So my lovely wife bought me a TC Encore from a friend of ours at her work. It's got a .50 cal muzzleloader barrel and a rifle barrel. Not sure the caliber. She bought it Friday and is picking it up tomorrow. Decided to tell me tonight. So my question is this……I'm not sure of the caliber of the rifle barrel, but I know I will look for a 7mm Rem mag barrel as I have a lot of components…what kind of accuracy can I expect to see from an Encore rifle? I have read several threads and see some love em and some don't.
Wife bought me a TC Encore
- Thread starter FlGunner
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muledeer01
Well-Known Member
I had one in 30/06, 15" pistol, it would out shoot most rifles. .750" groups @100 yards were the norm.
Muddyboots
Well-Known Member
Encores are like rabbits, barrels reproduce magically in your safe! Encores can be very accurate depending upon couple typical attributes. The trigger will need to be addressed and is easy to swap out springs. I did that years ago and have 2.5# trigger. Recommend increasing hammer spring poundage as well. Increasing hammer speed is no different than changing out firing pin spring on a bolt gun to reduce lock time. The forearms can be royal PITA relative to pressure distribution at rest. All sorts of fixes. Easiest is cut half rounds from 20 ga hull. Hole punch so it will fit for firearm screw. Switched out to hex head for even better torque control.
It is not a bolt action so reloading is bit different. No bolt cam over so sizing to prevent case head separation from over sizing needs to be considered and addressed. If you FL resize, shoulder setback has to be minimum to control case stretch which can go fast.
I prefer to neck size for this reason in Encore barrels.
Shooting off bench rest will drive you crazy unless you address the forearm pressure isolation AND you place the firearm on same spot of forearm once you established the sweet spot on the firearm. Sometimes no issue but it can be so be aware of this unique aspect of these rifles. Once I isolated mine really well it was not quite as critical.
They are lightweight rifles so recoil with heavier calibers is normal.
They are fun to shoot and quite capable of 1/2 MOA!
It is not a bolt action so reloading is bit different. No bolt cam over so sizing to prevent case head separation from over sizing needs to be considered and addressed. If you FL resize, shoulder setback has to be minimum to control case stretch which can go fast.
I prefer to neck size for this reason in Encore barrels.
Shooting off bench rest will drive you crazy unless you address the forearm pressure isolation AND you place the firearm on same spot of forearm once you established the sweet spot on the firearm. Sometimes no issue but it can be so be aware of this unique aspect of these rifles. Once I isolated mine really well it was not quite as critical.
They are lightweight rifles so recoil with heavier calibers is normal.
They are fun to shoot and quite capable of 1/2 MOA!
Muddyboots
Well-Known Member
Forgot to mention you will be shocked at the accuracy of the 50 cal ML. If it is older version, the breech plug can be easily cleaned with a 1/8" hex drive drill bit by hand. These can get plugged up fast with 209 primer residue. Remove breech plug and grease the threads liberally with a good high pressure high temp grease. Recommend removing breech plug for off season storage so it can be thoroughly cleaned and prepped for next year. I prefer BH209 but almost as hard to find as H1000!
Lots of good threads on LRH on Encores so worth the search for info.
I had a .280 Rem PH barrel that I now regret selling since RL26 with 28" barrel would let it sing! Shot easy 3/4 MOA with Hornady 139 gr sp so I would bet with Hammers would yodel!
Lots of good threads on LRH on Encores so worth the search for info.
I had a .280 Rem PH barrel that I now regret selling since RL26 with 28" barrel would let it sing! Shot easy 3/4 MOA with Hornady 139 gr sp so I would bet with Hammers would yodel!
VTbluegrass
Well-Known Member
If for some reason you don't like the way it shoots there are some fairly easy fixes. Headspace shims, trigger kits, oversize hinge pins, etc from Mike Bellm.
When I lived in VA where we had 6 weeks of black powder season and only 2 weeks of rifle I knew a pile of folks who hunted with one.
When I lived in VA where we had 6 weeks of black powder season and only 2 weeks of rifle I knew a pile of folks who hunted with one.
86alaskan
Well-Known Member
I love my 50x209 encore, it's very easy to shoot well. I use 110gr by volume and 250gr barnes sabot. that's gotta be one of the easiest load work ups I've ever done. It's a well documented and reliable encore load.
The real fun comes when you start buying short barrels and a suppressor. When the barrel is only 16" you can easily use a full size rifle can and still be shorter than even a short bolt gun. Plus, with subs the only sound is the hammer falling and the bullet impact, It's really nice.
The real fun comes when you start buying short barrels and a suppressor. When the barrel is only 16" you can easily use a full size rifle can and still be shorter than even a short bolt gun. Plus, with subs the only sound is the hammer falling and the bullet impact, It's really nice.
K9TXS
Well-Known Member
If you haven't already, make sure you go to the Specialty Pistol Forums. Lots of good information there for a Encores.
I had two both very finicky. I messed with them for a couple years then sold. Never could get consistent accuracy. To much going on with forend and lockup. The muzzleloader shot great tho, just not the rifle barrels. Had 308 and 243. the 243 would shoot the really light stuff well but 2.5" on deer weight loads. 308 was 2 to 3" good for deer 200 yds in. But I got frustrated with it.
Muddyboots
Well-Known Member
They can test your patience and sanity for sure! Loading for them is quite different from bolts. Similar to Ruger No. 1's forearm sensitivity. Headspacing the brass to be MINIMAL is critical IMO for any chance at decent accuracy.
I've had mine for roughly 5 years and love it . If I'd bought one of these years ago I'd own a lot less long guns . That's no joke . I've got the 50 cal muzzle loader barrel , 204 ruger , 7 mm08 , 308, 35 Whelen barrel for mine . Mine has had no alterations done to it and the trigger breaks cleanly at 3.25 pounds which isn't horrible for a hunting rifle . No creep just slight pressure and it will surprise me almost every time. Kinda wish I hadn't got the 308 barrel for mine but I have shot it a few times . Absolutely love my 7 mm08 barrel it shoots really well
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So mine came with a 7mm-08 barrel and I just ordered a new 7mm Remington mag barrel. Got to shoot a 300 win mag Encore yesterday a couple of times after work that a guy at work has. It wasn't to bad and I put 2 side by side nearly touching at 100 yds with factory precision hunter. I hope mine shoots as good.
