How much should I pay....

[rodgers]

Hi I'm a new poster, I have been lurking and reading post for awhile. This seems to be the place with the most knowledge on TC Contender/Encores that I have found. So my question is this. I have trying to track down a Contender pistol frame for a while locally and haven't been able to find one...until now. My local gun shop just got a used one in and he called me up to see if I wanted it. I went to look at it and its a "G1" Contender with the engravings on the side. It has three barrels with it a .35 rem, .44 mag, and a .222. All three barrels are blued with irons and a scope rail. It also had a scope on the .44 mag barrel didn't look like anything special. So my question is this he wants $900 for the set and dosen't want to part any of it out. Is that to much? I really want a contender and I just want to make sure I'm not being blinded by the avalibility of one. thanks in advanced for any help.

[daniel2013]

Not being able to look at it, it is hard to judge.  However just the barrels at maybe an average of $175 each would come to $525.  add about $250. for the frame  and maybe $30. for a cheap scope you have $825. total.  He probably  is in the ballpark for  a retail store.  Also take in to acount how hard it is to find and no shipping charges and how much time do you want to take in continuing to hunt for one.  Time is money, so how much time do you want to involve in your search, when you could use that time  to be out shooting.  LOL   Now I had a Father in Law (God bless his soul as he has been dead for a number of years )  who told me years ago when I was in my 20's, " it is a lot easier to bartter with some one then it is to earn the money."  You can walk in to that store and maybe throw a reasonable figure out and see where it goes.  Remind the guy that their isn't that many single shot fans out there and he might be sitting on it for awhile.  If it don't go anywhere you can always come up depending how bad you want the gun.  JMHO 

[Slowpoke Slim]

You'll get many differing opinions on if it's "worth it" or not.

I would say unless it's pristine condition, and something collectible, he's too high by several hundred dollars. I'm only assuming that these are factory TC barrels and nothing special. Used TC pistol barrels in common calibers can be had for around $150 or less if you're patient. By my math, it should be more like 3 barrels at 150 each is 450, then 200-225 for the frame. No where near 900. We are talking some pretty common and available calibers here.

I would offer him $700 for the whole set. If he says "No", then walk away and never look back.

If you are patient you can put together a much better deal than that just by lurking on the TC classifieds on this and other websites. Frames come up for sale for $200-250 shipped all the time. Barrels come up for sale in the $150 shipped area all the time. They go really fast when listed though, so you have to be "on it" as soon as you see it. No diddling around. For frames, make sure they say "shipped", as bare frames have to be shipped as handguns. Handguns have to be shipped overnight or 2nd day. Most people aren't aware of that until they see the shipping bill. Shipping a handgun is always 2 to 3 times more expensive than shipping a rifle.

I would keep looking. I've bought 2 frames and several barrels off of this site alone for the prices I'm giving you.

It can be done.

[Iowa Fox]

In your search for a Contender look for a S/N above195,000 as that is where TC went to the easy open feature. Some barrels just work better than others, the recoil from a 10" 44 mag is brutal 14" is much better, a 10" 222 is a little short for that case a 14" is much better. A 35 Rem is not a fun round to shoot a lot in one sitting. Good Luck in your search, the deals are out there.

[Spokerider]

Go onto the "contender specific" sites and threads, view the *for sale* listings, study what the prices are, and then when you see a nice gun at a reasonable price you will know it.
*Worth* of an item is very subjective, and we all have our own opinions what something is worth. Some of us are willing to spend the extra $$ now, to buy what we want, others are content to search longer in hopes of saving the extra $$.......it comes down to what you want to do.
 
Look long and hard enough [ usually 2 weeks after you bought ] and you will always find a better deal!
 
 

[Ladobe]

As IF brought up, what vintage the Contender frame is (there is no such thing as a G1 Contender), it's condition, whether or not it's been reworked, etc lend to it's value and can be a wide difference between low and high.   Can run up to $300  now days for the best of them with them discontinued for so long now if somebody is willing to pay it.   Also as IF said, the easy open vintage where the best of them (except right at the very end with the few renewable breech block ones they made as QC didn't weed all the bad ones out).   Older vintage frames can be modified up to the easy open vintage, but for additional out of pocket, trigger jobs, entire frame tuned, etc.
 
The barrels if factory - vintage, configuration/length, condition, cartridge and current demand lend to value.   All the cartridges you listed have followers, how many depending on all those factors.   IOW some find 10" octagons in even the 44MAG unpleasant for example.  If any are custom that takes the value up.
 
What about furniture if included in the package?   Some factory furniture has higher value than others... custom far more.
 
