T/C Encore muzzle loader

F

fireguyty

New member
Gentlemen,
I was sick and tired of getting a Buck tag every five years here in Nevada, so I put in for Muzzle loader, and boom back to back tags. My problem is that I don't own a Muzzle loader anymore. 18 years ago I did have an older T/C with the pour powder and ball. I did not care for it and sold it. I know a lot has changed with the new inline style loaders. After some investigation I decided on the T/C Encore. I have yet to buy it.

Please offer any advice to me on ALL the stuff I need to buy and do to make this my bag. I am not rich by any means, but when it comes to my guns I have no problems spending the cash to have the good stuff right out of the gate and not have to upgrade later. Also please explain these things to me as you would a child. With a normal rifle I am a good shot and load my own ammo, but I just don't know anything about these.

Laws that I think are important here are iron sights only, Sabots are legal (this is the way to go, right?).

Thanks! I always have confidence in this forum.
 
I had an Encore for several years and now have an Omega that I actually like better. You might consider looking at one as it's much cheaper (unless of course you know you want to have multiple barrels). I got the SS fluted, thumbhole camo stock version and absolutely love it. Sorry to stray off course, here are my recommendations. BTW, I live in Iowa and as a result have a ton of experience with muzzleloading, not bragging, just saying I definitely have some opinions...
Gun
Scope 3.5x10 is my preference
250 grain Hornady SST (TC Shockwave) or 250 Barnes TMZ
Triple 7 pellets (they're accurate and easy)
Winchester shotgun primers (they're cheap and always work)
Breach plug grease (they all work fine, use liberally)
Speed loaders (I like the ones that hold 3 clear tubes)
Patches (get good ones, don't waste your $ on soaked patches, spit works just fine)
Bullet starter
Bullet jag for loading tipped bullets
Brass jag
Brass brush (do not use steel)
Rubber palm handle (fits over ramrod if you don't have a power rod, mine hold a few extra primers)
Brushes (to clean the breach plug, make sure you get the tiny one to clean the flash hole, you don't want crud in there)

I always clean my barrel from the breach using soap and water, if I shoot a lot I might clean the barrel with a bronze brush but your only removing plastic, not copper fouling. Hope this helps, good luck muzzleloading!

Oh yeah, I was going to mention that a couple years ago I fell over backwards and hit the end of my Omega barrel on solid ice. It actually hit so hard it bent the barrel. I sent the gun to TC and told them it was my fault and I was bummed because it was only 1 year old and of the handful of muzzleloaders I have had over the years it was the most accurate (easy sub 1 MOA). They sent me a completely new stainless steel fluted barrel. That's SERIOUS customer service!!












 
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I've had several Encore's and they are pretty nice rifles. I now have an Omega that will do anything the Encore would with the exception of change out barrels. The Omega has a decent trigger, with-out a trigger job and the accuracy is excellent. I bought mine for about $300.00, but off season, you can pick them up cheap! Mine is the bottom of the line Z-7 and I picked up a thumbhole stock really cheap, so now its the way I wanted it without a $600 ++ price tag. JMO
 
The Encore is a great rifle, which will allow you to add additional calibers later. However if you don't forsee needing/wanting to do that later, the Encore has quite a bit higher price tag than other ML's that are just as good or even better without the cost.

I am not trying to talk you out of the Encore, just suggesting an alternative view.

Whatever you decide to go with I would suggest you look at trying Black Horn 209 powder. It is the next thing to smokeless powder in a muzzleloader. It allows many more shots between cleanings, while still maintaining accuracy. It does however require a rifle that uses a 209 shotshell primer.

Here are a couple of links with some good info.
modern muzzleloader.com


Chuck Hawks.com

Hope this helps
 
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I have a few Encore frames. And I really like my Encore rifles, and shotgun. I bought a couple different Encore MZ barrels and got rid of them. We tried several different ones as a group. We all got rid of them. We just could not get them too shoot that well. And getting a second shot down the barrel was next to impossible. We tried a dozen different sabots and bullets. We also had the same difficult loading with the Omega. But the Omega shot accurately. I do not mind paying extra for a good quality firearm, and the Encore is a good quality firearm. We have just had bad luck with the MZ barrels.

On the other hand I have had great success with my Knight rifle MZ's. So I stayed with the Knight's for my MZ's. And went with the Encore CF's and shotgun barrel. Just my experience and opinion. Tom.
 
fireguyty- I get excellent accuracy from my Omega. I shoot 100grs. of 777 powder and a T/C Shock Wave 250g. bullet. Makes whitetail deer DRT! At the range, I run a wet patch through the bore followed up with a dry patch between each shot. Some may agree or disagree, its just the way I do it. On a good day,it will shoot about an inch or so. Plenty good enough to take a deer off his (or her) feet. In the woods, a second shot is not that bad to load with the Shock Waves and if you want to spend a little more on projectiles, they (T/C) make one called an Easy Glide thats supposed to load even easier. JMO
 
You might want to try shooting 100 grains versus 150 grains of powder for accuracy and shootability testing. A lot of folks shoot 150 grains and do fine. I have had some bullets actually shoot tighter groups with 150 grains (although most don't) but I don't handle the increased recoil well so I shoot 2 pellets. With a good rangefinder, either load will take you 200 yards easily. If you encounter a bullet that is very tight to load in warm weather, avoid it in the winter. I lost a giant buck a few years back when the POI dropped due to how tight the bullet seated in really cold weather. Stick with what works, the grass isn't always greener.
Good luck!
Chris
 
Very true Hawkeye! My Encore likes 110 grains of loose Triple 7 with a 348 powerbelt. It did not shoot the lighter bullets well, but will group these bullets very well and has accounted for quite a few deer and an elk. Furthest kill was around 150 last season w/ open sights, no problem.
 
