encore: what caliber to choose for deer

[jim38ny]

I am considering an encore. currently I have a colt anaconda 44mag. While it is a fine wheel gun, after about 60yds (open sights) I am all done. this colt isnt tapped for a scope, and can't be according to colt. I would like to be able to reach out 100-150 yds and just cant decide what caliber to consider. I do use a 30-06 rifle and thought it would make sense to go that way so i dont have different ammo, but am leary of what the recoil would be. I would appreciate any input offered on any caliber/recoil etc for deer. thanks

[Spencer]

Hello from one central NYer to another, I just took a deer at 140 yards on saturday morning with my Encore with a scoped (Thompson Center 2.5X-7X) 12" barreled 7mm-08.  I really like the caliber which is a .308 necked down to 7mm.  I am not sure they make that barrel in 12" anymore, but you can check around.  I am really happy with the caliber.  And I am not a big guy either.  5'8" and 160 lbs.  I do not think the recoil is unmanageable.  Good Luck.

[RWG]

jim38ny,

I have a 15" 30-06 barrel and it is sweet. If you shoot full power loads in your 44 You should not have any trouble with the 30-06. My barrel likes the 165gr bullets. My nephew used it to take a nice doe about a month ago. I had it loaded with 165gr Nosler Partitions. He shot her at around the 140yd mark and she fell at the shot. If you like the 30-06 out of a rifle you will love it out of a pistol.

Ronnie

[Possum]

I shot two does during the same hunt with my 15" Encore and they dropped in their tracks.  165gr Noslers did the trick.  Recoil is not that bad, but make sure your scope mounts are quality mounts!

[444encore]

There so many calibers available for the encore, how does one choose?
No matter what caliber you choose though, it sound's as though you are considering employing a scope. Might I suggest do not couple T/C duo-ring mount with a glossy finish scope.  The duo-ring mount is solid steel and while it may work fine with matte finish scopes has a tendancy to lose grip on glossy finishes. For glossy scopes, I would recommend something like T/C's weaver rail with Millet rings which are aluminum with ridges and also come equiped with friction tape. Together this offers a rock solid foundation for slippery scopes. I've experianced scope slide with duo-rings and T/C glossy scope on calibers as light as .22-250, so take head on this subect and save yourself some money and agrivation.

[haroldclark]

Your question regarding caliber in the Encore is a subject that I have been working on for a while now.  Recoil is a very real consideration to me.  I considered the 308, 30-06, 7mm BR, 7mm-08.  Using Neco's QuickLoad and Sierra's Infinity computer software, I worked up a spreadsheet in Excel and compared the different calibers.

Up to 200 yards, the 7mm-08 is a great performer with less recoil.  It is the one that I am currently considering.  I am not a hunter, but I shoot long range out to 500 meters at the Rifle Silhouette Range.  The 162 gr Hornady SPBT bullet in the 7mm-08 will take the 55 Pound Steel Ram down at 500 meters (547 Yards).  The Ballisitc shape of the 7mm bullets help it retain velocity and energy at the longer ranges.

If you would like to review my spread sheet, send me an email request and I will send the sheet to you.

Harold Clark
haroldclark@citlink.net
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[Redhawk1]

I have an Encore pistol 15 inch in 30-06. Recoil is very manageable. If you already have a 30-06 rifle why not a pistol also. Makes since

[dakotashooter2]

I think many rifle shooters make the incorrect assumtion that recoil from a particular cartridge will be nastier in a handgun than in a rifle. That is not necessarily so.  The recoil is handled completely different. I'm 5'-9", 140# wet) and a bit recoil sensitive with the rifle but have little problem with, and prefer recoil of most handguns to that of rifles. I handle the 308 with ease and have found a friends 45/70 to be stiff but manageable. I have also fired a 260 and found it very pleasant. If you are handling full power 44 mag loads the 308 or 06 shouldn't give you any problems. Given the short tube the 308 is probably just as effective as the 06 with bullets in the 130-165 gr range with slightly less recoil.

