PROFILPELAJAR.COM

Thompson/Center Contender
Thompson/Center Contender
	Thompson/Center Contender pistol
Type	Break-action
Place of origin	United States
Production history
Designed	1967
Manufacturer	Thompson/Center
Produced	1967–2000
Specifications
Caliber	Various
Action	Single-action
Feed system	Single-shot
Sights	Various

The Thompson/Center Contender is a break-action single-shot pistol or rifle that was introduced in 1967 by Thompson/Center Arms. It can be chambered in cartridges from .17 Bumble Bee to .45-70 Government.

History

Warren Center, working in his basement shop in the 1960s, developed a unique, break-action, single-shot pistol. In 1965, Center joined the K.W. Thompson Tool Company and they introduced this design as the Thompson-Center Contender in 1967. Although they cost more than some hunting revolvers, the flexibility of being able to shoot multiple calibers by simply changing the barrel and sights and its higher accuracy made it popular with handgun hunters.^[1] As K.W. Thompson Tool began marketing Center's Contender pistol, the company name was changed to Thompson/Center Arms Company.^[2]

Originally the chamberings were on the low end of the recoil spectrum such as .22 LR, .22 WMR, .22 Hornet, .38 Special, and .22 Remington Jet, but as Magnum calibers took off in the 1970s, the Contender quickly became very popular with shooting enthusiasts.^[2]

Design

The most unusual feature of the Contender is how the barrel is attached to the frame. By removing the fore-end, a large hinge pin is exposed; by pushing this hinge pin out, the barrel can be removed. Since the sights and extractor remain attached to the barrel in the Contender design, the frame itself contains no cartridge-specific features. A barrel of another caliber or length can be installed and pinned in place, the fore-end replaced, and the pistol is ready to shoot with a different barrel and pre-aligned sights. This allowed easy changes of calibers, sights, and barrel lengths, with only a flat screwdriver being required for this change.^[2]

The Contender frame has two firing pins, and a selector on the exposed hammer, to allow the shooter to choose between rimfire or centerfire firing pins, or to select a safety position from which neither firing pin can strike a primer. The initial baseline design of the Contender had no central safe position on the hammer, having only centerfire and rimfire firing pin positions, each being selectable through using a screwdriver.

Three variants of the original Contender design were later developed, distinguished easily by the hammer design. The first variant has a push button selector on the hammer for choosing rimfire vs. centerfire, the second variant has a left-center-right toggle switch for selecting center fire-safe-rimfire firing pins, and the third variant has a horizontal bolt selection for choosing center fire-safe-rimfire firing pin positions. All three of these Contender variants have a cougar etched on the sides of the receiver, thereby easily distinguishing them from the later G2 Contender which has a smooth-sided receiver without an etched cougar. Some of the very earliest Contenders, those requiring a screwdriver to switch the firing pin between rimfire and centerfire, had smooth sides, without the cougar etched on the sides.^[3]

The original Contender designs have an adjustable trigger, allowing the shooter to change both take-up and overtravel, permitting user selection of a range of trigger pulls ranging from a fairly heavy trigger pull suitable for carrying the pistol while hunting to a "hair trigger" suitable for long range target shooting (see accurize).^[4]

Unlike the later G2 Contender, the original Contender may be safely dry-fired (provided the hammer is not drawn back from the second notch) to allow a shooter to become familiar with the trigger pull. The break-action only has to be cycled, while leaving the hammer in the second notch position, to practice dry-firing. G2's with switchable firing pins (centerfire or rimfire) can be safely dry-fired with the hammer only in the safety (center) position.^[5]

Barrels

Barrels have been made in lengths of 6, 8+3⁄4, 10, 12, 14, 16, 21 and 24 inches (150, 220, 250, 300, 360, 410, 530 and 610 mm).^[6] Heavier recoiling cartridge barrels have been made with integral muzzle brakes. Barrels for the original Contender may be used on the later-released G2 Contender and G2 barrels may be used on original Contender frames with a serial number greater than 195000.^[5]

