Testing the Contender-Series Model 49
by Tom Gaylord
Compasseco's new Contender-Series Model 49 is an attractive, lightweight breakbarrel spring-piston air rifle with a lot going for it. Easy cocking, a crisp trigger and surprising accuracy are among the features this new rifle offers.
Compasseco provided me with a .177 caliber Contender-Series Model 49 to test, and what I saw is a refreshing new spring air rifle, much improved from inexpensive spring rifles I've handled in the past. It has a number of features that I believe shooters are going to like, and I'll highlight them as we go through the test.
The Contender 49 is a sleek breakbarrel spring-piston rifle. You need to cock the mainspring by breaking the hinged barrel only until the trigger catches, and then load a pellet and close the barrel. As with all breakbarrels, never let go of the muzzle while you are loading a pellet. Even though this rifle has a an automatic safety that goes on when the gun is cocked, anything mechanical can fail. If you hold the muzzle, you can control the barrel if the sear should slip for any reason (or no reason), and it also keeps your hand away from the trigger during the loading process.
Let's look at the rifle first
The Contender-Series 49 is a medium-sized spring rifle with medium power. It's a sheer delight to cock, requiring just 18 lbs. of effort to generate power in the Beeman R7 category. At this low effort, the rifle can be easily operated by youthful shooters in their teens. A muzzlebrake extends the length of the barrel by several inches to provide extra leverage for cocking. The hardwood stock is a medium dark reddish-brown color and is trim and nicely contoured. A low, raised cheekpiece and Monte Carlo stock bring the sighting eye up to a nice height for a scope, which is good because this model does not come with sights. You will have to mount a scope.
The barrel breaks open rather far to cock the mainspring. A long piston stroke means good power from a lighter spring, so the cocking effort is reduced. The safety comes on automatically when the gun is cocked and must be released before shooting.
A thick, black rubber buttpad keeps the rifle from slipping, both on the shoulder while shooting and when standing in the corner. The wood is smooth all over and evenly finished with a semigloss protective coat. The three plastic parts visible on the gun are the triggerguard, the trigger blade and the end cap of the mainspring tube.
Overall length is 45", and the pull (distance from the butt to the trigger) is 13.5". It's longer than the Beeman R7 but feels more compact because of the short pull. It weighs a light 6 lbs. on the nose, which feels even lighter because the length gives the impression of weight. The rifled steel barrel is 18.8" long.
Cocking sets the automatic safety, which is one of those new features I mentioned. This one is a button above the trigger on the left side of the gun. It pops out when the rifle is cocked. When you're ready to fire, you push it in until it clicks. Compared to most airgun safeties, this one is crisp and positive. It never failed to go on, and you definitely know when it is taken off by a sharp click when the button is pressed. The safeties on Weihrauch rifles, like the Beeman R7, are not as positive as this one.
The trigger on this rifle is another wonderful feature. It deserves a report of its own. The shape of the blade is somewhat straighter than normal, and the warm plastic surface is grooved across its surface to help the trigger finger grab better. But the real news is how positive and crisp it is. The two-stage pull has a light, smooth first stage followed by a heavy but absolutely creep-free second stage that broke at 4 lbs., 2 oz. on my test rifle. Once you become accustomed to the pull weight, you can do some good shooting with this trigger.
The trigger is very crisp and positive. The button with the red center above the stock is the automatic safety. Push in when you're ready to fire.
Before shooting
I noticed that the barrel was dirty, as new rifles often are, so I gave it a thorough cleaning before shooting. Most new airgun barrels also have a little rust in them left over from the bluing process. I ran a brass brush loaded with J-B Non-Embedding Bore Compound through the bore 20 times in each direction. That pulled out all the grease, rust and loose metal left over from rifling. It left a smooth shiny bore that was ready to give the best performance.
Velocity and power
Everybody cares about how fast the pellets go, and this rifle doesn't disappoint. It even exceeds the velocity published in the owner's manual. The makers claim 600 f.p.s., but I got significantly more than that. With 7-grain RWS Hobby pellets, I got an average of 693 f.p.s. with a spread of 27 f.p.s from the slowest shot to the fastest. With Crosman Premier 7.9-grain pellets, I got an average of 653, with a spread of just 18 f.p.s. Gamo Match pellets gave an average of 670 with a spread of 20. Power is about 7.5 foot-pounds.
I must also note that there was absolutely no noticeable dieseling during firing. Usually new spring guns go bang for many shots before settling down, but all I saw from the Contender Series 49 was a little smoke. It's ready to go right out of the box.
Scope
I scoped the rifle with a Compasseco Tech Force 3-12x44mm scope in medium-high rings. A scope stop is built into the dovetail rails on the rifle, and all you need to do is back up the rear ring to the stop and tighten it in place. The scope is very clear and has a duplex reticle for both hunting and target use. The adjustable objective adjusts as close at 7.5 yards, which is closer than most airgun scopes and great for shooting pests.
That metal plate is a positive scope stop on the Contender-Series 49.
The rear scope ring, or back of the mount if it is a one-piece mount, is butted up to the scope stop and tightened down.
A Compasseco Tech Force 3-12x44mm scope was mounted for the test. It has clear optics and positive adjustments you'll need to get on target.
Accuracy
The big story with the rifle is accuracy. It is stunningly accurate! At 25 yards on a windy day, there was no problem getting five shots under an inch. A calm day would extend the range for that size group to 35 yards. I used JSB Exact Jumbo Diabolo pellets weighing 10.2 grains to get that kind of accuracy. Other good pellets to try would be Beeman Kodiaks and Crosman Premiers in both weights.
This 25-yard group of five shots would have all hit a quarter.
A pleasure to shoot
The combination of light cocking, light weight, a great trigger and super accuracy make the Contender-Series 49 a wonderful air rifle for almost every purpose. It's powerful enough to hunt small game (up to grackles and squirrels), shoot targets and general plinking. As easily as it cocks, it's an all-day airgun. Because it's a spring piston rifle, you can leave it out in the barn or shed to dispatch any pests on the spot.
Summary
I haven't been this excited about a medium-powered breakbarrel air rifle in a long time. It has everything going for it and no visible detractors. The European rifles might have checkered stocks and nicer finishes. For three times the money, they should, but there is a lot of real value in this new rifle.