[jim38ny]

so far i am considering the 7mm-08, 30-06. I also have a rifle in 444 marlin rifle, and was thinking of going that way, but tc doesnt offer it. would like to hear from folks who have taken deer with the encore and what they think. re: recoil, accuracy, and how well it took the deer

[KYODE]

a 7-08 will certainly have no trouble taking a deer. i have a 15"er in stainless, and i like it a lot. recoil is no problem whatsoever, but if you've never shot a cartridge of this intensity out of a handgun, it may intimidate you at first. the muzzle will rise a little, but it is very controllable. my 7-08 will put 5 shots around an inch at 100 yards with h4895 and 120gr nosler balistic tips. i'm sure this is made easier with it's 3x12 burris scope mounted, but for a deer gun, it would be better served with the 2x7 burris. the 2x7 model has a wide(21'@100 on2x) field of view. i killed one deer last season with it. a small button buck at 250 yards. it worked great and the bullet did it's job. the deer stumbled around for,maybe 25-30 yards and fell.  i had a perfect sandbag rest for the shot, and that made a long shot possible.
any of the ones you mention will work fine, and it's more a personal preference thing in my opinion. the 444marlin would be a good deer gun also, but i think you would have less range, and more recoil. i'd say the .308 would be really close to the 30-06 in handgun form also.
 if you reload your own ammo, you wouldn't need a extra set of dies, since you already shoot it in a rifle.
 i havn't shot the 06 in a handgun, but i doubt the recoil would be as severe as you might imagine. with a rifle, it punches into your shoulder, which leads to pain. the handgun will rise, and maybe do a slight twist, but no pain is involved.
these are just my thoughts and opinions. people are different, and some may percieve recoil differently.
this past season, i packed my G2 contender/30-30ackley improved outfit, so the 7-08 was sadly neglected. thats ok, i still like it, and maybe next season i'll use it more. can't pack them all with you, but i wish i could. :wink:

[jim38ny]

what is your opinion between the 7mm-08/308 and the 30-06

[KYODE]

well, i bought a 7-08 and love it. i bet i'd be the same about any of the three. it wouldn't bother me to have any of the three, or a .270, .243, or any wildcat that powerful. the 7-08 is great, and i seem to prefer the short action type calibers most. you'll get near the performance of the longer cases. but you still may find advantage with rifle and handgun in the same caliber. do you reload? either way, you need to try different combo's of factory loads to see which is most accurate in your gun, if you're looking for the tightest groups the gun will shoot. i'd say most any will shoot tight enough for a couple hundred yards.
at first shooting of the 7-08, i had groups 3" or so at 100 with factory loads(rem 120gr hp). after lightening the trigger, floating the forearm, and loading my own ammo for it, groups tightened considerably.
 see the post "bedding tc forends" for those tricks. i 'm now using washers around the attachment screws, between forend and barrel, to keep the wood from touching the barrel.

[oldhunter]

Also own a 15" Encore in 7-08 that will do everything previously posted as far as accuracy.  I was also hesitant when buying as am 61 with some arthritis in hands and fingers.  When practicing at the range, recoil only becomes a factor after 30 to 40 rounds. By then my hands have had enough.  When that occurs, I switch to a rifle to practice with.

[Duffy]

Another one here with the 15" 7-08 that I really like. I was leaning toward a 308 but with the info that I gathered up there isn't much difference between them and some say the recoil is less with the 708. Would be nice to see a test between the 30-06 and 308 in a 15" bbl and see how they compare up to say a 200g bullet. I took a nice buck this year with mine, it was pretty close (75 yds) and it performed as well as any rifle. A person might want the extra uumph of the 30-06 if you were going for bear or Elk though. I don't know how much extra you can squeeze out of a 15" 30-06 VS the 708/308. I get right at 2600 with a 140g BT and 2525 with a 150g Partition.  If you don't reload the Hornady Lite magnums will shove a 139g bullet out of a 15" 708 @ 2550 and that ain't bad for factory stuff. Recoil is less sharp than a 44 270g in a 14" contender if that's any help.

Ryan

[xphunter]

For waht you are considering the 260 remington or the 7-08 should fill the bill.

Ernie

[hubcap]

:biggun:  In my state, Iowa, only straight-wall cartridges are allowed for handguns (no rifles). I took a nice buck with my Encore in .444 with one shot @ 60 yds.