I hope a new T/C R-22 is in the works. The gun Ruger should be building

 

Same. Or at least parts and accessories. Although when I heard TC went away I bought about 25 magazines for mine because I like the lock back on empty feature.

 

Guess the foundry is still in NH but the machining will be in IN.
Was told they intend to eventually bring back the Custom Shop.

I never liked the TCR87. Something like a Savage 219 modernized would be cool IMHO.

Have had a few of the old side hammer .50 cals.
Still have a Hawken Silver Elite.
And am down to one Contender, stainless w a .35 rem bbl.
Its a hoot.

Have not yet heard what their first product release will be.

Doubt I'll be buying anything as I have pretty much all I need.

Wish them well.

 

Well I hope and pray that they bring back the little hotshot 22 for youths,that had a smaller version frame on it,was made for a short time only and I missed it.

 

Me too I wanted one to convert to 25 acp.

 

From the releases that I have watched they will start by producing parts and accessories at first. Breech plugs and magazines for the guns that they produced are through the roof.

 

Excellent news as I was a big fan of the Contender, Encore and blackpowder rifles.

 

Good to hear. Always thought the Encore seemed like a cool model, but I never got the chance to check one out.

 

They made some of the finest muzzleloader rifles for hunting and shooting. The Cherokee and Seneca rifles are still sought after in 32 and 36 caliber.

 

I own a 32 Seneca and have owned several 32 Cherokees in the past. The 32 Seneca is probably the rarest of all TC Guns followed by the 36 Cherokee. It is my understanding that TC will focus on producing parts at first and then will start producing guns again. Most likely the Encore platform to begin with.

 

I have a 45cal Seneca and you are right the 32 cal you dont see much anymore

 

I always wanted a .45 Patriot. Many people do not remember or never knew that T/C made a very nice percussion single shot.

 

The patriot was a very accurate pistol I had one in 36 Cal that shot very well but eventually sold it.

 

I miss the wood stock (somewhat traditional, excellent) TC black powder arms. A few years back I went looking and found a Seneca and Cherokee. I also got a couple others like the Penn flintlock with 1/2 round barrel. I would like a Patriot but I had to stop at that point. I do have a very capable CVA scout inline pistol, that is apples v. oranges.

When TC and later S&W were making the cf pistols, it seemed like big sellers were the rifles. I dont care much for a rifle or shotgun made up on the Encore frame. I really hope TC comes back, but the TC I miss may never come back!

 

Yikes, I hadn't thought about it much but I have quite a few Thompson Center firearms. Hawken 50, Renegade 54, a 32 barrel for the Hawken, Patriot 45, three Contenders, and a 357 mag spare barrel. Guess I'm a real fanboy!

 

You are not alone. For how long, who can say. I see a lot of Hawken and Renegade on the used gun rack. The Renegade was my first TC. The modern muzzle loading hunter will go inline. That is probably 99% of the new guys. The substitute shooters. These two were sold in the millions (?) and while they have a loyal following, I think there is bit more supply than demand as old folk leave and new guys peruse the gun shops.

 

Nothing has been officially said about the line but it's been alluded to that everything is. Personally I think it's a wait and see thing with what is preceived as most profitable & popular being produced first. Encore & G2?

 

I have my doubts about the viability of this venture. I hope it does succeed though. At my age I will not be buying any of what they produce. I bought into the concept of one frame for multiple barrels so only own one G2 and one Encore frames with multiple barrels for each with it's own scope. Just a few minutes and you have a different caliber to shoot without any sighting in to be done. The G2's trigger can be made better than the Encore's can. I have no experience with any T/C product made by S&W. The original T/C products were high quality and I expect S&W maintained the quality.

Younger shooters seem to have little interest in single shot rifles or pistols and even less for muzzle loaders. The fan base for these is steadily shrinking.

 

I definitely have more barrels than actions. Some I leave mostly dedicated and I'm not much a fan of swapping barrels out in the field. So I assemble a few of what I want to shoot that day.
I'm hoping they continue with the Venture line and take it to the next level, precision focused more than hunting. That might bring more into the fold.

 

I personally don't see the allure to the break action single shot guns. I have an early encore 50cal muzzle loader my dad handed down. It's a safe queen and in the past I considered a centerfire barrel for the gun. But I have zero passion for the platform or muzzle loaders. Hopefully this re-boot will work out but I don't think there's many people in this day and age wanting that platform and most that do are older than me at 57.

 

Some encore muzzle laoders will not allow conversion to rifle. Others do. What you got now, I would not hunt as a gift!

I do a lot of upland hunting with a light weight single shot H&R 20ga. Modified choke and 22" youth barrel and adult stock. It carries and handles like a dream. I also see no benefit in turning an contender into a rifle, shotgun or muzzle loader rifle. Just awful. The pistols were and remain one of my favorites. If hunting with a single shot, relatively powerful pistol that can take any practical caliber is out of fashion, then so be it. I got mine.

