so I'm toying with the idea of getting a rifle barrle for my encore slug gun, and have been thinking either 204 or 223. Anybody have one of these or have opinions? TC's used to have a decent rep I thought, but I seem to see an awful lot of posts where people get 1 1/2" groups, which is more than ypu need for a deer rifle but not so impressive for a varmint round.
In the 223's favor are cheaper ammo with more variety, and if I'm going for a cheap ammo gun I might be a little less disappointed from mediocre accuracy. Its major con being its somewhat of a ho-hum cartridge as far as everyone has one. The 204's advatnage being its uber flat trajectory and unique factor, although a did see a post or two where people were claiming 1/2" groups for their 204 tc's, so I'm wondering if for some reason they are turning out 204 barrels that are a bit more accurate.

Opinions?

Can't speak for their Encore barrels but the factory Contender barrel I have is awesome....it will shoot groups with any of my Bullberrys or VVCG barrels.

.2o4 Ruger

Another vote for the .204. I have been very disappointed in the accuracy of factory TC barrels. However, the 204 barrel I received for the Encore will put 5 rounds in a inch at 100. The first round is always a flyer for this barrel, but the other four will be around 1/2".

quote:

Originally posted by skb2706:
Can't speak for their Encore barrels but the factory Contender barrel I have is awesome....it will shoot groups with any of my Bullberrys or VVCG barrels.

I wonder if contender barrels are just more accurate or something. I know an old guy that has a 22 hornet that will shoot groups with all holes touching, and he has a 357 maximum and a 44 mag barrel that do almost as well. That was one of the reasons I went with an encore--he had had such good luck.

I have an Encore factory barrel in .204 that consistantly shoots quarter size groups at 100 yds with a Simmons 6-18X scope and Hornady 32 gr. That's from a cool dirty barrel. They take foxes apart and I have shot a few crows at a little over 300 yds in a 10 knot xwind. It is really neat to watch impact with the 204 at high scope power on a target you can barely see without the scope. I got it last summer and I haven't used my 22-250AI or 223 since I got it. Great for it's intended purpose!!!!....but....223 is also a great round too. Depends on what you want to do with it I guess. One other real benefit of the .204 is the extremely low risk of a bullet bounching off anything and hitting something unintended.

quote:

scubie02

If you want to touch something small at 400yrds
you need a rifle that will group three shots into 3/8 or less at a 100yrds. That is what the 204 supposed to do.

A 1" varmint rifle is not in the running, and most break open rifles are in that category, I say most. If you are serious about long range varmint hunting look at a Ruger#1 if you want a single shot.

If you only want to shoot varmint out to 200 yards a 1" 22 Hornet will do just fine, and a lot of them shoot much better than that.

scubie02
My 26 inch Encore will print 3/8 inch groups at 100 yards with Hornady Factory 32 grain loads!
With my reloads, using 32 grain Hornady's and 23.0 grains of IMR-4198 I can get .330 inches!

Zermal,

You're probably right, but it probably is my shooting and not the rifle....besides, if I never missed I would become bored quickly and find a new hobby. I think the .204 is a great way to spend an afternoon in the field. I shot 2 more crows this evening at 175 - 200 yds with the .204...yeah...my K Hornet would have done it too, but the .204 still seems "special"