I bought an encore a few years ago and have been fairly satisfied with it. I use 150 grains of white hots and a 300 grain bullet by dead center. At 200 yards it shoots about 3 to 4 inch groups. My daughter shot her first two does last year using it one at 90 yards and the second at 150 yards. Last year I had one of those moments and had to buy another gun and ended up with an Ultimate muzzle loader. It has a bolt action and uses a 45 cal casing and primer. With 200 grains of triple seven it can put it on target at 400 yards. Love both guns but now the t/c is the wife and daughters.
 
I'm a Knight guy(4) but the others would be fine. I also like the Hornady 250 grn SST sabot. I'm also a big fan of the new Blackhorn 209 powder. It does take a few particulars to use it reliably, but easy to do with a modern in-line. I have my Knight all tricked out with a Burris scope & I really like hunting with it. I took 9 deer & a coyote last Fall, hunting 2 states. One location had a bunch of anterless tags. My charge is in the 115 grn area with B209 & a 250 grn SST.
 
Don't get me wrong, If I could use a scope I definitely would but as it is, Colorado doesn't permit. Anyone out there using the Bushnell Trophy 250 DOA? Looks pretty sweet, just wish it was legal to hunt with here.
 
Is this the way to go with powder?

Hodgdon Pyrodex Black Powder Substitute 50 Caliber 50 Grain Pellets

Seems easier to just drop in a couple of these......
 
Originally Posted By: fireguytyIs this the way to go with powder?

Hodgdon Pyrodex Black Powder Substitute 50 Caliber 50 Grain Pellets

Seems easier to just drop in a couple of these......

I'd say it's your call on how ever you want to do it. Myself, I can have a blast with load developement, as I do with my rifle. I had messed with my Encore until I came up w/a very soft an accurate load. Win. primmer, 85gr. Pyr. Select, Harvester green ribbed sabot stuffed w/a 240gr. XTP. Running at 1,600+ FPS. Shoots flat enough to whack a 1 gal. water jug at 200 yd. It's all I need for my deer hunting. Took a doe at 140 yd. bang-flop. I steer away from the 20 shot vanity packs. Buying bulk will keep you into some cheap paper punching.
 
I own and use Encore and Knight muzzleloaders and like them both very much. If you don't plan on buying any other barrels down the road then like the guy's already mentioned, you can get a quality rifle at a reduced cost of the Thompson Center.
One Encore I use is set up with the factory fiber optic adjustable iron sights and they are fantastic for shooting during low light conditions.
The accuracy of these rifles will blow your mind, they shoot better then some older centerfire rifles that I own.
The in-lines are the way to go, hands down, with a quick learning curve and ease of cleaning.
I have been ussing 777 pellets and 250gr Hornady sabots with good accuracy and excellent performance on all big game. I use three pellets (150gr) in all of my inlines.
 
I have a T/C Omega. I use 90gr. of BH209 and Barnes 290gr. TMZs with a 209 primer. I can keep it on target @ 100yds off hand and with a peep. For $299, the price was right and it is a great ML. The T/C Shockwave is a great bullet but comes apart too easy for me. It is the same bullet as the Hornady SST. I have tried conicals along with many other bullets and sabot combinations. The S/W actually shoots the best out of my rifle and shoots tighter groups than the Barnes but since I live in CA, some areas are restricted to non-lead ammo and the Barnes also has 90% bullet retension or better. The Barnes TMZ has a boat tail, the Barnes MZ does not. I went with the Black Horn 209 BP sub because of the hydrophobic properties and consistnacy with loading. It does not crumble up so that when you get to the bottom of the container, your 2F is not 3F or 4F. Also, no swabbing between shots. My best is 13 shots without breech plug maintainance. The flashole will foul due to the 209 primer but you dont have to swab in order to load a follow up shot....if needed. Look it up. It is made by Western Powders. When I bring my Omega to the range, I have lots of folks come over and ask me questions about the rifle. "Why dont you swab, why doesnt the smoke stink and other questions folks that are used to seeing a ML might ask. I started with T7 pellets, then T7 loose powder, then Pyrodex loose powder and finally BH209 and I havent looked back.
 
Ok, so after all your suggestions I have bought everything....except the rifle. The T/C web page is very pretty, but lacks in real information. It appears that there are several different grades of the Omega, but no real discription of what they are. I was at Sportsman's and held an Omega that appeared to me to be one of the cheaper models at like $300. Then they had the Bone Collector. They both had different "actions". The Bone Collector had the action I like better.

My point? I want the top of the line! I really like the looks and feel of the thumbhole, but the Bone Collector is not available with it. So, which one is the top of the line?

Thanks again,
Ty
 
I have been using TC's for years now, but just got into shooting a muzzleloader last year. I bought a brand new stainless barrel from Cabelas and went to work on it to make the barrel more accurate. First thing I did was lap the barrel until there was no more cotton fibers hanging up inside the barrel. Then I heated the barrel to about 200 degrees and sprayed a teflon based lubricant down the barrel and let it cool on its own.
For load development I went a step further than most. I measured out Blackhorn 209 to the desired grain amount a couple times and weighed it on a scale. Once I found a consistent weight I made up 20 packets at that weight and 5 packets with a couple more grains to see if there would be any difference. I used the Hornady 250 grain SST's. The gun was topped off with a Nikon Omega BDC scope.
I could consistently shoot out to 300 yards and hit a paper plate everytime. I shot a muley that weighed close to 250 pounds at 190 with one shot. Spend a little time behind the gun and you can make it a real shooter. David
 


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