Yep. Just like I said: There is no cure for that. And that is what brings all of us together as a group here. We've all been there and we hope we live long enough to go there again.

I have a dozen or so TC actions and I don't know how many barrels. I use them as both rifles and pistols and love them either way. I hope you get as much enjoyment from your Contender as I have from mine. The one you have pictured is an early one. I have one of the early ones with the 44 mag/.410 barrel on it and some of the original shot cartridges. It has the "shredder" that screws on the end of the barrel to open the plastic shot cartridge. That thing is lethal within range. It'll kill rabits, flying quail, standing deer, wild hogs, and about anything else when you drop a 44 magnum round in it. Check it out. It may be a good combination for you to take into the desert with you.

All the best.

[Rico1950]

Benz, I'd first talk to Mike Bellm or David White about taking a couple of thous. off the breech face. Extractors are cheap. You may be able to salvage that barrel. As far as the bore, run some JB paste thru it. It's not going to make those "pitts" go away, but it still might be a shooter.

[aaalaska]

Sorry to put it like this but if that was advertised as any better than fair it was a lie. That gun ,both barrel and frame have been rode hard and put away wet. It may shoot OK but, I've picked up much nicer bbls for well under 100, and a frame with marks and pits like that one would be hard pressed to fetch 200. If you doubt me check out the adds on specialty pistols.
Alex

[leadman]

That barrel is not as advertised so hopefully the buyer will make it right.
To use the Contender as a secondary hunting arm you will probably want the lighter barrel configurations. When you get a 14" barrel or longer on them it is by necessity the primary hunting arm.

I carry my longer barrels with a walking stick with a rest on it or a bipod. Shot an antelope in Wyoming last fall with my 6.5TCU with the bipod at 255 yards. Many have connected farther than that.

The 22 Hornet will do a wonderful job at the ranges you said you will be shooting. I do prefer the 22 K-Hornet as the brass stretches much less. You may find a good octagon barrel in this caliber.

[leadman]

Glad these appears to be working out for you. You can post a WTB here and at Speciality Pistols, Greybeards. Might also try Arizona Shooting once you get the needed priviliges.

Ed's Contender's has both octagon and bull 10" listed on his site, $120 and $135. Might want to call him.

[218bee]

Sounds like seller is good joe after all that....I agree gun/barrel appears from pics to have been painted/blued/something. I would certainly try it...it may shoot better than it looks

[uscra112]

Roger that, 218 bee. Nice to know that he's actually a square trader after all.

[canyon-ghost]

Glad you're enjoying your Contender.

Ron

[azcruiser]

Shawn people tend to over load contenders that's why the scratches on the chamber face .Prying outt he stuck case and why the ejector looks like someone pried on it a bit too.Contender/Thompson is great on parts I would see if they would send you the pin that holds the barrel to the frame and extractor and the bolt and washer that hold on the grips should cost next to nothing .Don't try to load 222rem to compete with 22-250. Mine likes 30gr to 45 gr jacketed bullets going mid velocities with a fast powder and I wouldn't shoot the same loads in the Sako --Have a contender brass pile and a Sako pile ?
ps don't spend all that hay money put some away
hay doesn't grow all year does it ??
My favorite cal in contenders 6mm/223 just expand the case mouth add 6mm bullet 14in barrel shot great

[rhbrink]

Well good! Hope that the 222 barrel works out if you have problems with the extractor I bet it could be straightened out fairly easy, they are not hard to remove and the metal isn't all that hard either. If it doesn't work out it could be sleeved rather easily it 22 rimfire or maybe like a Hornet? There is even a thread farther down about using one for making a stub and screw in another barrel, except on the Contender you would have to be carefull as there is not much diameter to work with. Glad to see that you sent the Sako out to have it repaired professionally hope you post some pictures when it returns, I bet he does a great job. Did you by chance shoot it any before you sent it off?

Richard

[Three-Fifty-Seven]

No, I haven' shot either of them yet ... I'm working Sun afternoon through Sat late morning ...

[rhbrink]

What a life! Enjoy! It's a great life until you begin to weak'n been there and done that. Still the quest goes on forever there is always something new on the horizon.

Richard

[Swede44mag]

Did the seller send you the $100.00 as promised if so he is an ok guy.

I had a couple of Contenders with Super 14" barrels one in .223 and another in .22 match should have kept both.

