North Carolina handgun hunt turned into a rifle hunt.

[bigbore442001]

Hello All:

It has been a while since I posted a short story but here it goes. I am open to all critiques and suggestions after reading this.
I have been in a deer hunting slump for almost nine years. I decided that I needed to do an out of state handgun hunt to break the curse. I recall meeting some people who run an outfitting-guide service in Eastern North Carolina. I called them up and arranged a deer hunt for five days for whitetail deer.

My choice of guns were my TC Contender with a Super 16 inch 44 magnum barrel and a Smith and Wesson PC Hunter in 44 magnum.
My original choice was my Super 16 in 4570 but something bad happened. I could not sight it properly and I believed I had blown the 2x Burris on the gun. I recall one shot being off so I made 2 clicks for a 50 yard sight in. Needless to say the shot went 8 to 10 inches to the left. I realized that something was very wrong. Also, the Super 16 4570 would “lock up” on my Armor Alloy frame for some reason.

So I switched to the 44 magnum barrel. It shot well at 100 yards and I felt confident.

The drive down to the place from Massachusetts took about 11 hours since I went through the Delmarva Peninsula.
I arrived at camp late Sunday afternoon. I got my things set up at the bunkhouse. I met other hunters. Two couples from Massachusetts and a gentleman from Pennsylvania.

Monday was a no deer day. I then chatted with the guides and made a discovery. I had treated all of my clothes with permethrin tick killer. They said deer can smell it a mile away. So that night I double washed all of my clothes in hunting detergent and baking soda.

Tuesday was a good but bittersweet day. I shot at a nice fork horn at 100 yards. I was seated in a box blind made from a porta potty. It was a bit different but I did like it in a way. The first shot scared the deer and he turned towards me. I knew that this gun could shoot nice 2-3 groups at 100 or better. I put the crosshairs on the chest for a frontal shot. Bang. The deer’s hind end jumped up and he took off to the right side of me.

The guides came by and we found at first a good blood trail but then it petered out. Needless to say I was upset.

That afternoon I did some benchrest shooting. No wonder. The gun was shooting horribly at 100 yards. Why all of a sudden it goes to blazes? The groups would shift all over the place. One or two nice shots then off by a foot! Did the 3x Burris on the 44 blow up?

Fortunately a retired police officer in camp let me borrow his Tikka bolt action rifle for the rest of the week. It was chambered in 6.5x55 Swede which was hand loaded with a 130 grain Speer HP at 2900 fps.

I missed Wednesday AM and I will admit it was a combination of buck fever and using a gun that did not quite fit me out of a box blind. Shooting from the “porta potty” is a challenge. I was thinking that an XP-100 or TC Contender-Encore with a flat forend would be ideal for such a set up.

Thursday AM I saw a nice doe at 120 yards. I was able to calm down and take the shot. A nice solid hit. The doe ran about 40 yards and spiraled into the ground. Later upon dressing it out I could not believe the damage that 6.5 did. It sheared the top half of the heart and did a lot of damage to the area where it was hit. That got me thinking about the future.

Friday was a no deer day. Hunted but not deer seen.

Again I have to thank Steve for letting me borrow his rifle. I was very happy to break my deer curse and I learned a few things from the guides who have shot more deer than I have seen.

Now for your input, please.

What happened to my TC Contender? - Did I blow the scope? Is the frame “stretched” and now groups horribly?

Today I plan to take the Armor Alloy frame and a new G2 frame to the range. I put on a 2-7 Burris on the 44 barrel and I will do some test firing to see what happened. I may take the 3x Burris and put it on to see if it is the frame.

I plan to go again next year. I should have taken four deer with my gun but due to my error I blew some opportunities. So I want to do something different. A new TC barrel for either a G2 or Encore that would be good for 200 yard shots. I am thinking of getting a good trigger/action job for both G2 and Encore frames. Then get a long range barrel for either one.

Much more practice. I have some lumber at the house and I intend to construct what I will label” the Southern Box Blind Shooting Rest” . I want to construct a rectangular frame with an opening 24 inches wide and about 10 inches high. I want to be able to thread a needle, so to speak, through this while at the range. That way when I go again I will be able to fill the freezer( I hope)

I am more inclined to the G2 due to the size. I like what that 6.5 bullet did to the doe. I was impressed. So I am thinking about something along the lines of a 6.5 or 7mm barrel. A nice 14-15 inch length with a good Burris or Leupold scope for future deer hunts.

