T C .45LC/.410

[Wheeler44]

IIRC I once handled a Thompson Contender chambered for .45LC. It could also shoot .410 shot shells. Is this legal in Washington State? Does Thompson make .454 Casull barrel and will it also handle .410 shot shells?
Thanks for any info,
Wheeler44

 

[Okiecruffler]

As far as I know, it's legal in every state except California. The 454 casull is an Encore only chamber and I don't think TC has ever made a 454/410. Probably could get one of the custom makers to do one.

 

[johndoe1027]

It might be able to chamber .45LC too! Wait, lets start with the .460 (I think it is) then you could get 4 calibers into it...
Was I taking it too far again?:banghead:

 

[Stevie-Ray]

They usually suffer from fairly poor accuracy shooting .45 Colt due to the chamber being the length it is. Best off shooting the .410 shot shells at clay pigeons. That's a blast.

 

[Oldnamvet]

I had one and finally sold it. It was fun for clays but .410 is expensive unless you reload. For .45 Colt, the long jump from chamber to rifling destroyed accuracy. 5" groups at 50 yards. OK for short range deer hunting if you limit yourself to really close shots. I tried the .410 out for rabbits and squirrels. Up close on rabbits, it worked OK. On squirrels in the top of the tree, it just pi$$ed them off. I shot one with a .22 that I had just shot twice with the .410 Contender (10" bbl). The shot was barely under the skin. So I really couldn't see any practical use for what I wanted. Bought a 30/30 bbl with the sale money. That is a lot more fun and useful.

 

[johndoe1027]

Will someone post a pic of one of these things? I thought the "Thunder Five" and the Taurus were the only ones....

 

[wdlsguy]

Will someone post a pic of one of these things?

Here is a T/C Encore in .45 Colt / .410:

 

[johndoe1027]

thanks!

 

[44AMP]

T/C Contender in .45Colt/.410

Is a lot of fun. And it is perfectly legal in Washington state, because it is a regular handgun (the barrel is rifled). Mine has (unlike the picture) the standard pistol sights, no vent rib. It has a screw in "straightener" to counteract the spin of the shot charge from a rifled barrel. This must be removed (there is a special wrench) before shooting .45 Colt bullets.

As was stated, accuracy with the .45 Colt is not usually very good, and I ended up buying a barrel chambered in .45 Colt as well.

The .410 works pretty well in the 10" barrel, but not as well as it would in an actual shotgun. Also, while you can shoot 3" shells, the 2 1/2 in seem to do just as well, and are a little milder to shoot.

One other thing I have had a little fun with is shooting .410 slugs. I haven't tested them on paper for accuracy, but a t reasonably short ranges (under 50yd), they have been accurate enough to hit my steel plate targets, and they have a bit more power than you might expect, close to .41 Mag levels. And they make a great rat gun (with shot) around the farm!

The real drawback to the .410 is the cost. Slugs are actually almost cheap, being about the cost of other shotgun slugs, while shotshells are nearly $8-10 for 25. While the cheap 12 & 20ga are more like $4-5 for 25.

All in all, I really like my Contender, and looking back, I wasted a couple of decades before getting one. Beware, there is one problem, you will want more barrels. I started with the .45/.410, and a .222 Rem. Now, a few years later I have .22LR, .22 Hornet, .222Rem, 9mm, .38/357Mag, .44spl/.44mag, .45 Colt, /30-30Win, and .45-70!. And pistol scopes and red dot sights, etc.

Some of the old Contenders take a really firm squeeze on the triggerguard to get them open. The new G2 Contenders open real easy. They are fantastically accurate, and a nice change from the usual revolver or automatic. Off hand, with iron sights really shows you what kind of a pistol shot you are.