I am considering the purchase of the T/C G2 Contender. The intended purpose is as a deer/hog tool out to pistol ranges(0-100 yds).
As all of them could be used, I am wanting your opinions on which one and why you would pick it.
Let me say that; I reload and have considered hot loading the 30-30 with polymer tipped 165gr bullets. The .44 could be shot w/ .44 special or .44 mag " squib" loads.
The 7.62x39 bbl. can be had in the standard .310/.311 bore or .308 bore. So if your choice is this caliber, then which bore? Again if I handload the .308 is not a problem, but if you want to shoot inexpensive surplus ammo out of the .308 bore you could develop pressure problems or at the very least have lousy accruacy(and quicly polish the lands and grooves). The .308 gives you lots of options as far as bullet selection, which again I could do in the 30-30, however most .308 bullets are designed for higher velocities that the 30-30 or the 7.62x39 can produce safely.

Do you understand my quandary?

Them if you throw the .300 Whisper into the mix...now you really have to make some decisions!!!

Thanks to everyone for their opinions!

I like the larger, heavier bullets used by the 44mag for use on hogs. Works great on deer also. If your contender is to be primarily a deer gun then I would lean toward the 30-30. If using the 30-30 on hogs then load a heavier bullet.

I would pick the 30-30 but the 44mag is not a bad choice. In fact, alot of 44mag fans would probably pick it first.

Give the 35 Rem a look. It' s an excellent short range round for both deer and hogs. Many people feel that it is superior to the 30-30 because of it' s large heavy bullets.

I' m not a fan of the 7.62x39 although, in terms of performance, it' s almost the same as the 30-30.

Thanks Popeye,
Ok you understand the problem...but don ' t vaselate...just pick one.
What if I loaded 200gr. bullets into the 30-30 or the 7.62x39? They may not expand reliably, unless I could get velocity up.
There is no really cheap .44 ammo and the volume of the cases use a lot of powder.
The .300 Whisper would also work on both animals loaded with different bullets.

OH, What to do???

I' d take the 30-30. With the right handloads you' ll be close to factory loads in the the short barrel lever guns. Bullet expansion shouldn' t be a problem.

how about the 35rem? best of both worlds

I have had my 35 Rem for 15 years now. It will out perform all of the above by a pretty good margin. My 14 1nch barrel will push the 200 grain SP to 2000 fps.

I had not considered the .35rem...am I overlooking something?
If the performance of the .35 rem is good enough for deer and hogs, how will it do on black bears? or is that asking too much?

I used to load the 30-30 for my contender. It has the 16" barrel. I used the 150 gr Nosler balistic tips. Got good velocity and groups were very good. Trouble was the bullet didn' t perform well on deer. Tried loading corelock bullet in 150 gr as well. Didn' t like the performance either. I load those same bullets for my 22" barreled .308 and they do great on deer.
What I really liked for a contender barrel is the 45-70 16" w/porting. It is a hog and it is great on deer out to 150 yds.

at least the 45-70 is a standard barrel and does not have to ordered from the " custom shop"
And it would be good medicine for bear![X(]

the 35rem is a great black bear round. my buddy has taken several using the 200gr. R.N. S.P' s.