I just saw a youtube video where the trigger was pulled(before cocking), then he pulled back the hammer(finger off the trigger) and when he took his thumb off the hammer it fell and fired the pistol. is this normal for this firearm? I am so CONFUSED

Yes it is normal for the TC contender; at least the ones I have. You have to be smarter than the pistol; if you pull the trigger before you cock it, the sear will release, and then when you cock the hammer, it will not stay cocked. If you let it go, it will fire.
Nothing wrong with the design; the operator is at fault.
He didn't "take his thumb off a cocked hammer", he just let a hammer go. The hammer then contacts the firing pin; there is no half or safety notch. Operator error.
Not sure about the newer model.

thanks

So how do you get the trigger to re-engage the sear if it has been pulled while the hammer is down and you then want to cock the hammer, safely?

Assuming opening the action resets everything?

I don't know, I had always thought they operated like an H&R single shot, but I guess not?

quote:

Originally posted by eagle27:
So how do you get the trigger to re-engage the sear if it has been pulled while the hammer is down and you then want to cock the hammer, safely?

Assuming opening the action resets everything?

Yes, open the action.
It doesn't need to be opened all the way, resets when trigger guard is pulled and unlocks.
Same thing if you cock normally and don't shoot and lower hammer slowly, need to open to reset sear.

is it the same on the brand new encores?

Encore trigger is a different design.
Doesn’t need to be reset.

Gotta know your gun before you use it.

I'm guessing the video was a G1 contender? The G2 contender is different. The hammer can be cocked and de-cocked with the the frame closed. It does not have the 'dry fire' type trigger system. To reproduce the video mentioned by the OP with a G2, you would have to hold the trigger down while letting the hammer fall. I suppose this is like the encore, but I've never played with the encore version.

With the original Contender, which is all I have, when the sear is released, the hammer will not cock, and, if you drop it with your thumb, it will fall and contact the firing pin. You have to intend to make it fire that way.

quote:

Originally posted by Mark Clark:

quote:

Originally posted by eagle27:
So how do you get the trigger to re-engage the sear if it has been pulled while the hammer is down and you then want to cock the hammer, safely?

Assuming opening the action resets everything?

Yes, open the action.
It doesn't need to be opened all the way, resets when trigger guard is pulled and unlocks.
Same thing if you cock normally and don't shoot and lower hammer slowly, need to open to reset sear.

Sounds like a well designed accident waiting to happen although I suppose no different to taking the safety off on any gun and having to remember to put it back on if a shot is not taken.

Not at all; they made many thousands of them with no issues. It is not a matter of a "safety" to take on or off, so it is very different from that scenario. If you pull the trigger, it will release the sear, and then the hammer will not cock. That's it. If you intently drop the hammer with your thumb it will fire; what do you expect it to do?
Of course, nowadays with all the lawyers and untrained people who should not be handling guns, they can make a marshmallow unsafe. They are definite choking hazards and should be banned.
Operator error; pure and simple.

quote:

Originally posted by dpcd:
Not at all; they made many thousands of them with no issues. It is not a matter of a "safety" to take on or off, so it is very different from that scenario. If you pull the trigger, it will release the sear, and then the hammer will not cock. That's it. If you intently drop the hammer with your thumb it will fire; what do you expect it to do?
Of course, nowadays with all the lawyers and untrained people who should not be handling guns, they can make a marshmallow unsafe. They are definite choking hazards and should be banned.
Operator error; pure and simple.

I understand what you are saying and agree it comes down to operator knowledge but more importantly IMO, the passing on of that knowledge to any another person who maybe going to use the gun and is not aware of the nuances of it.
Pulling the trigger on most uncocked hammer guns of any make or model is not a safety issue, the norm being that when the hammer is pulled back with the thumb it will be cocked and held by the sear ready to be released when the trigger is pulled irrespective of whether the trigger had been previously pulled before cocking the gun. Most anyone who have used a hammer gun would expect that as the normal sequence of events.

Similarly I have a Gevarm semi auto 22RF carbine that fires from an open breach. Other than those who may have used submachine guns, the average gun user would not understand what has happened when they pull the cocking handle back and it stays back with no release button to chamber a round from the magazine, expecting of course the norm for a semi auto of pulling the cocking handle back letting it go and the breach bolt will slam forward and chamber a round ready for the trigger to be pulled to fire the gun. Invariably with the Gevarm they will search for a release button or play with the cocking handle and then pull the trigger and if there are rounds in the magazine they have an uncontrolled AD on their hands. I am always extremely careful to ensure anyone else using my Gevarm uses it under my direct supervision first until they become familiar with the action. I definitely do not loan it to anyone willy nilly despite them maybe being a long time firearm user.

If you pull a hammer back and it doesn't cock, do you just let it go or keep your thumb on it. Some people should not be using firearms. Can't protect everyone from stupidity.
And it never was an issue here anyway or there would be lawsuits on it.

Eagle27 you MUST be SMARTER than the FIREARM. That was a ND.!!!!!! Be Well, Packy

One of the 4 rules of safety with fire arms.Keep your boogerhooks off the trigger until you are going to fire it.

Think of it had fanning a revolver. The trigger held back prevents the sear from engaging. Let the hammer go with the thumb, it falls forward. The primer is struck and powder ignites.

Corbett wrote about being so close to a man eating tiger he could not cock the hammers on his double without starting a charge. So, he held the trigger down, aimed, brought the hammer back. He let the hammer free fall and killed the tiger.

quote:

Originally posted by LHeym500:
Think of it had fanning a revolver. The trigger held back prevents the sear from engaging. Let the hammer go with the thumb, it falls forward. The primer is struck and powder ignites.

Corbett wrote about being so close to a man eating tiger he could not cock the hammers on his double without starting a charge. So, he held the trigger down, aimed, brought the hammer back. He let the hammer free fall and killed the tiger.

Got all of Corbett's books and don't recall reading that account. What he did do is that he found himself with the safety on his hammerless double on, something he was usually very careful not to do when closing in on a tiger or sitting up for a tiger as the click of the safety when pushed off invariably saw the tiger bolt. In this case he aimed his double at the tiger, pulled the trigger then slipped the safety off. He did not know if the gun would fire using this method but it did and he got his tiger.

The beauty of the hammer gun is that you can silently cock the hammer by holding the trigger back, pull the hammer back then let the trigger go. The hammer will then stay in the cocked position, all nice and quiet. Had Corbett been using a hammer gun I'm sure he would of known of this.

I will find it for you this weakened or retract.