Hello all. Looks as if there is a wealth of experience on this board. I have bought an Encore frame back in August and VVCG is making it into a 22/250 for me. I am getting a custom laminated stock and fore-end with a heavy varmint barrel for it. They are also doing a trigger job on it. Per Steve, I should have it in about two weeks. I am very excited about how it's going to shoot!

I had originally intended to use one frame for everything but I will probably invest in at least one more frame to build my pistol on. I am thinking about a 7mm BR. What do you guys think about this caliber for hunting. What barrel length do you think I need for this cartridge? Anybody care to share their hunting results with this cartridge?

Thanks for any input. x-caliber

The 7BR will suit you fine for deer sized game out to 250 yards as long as you do your part. A 14 or 15 inch barrel will work great. It just depends on what you want. The recoil is pretty mild with a 7BR too.
Depending on what you are going to hunt with you may also consider the 308 class cartridges:
243 Win., 25 Super, 260 Rem., 7mm08, etc.
You will have a flatter trajectory and still have recoil levels that are easy to handle for most adults without a muzzle brake.
If you stay with the BR case you also have option of the 6.5BR or 25BR. For deer I would probably choose one of these over the 7BR. But with these caases the price goes up with more expensive dies.
With the Encore frame you have so many options. Compare velocity difference and the guestimated trajectories of a number of cartridges and then get what you want. I have personally owned specialty handguns in four of the cartridges I have mentioned: 7BR, 243 Win., 260 Rem., & 7MM-08.

Welcome to the world of specialty handgun hunting & shooting. There is a great group of guys on this forum with both practical and technical support.
xphunter

Thanks for the reply xphunter. Why would you pick the 6.5 or the 25 over the 7mm? Looks like the larger caliber would work better on deer to me...but I'm certainly not an expert.

I'm looking for a cartridge that will perform well on deer-sized game at modest ranges. I thought that the small case capacity of the 7mmBR would be perfect for a hunting handgun.

Thanks for your input.

x-caliber, Welcome!
The 7 BR is a good choice, and is a proven round in a handgun. You can load it up or down to what suits your needs, and there are a lot of different 7 MM bullets around. As xphunter mentioned, there are a lot of other calibers based on the BR case. I would say get what you like caliber wise.
I have a 7 BR barrel for my Encore and really like it, shoots real well. But on the other side went with a 308 as well. There are a lot of offerings out there, so don't jump into anything.

Now here is the deal, if you do end with a caliber you don't like or want, one of these guys here will grab it up before you can lay it down!
Jeff

x-caliber,
The 7BR is a great little deer cartridge. My thought is if you want a little flatter shooting and less recoil, the 25 & 6.5 is still enough for deer at the ranges I mentioned earlier. And it doubles easier for a varmint cartridge if you have that desire.
All that said, let me emphasize again--get what you want whether it is a 6mmBR, a 30 BR, or anything in between (Assuming you are going with the BR case).
xphunter