Henry Rifle Forums

We finally got out for a range visit today, mostly to just enjoy shooting, but also for me to get some guns sighted in wearing new scopes. Pleased to day that we had a great time and great weather, other than bit of a breeze.

I also managed a near dream group with one of the 22s. Could have been a wall hanger for sure, except for one shot. Can't say I pulled it as much as I could have used a bit more magnification. 50 yard group, though, using CCI SV. Four shots in a group of less than a third of an inch at 50 yards, with 5 shots still well under an inch.


So what rifle was this, you ask? Not many 22 rifles can do this, of course. Well, It wasn't a rifle, it was a handgun. The group wasn't a surprise, either. This handgun has done groups like this before.


And here it is.


It's a TC Contender wearing a 10" 22 LR Match barrel with a 3x Burris AO target scope. Custom wood on this one, too. At 50 yards, the reticle almost covered the orange dot, but left me just smidge of orange that I could still see. Great scope, though. This Burris will stay on this Contender barrel.

I also shot a newly acquired 22 revolver. Showed a lot of promise, but I'll need to scoop it or red dot it to really do a full blown accuracy test. These old eyes ain't what they used too be.

Nice shooting NCG and those grips look really good. No surprise from a contender either they were always very accurate

Nice shooting, as expected.

I always wanted a Contender, just never pulled the trigger. (Pun intended.)
I swung between a heavy barreled 22 and the 38/357 and both got picked up by other shooters. Then I got into various match formats that required all my free assets.

Very nice shooting NCG. I also like the looks of that Contender and it's wood. Super cool.

daytime dave wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 11, 2024 8:50 am

Very nice shooting NCG. I also like the looks of that Contender and it's wood. Super cool.

Exactly my thoughts.

Thanks, guys. Just thought I'd do a post to demonstrate why specialty pistols such as the Contender really are in a class of their own and very different from conventional handguns. Of course, I love my revolvers and autos and enjoy them, too, but the specialty pistols are my refuge when I get frustrated with the conventional stuff. The no hassle simplicity of single shot pistols and superb accuracy is very addictive.

Speaking of TC, don't know if you've been following the news about TC being bought back from S&W and moving back to Rochester, NH. Looking good about the prospects of the Encore (the Contender's big brother) being resurrected and put back on the market. I shoot the Encore, too, of course and use it for anything with a lot of recoil. Does a better job for the heavy kicking stuff.

That leaves my Contenders for the lighter, more pleasant shooting duties and we now have a nice collection of frames and barrels.

Back to posting about revolvers and autos, soon.

Good looking Contender shooting a good looking group. It’s not just the gun ya know….

True, it's not just the gun. Thanks.

Speaking of which, yes, it does take experience and a different technique to shoot specialty pistols in a way that gets you all that potential accuracy. They are quite unlike any other kind of gun, either handgun or rifle. I have helped a couple of local shooters new to these with grip technique, how to properly rest them, recoil management with the heavy kickers and so on. They are also a world of their own as far as how you shoot them.