With commercial ammo and worked up handloads the 44MAG is child's play on a Contender IMO. You'll probably wear out before the Contender frame does. Some folks don't like the 44MAG 10" octagon barrels (recoil, torque, blast or all three), but the 44MAG still pales in comparison to the real handcannon cartridges that can be safely shot on a Contender "without" damaging the frame even with long use and countless rounds fired. None of the 40 something Contender frames I've owned since early 1968 were stretched by any factory cartridge or the the many custom wildcats I've had from the early 80's on, many of them handcannon JDJ's and Super Bowers. Maybe a good example would be the 375JDJ's just because they were my favorite and got the most use of the handcannons on my Contenders. I put 10's of thousands of rounds through the 4 barrels chambered for this cartridge that I've owned, and never hurt or wore out a frame with them shooting top drawer handloads with the heaviest bullets even though I dedicated my frames to specific barrels. As for shooting loose, what very little I ever saw of "loose" was minor and because of normal wear from long use, not damage from the cartridges I shot. And it was all easily fixed by me without having to go back to TC. I was a very serious Contender shooter for almost four decades and shot countless rounds through mine using them for everything. I doubt most frames out there see as many rounds fired in a lifetime as I shot in a year during my most active hunting and competition years. So I'd suggest you don't have to be concerned at all about your frame shooting a 44MAG on it.
All IMO, YMMV.
