T/C Contender... what else ya' need?

[gemihur]

If every gun I owned carried only one cartridge in it's chamber I would be a happy man.
In today's freakin' insane society assigning some negative significance to every time they hear a balloon pop, I would relish their gaping mouths and wide-eyed stare that we shooters get the job done with one bullet at a time. After all, that's really what happens with all firearms, just with a much shorter dwell between ignitions. And the range of calibers and ballistic performance that can be realized by this simple break action pistol/rifle is almost unending. Yes, you must be conscious of pressures exceeding certain thresholds but I've found various wildcatters such as Reeder and Bellum assist on getting around those limitations. Hornady has also stepped up to the plate with their proprietary formulations of propellants and advanced design ballistics with new cartridges that perform unlike those of the past, ie. 6.8 SPC, 17 HMR. I can't wait for my next barrel and I don't even know what chamber it will have.

[versifier]

I've been a Contender fan all my shooting life (well, I'd been shooting long before they came out but I took to them right away, and Encores too when they came out some years later). Meeting Warren Center at a small local gunshop one day many years ago was a high point. I have owned over one hundred different barrels over the years, currently down to less than ten. 10": .30carb, .357mag, .25-20, 14": .30Herrett, 16": .35rem custom shop, 24": .30/223 (rechambered Whisper), and 6.5TCU (made by MGM). I just got a new-to-me unfired 10" .25-20 that looks to be about 20yrs old. Just got a new mould for it and have to make the bullet sizer for them. I am also a big fan of their traditional caplock muzzle loaders.

I am not however very impressed with the company today, since S&W bought them out, closed the plant, closed the custom shop, fired the staff, and moved operations to Massachusetts. The accuracy of their barrels has gone to hell, their customer service has gone from the best in the industry to one of the worst, and their latest offerings are a joke. There's nothing quite like an expensive 5groove barrel that won't group, unless you're unlucky enough to have more than one. I still shoot, buy, and sell older barrels and actions that were actually made by T/C in Rochester, but these days my new barrels all come from aftermarket companies.

[gemihur]

Versifier,
I know where your comin' from and indeed having just rec'd the 'new' T/C catalog for 2013 there is not even a G2 frame or any barrel for the contender platform! I suppose redundancy is not a business practice that S&W aspires to. If the encore can do it, that's good enough for them. I don't know how long you been droppin' hammer with T/C but I'm startin' to think we've been walkin' the same path. I'm on my third collection of barrels having built up a batch and then sol/traded 'em off. Presently, I've got 22 bbls ranging from 17 HMR to 45-70 and a bunch of freaky wildcats between them. My all time favorite was a SS 14" Reeder Bbl in .257 GNR, based on the 405 win case. I had never been a big fan of the quarter-bore, not having spent the time to get my .256 win mag to perform properly, but Reeder changed my mind! That baby would shoot! WoW! The round was developed for the encore but you could take loads about 80% there for the contender.
As for T/C's acquisition by S&W ... I'm gonna give 'em time before I poo-poo 'em. Yes they've turned their backs on the contender but their customer support apparently is beginning to respond to the needs of their inherited customers. I'm beginning to hear of success stories @ GBO that parts are being politely and promptly delivered. The used market is stocked well enough for us to feed the need for years to come.
The after-market shops have got it down to a science as to how to serve us. There are even newcomers with new ideas as to how to achieve the same thing .. ie Eagle View Arms barrel stubbing .. crazy!
It's always something!
I also love the smokepoles! But I'm open-minded enough not to turn my nose to someone who ain't got a hammer on the side of their gun ... unlike most of the followers of muzzleloading sites!
If it goes bang, I'm all for it. ..but that's a topic for another time. You hang in there Versi, and keep a spot in your case open for the next barrel that you gotta' have. I know I will!

[j1]

If I thought of selling I no longer do. Contenders rule.

[PARA45]

I like the contenders, and I have only one in (J1, you are going to love this) 30-06 I would like to get a few more, but I've had other projects in mind. I also love the Ruger No. 1s; the classy look got me.

[j1]

Oscar stop me when I am wrong but I thought the Contender did not come in 06, so you must have an Encore. Or else I will learn something else. I am on this planet to learn. I am not being sarcastic.

[PARA45]

You are so correct my friend, my bad! what I should have said is that I have a Thomson Center Encore Pro-Hunter in 30-06..... Better???? LOL!!!! I also have one of their Triumph muzzle loaders

[j1]

Now old farts like ME have Contender 30 30 s and they are more than enough for deer? Not elk.

[kodiak1]

I do love my single shots also.
Sharps, Trapdoors, Rolling Blocks and a Contender Rifle and a few Pistolla Barrels makes for a fun day at the range for sure.

[gemihur]

It's good to hang around a bunch of old shooters like ya'll.
Might even pick up a trick or two from ya'.