What is a Hot Shot barrel? A Hot Shot barrel is a barrel designed to shoot revolver shot loads, which were very popular with handgun shooters back in the 70s and well into the 80s. Instead of a bullet, then, you were shooting a load of shot, something akin to a mini shotgun. Hot shot barrels were rifled, not smoothbore, to keep things legal and also to allow the shooter to shoot regular revolver loads as well as shot loads.
Where the Contender hot shot barrels improved on shooting hot shot loads out of a revolver was a detachable shot tube. The shot tube had rifling, too, but the the rifling was straight with no twist. The function of the shot tube was not to provide a choke, but to reduce the spin of the shot charge via its straight rifling. Spinning of a shot charge via rifling twist is a pattern killer. The tubes helped improve patterns. Here's a pic of the same gun with an un-scoped 44 mag Hot Shot barrel. Note the porting on the sleeve where the shot tube attaches. The porting also helps with patterns and also reduces muzzle flip.
Note that when shooting a Hot Shot barrel, it is imperative to remove the shot tube when firing regular ammo. A solid bullet encountering a radical change in rifle twist as it travels down the barrel produces some very nasty recoil! Not fun.
To be honest, the reason I grabbed this Contender rig, this week, was that I had an itch to shoot 45 Colt (RR is to blame for this, by the way
) and this is currently my only gun in 45 Colt. Hope to change that soon, but no complaints at all about shooting 45 Colt in a Contender, none at all. Here's a target with those nice big 45 cal holes that includes a few tweaks of the scope to pull shots to the center. Ammo was fairly traditional 45 Colt 250 grain RNL ammo rated at 875 fps, so. Not Ruger only loads (and the Contender is rated for those kinds of loads), by any means, but a bit more oomph than cowboy loads. Recoil was there, but by no means a factor when shooting this Contender. 
Note that this barrel is NOT chambered to take 410 shotshells as many Contender barrels were, both from the factory and by owners who reamed standard 45 Colt barrels to take 410 shells. The problem with shooting 45 Colt in a barrel chambered for the longer 410 shotshells is that long bullet jump before the bullet hits rifling. 45 Colt accuracy, then, in a 45/410 barrel tends to be mediocre at best. These 45/410 barrels are better used for shooting 410 shells instead of 45 Colt.
Have to say, it was a treat to be shooting the 45 Colt in a handgun, again, especially in such an accurate gun as the Contender. Time for this gal to add another 45 Colt gun to the collection, or two ... or maybe ...
