Optics or just a longer 35rem barrel

[ghostZ]

About a year and a half ago I bought my first Contender.  I got a 16" .22 and a 12" 35rem.  I put a red dot on the .22 and love it.  But have problems with the 35.  It is a nice ported bull barrel with factory irons on it.  I may have been way off(first hunting pistol) but I assumed since I have no  problems with the factory TC irons on my muzzle loader that there would be no problem on the 35.  Well I was wrong.  I couldn't hit a thing with it!  I thought I got it dialed in then went and shot it a week before deer season to make sure and I could barley keep it on the paper.  
So what I am wondering is should I get a low x scope, a 14" 35rem, or just practice alot more with my 12" and irons.  
I have put about 4 boxes of ammo(I know not all that much) thru it so I thought the practice wasn't that much of an issue.

BTW I wouldn't take a shot over 100yards due to the area I hunt.
Thanks for the advice

[armory414]

I bought a 10" .223 barrel about a year ago that had iron sights, and I had the same problem.  It turned out that the screws holding the sight base to the barrel had come loose, so the sight was shifting around with the recoil.  I found this out because I thought it was a faulty sight, and found the loose screws when I removed the drift pin holding the sight armature, exposing the screws, when I started disassembly to put a scope base on.  I tightened the screws down, reassembled the sight, and it held zero just fine.

[Camel 23]

As Armory414 said check to make sure the iron sights are good and tight.  Are you using the same type of ammo each time?  Maybe your gun would prefer a different type.  At what distance are you shooting when practicing?  Maybe practice at a shorter distance to build confidence and gradually increase the distance as you develope confidence in the barrel.  There is no reason you can't put a scope on the barrel you already have either.  The way you grip the pistol can have a big affect on the point of impact as well.  Try to be as consistant as you can when it comes to gripping it.

[rickyp]

sounds like you got a bad barrel :x  you should send it off to me just so you will not have to deal with the evil barrel any more

IF you are hunting out to no more then 100 yards a red dot or 2x scope will work great for you but a 4 xmay be better. A scope can improve your shooting quite a bit.

[Possum]

I second RickyP-Send it to me!  Seriously though, sounds like a load problem to me.  Both my 35's are hunting accurate with factory ammo.   They are VERY accurate with handloads.  They are 14" AA barrels.  

Change up the load or bullet weight and see what happens.  Most of the barrels I own I thought were bad barrels until I found the load they liked.  Then they tightened up and became fun to shoot.

[ghostZ]

Changing the load is tough for me...Around here I only have a few shops that carry 35rem.  I can only find 200 cor-loc(I think that is it)  I might have found a box or 2 of 180 but never bought it because I didn't want to be changing the load to something I can't get.  In IN you can't use a rifle to hunt with so there isn't that much of a demand for it.  
I thought about the loose sight but didn't have the punch to get the roll pin out.  I now have the punch so I can take it apart.  I guess if I take it apart/off I may as well just put a rail on it for a scope.  
You guys that offered to take it off of my hands...you have no idea how close I was to doing something like that.  For about a month after I didn't use it for the season I didn't even look at the gun.  I put it in the case I put it away...out of sight out of mind.  I knew if I took it back out and it didn't perform someone on here would have gotten a great CHRISTmas deal!  If I scope it and still can't hit crap with it it will go up for sale/trade so you vultures keep your eyes out :-)

I hope and kinda not hope that it is just me...if it is me then I bought a good barrel but I suck, if it isn't me then I don't have to hang my head in shame but need to get a new barrel!  I think it is me...I will change from the wood to a pac grip to make sure I am not just afraid of it.

Thanks for the advise guys

[rickyp]

ghostZ, since this is the second barrel you have owned, it very well might be you, people tend to develop a flinch when shooting big bore handguns. one way to tell if you have done so, is have a Friend go shooting with you and let him/her load the handgun for you with out you watching. he/she will give you a live round then switch it up sometime with a dummy round. if you flinch when you pull the trigger on the dummy round it will be very apparent.

Changing the load is tough for me...Around here I only have a few shops that carry 35rem. I can only find 200 cor-loc(I think that is it) I might have found a box or 2 of 180 but never bought it because I didn't want to be changing the load to something I can't get. In IN you can't use a rifle to hunt with so there isn't that much of a demand for it.

You should start to hand load then finding the ammo will not be a problem any more and you can Tailor your load to your barrel. one other option is you can always mail order the ammo but this can run into some money

[ghostZ]

ghostZ, since this is the second barrel you have owned, it very well might be you, people tend to develop a flinch when shooting big bore handguns. one way to tell if you have done so, is have a Friend go shooting with you and let him/her load the handgun for you with out you watching. he/she will give you a live round then switch it up sometime with a dummy round. if you flinch when you pull the trigger on the dummy round it will be very apparent.

This is the first large cal barrel I have had...the other is a .22  But I agree I need to check to see if I have a flinch

You should start to hand load then finding the ammo will not be a problem any more and you can Tailor your load to your barrel. one other option is you can always mail order the ammo but this can run into some money

I bought a cheap press about a year ago and have read a few books on it but haven't yet used it.  I have looked for a hand primer so I could atleast get started but haven't bought one yet.  Most of my money has gone into buying parts to build guns lately.

[Possum]

Hey ghostz, if it is flinching, don't feel bad.  It took me a long time to get to 1" on my pistols.  Finally I got to that point on the 30.06 15" incher.  I did start doubting my ability, thought.  Shoot...Shoot...Shoot.   That's what I did.  I guess that's why I started reloading.  To be able to shoot more for less.  

I will give you one tip that worked for me.   The heavier the grip I used to hold the pistol, the worse I shot.  It finally got to where I hold it just like I would a glass of water (off the bench w/sandbags) and it shot great.  My best grip for the 30.06 is to hold the grip with my right hand and take my index finger of my left and just barely touch the top of the scope.  Each of my pistol calibers shoot differently as far as the hold I use.  When I relaxed the death grip I had on the grip, I shot 10 times better.