Encore handgun for fox/coyotes?

YetiHunter

YetiHunter

New member
I was toying with the idea of getting a .223 or .22-250 15inch handgun barrel for my Encore for Coyotes and fox calling. I figured it would be a nice, small and light gun to tote around. Does anyone have much experience with it in either of these chambers? I have heard they can be real shooters.
Thanks in advance.
-Yeti
 
You may want to look at a Contender in 223, it's lighter than the Encore and I like the trigger better on the 'old style' Contenders. The new 'G2' is like a small Encore.
All I use (well once and a while my AR makes it into the woods) are handguns, my favorite is the MOA and for the price, especially for a custom gun, it's hard to beat.

Mike
 
shot quite a few coyotes with my contender (in 223, 7-tcu and 7-30 waters)
in an encore pistol the 22-250 has the same power as a 223 out of a rifle
thats what i would get
have fun todd
 
I had the 22-250 barrel for my Encore and it was a good cal on crows and other varmints. I didn't use it that much and one of my friends wanted it and i sold it to him and replaced it with a 15 inch 7mm-08 barrel . The 7mm-08 i can use for varmints and also for deer. I would advise buying a 24 or bigger cal for your calling and you can use it for big games also . The 24 or 7mm is much more versible in the Encore handgun. I load the 110 gr Speer TNT Moly with Varget /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
encore2.jpg

handgundeer.jpg
 
I guess I never thought much about lost velocity with the short 15 inch barrel!!! the third post stated that a 22-250 in the handgun will shoot like a .223 in a rifle. Does that mean that the .223 in the handgun wont have much punch at all?? Thanks again for the responses I am getting on this. They are all helping, experience is the best teacher thats why I am asking.
 
Yeti,

Unfortunately, the .22-250 pistol velocities in comparison to .223 rifle velocties, is about correct. You're going to loose roughly, 200-300 feet per second going from a 22-24" barrel, on down to the 15". Usually about 28-35fps per inch.
It also depends on the burning rate of the powder you're using as well.

If you're looking for .22-250 rifle like energies in a 15" Encore barrel, try going the .243 route.

A 55-75gr. VMax load in that length barrel will net you velocities/energies that are "on par" with the 250's in a rifle. Possibly higher because of the slightly higher BC of the .243 bullet.

Right now, in my 15" Encore, I'm using a 55gr Sierra BlitzKing over 43.0grs. of Varget, with a Federal 210Match primer. The velocity is running about 3650fps. and the load is still a grain and a half (or two) below maximum.
Book loads for a rifle in .243 run at 4000fps for 45grs. of Varget, so go figure.

I've got a Savage Striker in 7mm08, and it's a beauty for an "all around" deer & coyote gun for sure, but if deer season was over, I'd be toting the .243 because it seems to have much more punch on them with the lighter bullets.

Honestly either caliber, loaded right, would do just fine for either deer or coyotes. The bullet choices in the .243 might be better overall, because the lighter bullets would be more preferred for coyotes (at least by me), but there's still adequate "heavier weights" for taking deer.

The lightest bullets for the 7mm08 run around 100grs on up, in weight, and the load I'm using now is a 120 Nosler BT, also with 43.0grs. of Varget at only 2630fps. give or take.
Although it would take a coyote cleanly I believe, again, I like the smaller faster, more frangible bullets that the .243 offers more so. It seems like it just drops them faster.

FWIW.....

Take care,
Bob
 
Anything to compare the recoil of the .243 or 7-08 to? The reason I ask is because I too have thought about a 15" barrel for my Encore, but I have arthritis and carpel tunnel syndrome.
 
Ive shot the .308 in the 15" barrel and that thing has some serious recoil to it. From what I hear the .223 and .22-250 dont have nearly that much recoil in the 15" barrel.
-Yeti
 
I have hunted with and shot T/C Contenders chambered in .223 (have also used Contenders chambered for 6mm-223, 6mm T/CU, 7-30 Waters, .30-30 Winchester, .30-30 Ackley Improved and .44 Remington Magnum).

I have shot an aweful lot of critters with the 52gr. Speer Flat Base Hollow Point loaded to about 2850 FPS out of a 14" .223 Contender. I also used 40gr. Nosler Ballistic Tips loaded to a muzzle velocity of 3250 FPS with excellent results out of the 14" .223 Contenders.

In working with a 14" Savage Striker in .22-250 the statement about .22-250 Handgun Velocities are about the same as what a .223 Rifle will achieve are correct. However we fired over 300 rounds in accuracy testing the above mentioned .22-250 Savage Striker Handgun and never did find a load we were happy with so it went down the road.

On the other hand I also had a .243 Winchester Savage Striker Handgun and it has been the most accurate gun I have ever fired period.

I am currently working with a 15" Encore chambered in .243 Winchester. I am loading 80gr. Speer Hot Core Spitzers with H-4895 to a muzzle velocity of 2920 FPS. This load will consistantly print 3 shot groups at 100 yards of under an inch (and when I am really on they approach 1/2"). I have been trying to harvest a Whitetail with this Barrel-n-Load, but so far have not pulled the trigger. I have the utmost confidence that it will do the job with proper shot placement as I have taken a lot of Whitetails over the years with both the 6mm-223 & 6mm T/CU using this same bullet.

Good luck.

Larry

PS, http://www.handgunhunt.com/tech/t12/index.html is a link to an article on the .223 Remington in Handguns.
 


Write your reply...
Back
Top