Multi caliber system?

[am44mag]

What is the most economical single shot gun that you could buy several barrels for? Something that could shoot everything from common factory cartridges, to experimental wildcats. Later in the year, I want to get something to play around with. It doesn't matter if it is a rifle or a handgun. I just want something I can easily and cheaply swap calibers in. I looked at handi rifles, but it seems like you could buy a used one cheaper than you could a new barrel. There's also the issue of fitting the barrel. I also looked at the Contenders and I want one, but the barrel and frame is not as cheap as I'd like.

Any suggestions?

[mcdaniel.mac]

Contender frames are $200-300, barrels between $150 and $400. Encore frames, $300-$400, barrels between $150-300. I have bought a complete Contender with 2 barrels for $600 and my last Encore was traded for a used Remington 700 ADL.

IMO, if I had it to do all over again I'd have just gone with the Encore frames from the start. Better action, IMO. My Contender will be off for an action job here soon.

For absolute dirt cheap, I guess you could probably look for a Handicap Rifle, but barrels will be hit or kiss, and you'll be looking at custom or stub jobs.

[JimB..]

I only have a couple contender frames, and no encore frames, but I'm not feeling the need to do an action job on them.

I also have a couple Handi Rifles, my plan is to suppress them. The 300blk makes 1 hole at 25 yards, hope to get it to 100 this coming week.

The trigger in the handi rifle is disgusting compared to the contender, but it is serviceable.

Sorry, but I don't have a third option for you.

[sawinredneck]

There's the Rossi single shot platform, bought the boy one last Christmas .243, .22 and 20ga for $250. For his first rifle, it works, but it's cheap and it shows.

[GhostHawk]

Both CVA and Henry have come out with reasonably priced single shots. But neither is designed to swap barrels.

Ultimately for what you want it would come down to choosing between the more expensive TC contender/encore system that will swap well. Or going to the Handi System and learning to do your own stub jobs. Essentially buy a used shotgun barrel for cheap, put a permanent liner in it. Epoxied, threaded and lock nutted, etc. Then doing the extracter work so you can get the brass out.

I have a 9mm stubb job that shoots very very well. But when I am loading it if I push the new round a smidge too far it jumps over the extractor and does not like to eject.

Not hard to fix, and really only a minor annoyance. Skill & Access to a lathe would be a big plus.

Some guys are building up new lugs from flat steel plates cut to the correct shape, with a pair of pins to hold them in correct alignment. Then weld them together and to the barrel.

Then of course you have the option to buy/rent a chamber reamer and get into some different calibers that way. That is the hardest in some respects as your choices are limited by what chambers the reamer will clean up.

TC Encore & Contender cost a fair bit up front but have from what I have seen a good reputation for decent accuracy. And a platform that is designed to do what you want to do, safely.

[Jedman]

I would say the handi rifle is the way to go. I own about 15 of them now and have owned more than twice that in the past 15 years. They are easy to work with and about as inexpensive as you will find. I have stubbed them, relined them, rechambered them, converted muzzle loaders to cartridge rifles and converted cartridge rifles to muzzleloader both.

Jedman

[marlinman93]

Can't imagine how anything could compete in variety or price with a Contender. It may have some limitations in high pressure rifle chamberings, but it's still very reasonable to buy nice used barrels.
Haven't had one in decades as I ended my Contender fascination and sold my frames and barrels a long time ago. Butt they were fun when I had them.

[tdoyka]

buy an encore. then you can shoot whatever you want.

https://matchgrademachine.com/chambers-list/

[am44mag]

Contender frames are $200-300, barrels between $150 and $400. Encore frames, $300-$400, barrels between $150-300. I have bought a complete Contender with 2 barrels for $600 and my last Encore was traded for a used Remington 700 ADL.

IMO, if I had it to do all over again I'd have just gone with the Encore frames from the start. Better action, IMO. My Contender will be off for an action job here soon.

For absolute dirt cheap, I guess you could probably look for a Handicap Rifle, but barrels will be hit or kiss, and you'll be looking at custom or stub jobs.

I found plenty of barrels in that price range, but the cheapest frame I could find was $400. Where are you finding them?

Thanks fellas for the suggestions. I'll keep looking into a Contender or an Encore, or I may just pick up a bunch of Handi Rifles.

[Smoke4320]

Encore frame and never look back
Well built and accurate
I have several contender frames and many barrels. All are very very accurate when I do my part
The encore is newer design and stronger

[Harter66]

If I were doing a lot of bbl swapping and cartridge tinkering , I'd buy a used Axis , an action or bbl vice and the 1st bbl as a kit with the wrench .

$200 for the base rifle .
$75 per bolt head to swap 233/308/belted magnum/WSM
$50-300 per bbl .
AR cartridge family bbls are commonly available in 17, 20 ,22 ,25 , 27 , 28 and 30 cal leaving plenty room for lots of small cal cats and target chambers . Custom bolt heads would be needed for x39/6.8/35 Remington /38-357 and 30-30 and 45-70 families .
Just about any lathe skilled Gunsmith should be able to thread a blank or provide a take off bbl for the Savage base . While a long action single bolt gun capable of handling a 45-90 might be overkill for a 17 hornet it can be done with a bolt head and bbl swap in the Savage base .

