How's your tc's encores etc. Handeling cast bullets?

[35 shooter]

Hello all. New to the site and just wondering how your tc's are doing? Used to shoot a lot of cast in pistols 30 or so years ago. At 59 i recently started casting again.this time for rifles. Have learned a lot from this site and having a ball. The rifle(a 35 whelen encore) was super accurrate with j words and since going to cast i was amazed at how close the cast shot with the j's. I think it's cast from now on. Even made my first batch of boolit lube the other day and it shot even better. I'm hooked.:bigsmyl2:Anyway just curious about others break open type actions. THANKS FOR A GREAT CAST BOOLIT SITE TO EVERYONE.

[Lonegun1894]

Not an Encore, but a Contender instead, but my barrels in .30 Herrett, .357 Mag, and .44 Mag all shoot just as well with cast as they do with jacketed, maybe even a bit better.

[hornady308]

I've had lots of success with cast boolits in several Contender barrels: 7TCU, 30-30, 30 Herrett, 357 Max, 45 Win Mag, etc. Have not gotten around to trying them in the Encore yet, but that is just a matter of time. Is your 35 Whelen barrel a Bergara by any chance? I've seen these on sale in SS for about $200 and was thinking of getting one.

[35 shooter]

I've had lots of success with cast boolits in several Contender barrels: 7TCU, 30-30, 30 Herrett, 357 Max, 45 Win Mag, etc. Have not gotten around to trying them in the Encore yet, but that is just a matter of time. Is your 35 Whelen barrel a Bergara by any chance? I've seen these on sale in SS for about $200 and was thinking of getting one.

It's a stock pro hunter and shoots just great. I know a guy who got a bergara for his tho. To start with he tried it with some factory j loads and it didn't shoot well but when his reloading dies came in it was a different story real quick like. He doesn't shoot cast but with j words he had it cloverleafing at 100 yards with re 15 powder. I know these tc's will shoot and have seen a few good posts on them when i was a lurker. Just wanted to hear from more folks like you guys that have been shooting them for awhile. So far i've gotten well under 1" groups with 26 grains of 4759 and filler and also 33 grains with filler. My hottest load with consistent accurracy like that so far has been 50 grains of h4895. Stays in the same 1" @ 100yards. Those loads are suppossed to be 1800 2200 and 2500 fps not sure without chrono tho? All these loads were with 200 grain rcbs boolit. Now if i can figure out how to stop that flyer out of a clean bbl? It's only that first shot, but it runs me nuts!!! THANKS FOR THE REPLIES .

[Iowa Fox]

Lead is about 99.5 percent of everything I shoot anymore in the T/Cs, 1911, and S&Ws. Have cut way back on the rimfire since the ammo crunch and the rimfire shortage is going to last for a long time I believe. The 17 cal & 223 AR still see a few Js but not many anymore. 150 yards or less and the lead gives better killing performance than jacketed in my experience.

[selmerfan]

They worked great in the .454 Casull and .357 Max barrels I used to own and I use them for plinking in my .260 Rem barrel. As you'd expect, quality cast boolits produce quality shooting at a much lower cost than jacketed. Though I confess to using jacketed in the .260 Rem for hunting. :grin:

[quilbilly]

I have an Encore carbine in 250/3000 from the TC Custom shop and it loves CB's even more than I thought it would when I acquired that Lyman mold. My Contender carbine barrel in 357 Max with the plain base boolits (150 RN and 170 Keith) routinely gets groups less than 2" with iron sights at 100 yards and, at current prices, is far cheaper to shoot than a 22 rf. Since you are shooting a 35 Whelan, check to see what the twist rate is and if it is similar to the 357 Max in the Contender (probably not but worth a look), you might be able to shoot Unique loads and plain base boolits like my Max does (mv 1250 for the Lee 150 RN and mv 1420 for the Lyman 170 Keith).

[35 shooter]

Quillbilly less than 2" with irons sounds good to me and i'm all about doing it cheap as i can. I haven't checked mine but i think it's a 1:14 twist, maybe the lyman 195 pb? Loads like that are definitly on my to do list with this rifle and i have unique and red dot in stock. Heck i'm even thinking about trying to make my own gaschecks.

Sounds like all you guys have these things shooting. Im trying to catch up and having a ball along the way!!

