A "New" Used Contender - is this working correctly

[SandWedge]

Hi:

I just joined the club with the purchase of a used AA Contender with a Super 14 barrel in .44 mag.  

It did not come with an owners manual so I sent off a letter to TC asking for one of the appropriate vintage.  Since TC does not respond to emails, I figure this will take a while.  But while I'm waiting for my manual to arrive, I had a few questions on safe usage of the Contender -

When I open the action and then close it, the hammer moves to a "half-cocked" position about 1/8" back from where it normally rests against the firing pins.  From this position though, if I squeeze the trigger, the hammer falls and hits the firing pin though with little force.  Is this normal?  It seems a bit unsafe.  

Does the firing pin selector act as the safety?  By moving the selector into the middle position, it covers the red dot.  But I do notice that the face of the frame where the hammer strikes has been peened by the firing pin selector being put in the middle position.  The selector knob sticks out a bit in front of the hammer in this position and thus contacts the frame.  Is this normal?

The front of the frame has been slightly peened from opening the action.  The barrel slightly contacts the frame at the fully open position.  Is this anything to worry about?  

TIA,

SandWedge

[Flash]

All what you said is correct. The half cock position you're concerned about is normal. You'll find that the breach has to be reopened to reset this after pulling the trigger with the hammer down. The center position of the selector is indeed a safety and yes, the breach opens with the barrel resting against the flat on the frame front. The Armour Alloy frames are different than the Blue and Stainless Steel. The plating is so thick that the hinge pin hole is of a smaller diameter than the other two styles of Contenders. To alleviate this, T/C never reworked the holes but instead, made smaller hinge pins which are sloppy in the Stainless and Blue barrels and frames. Your frame hinge pin hole can be opened up and so can the hole on the 44 Mag but you'll destroy it's collector value. These were only made for three years and are getting harder to come by since alot of the barrels were modified to accept the larger hinge pin. It's your choice but I would personally use the 44 as is and get ready for an addiction to Contenders. Since you'll be buying more down the road, I wouldn't modify the Armour Alloy.

[BCB]

"When I open the action and then close it, the hammer moves to a "half-cocked" position about 1/8" back from where it normally rests against the firing pins. From this position though, if I squeeze the trigger, the hammer falls and hits the firing pin though with little force. Is this normal? It seems a bit unsafe."

SandWedge,

The hammer SHOULD NOT CONTACT THE FIRING PIN if you pull the trigger with the hammer in the "half-cocked" position. At least this is true with the blued Contenders.  Something isn't correct about that.  That weapon will discharge with a bump to the hammer after it comes in contact with the firing pin...BE CAREFUL and good-luck with your Contender...BCB

[PDM1]

Sandwedge, I have a few frames both blued and stainless and what you describe is normal.  As long as you have a barrel on the frame, the safety bar will drop and the hammer even from half cock will hit the firing pin as a light strike.  I use mine in silhouette and have made the mistake of getting ready to fire but not bringing the hammer all the way back, then squezing the trigger only to get a light primer hit.  While not an expert, I am very familiar with the inner workings of a contender frame.  When you open the frame the striker gets reset into the trigger and the hammer moves to half cocked.  When you move the hammer to full cocked position, nothing else happens outside of a the next notch in the hammer gets locked into the sear.

To try to simplify this, this is what happens when you pull the trigger:  Pulling the trigger releases the striker, the striker hits the sear which causes 2 reactions.  The first one is as long as a barrel is in place and the locking lugs are engaged, the safety bar drops.  (This is the bar in front of the hammer that drops out of the way, it is not a transfer bar)  The second reaction is the sear releases the hammer.  The reaction is the same whether the hammer is half cocked or full cocked.

I hope this explanation helps you.  While the contender is unique compared to how other guns work, once you take them apart enough you figure them out.

Paul

[SandWedge]

Thank you for the replies.  I just received the user's manual from TC.  Unbelievably responsive customer service!  I see many purchases in my future...

To quote the manual -  "When the Contender action is broken open properly,..., the hammer block moves up into a position between the hammer and the frame.  In this position the hammer cannot move forward. ... The hammer block will remain in the up (safety) position until trigger-striker engagement is released."

I'm assuming the trigger-striker engagement being released means squeezing the trigger.  Further in the manual there are instructions for dry firing the Contender - "...simply open and close the action as explained previously.  Leave the hammer in its uncocked position and squeeze the trigger.  This will release the striker..."   This last section does describe the behavior that I was trying to relate in my previous post and as described by PDM1 as a "light strike".  

Great forum and thanks for the assistance.

SandWedge

[BCB]

That is interesting!  I just checked my frame (Mid-80’ vintage) again this morning.  When I break the action and then close it, the hammer is approximately 1/8 inch from the frame.  If I then pull the trigger, there is a “click” noise and the hammer DOES NOT MOVE ANY AT ALL.  From this situation, the hammer can not be placed in full cock position.  And if it is pulled back to full cock position, there is another “click” and the hammer WILL NOT LOCK IN PLACE.  The hammer then moves forward and does contact the firing pin.  From this position, THE WEAPON WILL FIRE, if the hammer is hit or it is pulled back partially and dropped.  I know this because I tried it years ago.  I placed a sized and primed only case in the chamber and had the Contender clamped in a vise.  I placed a wood block on the hammer and hit it lightly with another block.  Bang, the primer was struck and fired.  I also tried this by pulling the hammer back part way and dropping it.  Bang, the primer was struck and fired.

It would be interesting to see how other people’s Contender’s act when they are dry fired.  Does the hammer move to contact the firing pin or does it remain in place and not move at all.  Maybe certain years act differently?  Maybe some people will try the dry firing and post if the hammer movers or stays in place.  Post the year the frame was manufactured also.  If mine isn’t correct, it has been broken since the day it was removed from the box—I purchased it NEW…BCB

[SandWedge]

Hmmm...  BCB, what you are describing is how I expected my frame to behave.  I was suprised that it didn't (and hence my post).  I don't have any experience on a Contender, I was just going on what I thought would be "safest".

My Contender, being an Armour Alloy, is from the mid-80's too.  

Thanks,

SandWedge

[BCB]

SandWedge,
I had hoped that more people would respond, but they didn’t.  I checked two other Contenders (all blued frames--if this matters) on Thanksgiving and they act the same as mine.  After the action is opened and then closed, the hammer is 1/8” from the frame.  Pull the trigger then, and one hears a “click”—the hammer DOES NOT MOVE.  If slight pressure is placed on the hammer to pull it backward toward the cocked position, another “click” is heard.  The hammer will then move forward and rest on the firing pin.  In this position, the weapon will ABSOLUTELY discharge if the hammer is pulled back slightly and left fall forward or if the hammer is bumped hard enough to allow the pin to strike the primer with enough force to cause ignition.  I tryed both methods with a PRIMED ONLY case and both caused the primer to fire.  It remains my opinion the hammer should not rest again the firing pin—ever.  Be careful, and good-luck…BCB