Looking for ideas

[Yooper003]

I am looking for advice And or ideas, I kind of got into single shot rifles in the last couple years.have CVA's in 44 mag & 45/70. Henry in 357 mag, then I bought an Encore in 308, mistake, it might make as I have seen posted, a good tomato stake. I have read about MGM barrels & all comments have been good, a little pricey, 420$ shipped, but probably doable. Can't figure what cal. . Another 308 barrel, or maybe something in 7mm. Thinking another 308 barrel & try and have this 308 rebored to maybe 35 Whelen? The barrel I have is so bad that even with factory ammo, the primers are flattened so bad the head looks all one piece. I have been reading here where people have been sending them back to TC, only to be told that they are within specs. I could get another TC barrel cheaper but afraid of getting the same thing.

[Elroy]

I bought a Henry 223,and a CVA 7mm08, both break action single shots from Buds,and to be honest the CVA out shines the Henry in all areas but looks..I payed about double for the Henry when concidering I had to buy a scope base,and hammer extension separately. You have to look for them on Buds sight,but the 7mm08 compact 20" is way cheaper than the others of the same model. I guess it is because the 6.5 Creedmore has stolen the 7mm08s thunder.You can get it for about $180 or so.These guns have an unbelievable trigger,and come with hammer extension, and a scope base,and rings built as one.I think it is the best value I have ever got on a new gun. They are hard to find on Buds sight,but if you search for 719004022 they will show up.I just looked, and they are $185 right now.I highly recomend them,and I forgot to mention they are also drilled,and tapped for sights,which are readily available on Amazon,and Ebay

[bikerbeans]

You can rent go no-go gages t9 check the headspace on your 308. If you measure the HS out of spec then you have information to refute them if they say it is in spec.

BB

[koger]

There could be several things to consider besides the barrel on a Encore! You might want to look at a new hinge pin, different springs while at it. You can get them from a guy who use to work at TC and knows what the Encore was designed to be, not the junk that is put out nowadays. A friend who had one, in .308, with the same problems as you, and accuracy was nil, 8" groups at 100 yds. We ended up putting 2 different hinge pins in, and new barrel latches and springs, the pressure problems disappeared, and it was an honest 3/4" gun after that, with 3 different barrels. Mike Bellum is the name of the guy and co who makes these aftermarket products. He had 25 years experience working at TC!

[uscra112]

I'm gonna get flamed for it, but I'd recommend choosing a lower-pressure cartridge over the .308. The Encore/Contender sliding bolt locking system was discarded by American shotgun makers about 100 years ago, and with good reason. The barrel alignment arrangement also leaves a lot to be desired. These two factors explain why it takes so much fussing around to make them shoot.

As for Bellm.....he claims to have apprenticed with Parker Ackley. Unless I've flipped into an alternate universe, he never worked for T/C in any of its' incarnations. And when I was tuning up my first and only Contender, I did not come away with a warm fuzzy feeling. He sold me a bunch of his parts, but none of them addressed the problem, (light strikes) which I eventually found and fixed myself for $0.00. YMMV. Thatisall.

[koger]

I can only speak from my experience, and the conversation I had with the man, concerning his past employment and the results from using his selected parts. He was very helpful and got the desired result. The reply about TC's locking arrangement is true, to a point, but much better steel and process's have been used throughout the long life of the TC Contender's and Encore's. I have had very little trouble getting a Contender to function and shoot accurately, a lot with later model Encores, but the first 2-3 years of Encore manf., their was zero issue with them. Just my experience with 35+ years of gunsmithing under my belt, and my opinion, for what that is worth!

[Wayne Smith]

I got my 25Krag AI barrel from Bullberry for less than that if I remember right (questionable, admittedly!). Look up Bullberry Barrel Works. Give them a call and talk to them about possibilities as well. They have my reamer if you want to play with a wildcat.