TC Encore 209/50 Accuracy Tips

300 Grain Precision Rifle sabot / 100 yards

Accuracy Tips For the TC Encore 209/50 ML

Every gun is a law unto itself and what may shoot well in my gun, will not necessarily shoot well in yours. This is true even though they are identical in make, model and caliber and come off the assembly line at the same time. Following are some practical accuracy tips and suggested loads to try in your 209/50.

I will list several items to check and perhaps modify to get the best accuracy out of your Encore. These are NOT in order of importance as they all play a role in getting the most out of your muzzleloader.

· Trigger job – All else being equal, you will never shoot your best with a heavy, gritty or mushy trigger pull. My gun out of the box had a trigger pull in the neighborhood of 5 lbs. After some excellent work performed by E. Arthur Brown Co., it now has a crisp, light 2 ½ pound trigger pull with an over travel screw installed. Trust me, when I say this makes a big difference, especially beyond the 100 yard mark.
· Quality bases and scope mounts, along with a quality scope. I have experienced a bad set of rings on three different rifles over the years. I had a set of Millet rings and two sets of Weaver style rings that were bad out of the box. I am not knocking Millet or Weaver rings, as both make a quality product. Remember why the auto industry has a “lemon law”, as even a $30,000 automobile escapes out the factory now and then that is defective. My current rings on the Encore 209/50 are “Warne Maxima’s” and they work very well. Other options include but are not limited to “Interlock Magnum” rings and one piece base as sold by E. Arthur Brown. Another option is a one piece base and rings made by Tally and listed on the Cabela’s website for $49.99. There are many other good combinations out there, however room does not permit listing them all.
· Free floating the forearm – You should be able to easily slip a sheet of computer paper between the frame and the wings of the forearm where they cover the hinge pin. If not, then the side pressure of the forearm wings as they bear up against the frame, could throw your shots to the left or right and cause inconsistency from one shot to the next. My Encore wears a black synthetic stock. I did experiment with putting rubber washers between the forearm and the barrel studs to free float the forearm channel. It did not seem to make any difference in group size on my gun.
· Tightening the hinge area is another important area. I have seen several proposed solutions to this problem. I have seen solutions as simple as buying Aluminum AC duct type tape with a white peel off paper backing. This was an inexpensive and quick fix to the hinge pin moving to the left and right and causing inconsistency and large groups. Tape is reputed to stay put stopping the lateral movement and solving the problem. When it is time to remove it, it comes of easily. This can be found on the Precision Rifle website.

The most recent solution seems to be a replacement hinge pin called the Encore Locker Pin and consists of a hinge pin with a locking side cap held in place by a small screw. This would definitely stop the side to side movement, however I am not sure if it would do anything for the rotation movement, or actually tightening the hinge. This retails for $39.95 plus shipping and can be purchased from Precision Rifle or E. Arthur Brown Co.

I went with what I feel is possibly the best solution as offered by Mike Bellm at mike@bellmtcs.com. I ordered Mike’s oversize #1 and #2 hinge pin kit which at the time of this article retails for $28.80. It made the most sense to me to fix both the side to side and rotational movement and to effectively TIGHTEN the hinge. The #1 standard pin is apprx .4377 diameter or .0005 which is ½ of one thousandth of an inch larger than most factory hinge pins, and the #2 pin is apprx .4383 diameter. Mike indicates that in about 75% of the cases, either the #1 or #2 hinge pin will solve the problem. In my case following his detailed, but easy to understand instructions that came with the pins, the #1 pin has effectively tightened my hinge and improved accuracy. The #2 pin I felt was too large. With the #1 pin in place, there is now NO side to side or rotational movement and the lockup is tighter and more consistent. To Quote Mike, “There should be an interference fit of the hinge pin and the action should open and close like a high grade trap gun, or English double rifle or like a bank vault”.

I should mention here that this kit requires NO measuring, NO reaming out of any holes and comes with complete instructions for installation. Since there is No reaming or enlarging existing holes, etc. this may or may not affect the warranty on your gun. For further explanation of the hinge pin kit, trigger jobs, action work and other services offered by Mike, contact him by e-mail above, or www.bellmstc.com.

· QLA – if you have tried all of the above and are still having group therapy problems or concerns, do a visual check of the QLA (Quick Load Accurizer – free bore space of apprx 1 inch in the end of the muzzle). If you can shine a light into the end of the bbl and check for any unevenness, this might be an area that Mike Bellm could help with as well. If the QLA is not aligned and cut properly, it could cause you to start bullets down the bore tipped slightly to one side and again cause accuracy problems. My QLA passed the visual inspection.

On my own Encore, I have installed the Bellm #1 oversize hinge pin, had a trigger job performed, sanded the wings or ears of the forearm to free float those areas to ensure no side to side pressure, installed quality bases and rings and topped it off with a Mueller 2X7X32 red dot illuminated scope.

