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A 30 Herrett was my second barrel for my first Contender. I've taken deer with it out to 350 yards, although that definitely stretched the barrel to it limits.
I've also owned or used barrels in a rimmed 300 Savage and plain ol' thutty-thutty. So I have experience with a range of case capacities in .30-cal Contenders.
In 10" barrels, the Herrett is tops (heck, that's what it was created for) but in a 14" I think the 30-30 is probably the optimum case capacity. Smaller caes are extremely efficient, but they also have to operate at MUCH higher pressures to achieve equal velocities. Larger cases like the 300 Savage leave too little chamber wall thickness and have excessive backthrust at their normal pressures. That can wreck a Contender in short order.
If you aren't a pretty experienced handloader, the Herrett isn't a good option due to the difficulty in CORRECTLY making cases. So for the average Joe, I'd have to vote for the good old 30-30.
Bullet choice? That 125 Ballistic Tip is THE 30-cal pistol bullet for deer. (It is NOT a deer bullet at rifle speeds - don't even think about it!). Other good choices are the Rem 125 SP, the Hornady or Sierra Single Shot Pistol bullets, or bullets meant for the SKS.
Cast bullets from 150 to 180 grains would also be fine if not too hard to expand. Any design made for the 30-30 with a BHN of 15 or so would be great.
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