You said scope "rails".   TC made some that were commonly called that, so are they TC rails or scope bases from who?  Rings?   
 
What scope?   Scopes depend on what they are exactly.   What you may consider a nothing scope may be to someone else for resale if you don't want it.   Same with barrels/furniture that can eventually lower your out of pocket by selling any that are unwanted.
 
And where in the country being sold retail FTF has some to do with pricing. 
Sometimes buying long distace means much lower prices, but shipping/transfer fees instead of local taxes may eat those savings up and then some.
 
And there is always the possibility a seller can be haggled down, often even more so for a package deal.
 
So IMO it's pretty hard to give any real values without more detailed information of everything in the package. 
 
As you've seen ball park guesses can vary by hundreds.  Nothing wrong with offering them, they are just going from experience of what they have done/seen done.  But they are still general assumptions without more info for them to work with to help you.
 
FWIW -YMMV
 
 
 
 

[rodgers]

Well I ended up buying it. I traded a Savage 93 .22 mag with bull barrel that I haven't used in forever and a few extra dollars. Ended up fanagling the price to something I was comfortable with. Here is a pic



That's the 35 rem barrel on it. It's a 14", the other two are 10". The 222 is a octagon barrel and the 44 mag is something a little different from what I have seen before.



It looks like its ported but then there is a extension for lack of a better word that isn't rifled but has straight grooves cut into it.

I am more than likely going to sell/trade the 35rem and 222rem barrels. They just aren't anything that I was really looking for. Now I just have to be on the lookout for a 17hmr, 22lr, 22mag, 223, 300blk, and maybe a 7.62x39 barrel. I don't have reloading equipment so it will be a while before I get into any wildcat loads. Just sticking to the ammo I already have a good stock of. Thanks again for the advice and information.

[Flash]

The 44 is a "Hot Shot" barrel. The removable choke acted to break the shot capsules and stop the spin. Just to clarify, there is no such thing as a G1 Contender. Some folks refer to the Ruger Vaquero as being an "Old Model" and "New Model" which is also untrue. If you look at the Blue Book of gun values, you won't find the G1 designation anywhere. That said, your octagon barrels are less expensive than the bull barrels but they still shoot fine. It looks as though you have an early frame too. Those barrels are going to multiply, guaranteed.

[Slowpoke Slim]

That's great! I'm glad you were able to strike a deal. I would shoot them before I got rid of them personally, you may find that you really like them. Especially that 222.

You will be hard pressed to find a 7.62x39 barrel out there for the Contender. A few have been made, but most (sane) folks will tell you it's too much for the Contender frame. If you know that going into the deal, and purposely handload light loads for it, you may cheat fate. But factory ammo would be a no-no, and you already said you don't (yet) handload.

The "Hotshot" 44 mag barrels are somewhat collectable, and your's looks nice, so you should be able to move that pretty easy if you decide you don't want it. Same for the 35 Rem barrel, on the should be able to move it part. The 35 Rem in the Contender pistol is a great hunting round, with a good following of fans. You can get right at the same ballistics from that 14" handgun barrel as you can a 20" bbl'd lever gun. I do have a 35 Rem bbl myself and it's a keeper as far as I'm concerned.

I would keep and shoot them all, and just add to the collection from there.

Enjoy.

[Ladobe]

Yep, that is a pre easy open frame, the furniture also early - the duck tail forend/grip not seen all that often anymore for sale or in pictures posted.   Looks to be in great condition, if you are happy with what it cost you then you paid the right price for it.
 
Agree with Chris, don't give up on the 35Rem barrel just yet, especially if you are a big game hunter.  IMO it can do up to elk, caribou even moose at reasonable ranges, and bear.   The 222Rem doesn't have the followers it once did, but it would be my choice over a 223Rem every time because I reloaded.  It will do better in the 10" than a 223, but both do even better in a 14" or longer.   The 44 HotShot adds limited use over a regular 44MAG.  I never cared for them myself, not even when TC first came out with all of them.  But I bought/tried some anyway, dumped them and never looked back.  Finding/buying capsules for it may be a rude reality check in availability and cost.  Capsules that you loaded yourself could improved them if you could get you hands on a bag of #12 shot and reloaded the cartridges yourself.
 
Those you listed you have interest in... the 17Hummer I'd get 14" or longer (19-20" is optimum); the 22RF a match chamber, 12" or longer is better than 10"; the 223 14" or longer; I don't have personal experience with the 300 Blackout, about the same as a 300 Whisper so I'd follow that guideline of those with way more experience with the 300's than I have.
 
