Home » General Conversation » Product and Vendor Feedback » Custom T/C contender barrels: Good or Bad (Any problems with custom barrel builds?)
| Custom T/C contender barrels: Good or Bad [message #8361] |
Tue, 24 January 2012 18:48  |
iraqimedic
Messages: 27
Registered: January 2012
Location: Mississippi
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Forum Newbie |
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Looking to get the low down as best I can on good bad and other recommendations for Custom Contender Barrel builders. Have had an issue recently with a pair of MGM barrels and was wondering about anyones experience with any of the Custom Contender barrel builders out there?
Thanks
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| Re: Custom T/C contender barrels: Good or Bad [message #8372 is a reply to message #8371] |
Wed, 25 January 2012 12:41  |
martineta
Messages: 22
Registered: March 2009
Location: Keswick Virginia
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Forum Newbie |
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SSK, Bullberry, and MGM. I don't know what issues you had with MGM, but I owning loads over the past year, all have been fantastic barrels and MGM folks nice to work with. Same goes for Bullberry and SSK.
Kenneth Burnett
Managing Partner
www.pasodelpuerto.com
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| Re: Custom T/C contender barrels: Good or Bad [message #8391 is a reply to message #8372] |
Wed, 25 January 2012 21:36 |
iraqimedic
Messages: 27
Registered: January 2012
Location: Mississippi
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Forum Newbie |
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martineta wrote on Wed, 25 January 2012 09:41SSK, Bullberry, and MGM. I don't know what issues you had with MGM, but I owning loads over the past year, all have been fantastic barrels and MGM folks nice to work with. Same goes for Bullberry and SSK.
Well, I have a wicked 5.7x28FN and talked my dad into a matching set of barrels for hunting with since it was so well done. Log story short and no Drama, the workmaship on these was crap, the barrel build took 11 weeks the first time and format was wrong (someone injected a little of their own ideas), then the rebuild took another 6 weeks and there were safety issues. The Admin and office has always been great but the machinist when communicated with was rude and expected us to settle for second rate and accept his less than quality job. My father refuses to deal with them ever again. I basically will give them time and try again, myself. Until that time comes, I'll stick to SSK and Bullberry primarily. I have one of each and never a minutes trouble. I'd like to know more about any other builders out there and get some more barrels made. Then I'd be able to make a better informed decision on which I prefer. One is never enough to be honest and I like a variety.
James
I spent most of my money on guns, motorcycles, and beer. The rest I just wasted.
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| Re: Custom T/C contender barrels: Good or Bad [message #8872 is a reply to message #8391] |
Mon, 13 February 2012 12:24 |
iraqimedic
Messages: 27
Registered: January 2012
Location: Mississippi
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Forum Newbie |
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Update! ! ! The final outcome with my recent MGM agony has been completed. I finally had to ask MGM, then demand my money back. They do not back their manufacturing and do not stand behind their work. The machinist I dealt with was happy to blame everything in the book and make excuses but not take any responsibility for the mistakes and screw ups. After the second go round with barrels that should have been fairly simple they were less than acceptable. The machinist insisted there would be no refund due to the fact they were custom barrels. I explained to him I was not happy and the barrels were questionable where safety was concerned. He had a few nasty comments that I refused to comment on myself and I told him that we could do it the hard way or the easy way but I insisted on my money back. After 16 plus weeks and two screwed up sets of barrels, the waste of dollars had to be astronomical. If I was the owner I would have taken it out of the machinists pay. When we got the final refund check, they made some snotty comments that an ejector was missing on one of the barrels which it was not and deducted the 15 dollar price from the refund. They are basically not worth their word, gunsmithing is still in question and they lie on top of everything else. Some of the stories I have heard that mirror my troubles and the fact that they are not members of the BBB and do not return questions and requests for info from the BBB has now been the final straw. Until they improve their reputation in my eyes and the production staff mature a bit, I will not be doing business with them. I have since enlisted SSK industries to do the build that MGM screwed up twice.
I spent most of my money on guns, motorcycles, and beer. The rest I just wasted.
