First Contender

[Maryland Hunter]

I picked up my first Contender, a used one, at a local gun shop the other night. It is in excellent shape, and came with two barrels, a .44 mag and a .357 Herrett. I looked up the serial # and it was made in 1982. Paid $299 for it all. I've been back and forth about wanting one through the years, but this price sounded pretty good to me, so I jumped on it. I'll probably sell the Herrett barrel, as the case forming and such is a bit too time consuming for me right now. Thinking of a .44 Mag, and the blackpowder barrell has me pretty interested too.
Did I do good on the price, and any particulars that I should look for on this gun from this date of manufacture?
 
MH

[Curtis]

M H, I actually own (four) and prefer frames from around the time yours was made.  You may read of lockup issues with barrels of different vintage on newer frames, but I've never had an issue with any of my 18 or so barrels with those older frames.  That includes early barrels with a solid locking bolt that will generally not work in an "easy open" or newer frame.
 
As far as the deal, you did darn good.  In fact despite already having a 357 Herrett and two 44 mag barrels I STILL would have snatched it up had I run across the same deal.  On the Herrett, you are right about the case forming being a pain, but if you have trouble moving the barrel just keep it for when you are finally in the mood.  Once you've got your 100 rounds or so made you won't have to do it again for a while.  My 10" 357 Herrett is one of my favorites to shoot and hunt with.  There are days when I'm just not in the mood for the recoil of the 44, but even though the Herrett is only a tad lighter it seems to cross back into the threshold of "fun" for me even on those days.
 
Congratulations and good luck!  Now start buying more barrels!!
 
Curtis
 
P.S.  Forgot to mention that the new black powder barrels are made for the G2 Contender only.  There was a manufacturer making them for older Contenders a long time ago (Gonic?) but they are long discontinued and hard to find on the used market.

[dave29]

You done good!

 

[mbopp]

You did well, Grasshopper.


I have a 14" 357 Herrett barrel. Once the cases are formed and trimmed it's no different than any other bottleneck cartridge to reload. I bought a Lyman "M" die to flare the case mouth and shoot cast pistol bullets for cheap practice.

[Maryland Hunter]

Thank you all for the kind words and advice. I'm glad that you agree that I got a good deal. I usually show up a day after a good deal goes out the door, so I'm pleased that I was finally able to catch one! 
MH
 
 

[Curtis]

I paid $200 for my first Contender but that was in 1989 dollars!  The best I've done since then was a complete Contender in 44 mag for $250 about eight or nine years ago.  I considered that a great deal, yours is even better!  Basically you paid about right for two used barrels and got the frame, grip and forend thrown in for free.
 
Curtis

[Ladobe]

As an idea of how well you bought, especially if all are in good condition...
 
Over the last few years I sold my last 20 Easy Open frames (the vintage yours is)... all in excellent condition, all tuned by Jim Henry to include excellent light triggers, and all for between $250-$325 each for the frames alone.
 
So you did very well... the value of your frame alone is close to 85-90% of what you paid (even without Jim's magic touch), so the barrels were almost free gifts.
 
Great buy, but its going to cost you big down the road in adding barrels, etc.   
 
 

[Hopalong7]

      Welcome to the wonderful world of Contenders .  Great deal, as you've already heard, and as Larry said, it'll cost you more...later...but I'm bettin' you'll love it.  I've been looking around for a deal on another frame or two and all I've found 'round here for a frame is the price you paid for the whole deal....good going.   BTW for my 2 cents worth...I wouldn,t trade the Herret for a sack full of 44's ....and that's the truff!   ENJOY!!
Walt

[Maryland Hunter]

After having given thought to past purchases, I guess I have come across some good deals. It seems as though we only remember the one's that we missed, though. I guess I am probably about even now.
I re-read my first post and realized that I made a mistake. It was the .357 Herrett and a .41 mag barrel that I got. It's the .44 that I'm thinking of getting. A friend made me a good offer for the .41 barrel, though I'd rather keep it than the Herrett.
I'm curious on the popularity of the .357 Herrett here. From what I've seen, besides the case forming and such (which does sound interesting if I had the time), the dies that I have seen for it are pretty expensive. It seems, to me at least, that the .35 Remington would offer me the same basic performance, but more available components, recipes, etc. Any thoughts on that?

[Keith L]

I had to prune out an offer to buy from and earlier post.  357 Herrett is a popular and efficient round in a Contender.  If you choose to sell it please do not try it here on the discussion forum.  GBO Classified forums are free and that is the place for a classified discussion.

[Curtis]

It was the .357 Herrett and a .41 mag barrel that I got. It's the .44 that I'm thinking of getting.

That is what I was thinking you meant after reading your post.  Of course there is nothing wrong with owning multiple barrels in a caliber, especially the esteemed 44! 
 
I've never owned a 35 Remington, but the rimless rounds that I have cause me to like rimmed cartridges better (all other things being equal).  The extractor for rimless rounds is different and doesn't want to let go of the spent case as easily.  That fact combined with less of the cartridge to grab tend to make extracting a case less handy than rimmed cases.  In a hunting situation with gloves and/or cold weather this could be a factor.  Others may not consider this a problem.  I just like the rimmed cases better is all.
 
I would imagine that the 35 Rem would push heavier bullets better than the 357 Herrett.  It would also need a longer tube (14") to realize its full potential.  With 180 grain bullets in a 10" tube (which I prefer over the longer ones) the Herrett absolutely shines.  That is what it was developed for.
 
The same can be said for the 30 Herrett when compared to the 30-30 Winchester.  In a 10" barrel with 130 grain bullets, the smaller more efficient Herrett will actually beat the 30-30 in velocity.  Try to push heavier bullets, or give the 30-30 a longer tube to work it's magic and it will begin to gain on the smaller Herrett again.  Nothing is always as it seems with rifle cartridges in pistol barrels.
 
Curtis
 
P.S.  Forgot to mention:  I am of the opinion that any Contender owner's collection is incomplete without a few of the "classic Contender rounds" like any of the Herretts or T/CU cartridges.  You know what they say about opinions though! 

[Maryland Hunter]

I had to prune out an offer to buy from and earlier post.  357 Herrett is a popular and efficient round in a Contender.  If you choose to sell it please do not try it here on the discussion forum.  GBO Classified forums are free and that is the place for a classified discussion.

Keith,
I hope that nothing I said came across as a sale or offer of one. My apologies if it seemed that way.
 
MH

[Keith L]

I didn't see it as such, but at least one person has.  I have to be careful to route classified discussions to those forums.