I have an Stainless Steel Encore 209x50 for deer hunting it is a lot of fun to shoot.
Bought it on a clearance sale after deer season at Dicks still paid to much money.

Good luck hope you end up with a good setup it looks like you are on the right track.

[leadman]

Benz, loading for the break-open guns is a little different than a bolt gun. Since you were on Bellm's site you may have read about this already. The interlock under the breach face has to be pushed back in order for the gun to fire.
Some neck sizing can be done, but then every once in awhile the shoulder may have to be pushed back just a little. Too much and you could get case seperations.
Can be frustrating but I am sure you will figure it out.

Enjoy yourself and find some room for more barrels.

[mdi]

I just re-read the Gunbroker page and noticed "As is. No refunds or exchanges", in red. Too bad, the frame looks OK from the pics but the scratches and gouge on the chamber edge is not "very good condition" nor is the bore excellent. May have to go through Gunbroker for help, but call seller first...

[Swede44mag]

Shawn
Sounds like a great plan I have always wanted to live in the country had have some room to breath and target shoot.

[azcruiser]

Shawn left the computer on and fell asleep somewhere around 3am ?? Check out this web page
local guy in Gilbert Dave Van Horn makes some of the most accurate contender barrels I have ever seen and I've seen a few .mygunroom.com/dvgunshop/index.html Little pricey but well worth it . Plus the calibers big selection

[leadman]

I have had about 50% of Dave's barrel do what they are supposed to do. He is not want to step up on warranty readily either.
I'm down to one of his barrels and it is a great one. Had 3 others that were very good, 4 that were real dogs.
Before I started rebarreling my own Mausers I had him make a barrel in 6.5-06 for a Mauser. I was at the range shooting it when the barrel decided to unscrew itself. Took me a bit to figure out the problem.
My money goes elsewhere now.

[Ed in North Texas]

[QUOTE=Black Prince;1315182]Benz

Much of a persons satisfaction in receiving a firearm depends on their expectations before it comes. What did you expect for 400 bucks?

Snip the remainder.

I can't believe I'm reading this. A synopsis of this message is "you hoped to beat the seller, and he beat you, get over it." Apparently you believe a person, in a GunBroker on-line auction, can describe a barrel with pitting and scarring from abuse (with no mention of these defects, nor pictures showing the problems) as "Excellent" and that is just fine. I would understand if the seller were blind, or had never had a firearm before, but otherwise a description of a barrel which is "Fair" as "Excellent" is "extremely generous" at best. To give the seller a "pass" is unconscionable.

I'm pleased to see the seller came to an agreement without the need for 123.DieselDenz to resort to the GunBroker resolution process, but your advice would have 123.DieselBenz holding the short end of the stick.

[EMC45]

I'll second GBO (Greybeards). I have gotten some nice stuff from over there. A couple barrels and stock/grip sets. Also WallaceM (member here) has helped me out in my Contender quest.

[leadman]

The classifieds are in the second section down. Easy to find. You may want to check Backpage.com for barrels also. Some are asking crazy prices there but decent buys can be had.
Prescott Valley Guns also get Contender barrels frequently and are good guys to deals with. 928-772-7705.

[rhbrink]

You might try some 2400 if you have some I have had really good luck with it in shooting 22 boolits. start with maybe 8 grains and work up slowly. H 4198 has worked good for medium to hotter loads in both my Encore in a .223 and a Sako 222 Mag. That last group looked like a improvement bet you get a scope on it and it will improve greatly. Have fun!

Richard

[canyon-ghost]

http://www.go2gbo.com/forums/index.php/board,81.0.html

[canyon-ghost]

Glad to see you enjoying it. Yes, you need a small range bag for stuff like miniature screwdrivers, a beat up section of cleaning rod (there will someday be a case without powder, bullet stuck in bore), pen, paper, sharpie markers, tape, etc. Business cards make the best scope note cards.

I love all my Contenders, I wouldn't trade the silhouette range and fun for any other hobby.

PS: the Weaver 2-8x pistol scopes aren't bad either.

[rhbrink]

You're probably not going to have a whole lot of options there. I would go with some type of Weaver type base and steel mounts just in case you might want to mount this scope on a heavier recoiling barrel sometime. Once a while back I had a contender that I had several barrels for one was a 44 mag bull barrel I never could keep the Leupold type mounts on the barrel. the recoil would shear the rear dove tails loose and the scope would slide foreward. I think Burris came up with a three ring system that helped. You will never have that problem with a 222 but you never what kind of a wild hair that just might show up sometime in the future. You might decide you need a .35 Remy or a .375 Win pistol sometime. I had a friend that had a 45-70 on a Contender frame once, that's about all that he shot once was enough, me too.