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| Re: Custom T/C contender barrels: Good or Bad [message #30720 is a reply to message #8391] |
Fri, 18 April 2014 10:48 |
drdaldds
Messages: 20
Registered: February 2013
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Forum Newbie |
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My experience with MGM was quite similar. I have two of their barrels, one in 357 maximum and one in .44 magnum. The .357 maximum always worked as it should have, but the .44 magnum did not...both on the original T/C contender G1 frames...both superbly accurate when they do work. They had me send my .44 magnum barrel and the frame to their shop for fitting, but it came back just as ill fitting as it left, plus they lost it for a length of time...mailed it to the wrong address. MGM has a YouTube video about fitting the barrel bolts on the contender correctly, but it has become apparent to me, that they really are not very good at that part. I had to work long and hard, until I fixed it myself. MGM was set to refund my money, rather than complete the fit as it should be done. Mike Bellm pretty much walked me through the fit, so the firearm would actually work. MGM was absolutely no help at all.
MTM = Good and high Quality barrels...but making them actually function on a contender frame is apparently beyond their capabilities. Bullberry got me some barrel bolts that worked...not MGM.
MGM must make a good barrel though, as despite the issues I had, Mike Bellm still recommends them...and Mike is a good and honest guy. I personally have learned a lesson...no more MGM for this guy...just not worth the hassles.
[Updated on: Fri, 18 April 2014 11:01] Report message to a moderator |
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| Re: Custom T/C contender barrels: Good or Bad [message #30722 is a reply to message #30720] |
Fri, 18 April 2014 11:51 |
jamesgammel
Messages: 1708
Registered: August 2012
Location: Lovell, Wyoming
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Top Contributor |
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You may have problems regardless of who made what. It's will always be a lockup issue. It can be a T/C, bullberry, MGM, VV, SSK, doesn't matter. There is a fix, and it's easy to do, and anyone can do it. Sending it back to maker will never be a guarantee, that it'll get fixed. It's an idividual FRAME + BARREL issue. I don't know how many times I type this, even in stickies, but it's a LOT. EVEN IF you get it corrected, and it works right on a frame, another may not work right either. You can't modify the frame to erase the issue and that's where most if it is based. If you resort to one-frame for the barrel and you have multiple frames, you'll have to remember which frame you have to use that barrel on, and which it'll have problems with. If you have issues with ALL your frames, do the FIX for the worst one, the minor issues with the others will dissapear too. If you get a problem with a new frame, re-do the fix with that one. the others will get easier to use it on. I've described HOW a barrel should lock up when closed, and and not seize when recoil causes a failure to OPEN (and DON'T EVER force one open). remove the forearm, and the trigger guard, don't even mess with trying to remove the hinge pin. Pry back the side roller(s) to move the locking bolts toward the muzzle, and it'll fall open. YOU CAN damage the gun by slamming the trigger spur against your leg, wife's or son's back, tree, etc. Some parts are virtually impossible to get, especially G-1 Contenders. Some breakage at the wrong spot--may as well toss in recycle bin, and NO factory support, you ABUSED it. Not from "normal" werar and tear, which really extremely rarely occurs. CASES of ammo put through it. I think it's H&R where you MUST get an accessory barrel factory fitted. S&W (especially) don't give a rat's a$$. Don't think that because it's a custom barrel it "gotta fit". Problem was with T/C and their frame tolerances. MGM, etc do maintain T/C's tolerances for their barrels.
Sending MGM the frame was a waste of time, and shipping cost. most likely as soon as they got it, oput it a padded box with your name, customer #, etc on it and locked it in a safe till they sent it back. Barrel makers don't have to have an ATF license required to MAKE guns. They may have custom gunsmith licesnse, granting exception to the FFL requirement to receive and ship between you and them. T/C is a gun MAKER, so yiu can shipe between yiou and them and not have to go thru FFL dealer. They no longer sell direct to public like they did 67-70. They ship from them to distr. distr. > dealer. dealer needs the FFL to receive and sell/transfer to you.
