Bought an Contender HM2 carbine barrel last week. Scoped with a Burris 4-12X Compact scope that was on another carbine barrel. Tried it out today. Recoil was brutal!

After the sight-in was complete, shot a couple of groups for my records. First group was 0.6" at a distance of 59 yds & the second was 0.4" at 59 yds. No, I didn't do any stinking break-in. Will clean it when I get back to where the cleaning supplies are stored.

There are some ground squirrels that are in serious trouble. Now I have to decide whether to leave the length at 23" or cut and recrown it to 18". I prefer 18" carbine barrels both for balance and appearance. We'll see what happens. It is possible that the cut and recrown could decrease the accuracy. What would you prefer in a 5 lb carbine 23" barrel or 18 " barrel?

With a square lathe cut and a good target crown there is no reason to expect anything but accuracy at least as good as the factory job. If you have one of those TC quickie square cut, flat, muzzles you might see better accuracy with a good target crown.

With the HM2 I doubt that anything over 18 inches is usable. If you run her over a crono at 23" and then over again at 18" I would think you might very well see an increase in velocity.

Watch that recoil, cutting the barrel off will only make it worse......

Good luck.
Ed

I have worked with Contender carbines since the first batch of carbine length barrels came out from TC.
I have/have had lengths and profiles that range from 10" handgun to 26" full bull carbine. If it were me I would keep it 23" full bull...for balance.
My 16 1/2" full bull barrel in .221 FB is difficult and very touchy to shoot accurately because it lacks forward weight.
My 2 .204 Rugers in 23" full bull are far better balanced for me and much easier to shoot accurately.
I am suggesting that before you cut that you find someone who will let you try that length first....JMO

i have a 17 1/2" 270 barrel that i love.i too like short barrels,but actually this is a long barrel because its set up as a pistol...cut it you will have a shorter lighter gun and you lose nothing noticable as far as velocityjmo
jim

con10der, skb2706 & swampfox,

Thanks for your comments and suggestions. It's good to get feedback from Contender shooters who have experience with the quirks of the weapon.

Swampfox, there will be a decrease in velocity. It's about 3 fps per inch, based on the difference in velocity between the 14" barrel and the 23" inch barrels. I am well aware of the fierce recoil generated by the 17 calibers. But, thanks for the reminder.

skb2706, you have good suggestions and a lot of experience. But, in my circle of shooting friends I seem to be the only one shooting the TC carbine with a short barrel. The half dozen barrels in the closet that are 16.5" to 18.5" in length work well for me. I even manage a few standing squirrel shots out to about a hundred yards. Those standing shots make my day.

con10der, cut it I will. 270 with a 17.5" barrel, that's a little noisy, isn't it?? :D

What HM2 means?

.17 Hornady Mach 2

Thanks Bushmaster......"The recoil was brutal".....fallacious. It is only mouse gun. 16" barrel is enough.

I had a Ruger 10/22 that I converted over to a 17hm2. I wasn't impressed with it. It grouped ok at 25 yards, but was like a scattergun at 125. I do have a ruger 77/17 that I have no problem shooting out the bullseye of a target at 150 yards. The 17hm2 conversion came from E Arthur Brown & Co. For the $180 I spent on it, I wasn't impressed. But that's just my 2 cents. I agree with SwampFox.....there is no need for anything over 18inches. Wasted weight that you don't need to carry.

K.W. wrote:

Thanks Bushmaster......"The recoil was brutal".....fallacious. It is only mouse gun. 16" barrel is enough.

I beleive you would need a 16 1/4 inch barrel to legally make it a rifle.

codybrown wrote:

I beleive you would need a 16 1/4 inch barrel to legally make it a rifle.

Sixteen inches is the law; the extra 1/4 inch is for insurance. You wouldn't want an FBI sniper to shoot your wife while she was holding your baby because he couldn't read a ruler.

Yep, 16" minimum barrel length and 26" minimum overall length to be legal in US, unless you pay the $200 tax for a short barrel rifle.

FALPhil wrote:

codybrown wrote: I beleive you would need a 16 1/4 inch barrel to legally make it a rifle. Sixteen inches is the law; the extra 1/4 inch is for insurance. You wouldn't want an FBI sniper to shoot your wife while she was holding your baby because he couldn't read a ruler.

Not when he might have so many other good reasons? sorry, couldn't resist.