Since my website is geared for the working man, let’s add up the expense:

E. Arthur Brown Co. trigger job - $50/send in your action, sans scope and barrel
Mike Bellm’s #1 and #2 hinge pin kit $28.80
Sand Paper for free floating forearms - $2.00
Warne Maxima rings - $30.00
Mueller 2X7X32 red dot illuminated scope - $139.95 (E. Arthur Brown Co.)
Bases – one piece base for Encore apprx $15.00

$265.75 for the entire package. Remember that figure includes the accuracy work and what I consider a great scope for the money. Accuracy work alone in my case amounted to only to $80.80.

Does every Encore 209/50 need this tune up? The short answer here is NO. My guess is that thousands of these guns have been made and most leave the TC factory performing like they should and they are most assuredly a quality firearm and built to last. If your particular gun is not shooting as well as you think it should, one or more of these tips will give you somewhere to start looking for the problem. If you have one of the thousands of Encores that do not need to have anything done to them other than a quality scope sitting on top of quality bases and rings, then God Bless you and don’t knock it.

Over the past 12 years, I have owned several muzzleloaders. Among them, were CVA’s, Traditions, Knights and my previous favorite, the Ruger 77/50. I now own only two, and they are both TC’s. One is the Encore 209/50, pictured here and the other is a TC laminated, stainless thumbhole stocked Omega. I made the right decision for me and you can bet I am a fan of TC Arms. If I were in the market for a new muzzleloader today, I would look probably look at the Savage ML w/accutrigger. I plan on an upcoming article with my brother’s Savage.

Now, let’s go to the range and come up with some loads that will be a good place for you to start from.

First of all, I swab between every single shot. I use one pre-moistened and one dry patch and then put in my powder charge or pellets, and seat my chosen bullet, cap it with either a Winchester 209 primer or the new Win 777 primer and I am good to go. I do NOT use bore butter in my muzzleloader in between shots and I do not buy into the “Seasoning your bore like a cast iron griddle” philosophy. IF it works for you, go for it. My feeling is that I am shooting a stainless steel barreled muzzleloader and not a cast iron griddle. I don’t honestly feel you can season a stainless steel bore. I used to buy into that and when I first took any seasoned muzzleloader out of storage and ran a wet patch down the bore before loading, it ALWAYS came out brown colored and rusty, especially with blued steel sidelocks. I have also read that seating sabots on top of the powder charge in a bore treated with bore butter, allows the sabot to creep back up towards the muzzle and off the powder charge. I don’t feel you should use bore butter or any lubricant on the base of the sabot. Again, if this method works for you and you are happy, I am not here to convince you differently. I load my saboted loads down a clean dry barrel and they seat nicely and stay put. After cleaning my muzzleloader and before storing it, I run a patch lightly coated with a product called “Clenzoil” down the bore/www.eabco.com. Since adopting that procedure, my first dry patch down the bore after storage comes out with no discoloration and no rust. I have never had any contamination of the powder charge using this product for storage. I always run one dry patch down the bore before loading.

I have recently ordered some triple 777 powder and Win triple 777 primers. As soon as they arrive, I will include the range results in this article.

While on the subject of ignition or volume of fire to the powder charge, here is another area with different solutions being offered. It has been somewhat established that the typical 209 shot shell primer is simply more fire than is needed to ignite a given powder charge of Pyrodex RS or pellets or the newer triple 777 powder. It seems that the ignition is so hot and explosive that the projectile is actually being lifted off the powder charge slightly before the powder burns and propels the bullet out the barrel. This causes inconsistent groups and a crud ring just ahead of the breech plug, especially with the 777 powder. I never experienced this with Pyrodex and the explanation I guess is that Pyrodex is charcoal based and the newer triple 777 powder is sugar carbon based. The hotter 209 primers result in more heat and a faster peak pressure which causes the crud ring with triple 777. As mentioned I always swab between every shot anyway regardless of the powder I am using, so it has not been a big problem for me.

Proposed solutions out there currently include purchasing a small rifle primer adapter kit selling for $24.95 from both Precision Rifle and E. Arthur Brown Co. Advertised results look good, however this solution requires purchasing the kit, extra adapter’s as time goes buy and the added expense of the small rifle primers.

An earlier version of this and still available uses an after market modified breech plug and the use of .25ACP cases and again switching to small rifle primers.

I read some articles on the new Winchester triple 777 primers which Cabela’s sells for $29.99 for a 500 pack plus regular shipping and a $20.00 hazardous shipping fee. I am going to try this FIRST as it seems to me the least hassle to solve the “TOO MUCH FIRE” in the hole problem. I think that both the .25 ACP and the Vari Flame Adapter solutions probably accomplish the same task, however one requires a custom after market breech plug and both require small rifle primers and extra tools. Depending on your powder selection, it could be an answer to a problem that doesn’t exist.

The Win 777 primers utilize the existing TC breech plugs and this solution makes the most sense to me. TC designed these guns to work with 209 primers. I find it difficult to believe that your gun will not shoot unless you buy a custom after market breech plug, an adapter kit and small rifle primers.

