Brett,
Thanks for the quick comeback and the info! So then my best bet is to buy a rifle, and send it to NEF and have the shotgun and muzzleloader barrels fitted by them. I can do that! I am a Contender guy, have 5 frames and can't keep track of the barrels, long and short, but I just can't choke down paying $250 or so for a 45x209 barrel given how badly the accuracy reviews are on the 45 TC barrels. And I can't even consider starting investment in the Encore, I just don't have the coin for that. I'll look for a resonably priced used rifle and start from there.
If you have any other recommendations, please let me know.
thanks again,
Graycg