Thompson Contender Encore 308 15”

[leadhead 500]

Thinking about building a TC Encore 308 with a 15 inch barrel to shoot cast out of, I have got tons of experience with the 308 and cast in a rifle but none in a pistol. Does anyone on here shoot a 15” barrel with cast, if so what loads are you guys using and what kind of groups are you getting? I’m leaning towards the Rcbs 165 with a load of Varget under it

[quilbilly]

I am going to the range today with a new Mossberg 16" barrel bolt gun to do testing at 100 yards with 180 gr boolits. With 160 gr boolits, the rifle liked them a bit hotter than usual (2100 fps) using RE-7 powder but on my 40 yard home range (off the porch)earlier this week, the rifle seemed to like the 180's going about 16-1700 fps using 4198 powder. The twist on the barrel is 1/10. I will keep you posted on results.

[popper]

Most AR10s are 16" 1:10 and do fine, just a bit slower than a longer barrel.

[quilbilly]

Since every barrel has a personality, my range results with the 16" barrel Mossberg may not apply to your barrel. At the 100 yard range I tried RE-7, 4198, and 5744 all for velocities at around 1650 with the 180 gr RNGC boolit and the results were - the RE-7 was all over the place, the 4198 had serious vertical stringing, and the 5744 produced 2" groups TWICE on the bull so we have a winner with the 180's. With a 158 gr RFGC and RE-7 at 1900 FPS I got another 2" group with the same point of aim as the 180's but a slightly hotter load of 2400 with a 165 gr RNGC was all over the paper so we have another winner. FYI - I am using a variable 1.5 to 4.5 scope set on 3X so a 2" group makes me smile since the crosshairs cover the whole bull. Have fun with your barrel!