[leadman]

The Weaver mounts are inexpensive and work well. They even held up pretty well to my 444 Marlin barrel. Only sheared off the screws once.

The Leupold should be a really nice scope. I went with the Burris with the Ballistic Plex, makes long range shots easier and faster.

[leadman]

The Weaver scopes have a lifetime warranty. The burris should work well for you.

If you are interested in what can be accomplished with a pistol go over to Speciality Pistols and browse.
Xphunter (Ernie) shot a 5 1/2" group during a shoot, at 1,000 yards! This was with a pistol.

Last fall in Wyoming he was shooting at a steel plate at 600 yards and his bullet impacts were overlapping.

There are many others there that can shoot very well also.

[part_timer]

I can't speak on the Weaver Scopes but I have a Burris on my Encore 250 Savage and don't have any problems with the eye relief.

[45-70 Chevroner]

All of my 22 center fire shooting has been done with a 223 TC 14" most of it with cast boolits. I have found that the heavier cast boolits ( 60 gr. or more) do not shoot as well as the lighter boolits do ( 49 gr. to 55 gr). The twist on the 223 is too slow 1 in 14 twist. A 1 in 12 or 10 will stabilize a longer boolit better. You have a 55 gr. mold try #2 alloy and it should be pretty close to that weight, if not try straight linotype. I think you will find that the 55 gr. will shoot better. At 25 yards I can shoot a 1/2" group quite consistantly with the 55 gr. lyman from a bench and shooting rest. I think your pitted barrel is doing pretty good, and I would expect it to do even better with a little load tweeking and a lighter boolit.

[canyon-ghost]

Weaver 92A scope base and the Weaver high 1" rings fit most. The QR (quick release) rings are my favorite because they have a steel top. Like mine lapped in.

[Three44s]

123.DieselBenz,

I am sorry you got shafted on the Gunbroker Contender but glad you'll make out the bad barrel!

Welcome to Contenders! You'll be HOOKED soon!

As for GBO ........... I am very glad you registered there! I have bought a barrel in .222 just like the one you got with your frame but in mint condition for 145 shipped from a member there.

The folks at GBO are pretty darned good and I'll be looking for you there!!!

Three 44s

[leadman]

A good 22cal T/C factory barrel should be good for a one inch group at 100 yards with a good load. I use the Lyman 44gr boolit.
WC680 in the 22 K-Hornet works well, as does light loads of 700X in the 223.

I'm sure with a good bore you will be surprised.

[leadman]

I don't remember having to wait for approval. Did you try to log in?

[canyon-ghost]

I remember the wait for approval but, it was a rainy season here and I really didn't pay attention to how much time passed. I've had TCs for 10 years, what's a couple of weeks?

I don't see any 222 barrels up, a few 223s for sale, though.

Sponsor on the Contenders will be: http://edstc.com/ Might call and see what's in stock. I've met him, they come to gunshows in the area. Good vendor.

[leadman]

Media in the flash hole?

Looks like the gun was working ok. Sometimes the Contenders will FTF when the case shoulder needs to be pushed back a little. Then the primers are not dented though.

Check your firing pin nose and see if it is damaged as the dents look a little strange, or is it just the camera effect?

[canyon-ghost]

Seems to me an old man said something about a range rod, in case it sticks a bullet in the barrel.... ever wonder how that happens? Plain base bullets, yes...

Happens once to the best of us. I have track lights over the reloading area now, strong lights, I just look inside each case as I pick it up to seat a bullet. Powder check.. manual...eyeball version.. etc. Look and see if it's in there, lol.

Some guys just use a small flashlight, those small l. e. d. lights work good.

Ron

[LUCKYDAWG13]

Even been thinking of selling my Colt 1911 to buy a couple of different barrels . . . did someone say these are addicting . . . ? [smilie=1:[/QUOTE]

Hello my name is Shawn and i own a contender [smilie=w:

[canyon-ghost]

I only have four and these are my little friends, they have their own room, yes, I think they are addicting! lol . They're also amazingly accurate and more fun than adults are supposed to have.