Some saboted bullet loads that shoot very well and have proven themselves in the field are; Barnes 245 Grain Spitfires, Hornady XTP’’s in both 250 and 300 grain persuasion, TC 250 grain shockwaves and Buffalo Bore 375 grain sabots. All of these have produced sub two inch groups at 100 yards, using 100 grains of Pyrodex RS or 2/50 grain pellets. 295 grain Powerbelts have never shot well in any previously owned muzzleloaders, however they are around 2.5 inches center to center in the Encore. I have also had sub two inch groups with Dead Center saboted loads in the 260 and 300 grain version.
Another interesting choice would have to include the NEW Harvester muzzleloading bullets in both the saboted 260 and 300 grain Scorpion version and also the Saber Tooth belted bullets in .50 cal. The belted bullets in 250, 270, 300 and 350 grain are an excellent replacement for the Power Belts. In brief the power belts are NOT bore sized conicals at all and are in fact undersized which is why they fit so easily down your bore. The only contact with the bore is the plastic skirt or belt attached to the bottom. In some bores they load too easily and can come up off the powder charge if the muzzle of your gun is carried facing downwards as it should be. The Harvester bullets as I understand are actually .502 and the bottom of the bullet is indexed so the bullet actually fits inside of the belt. The Harvester Sabre Tooth belted bullets eliminate the hole in the center of the power belts and therefore should have a better gas seal. I am ordering (4) packs of the 260 grain Scorpion .451 PT gold polymer tip from Midsouth Shooter Supply for $8.31/12 pack. (4) packs of the Scorpion funnel tip sabots would be only $5.59/12 pack. I will add range photos to the website after trying these loads. In the interim, visit www.harvesterbullets.com and read the testimonials and judge for yourself.



The neat thing about muzzleloading is you simply have to do a lot of shooting off the bench at 50 to 200 yards to determine for yourself what will work in your rifle. If you are happy with 2 to 3 inch groups at 100 yards, then there are a number of projectiles out there which will accomplish that for you using either 100 grains of Pyrodex or Triple 777. If you want better than that and want to regularly obtain groups in the ¾ to 1 inch variety at 100 yards, you are going to have to pay attention to the accuracy tips outlined above and you are going to have to put some time in at the bench. You can’t wait until two days before opening day, stop at Wally World and pick up a pack of 295 grain powerbelts, shoot it once at a rock on the side hill and go hunting. I know there are guys out there who do this every year, and a lot of them take their deer. Personally I get a lot of satisfaction out of trying to find that one load that my particular rifle likes to eat and in knowing that I can make a given shot on demand, because I have done my homework. To quote Dirty Harry Callahan from Magnum Force, “A man has got to know his limitations”. If you have not done your homework at the bench, experimented with powders, bullets, primers etc. out to 200 yards, then simply do not ATTEMPT a 200 yard shot. The same can be applied at 150 yards or whatever distance you are shooting. If you are not sure, you can make the shot, then don’t pull the trigger.

That being said, “Let’s look at some results”.

7/4/07 using 100 grains of Pyrodex RS loose powder and a Precision 300 grain QT load/ www.prbullet.com / with Win 209 ML primers (NOT the new 777 primers), I obtained a three shot center to center 1.5 inch group at a lasered 100 yards.

7/4/07 using 100 grains of Pyrodex RS loose powder and 295 Grain power Belt HO along with Win 209 ML primers, I obtained a three shot group of 1.5 inches at 100 yards.

7/12/07 using 100 grains of triple 777 powder behind a 250 grain TC shockwave and Remington Kleen Bore primers, I shot a ½ inch center to center group at 100 yards. This only a two shot group as a thunder storm drove me off the shooting range.

A couple of observations concerning 777 powder and the Remington Kleen Bore primers. The triple 777 powder was noticeably easier to clean and less residue in the bore and in and around the breech plug area than has been my experience with Pyrodex RS. I have read conflicting reports on the Remington Kleen Bore primers, however I have personally been through over 200 of these now with NO misfires, NO hang fires and a noticeably cleaner breech plug after shooting. My supply of these is about exhausted so I am switching to the newer Win 777 primers, however I have had ZERO problems with the Remington primers.

I will be following up with some additional groups using the harvester 260 Scorpion loads and the new Win 777 primers. It is fun to experiment with different bullets, powders and primers. It is also neat to take a good gun and personalize it and try to make it better. In all of this, I try to remind myself that I have killed 27 deer over the years with a 12 Ga Ithaca deerslayer with an old Weaver K2.5 scope mounted on it and foster slugs. That shotgun was “minute of pie plate” accurate, however it was state of the art at the tie for shotguns. My son-in-law inherited that gun and still hunts with it.

Dan 7/13/07
www.deer-hunting-information.com

Proverbs 21:21 KJV "He that followeth after righteousness and mercy findeth life, righteousness, and honour"