I hunt with one of the old continders in a 243 cal. It has a 12 inch barrell and groups very well at 100 yards. The longest kill with it was this past deer season and my son shot his buck @ 160 yards with it. You can also get the carbine barells for the continder that are 14 and 16 inchs long.

Thank you Todd. Sounds like the .243 has enough power even though coming out of a very short barrel to kill a buck at 160 yards. Did it have sufficient knock-down power at 160 yards, or did you have to track the buck for a distance?

Hunt Hard. Fish Smart. Explore Texas.

I have been hunting with Contender for about 10 years but I don't have 308 or 270 .The 308,270 AND 243 are not chambered in Contenders,Encore only.There are alot of barrels for the Contender including custom barrels there must be over 100 or calibers.I have a couple of frames and 18 calibers ( I think).

22 hornet,223 rem,6mm x 30-30 AI,6.5tcu,7mm supermag,7-30 waters,30 herrett,30-30 win (two,10" & 14"),357 mag,357 maximum,357-44 B&D,357 herrett,35 rem,375 win,375 JDJ,44 mag,44 supermag,45 win mag,45-70 .

the 7-30 waters is hard to beat for deer out to 200 yards or so.There are alot of custom shops that will make anything that stays within chamber pressures of the Contender.If you want the bigger rounds go to Encore.

"you skin griz pilgrim"

That brings up a great point. What do you recommend as the best handgun load for whitetail deer hunting out to 200 yards - usually at 100 yards or less.

Hunt Hard. Fish Smart. Explore Texas.

Thats a tough question.If buying a factory barrel the 30-30 and 7-30 waters are hard to beat.I have taken deer at 150 yards with the 30-30,7-30 and the 35 rem.The custom barrels open up a lot of options.The 309 JDJ will nearly match the 308 win out of a 14" barrel.I guess if I had to pick one factory barrel for that range the 30-30 would be it.If you asked someone else that hunted with the Contender you would get many different answers.

"you skin griz pilgrim"