While my list of cartridges that have been done on the Contender is over 250 different cartridges/wildcats, some of them are borderline, some are just plain foolhardy and a few cannot even be attempted without a beefed up frame.   Custom shops that chambered some of them have long since changed their ways, they will not anymore.   That'll get arguments, some folks do get by with them by loading down for them.  That's their choice.   But they have got into new hands many times without the warnings over the years and caused injury.   No thanks, not in my gun safe, way too many other choices that will do the same or better than them safely - without loading them down.
 
Have fun, start saving up for the large assortment of barrels/etc you will be buying for it.   It's not called Conterderitis without just cause.   
 
 

[gemihur]

Rodgers,
Welcome to the addiction! You are gonna love that contender. Don't be too hasty to discount those other two barrels, tho. A 35 rem and a 222 cover a wide spectrum of application.
I congratulate you on your selection. You've got a wonderful specimen from the 'early' years and a great 'beavertail' forend. It's great to have another among the ranks.
Thanks,
Jimmy
 

[Keith L]

Be sure to remove the choke before shooting regular bullets from your 44 Mag barrel.

Cool Contender!  Try all three barrels before deciding to sell any.  I really like my .222 (I have 2 of them) and the 35 is a great deer round.  All three have factory ammo available normally, but who knows at this goofy time.

[rodgers]

Thanks for all the great info guys. I am really excited to get out and try her out. I may end up keeping the barrels, i guess it never hurts to have a couple extra calibers to fall back on. I don't know about the .44 though as I already have a couple revolvers in that caliber. So it may be on the cutting block. I would like to try the 35 on some of the local whitetail next year and maybe even a couple hogs if i get the chance. They are biggest game we have here in southern middle TN. I guess now I get to sort through all the legal mumbo jumbo on pistol to rifle and so forth. I did for a second think about registering it as an SBR but I don't know how that would work with the interchangeable barrels. I know you register the receiver which would be the frame itself but do you not have to specify what caliber?Any way I'm just excited about getting it to the range.


One last question do most of you use EER scopes when hunting with a Contender handgun or do you use irons or a standard rifle scope? Just asking because I have a good many rifle scopes laying around and no experience with EER scopes.

[Ladobe]

When I had to register my frames, they were all done as handguns.   In use configured legal otherwise as either handguns or carbines legally nobody pays any attention to what they were first sold as - handgun or carbine.   LE wouldn't have a clue, including ATF unless confirmed with TC and they found the records for when first shipped out.  Configured as a handgun there is no maximum barrel length (though most go no longer the the Super 16's - 16.250"), as a carbine that meets ATF's minimun over all length (a Super 16 or longer barrel) you don't appear to breaking any law IOW.   That's the path I took and never had a problem doing so from when TC first offered carbines until I stopped shooting TC's a few years ago.  Few have shot them as much as I did on ranges and in the field hunting where so many LEO's and others paid no attention to them (other than the real handcannon Contenders that gets just about anybodies attention not familiar with them).   
 
Personally, I wouldn't put rifle scopes on any handgun, just my personal choice.   But some do.   What cartridge chambered for, barrel config/length (weight), and which scope have to be considered because of recoil.  Only one of your three barrels I'd consider it for is the 222.   Since you haven't learned the techniques yet for shooting a Contender, wearing the scope in your face at the shot is even more of a possibility for you right now.  The light weight/short 44MAG can be a beast to some folks, the 35Remy as well even with the longer barrel/more weight. 
 
FWIW -YMMV

[Slowpoke Slim]

All of my pistol barrels have scopes on them now. When I was younger, most of them wore open sights. Now, as age deteriorates my vision, I find it increasingly difficult to clearly see the front sight against a muddled background while hunting. Where as with a decent optical scope, I can pick up both the reticle and the animal quickly. Makes a difference to me as I don't have "all day" to figure out my sight picture on a moving animal.

As far as rifle or pistol scopes, all mine are pistol scoped. I only have one "candidate" that would be possible, and that's my 22 Hornet barrel. Even it wears a pistol scope. There are pictures around somewhere of a "taco hold" and using a rifle scope on a handgun, but to me that's a poor solution. In my opinion, you're better off with a pistol scope and learning a good hold/rest technique. Shooting a pistol accurately at distance is much harder than shooting a rifle at the same distance. Practice will be vital, and a decent scope on that 222 could give you a great practice tool for using that 35 Rem come deer and hog season. I would also consider getting a 22 rimfire barrel for the same reason, since you don't (yet) handload.

Again, welcome to the Contender! I hope you enjoy it as much as the rest of us do.