[quilbilly]

One thing you will find from my experience is that all of the T/C barrels, whether Contender, Encore, and TCR seem to have a personality of their own. Each is an adventure and my current challenge is with a 223 carbine barrel and iron sights. Been working with it and CB's over a year (powders including 4198, Unique, 4759, 5744, 2400, etc) and am close but not quite there (my most recent test was with Bullseye at 50 yards and it was encouraging).

[canyon-ghost]

I have Contenders that shoot cast. Really, I don't shoot anything but cast in them. Oh, let's see...the 41 Magnum cut a 2x2 in half at fifty meters. The 32-20 shoots to 100 meters with laser accuracy. The 7mmTCU will shoot on paper at 200 yards. I load for two Blackhawks with loads developed from TCs.

The Encores are not much different, the TCs are very usable with cast, better than almost anything else!

[blaser.306]

I have a " couple " of Contender bbl's that shoot cast real well!
(1) 7MM TCU (x2) 10 and 14"
(2) 6.5 MM TCU 14"
(3) 7MM Rimmed International 14"
(4) 30 Herrett 14"
(5) .357 Herrett 14"
(6) 357 max 14"
(7) 375 win. 14"
(8) 375x444 14" Showing promise with the NOE group buy that just finnished.
(9) 41 mag 14"
(10) 44 mag 14"
(11) .445 supermag 14"
(?) and another BBL that is currently awaiting being re-chambered to 303 british , plus a couple of 22's ! one 10" and a super 14" match chamber .
All shoot lead quite well , Although a few were at the point of causing a breakdown getting there ultimately they will all do as intyended out to at least 200 Meters with iron sights ( if I do my part )

[35 shooter]

GEE blaser let me know if you need help testing all those bbls.:bigsmyl2: Yea yea i know, already done right?lol.

[Artful]

Most of 'Tender barrels do ok - 256 Win Mag was/is a problem child though

[grampa243]

i'm using a 45-70 katahdin barrel and a 243win pro-hunter both with cast getting very good results. the 243 likes gas checks. the 45-70 has done well with everything even round ball loads.

[TCLouis]

Would love to see some of the load data for the 6.5, 7mm TCU's, 30, 357 Herrett's, 357 Max and 45-70.

[quilbilly]

My Contender carbine in 7mm TCU likes about 19 gr of 4198 with the 130 gr Lee boolit. Groups under 1-1/2" at 100 yds on average with a 4x scope and less if I am having a good day. My 357 Max in the carbine likes 8.5 gr of Unique with the Lee 150 gr RN-PB and 17.5 gr of 2400 with the Lee 158 gr SWC-GC plus both have the same point of aim at 100 yards both grouping about 3" with a Williams peep sight.

[35 shooter]

I'm with TCLouis on the loads and would love to know what you guys are loading for the whelens if you have one.
Grampa i'd love to have a katahdin bbl. That's gotta be a handy package. If you guys with the h&r's want to chime in go ahead i've got a brother that has a whelen in the handy rifle platform and that thing shoots like a house on fire. He got the h&r, i got the encore and so far we're both happy.

A little off topic but is it true s&w dropped the g2 and if so WHY??

[flipajig]

I have a super 14 in 44 mag and 7 TCU that shoot cast very well the TCU likes IMR 4227 and the 44 likes 2400
Flip

[marshall623]

My cast boolit tenders eat SR 4759 with their lead diet
10 3/4" 30 Herrett 150 lee WCWW's lubed with CR over 16.0gr 4759 does 1 1/2" at a 100 yd
10 7 TCU 130 lee WCWW's -- 160 lyman WCWW / 4 % tin over 16.0 gr. 4759 for both .
TCU has factory irons for P class big bore silly wets 130 for chic & pigs--- 160 for turk & rams it put 200M rams down like a hammer. Accuracy well on paper I don't remember but it was good for 32 out of 40 back in May first time at a match in almost 2 years
14" 7-30 waters same boolits as 7 TCU but with 18.5 gr 4759 for 130's & 17.5 gr 4759 for 160's . shot a 36 with it in JULY should have been a 40 missed 2 pigs & 2 Turk. it was all me I felt it slide as the trigger broke [smilie=b:.
I use 10.8 gr Unique with the 130 lee for a real accurate plinker, and easy shooter.
I also have used H 322 in the waters with cast and had good results. The Herrett and the TCU do well with IMR 4198 as well . 4759 just fills the case better.