I have had I think 5 different contenders and probably a dozen different barrels in different chamberings and they are my personal favorite despite a few shortcomings. Honestly the main reason I like them so much is just because I think they are a lovely design and they are just attractive. The shortcomings are that they are almost 100% weight ahead of the grip so they are not very easy to shoot except from a rested position, and they are generally pretty unpleasant to shoot with really high recoil cartridges. If you shoot them with a 2 handed grip, which is what I prefer, you have to be pretty careful about your finger placement to avoid the trigger guard release lever from digging into your fingers. Some advantages are that they have probably one of the best triggers that has ever come in a production firearm of any type. They are capable of very good accuracy, can be chambered in hundreds of cartridges, and aftermarket barrels are readily available. I have been using Match Grade Machine barrels on mine and the jacketed bullet ones have all been 1 moa accurate from a bench. They are also relatively compact and light weight compared to bolt actions, and very slim so they are nice to carry in a chest holster.
I have only taken 1 deer with a contender, otherwise I just shoot them at steel or other targets from the bench for fun. I find it awkward to try to shoot over the side of a deer stand but I took this doe at like 100 yards doing so. This one is a 13" 357 maximum. I much prefer 10" and shorter barrels as they can actually be shot offhand with some practicality.
This is just my opinion, but to me a pistol should be something that you can stand and shoot with outstretched arms and carry in a holster or chest rig of some sort that leaves you with 2 arms. If your pistol weighs 8 lbs and you can only shoot it from a bypod then I personally don't really get the point. Its not a handgun anymore, its a rifle that's avoiding its buttstock for purpose of being called a pistol. At that point why not just put the stock back on and make it an SBR or carbine? No offense intended to anyone, if that's your thing then I'm happy for you. If we all liked the same things then everyone would be trying to date my wife.
My new hunting pistol is this Magnum Research lone eagle in 35 remington. Because it is a center grip it is much better balanced. The balance point is just a little bit in front of the grip. I find this much easier to hold offhand, or over the side of a deer stand, or from other improvised rests, so to me it is much more practical to shoot from field positions. It is also very short for its barrel length since the barrel starts like 1" from the rear of the action. Its a rotary breech kind of like a cannon. The biggest disadvantage here is they are long out of production so there are no parts available and the trigger stinks, although I was able to smith mine into a pretty crisp 4ish lb trigger. It was like pulling a staple gun before I reworked it. This is 4 shots at 100 yards just resting it on a pack. I have a 2 power burris posi loc on it as I intend to use it at 100 yards and less mostly due to terrain.
I guess I'll let you decide if this is a specialty pistol or not, but I also love shooting this buckmark. I have this old TC 3 power scope on it and also a 2-7 power scope that I sometimes swap on with quick detach mounts. I like shooting steel with it at 100-200 yards and also use it to control the chipmunk population around the house. At 200 yards I can ring a 12" plate 10 for 10 shots from a rest which is pretty fun.