The earliest barrels, from early 1967 to late 1967, were all octagonal with a flat bottom lug, and were available in only 10 and 8+3⁄4 inches (250 and 220 mm) lengths. The next group of barrels, from late 1967 to 1972, were available in 6, 8+3⁄4 and 10 inches (150, 220 and 250 mm) lengths. Later, round barrels were added in a wider variety of lengths, including 10, 12 and 14 inches (250, 300 and 360 mm). Likewise, round barrels in heavier (bull) barrel configurations, known as Super 14 pistol and Super 16 pistol barrels, respectively, were added. Carbine barrels in 16 and 21 in (410 and 530 mm) were added for the Contenders.^[7]

Sights on all the pistol barrels have varied, ranging from low iron sights, only, in the earlier years to a choice of either low or high iron sights, as well as no sights, for those pistol barrels intended for use with a scope. Various barrels have sometimes included ejectors as well as extractors, or extractors only, as well as containing either a flat bottom lug, a stepped bottom lug, or split bottom lugs. On barrels with an extractor only, about a quarter of the empty cartridge is extracted when the mechanism is opened.^[8] Barrels have been made available in either blued or stainless configurations, to match the finish available on Contender receivers.^[9]

Unlike most other firearm actions, the break-action design does not require the barrels to be specially fitted to an individual action. Any barrel, with the exception of a Herrett barrel, that is made for a Contender will fit onto any frame, allowing the shooter to purchase additional barrels in different calibers for a fraction of the cost of a complete firearm. Since the sights are mounted on the barrel, they remain sighted-in and zeroed between barrel changes.^[10]

Stocks

Pistol grips, butt stocks and fore-ends have been made available in stained walnut, or in recoil reducing composite materials. Different pistol fore-ends are required for the octagonal versus the round versus the bull barrels. The fore-ends have had an assortment of either one or two screw attachment points, used for attaching the fore-ends to the barrel with its matching one or two attachment points. Universally, the fore-ends, in addition to attaching to the barrel, cover the single hinge pin that connects the barrel to the receiver.

The wood stocks and forend are made specifically for Thompson Center by a sawmill in Kansas.^[2]

Calibers

Calibers available for the Contender were initially limited, stopping just short of the .308 Winchester-class rifle cartridges. However, almost any cartridge from .22 Long Rifle through .30-30 Winchester is acceptable, as long as a peak pressure of 48,000 CUP is not exceeded. This flexibility prompted a boom in the development of wildcat cartridges suitable for the Contender, such as the 7-30 Waters and .357 Herrett and the various TCU cartridges, most of which were commonly based on either the widely available .30-30 Winchester or .223 Remington cases. The largest factory caliber offered for the Contender was the .45-70, which, although a much larger case than the .308, is still feasible because of the relatively low cartridge pressures of the original black-powder round relative to the limits of the bolt face of the Contender receiver. Custom gunmakers have added to the selection, such as the J. D. Jones line of JDJ cartridges based on the .225 Winchester and .444 Marlin. Other barrel makers pushed beyond the limits the factory set, and chambered Contender barrels in lighter .308-class cartridges like the .243 Winchester. The Contender can fire .410 bore shotgun shells, either through the .45 Colt/.410 barrel or through a special 21-inch (530 mm) smoothbore shotgun barrel. A ported, rifled, .44 Magnum barrel was made available for use with shotshell cartridges in a removable-choke .44 Magnum barrel, with the choke being used to unspin the shot from the barrel rifling, or, by removing the choke, for use with standard .44 Magnum cartridges. The degree of flexibility provided by the Contender design is unique for experimenting with new cartridges, handloads, barrel lengths, and shotshells.^[2]

G2

The original Contender is now known as the generation one (G1) Contender and was replaced by the G2 Contender in 1998. The new design is dimensionally the same as the original Contender, but uses an Encore-style trigger group. Due to the changes in the trigger mechanism, and to differences in the angle of the grip relative to the boreline of the gun, the buttstocks and pistol grips are different between the G1 and G2 Contenders and will not interchange. The G2 uses essentially the same barrels and fore-ends as the original Contender and barrels will interchange, with the only two exceptions being the G2 muzzleloading barrels, which will only fit the G2 frame, and the Herrett barrels/fore-ends, which are specific for use only on a G1 frame.^[11]