Bullberry probably keeps a stock of custom sized bolts, same bolts everyone else gets but they do just what Bellm publishes at his site for the fix. I'd bet that they sent some poor customer send his barrelm in for replacemnt a buncha timmes and always had a problem, so they asked him to send barrel back and had the same problem no matter what barrel they put on. So got pro-active and asked him if they could keep his frame and buy ans send him a new one. They kept it to make sure the "special" bolts would work, then stockpiled a nuner, when gone, just made some more which they kept stockpile adequate so not do one at a time. they cood since they sell whole guns and need FFL. MGM doesn't. SSK does as well, can get custiome engraving,etc. keep stock of SS and "blue alloy" "in the white" pre-serialed. T/C blues last step, but quickly so don't rust so quick. SS not an issue.
BTW, contrary to what you may read, ATF does not have a database with how a frame/gun was shipped or to who or who has it, or when. They have to get it after the fact because on an INQUIRY made about a specific gun with a specific ser. #. ALL T'C's data base was cooked 3/1/97 so impossible to even START a trace on anything that was made and shipped up untill then. They didn minimal record keeping from 67-70, then had to follow ATF rules about what had to be maintained. Unless they had already tracked one (and HAD TO DELETE) if the trace ended up non-useful for prosecution, ie dead-end.
Jim
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| Re: Custom T/C contender barrels: Good or Bad [message #30725 is a reply to message #30722] |
Fri, 18 April 2014 14:09 |
drdaldds
Messages: 20
Registered: February 2013
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Forum Newbie |
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If they cannot make things work...why bother accepting them at their shop for fitting in the first place?
Why not simply tell customers the truth, that they cannot make it work, so we can send the unit to someone like Mike Bellm, who can make it work.
Likewise...why the "how to" video on YouTube?
All it accomplishes is hard feelings.
That is especially so, when they ignore the address clearly noted, and very legibly printed, on a sheet of 81/2 by 11 paper, sent along in the box, which was the same as the return address on the package sent to them.
To me...MGM makes a great product, but are not at all as organized as you would expect them to be.
Essentially though, you are saying that after you buy the barrel from any of the after market manufacturers, barring something being intrinsically wrong with that barrel from a manufacturing perspective, you are on your own, especially if (and more likely...when) that barrel does not work on your frame.
Does anyone else see anything wrong with this perspective...even though it apparently is indeed the truth?
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| Re: Custom T/C contender barrels: Good or Bad [message #32042 is a reply to message #30894] |
Wed, 02 July 2014 15:40 |
gemihur
Messages: 312
Registered: March 2012
Location: Ridgelines of Virginia
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Forum Regular |
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I suppose I've been lucky, like lepcur, inasmuch as in the 35 or so years that I've owned several frames of various vintage and easily over 100 barrels, I have had only one barrel that ever even tried to be difficult. I promptly followed the SIMPLE steps of lightly honing the locking lug on that barrel and proceeded to shoot the heck out of that one without fail. I've sold and traded many, many barrels to gents with frames from other eras other than mine and tried to follow-up and offer assistance should they experience difficulties. They never did! In my opinion the fit of barrel to frame has been a VERY positive experience.
I thank experienced individuals such as Jim Gammel and Mike Bellm for being there when we need them.
If your a contender owner, chances are you're reloader. If you're not, you should consider it. The main attribute that endears me to the contender, and probably a lot of other shooters, is that it can facilitate many rifle cartridges in a much smaller format.
Commercially manufactured rifle cartridges are made for rifles. You'll find a much more pleasant and rewarding experience if you groom your loads to your specific use. Not to mention the new horizons that you'll encounter once you entertain the use of wildcats in your gun. Now you're gonna HAVE to start reloading, and trimming and fire-forming and all the other glorious steps of case preparation that make you much more a part of the process when you squeeze the trigger on that jewel that carries only on live round!
Don't bother with the slight inconsistencies of the barrel to frame mating, rather herald the opportunity to be a part of a higher order and do what most don't. You'll be better man for it
Think twice...shoot once.
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