[Artful]

I have a T/C Contender and it's a good choice - but it doesn't handle rifle calibers
at the time the Encore hadn't been developed so I took a bolt action and using the
Savage barrel nut idea made a swap barrel on a Winchester Post-64 Action long action.
Bought Bolt in larger Magnum size so can use any barrel in either '06 or standard belted case.
I started with .30'06 and .22-250 and have added to it over the years.
Buying take off barrels and have the threads lengthened to allow my barrel nut.
Take off barrels from a 700 Remington even work but you have to reduce the barrel threads
just a tad and cut off the safety rim to work with the Winchester Bolt.
Now with the Encore available I'd have probably gone that way.

[pietro]

.

While the Encore can handle heftier cartridges than the Contender, it's also much heavier.

Either the Contender or the Encore is available as a handgun or a long gun - so be sure you get a frame that was originally "manufactured as a handgun", since rifle barrels can be installed on the handgun frame, but handgun (length) barrels cannot be legally installed on a "long gun frame" (per BATF).

AFAIK, when the T/C frame's are sold (new) as "frame-only", they are handgun rated - but I could be in error.

With a used frame, there's no way to know/prove if it's handgun rated or not.



.

[Harter66]

My FFL guy sells Contender Encore and AR lower as "other" rather than a hand or long gun specifically .

[charlie b]

I had a Contender many years ago. The Encore is a perfect platform if you want to have a collection of barrels that easily swap (even at the range or in the field).

Second up is the Savage action. Not as easy to swap but a good choice, especially if you are going to have custom barrels made vs just rechambering a purchased barrel.

[mcdaniel.mac]

I think my one problem with the Encore is that the forend takes a minute to get off.

I look at the Savage switch barrels, and I think about the rachet-lock system we used on the M240/M249, and I wonder if someday I'll pay someone too much money for something like that.

[GhostHawk]

Well I think there is a demand out there for an inexpensive rifle with easily switched barrels. The problem is in todays sue happy world you could spend millions designing the rifle, buying and adapting the machinery to produce them. And lose it all the first time someone does something stupid.

To try to build one from scratch infringing on no current patents, you would have to have a connection to a barrel building company. And then a very good design, that won't allow the rifle to fire if all is not correct.

And even then most won't want to pay more than 350 -400$ for the base unit and one barrel.

I don't know if it can be done for that. Your talking a lot of R&D, a lot of testing. And those boys don't work for peanuts.

To do it inexpensively for yourself the H&R handi rifle and a lathe and reasonably inexpensive shotgun barrels and chambered rifle liners/barrels will work. You just need time, patience and skill. With some practice you can make one of almost anything you want for not a lot of money. The problem is the money is tied up in the tools and learning.

With the TC Contender/Encore you pay a bit more, but you know it is going to work.
You don't have to have machinist skills. Just costs you more dollars.

Me I am pretty happy with the single shots I have. I have looked at the Henry but the only ones that I would really be interested in are pistol calibers. .44 mag and .45lc.

I already have a Handi setup in .444 marlin that does everything any .44 mag ever did plus more. And it is not hard to load .44 mag mid level loads in long brass and shoot them. Not at all.

.45 LC is the one I don't have. But I do have a 16" chamber adapter, rifle for my 20 ga in .45 acp. Having even found the ambition to go play with that. Just getting old I guess. Slowing down. Mostly my money is going into air rifles by Hatsan because I can shoot them in my basement year round to get my shooting fix. Costs about 1.2 cents per shot. 2 5 shot groups every afternoon less than 15 cents for costs. Match that I dare ya.

No primers, powder needed and I am shooting my own cast round balls from a sharpshooter .22 cal buckshot mold. Works so so in my other .22 air rifles but they are accurate enough in my Hatsan's to put meat in the pot. 5 in one ragged hole at 20 feet. And if you can shoot a thumbtack at 20 feet chances are you can shoot a squirrel or rabbit in the eye at 20 yards.

[am44mag]

You guys have given me a good deal to think about. I like the Savage axis plan a lot. My only issue is, is it going to reliably handle everything I want? Just to give you guys an idea, I want at least a barrel for .22 Hornet, 44 Mag, 500 Mag, 7mm-08, 30 Herrett, and 35 Remington. The Encore is looking like the best choice for that. The prices at MGM aren't bad at all, but the used market seems to be full of various calibers I could have fun with. :D

Thank you fellas for all the suggestions and help. Hopefully I'll be able to pick up an Encore in the fall. ;)

[charlie b]

Yes, if you are looking for rimmed cartridge barrels then the Encore (or other break open) is probably your best bet.

One other thought. A single shot falling block could be modified for replaceable barrels like the Savage. Would be even more expensive than the Encore and not as flexible.

[country gent]

The CPA is set up as a switch barrel rifle also. In reality any rifle can be set up as a switch barrel by adding a ID mark to the receiver and fitting the barrels you want with the witness mark at tourqed position. Not as cheap and easy as the encore, but it can be done. Will take a barrel and action wrench for other than the CPA.

[psweigle]

I wouldn't give up my handi rifle for anything. But, if I had started with an encore, I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have my handi rifle either. I'm a hands on make my own kind of guy, but most people aren't, and that's what makes the encore a perfect platform for what you are looking for.