hobbyist,
So this is essentially a .306-08 wildcat?
No, what you have is a 7mm-08 chamber with a tight neck. Tight necks are done so that precision shooters can reduce case neck thickness so that it matches the chamber neck to within very tight tolerances, usually about .002". Factory ammo should
never be used in a tight neck chamber. This barrel would be no good for shooting factory ammo nor would it be a good idea to for a novice handloader. If there is insufficient room for bullet release you could have a disaster waiting to happen.
Encore doesnt have a bolt to force the 7-08 into the chamber
Never
force any cartridge into any chamber even if the bolt is capable of camming it in. Either factory or handloads should fit easily in a chamber. Sometimes an experienced handloader will fit cases so that there is a
slight bit of tension as the bolt is closed but this is not what you are referring to and is really something for the advanced loader.
My suggestion would be to take the barrel to a gunsmith and have the neck opened up to SAMMI specs. It should be an inexpensive and easy job for any competent smith. Then you could safely use factory ammo or have a much safer chamber to begin to reload for.
Hope this clears some things up for you - VH