contender carbine barrels, need your help

[HarleyD]

i know some of you guys shoot a contender carbine, i need your opinion on the factory barrels , bullberry, virgin valley and fox ridge as to which shoot an which don't. i am kind of flying blind hrer after a 13 year absence from the contender world. some have already said the factory 17 hmr barrels are scrap. is this the norm or limited to thes chambering? have any of you shot the 23 inch hb in 45/70? just how bad does this chambering kick?
bobd

[skb2706]

If you are going to hunt with a carbine barrel and the standard 2" (possibly better) grouping at 100 yards suits your needs you will undoubtly be happy with the average TC factory/custom shop barrel. If on the other hand, you are like me and you want as good as it gets, mirror finished bore, straight and true and a real tack driver then any of several customs are the way to go. Kinda depends on what your goal is. I have a couple Bullberrys, a VVCG (with another on the way in April) and a rechamber being done by DW. Even looking at an Encore and a OTT project barrel in the future. They are all capable of shooting better than I..............
I also have and have had several factory barrels.......for their purposes they were more accurate than would have been needed.
factory barrels can run from $150 or so on ebay to over $230
custom barrels from VVCG, BB and some others run closer to $350-$450  and more for carbine length barrels

[HarleyD]

[Rupe/PA]

I have a mix of factory and custom barrels and they all shoot well.  I have two carbine barrels.  O ne is a 17 Mach IV by Bulberry and the other is a factory 7-30 Waters that I recently had rechambered to a 7 mm GNR.  Both carbine barrels give me consistenly sub-moa.  I for one have not had a bad experience with TC factory barrels.  My most recent factory barrels are a 270 Ren and a 375 Win.  Both are shooters.  I guess I have been lucky.

[Bullseye]

My two factory carbine barrels are a 223 for a Contender and a 25-06 for an Encore.  They will both shoot sub MOA anytime they are shot.

I have a 14" 17 HMR for my Contender and it is far from a scrap piece of metal.    I was shooting at a 3/4" dot last week and it held 10 shots inside the dot, I do believe that is sub MOA.

I have had over 15 factory barrels and I just have never seen this great quality problem that others do.  I have had one barrel that shot a pattern instead of a group, but I think those odds are there with any gun.

[Hawkeye]

I have one that is shooting three shot groups that are touching right now. It is factory and has been through the mill. It is scratched and some blue worn off but still shoots. The Prairie Dogs hate it. Just have to work with the loads until you hit on the one the barrel likes. My 21" likes about 1grn below max on the .223. Any more and it starts to open up. I wish I had my .30 Herret back.  :cry:
It was a 23" barrel made by someone in AZ but could never find a name on it. It was a tack driver but my buddy talked me out of his for his son.
Good luck on your venture with the Carbine barrels.

Mike

[Lefty Behind]

Willy,
I have owned several factory and custom carbine barrels, and in each case the factory barrel wouldn't shoot as well as the custom.  
I like both Bullberry and Virgin Valley.  
I have a factory 45/70 pistol barrel, no carbine in that cal.  It kicks.  But my does it do the job on deer.  I don't know how much a carbine 45/70 would kick, but I imagine it would be pretty stiff.
Also, I have a Bullberry 30 Herrett carbine barrel that I really enjoy.  My other carbines are 6mm BullberryImp., 25 Classic, and 219 Donaldson Wasp.  The only factory carbine barrel I use presently is a 223.
I don't think you can go too far wrong with any of the custom makers, but be aware that a Fox Ridge barrel is not actually a custom barrel.
                     Lefty