Years of manufacture

Starting in 1967, the Contender was discontinued in 2000. The year of manufacture is determined by the serial numbers as follows:

Serial Number For Blue Contender
Year	January Thru June		July Thru December
1967	1001	2250
1968	2251	3060	3061	4330
1969	4331	7500	7501	11075
1970	11076	14501	14502	15360
1971	15361	16850	16851	17885
1972	17886	19800	19801	22400
1973	22401	24750	24751	27090
1974	27091	30100	30101	34500
1975	34501	38401	38402	47890
1976	47891	60670	60671	67875
1977	67876	74825	74826	80398
1978	80399	91872	91873	108344
1979	108345	133856	133857	153636
1980	153637	169090	169091	173516
1981	173517	181663	181664	196703
1982	196704	208412	208413	220806
1983	220807	227176	227177	234850
1984	234851	246791	246792	256525
1985	256526	265000	265001	273800
1986	273801	287000	287001	297200
1987	297201	310599	310600	317099
1988	317100	327999	328000	335200
1989	335201	351700	351701	357200
1990	357201	366900	366901	370677
1991	370678	382852	382853	386697
1992	386698	399679	399680	407884
1993	407885	411796	411797	418410
1994	418411	427890	427891	430597
1995	430598	435934	435935	438365
1996	438366	443306	443307	446201
1997	446202	446735	446736	450227
1998	450228	452512	452513	453321
1999	453322	455590	455591	456568
2000	456569

Serial Number For Stainless Contender
Year	January Thru June		July Thru December
1990
1991
1992
1993	S1100	S11666	S11667	S14723
1994	S14724	S18041	S18042	S23103
1995	S23104	S28044	S28045	S29610
1996	S29611	S33187	S33188	S36551
1997	S36552	S36908	S36909	S38434
1998	S38435	S40173	S40518	S40895
1999	S40896	S41922	S41923	S42280
2000	S42281

References

^ Van Zwoll, Wayne (2006). Hunter's Guide to Long-Range Shooting. Stackpole Books. p. 332.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Ayoob, Massad (29 May 2012). "Thompson Center Single Shots". Massad Ayoob's Greatest Handguns of the World. F+W Media. pp. 241–266. ISBN 978-1-4402-2877-3.
^ Stephens, Charles (1 July 1996). The Thompson/Center Contender Pistol: How to Tune, Time, Load, and Shoot for Accuracy. Boulder, Colorado: Paladin Press. pp. 14–18. ISBN 978-0-87364-885-1.
^ Rees, Clair (2003). The Ultimate Guide to Handgun Hunting: Tips and Tactics for Hunting Small and Big Game. Globe Pequot Press. p. 70. ISBN 978-1-58574-820-4.
^ ^a ^b Ramage, Ken; Sigler, Derrek (19 November 2008). Guns Illustrated 2009. Iola, Wisconsin: F+W Media, Inc. pp. 178–179. ISBN 978-0-89689-673-4.
^ Thompson Center Arms product pages created by EABCO Web Design Team. (n.d.). Thompson Center barrels and accessories. Thompson Center Arms at EABCO - TC Encore, Contender, G2, Barrels, Stocks, and Accessories. Retrieved February 25, 2023, from https://www.eabco.com/tcref.html
^ Taffin, John (13 November 2006). The Gun Digest Book of the .44. Iola, Wisconsin: Gun Digest Books. p. 221. ISBN 0-89689-416-9.
^ Savage Striker Our Pick Over Remington, T/C .22-250s - Gun Tests
^ Ramage, Ken (2 November 2006). Handguns 2007 - 19th Edition. Iola, Wisconsin: Gun Digest Books. p. 201. ISBN 1-4402-2676-8.
^ Sweeney, Patrick (28 February 2011). Gunsmithing: Shotguns: Shotguns. Iola, Wisconsin: Gun Digest Books. p. 463. ISBN 978-1-4402-2448-5.
^ Potts, Bruce (1 October 2008). "Thompson Center G2 Contender Rifle Review". Shooting Times. 2008 (10).