What would your pick be?

[pleadthe2nd]

Leopold, I've also had problems with a Burris 2x scope on my 41magnum super blackhawk hunter, won't hold zero, needless to say it is no longer in use. My 2x Leopold has not let me down.

[contender]

Well, from this WNC hillbilly, AND a regular user of T/C Contenders,, I too question the scope. Burris is a good quality scope,, and it's a bit unusual to have them fail. You didn't mention the loads,, so I wonder about that being part of the POTENTIAL reason the scope may fail. BUT,, I'd double check the mounts before blaming the scope. Sometimes the simplest answer is THE answer.

I use a Contender in 7x30 waters for deer a lot. Deadly accurate & actually a bit "overkill" in the power range. But having to thread the needle through brush, tree limbs etc,, I prefer the little extra it offers. I just took a doe this past week with my 7x30,, and had to thread the shot through some brush. I had a short section of neck, in an opening. It was a little further back than what I would have preferred, but the doe was heading into a thicker place & all I had. I hit the neck & she dropped DRT. Our NC deer are not "superdeer" and a .44 mag, a .41 mag, a .357 Maxi, a .45 Colt etc ALL are excellent choices. If you prefer the rifle calibers, then your choices are varied as well. Your thoughts on the longer barrel in the Encore frame in 6.5 would be more than enough.

I would suggest a few things.
Never, ever, take a trip that far without at least (3) known, tried & true handguns, loads & such. I set up an elk hunt two years in a row. I practiced daily for months with my preferred handgun, to assure it would perform, AND that I had confidence in it. Yet,, I also had a couple of back-up guns, that ALSO got used a lot prior to that those trips. In the case of the Contender or Encore,, just a few extra barrels would be easy.
And adding a set-up with a red dot vs a scope might be in order. UltraDot makes excellent ones.

Next, your idea of building a practice blind is a good one.

I am a bit dismayed at your guides not being able to find your deer. A "good blood trail" should have allowed a recovery. We are allowed dogs for trailing etc. They should have the knowledge AND resources to find a wounded or dead deer. When that deer did the hindquarter kick,, it's usually a good indicator of a lethal hit,, but not always an immediate death. I wasn't there,, so I can only comment on what you shared.

I've never been a big fan of the Armor Alloy frame T/C used. Adding that coating caused some fitting issues.

[cdf41]

I'm having a similar issue with my 2x Burris, fist shot is where you want it then next couple are 4 or 5 inches to the right and high. Was on a Tc 41 mag and moved it to my Super Blackhawk 41 had same issue on both.
So it is going to take a trip to Burris come first of the year.

[jfs]

bigbore, That sure was a hunt to remember.....Being from Jersey I can understand some of what you went through Pre hunt range time is so important.. It may be a lot but I`ve carried an extra pre zeroed scope/rings on just about all my 454 hunts after seeing what that gun did to a 2-6X variable... Never had to use it but it felt good knowing she was there, especially on long distance hunts    Picture of last years North Carolina four point heart after 210XTP from FA`s 41.  

[bigbrowndog]

Mounts, rings, scope slip, scope itself, shooting off an improvised rest, any number of reasons. It sux but it happens, I’ve got a rifle that twice now I’ve taken to Wyoming from Texas and both times zero changes dramatically, luckily a back up gun saved my hunts. It has been narrowed down to the mount and hopefully no further issues. I’ve dropped guns, whacked scopes, and even had screws fail and send a scope flying.

Trapr

[jgt]

I would check three things on a contender. One is to take the mount off and clean the holes and screws with a good degreaser, then reinstall them with a dab of blue loctite on the screws. Two is check the stub hole in the grips and make sure it is bedded. If not bed it. Three check the swivel pin to make sure there is no play in it. Good luck.

[bigbore442001]

Dec 5, 2022 7:43:16 GMT -5 jgt said:

I would check three things on a contender. One is to take the mount off and clean the holes and screws with a good degreaser, then reinstall them with a dab of blue loctite on the screws. Two is check the stub hole in the grips and make sure it is bedded. If not bed it. Three check the swivel pin to make sure there is no play in it. Good luck.

I am definitely going to do that.