15' encore

[huntwithme]

i just bought an encore in 270 for hunting. I was told that some rifle calibers are not that good in encore's due to the short barrels [15]. is this a good caliber for a 15" barrel or would a 7mm/08, 30-30, or 7mm waters be a better one to use. i'm talking deer to 200 yards or so. I haven't had a chance to reload it yet. how about recoil. it should be about the same as a 7mm/08 I think.
thanks

 

[Ernie]

i just bought an encore in 270 for hunting. I was told that some rifle calibers are not that good in encore's due to the short barrels [15]. is this a good caliber for a 15" barrel or would a 7mm/08, 30-30, or 7mm waters be a better one to use. i'm talking deer to 200 yards or so. I haven't had a chance to reload it yet. how about recoil. it should be about the same as a 7mm/08 I think.
thanks

Is your Encore frame a handgun or a rifle frame?

 

[huntwithme]

handgun frame

 

[Ernie]

Either the 270 Win or the 7-08 should serve you well.
What type of hunting and what kind of distances are you hoping to be able to do on what game?

 

[huntwithme]

deer and antelope up to 250 yards. does the 270 with the 15" barrel recoil like the 7mm/08 in the same setup

 

[RT2506]

Out of your 15" barrel you should be able to get 2500 fps and great accuracy with 130 gr Sierra SP and (work up to it) 45 to 46 grs Varget powder. With any load out of that 15" barrel be sure and ALWAYS use ear plugs and it would not hurt to wear sun glasses because of the HUGE fireball that will come from the muzzle. Recoil will be manageable with practice but the muzzle blast will wear you out. I helped a guy work with his 270 Win a while back. Since then he went to a 260 Rem because it had less recoil and muzzle blast and a much better selection of bullets.
By the way we frond that the suggested accuracy load from the Sierra Manual in the single shot pistol section for their 130 gr bullet 45.1 grs Varget was exactly that, ACCURATE. This bullet kills deer really well also.

 

[huntwithme]

thanks for the info. i read somewhere that the rimmed bullets like the 30-30 or 7mm waters or even the 30-30ai are better to use in a encore with short barrels[15"]. also fast burning powder. i was planning on moving down to either a 243 or the 6.5 creedmore in the fucture.
thanks again for the info

 

[Ernie]

A good muzzle brake will make either choice very easy on the hand.
Holland's Radial Baffle is an excellent choice.
This is a 6.5-06. Not that different than a 270 Win


Bayside Custom Gunworks puts a lot of muzzle brakes on TC's
460 Holly Point Road
Mathews, VA 23109
804-832-9545
[email protected]

 

[Rock 29]

Your 270 will do fine to 250 if you do your part, practice is the key with hunting handguns. My 06 15" Encore would push 130g Hornadys at over 2700 and were accurate, the recoil became the probblem with extended practice sessions. I have since gone to a contender 30-30 ackley, accurate, easy to shoot and less recoil. 7x30 waters is good also, had a super 14 that shot 120 ballistic tips @ 2500 and shot sub moa all day, stupid me "sold it" years ago, that is one gun I wish I had back.

 

[huntwithme]

I was just talking to a friend of mine and he was trying to change my mind and get a 30-30ai instead of the 243. it sounds good .

 

[Ernie]

Stay with the higher pressure cartridges since you have a Encore

 

[Buttermilk]

I've been a long time user of the T/C.

Short barrels and rifle calibers do just fine. In fact, powders that work well in rifles also work well in short barrels. I've shot a lot of different calibers in the Contender and Encore. Nearly all have been a "rifle" caliber.

I've handloaded all of them with appropriate powders such as IMR7828ssc, RL22, H4831sc, H4350, IMR4350 and similar powders.

I currently shoot a 30-338WM in an Encore handgun setup. Very accurate and very fast using IMR4350 and H4831sc.

While rimmed cartridges work fine in the Encore and Contender, rimless rounds work fine. Most of mine have been rimless. Two have been rimmed, two have been belted.

If you plan to handload, I'd personally pick H4831 powder as a starting point.

I agree with Ernie: Encore, stay with higher pressure rounds and take advantage of the Encore strength.

I'd choose the 243 over the 30-30AI in the Encore, but that's just my personal choice.

My personal Encore caliber choice is the 30-338WM.
Berger 175 VLD @ 2846 FPS
Nosler 180 BT @ 2800 FPS
Nosler 190 ABLR @ 2725 FPS
Hornady 165 Interbond @ 2928 FPS

Lots of choices in the Encore.

 

[RT2506]

I also agree with staying with the high pressure rounds in the Encore. I would take a loooooog look at something in .264 cal. My friend as I said has a 260 Remington barrel and he loves it. 120 Nosler ballistic tips running between 2600 and 2700 fps is awesome on deer. Recoil will not be much more than the 243 Win. The 260 Rem is just the 243 Winchester case necked up to .264 cal. Most .264 cal bullets are designed to expand perfectly in the velocity range you will be working with in the 15" barrel and they have a very high ballistic coefficient thus they shoot flatter and the wind does not effect them a much. I have a T/C Contender with a Shilen
SS 14" barrel by MGM in 30-30AI and with 125 Nosler Ballistic Tips at 2670 fps it does a great job on deer out to 200 yards so far. Recoil is mild and man it is accurate. It is about MAX pressure wise as to what a Contender can handle. With the Encore the amount of recoil that you can handle is it's limit.

 

[450hunter]

I have a 308 in the Encore pistol barrel and I love it. I have only shot factory 150 grns out of it but I plan on shooting reloads out of it this summer. I don't have a break on it but its very manageable. I did kill a really nice caribou with a 7-30 Waters @ 146 yards (one shot).