Has anyone ever rechambered a T/C Contender .17 HMR barrel to .17 Ackley Hornet? I was sitting around today thinking about ordering a barrel from Bullberry or VVG, but hated the idea of having to wait months to get it. I had the idea to buy a .17 HMR barrel (available locally here) and simply have a gunsmith rechamber it with a .17 AH reamer. Is there any reason this wouldn't work? As well as being much faster than ordering a custom barrel, it should also be much cheaper.

While that would work, I'd advise checking thoroughly that the 'smith you choose is familiar with and experienced in rechambering a Contender barrel. Otherwise, you are asking for trouble. You could have any of the better-known shops do this, from Van Horn to Bullberry to Virgin Valley to Eben Brown to SSK, the latter of which generally has a 10-day turnaround on rechambers.

Also, by the time you pay for a new factory barrel and factor in the cost of shipping (2 ways) and the rechamber, you may not be that much better off than getting a new custom barrel. Yes, I do know the wait is a factor, but Van Horn, Bullberry and SSK all have barrels in their inventory that are ready to ship. And these are generally marked down from the standard pricing.

You may be spending a few bucks more, but the quality and accuracy may well be worth it.