I dont have an Encore. The only Encore I would consider at this point is 45/70 or 500S&W. Neither was offered by S&W in an encore pistol. The old Contender did come with a 45/70. I dont have that. Dont want it. Now, once I had an Encore I would look at another barrel, maybe 7mm08 or 308 or even 358. The potential deal breaker would be lack of proper rubber grips for the Encore. Grips are critical.

I have a CVA inline muzzle loading pistol in 50 cal. It is an effective combination. An encore in 58 might be interesting. Not a rifle. Pistol. The would be a cool inline barrel.

 

One more consideration. This is RFC and 1/2 the community is too old to start in with hand cannons and 1/2 are too inexperienced to go that big at this time. The beauty of the Contender: this a great gun with 10 or 12" barrels in 22LR, 22 hornet etc,,, or the 17 dejour

And for those who love the bipod, perfect platform for that.

 

Enjoy shooting my Encore with my 22-250 pistol barrel, also in 17wsm and 22-243. Had a 15" barrel in 308, it just hurt even with Pachmyer grips.
The Contender, everything from 17hm2 to 300bo.
I find the platform fun. Makes me slow down and really try to place my shot. Also a hand loader and was able to seriously fill a gap when I became disabled and no longer do a lot of the things I used to.

 

The used Encore I bought was a 7mm-08. Definitely a hand cannon. First time out I ran 3 rounds with the Pachmyer grips also and OMG it hurt. My hand was sore for at least a week. I now have a stock T/C 45-410 and 2 MGM barrels in 9 mm and 45 acp all 3 15” stainless steel.

 

Everyone Iikes what they like. Opinions are a dime a dozen and considering what dime is worth these days that is very little. My almost worthless opinion is I really like my C-2 with it's various barrels. For years it was my coyote hunting rifle equipped with with a 223 23" bull barrel. Relatively light, short, and easy to get into action. In my world if you don't get the coyote with your first shot chances are close to 100% that he is gone. I worked up a load that was a dependable 3 shot group at 100 yards off a bench in the .3"s. Not to slouchy for a break action SS rifle. Then I made the mistake of switching to an AR. It was enjoyable getting it set up like I wanted and working up a pet load for it but It didn't take too many trips to discover that I still preferred to use the Contender. One good thing for Contender and Encore owners is that there are still some aftermarket barrel makers. If the new T/C company flies or doesn't we can still choose different calibers for our actions. It is the same for stocks and fore ends.

 

I'm still shooting Contenders and Encores and I'm even collecting some of the old Contenders for fun, now. I don't have much faith is Ritz bringing back the original Contender, but at least in the latest video he expressed some enthusiasm for the Encore, so the Encore is at least a maybe.

 

Greg has videos on YouTube on progress and what is being made first.

 

Watched a YouTube from Guns Magazine last night with an interview [2~4 days old] with Gregg Ritz. He 'indicated' that a new Encore might be out late '24 [probably early '25]. The guy seems really sincere. Holding my breath and waiting on the announcement for new G-2's [G-3's?].

 

I don’t think he is thrilled with what S&W did to T/C after he left.

 

Agree. At least S&W didn't parcel T/C out, Ritz and his associates got the intellectual property, historical documents, tooling, unfinished guns, etc. [semi loads of T/C stuff] from what I've seen and heard.
For those who want a new Contender, probably the SSK 50 is your best bet. I would wager that the 'new' T/C will do Encores and then maybe the G-2 after, some smokepoles and such. Just my 2 pesos.

 

Ya, wouldn't make much sense to start with making g1 when there is instant competition with the SSK. Makes more sense to start with the Encore then go into the others. Unless they do everything at once. 😀. We can dream...lol

 

Don't have the facts to go along, just an old and somewhat fallible memory, but the Contender went away and the G-2, notice even the name change, there was never a 'G-1', came to market. My memory says there were lawyers involved with some contention of the safety of the Contender and this lead to the loss of the principal's mfg. ffl. Doubt if you will ever hear Gregg Ritz mention it. The old Specialty Pistols forum is gone as is Magnum Mike, so all those file are lost in the ether. Since I'm not a lawyer, I am not well versed in researching old law files.
Since I didn't hunt with a Contender or carry one in a cross chest holster, I never paid much attention to the safety issue. My 'safety' is an empty chamber and an open breech, not good for hunting. The SSK does interest me and I'm thinking of owning one to go with my collection of Contenders. After all that ramble, I doubt that you'll never see a new Contender as T/C probably still/now owns the trademark and they wouldn't build one and probably wouldn't release the trademark.
Just 2 more of my pesos.

 

I can't see Ritz bringing back the Contender, not when TC dropped it and converted to the G2, even before being acquired by S&W. I still have all the Contender frames I'll ever need, anyway.

Personally, if Ritz would bring back a selection of barrels for the Contender/G2 or even the Encore, I'd be happy. That would take some of the demand off the used barrel market and maybe bring down some of the ridiculous asking prices I've been seeing.

I would be delighted to see the Encore come back, though. I think that is more likely. I switched over to the Encore for all the heavy kickers shortly after the Encore came out. To be sure, the Encore is a very different animal than the original Contender, but it's been very useful for my shooting. Be nice to know it is still being produced.