Ron

[Wildwood-Lake]

Hey Guys....As you know I have been selling items here and still have alot of things to sale. I also have several guns that I will be selling as soon as everything else sells. Well I do have a 1979 contender with 7 barrels, two with scopes. And it appears that they have not been used. The other day I got it out and tryed to open it and couldn't. So I went to the net and found that if I took the trigger out I could get the barrel off. Well long story short I ended up losing the sear plunger but got the barrel off. So I called TC and ordered a new one. I am working on a deal with a member that wants the 44 mag. (mirror bore) super 14" barrel. So I was wondering went I sell this should I keep the rest of the barrels and sell as a package deal.

[canyon-ghost]

Shot fine, when I put powder in it!


The Contenders are really accurate, you got some good groups.

[leadman]

Well, I know why the primers looked a little different now!

I use a loading block partially filled with empty cases. When I put powder in a case it gets moved to the other end of the block. I still look in all the cases with a small flashlight. Cqn you tell I forgot to put powder in a case before?

Having been around truckers all my life and worked many off shifts I can say one needs to be careful loading especially if you are tired.

Glad you survived the no powder incident without any issues.

[C A Plater]

Will the 12" need a two hole/screw foregrip, or the single like the 10"?

12" factory barrels use the same forearm as 14". You'll need the two hole.

[leadman]

Sounds like you are loaded up on 222 barrels! Now you need to expand out into other calibers.
The TCU cartridges are great, use 223 brass so fairly inexpensive. Then there is the 30-30, etc.

[azcruiser]

Shawn having to pull 4 or 5 not bad. Having a wood rod or something is a good idea .I have to pull something like 3000 =9mm had some with no powder caused by a piece of foam from the powder bottle getting into the powder bar ??? Have you gotten the Sako back yet ?

[leadman]

Now you aqre getting in the groove! Even with that pitted bore it seems to be shooting pretty well.
That last boolit looks pretty interesting. wonder if it will stabilize from the Contender?

I'm thinking about taking my 22 K-Hornet out this week. Have neglected it for over a year.

Have fun.

[uscra112]

I can tell that you are having way too much fun with this !

[kirb]

go to Mike Bellem sight and down load the how to adjust your dies for loading the encore or contender he has a lot of great information on contenders. Contenders are a nasty habbit about like casting I have way more than I can shoot I have taken several elk and deer, speed goats and all kinds of varmits. I have been trying to cut back on mine thin out the herd but it is hard to do.

Kirb

[redneckdan]

if it weren't for bad luck you'd have no luck. :veryconfu Hope things turn out okay.

[canyon-ghost]

That's the ropes, right there. I have been lucky (and sometimes not) on used barrels. I usually end up buying them at gun shows. Some are alright and some aren't clean enough to look at the rifling- probably a reason for that, huh?

Still, if I really need a brand new one, I look up edstc.com , he's someone I've met in person. The extra $ I have to 'buck up' to get a barrel is sometimes worth it. When you know you get what you paid for, it's good.
Ron

[725]

Yep, FL size your new brass. See how it shoots before doing too much. It might be a shooter after all. Sure looks like it was ridden hard and put away wet. One process I've had good luck with is fire-lapping troublesome barrels. I've turned more than one wayward drain pipe into a nail driver. Mostly it all depends on what you want and how it performs. Some guys want a pretty, deep blue show piece, and others want an "under the front seat of the truck" workhorse. Good luck.

Must have pushed the wrong button again. Was trying to add my thoughts to page 1 of the thread. Don't know how it ended up over here.

[pls1911]

Late to the forum...
Don't worry about the 14"... it's fine... I have two in 30-30 (old scoped, newer with silhuette sights), one each in 7TCU, 45-70, and .223.
The longer barrels do get a bit heavy when carrying, but with a strap they should be better.

Old barrels may make a difference for some calibers, but none that I have.
Of course, my old .45 colt (only) barrel will shoot circles around current .45/.410 barrels.

[donald duck]

Hey guys I have a Question??? I purchased a 14 inch T/C Barrel on Gun broker chambered for 7 mm TCU but my TCU cartridges will not chamber. I have a Wilson case gauge and all my loaded cartridges are checked and are fine. This barrel just has a very tight chamber. There are no markings on the barrel, stamped near hinge pin in 7mmTcu , one one side of under lug hinge pin is a star, on other side is what I call a German Cross. Any idea who made the Barrel and does anyone recognize those markings???n Your help is appreciated. Thanks !!.