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TC Pro Hunter

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kvschmid

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I don't know anything about muzzleloaders but am thinking about buying one for my son to use in December. He got his first archery deer (doe) this year and I was thinking a muzzleloader might up his odds of scoring a decent buck come December.

The TC Pro Hunter seems to get a lot of advertising time on the outdoor channels and I am inclined to only buy one and hope it lasts a very long time. I am not sure whether I would ever use it but would like to know that if I did that I would be happy with the purchase.

Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

One other thing not specifically TC related but more general - would I be making a mistake by encouraging him to use a muzzleloader vs his bow? I really want to see him get his first buck since he past on a lot of them when I was out with him during our rifle season. With his youth permit he can keep hunting through the end of year with either a bow or muzzleloader here in Nebraska. On one hand it might build his desire to hunt on the other I feel like it might be taking the easy road. Maybe I am making a bigger deal of it than it really is and just let him decide. Anybody been down this road care to provide some insight?
 
I think your son would be very lucky to have a dad that would buy him a gun like that. Looks to be a great gun from what I have seen. There are others that will shoot just as well for less money. I would let him decide what he wants to hunt with. I know Im glad my first buck came with a bow, but I think I was just as excited with my second buck that I shot with a gun.
 
Not being totally familiar with season in your state here is what I can tell you about growing up in Iowa. I started bow hunting and had a blast. I began shotgun hunting a few years later. I didn't shotgun hunt very long - switched to late muzzleloader. I can tell you it was good to experience both, but by far bow hunting is more enjoyable. They are just different. For us our late muzzleloader and late bow season are after shotgun season. I would recommend using a gun at that time of year due to how spooky the deer are. Chances of jumping the string seem to greaty increase. Also deer activity is not the same.

As far as the muzzleloader... It appears to be a good gun, but I question if the changes they have made since the orignal are worth the increase in cash. There are a few good name brands in muzzleloaders. Take him along and see what is comfortable for him.
 
Well I will be the first to post who owns this gun.
Reason that sold me on the encore period is the ability to change guns if I wanted to shoot something different out of it. Barrels around $300 and you have a new gun.

Have not shot the original encore but this one has very limited kick and I shoot 150 gr. of powder with a 240 gr shockwave bullet.
Also the awesome half twist breach plug is great. Another advantage.

Oh and it looks pretty
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Like Deadeye stated, go see what he would prefer and what catches his eye. You will have people on here telling you to buy a night, savage, and other and get those opinions as well.

Also Everything that is on the Pro Hunter you can buy aftermarket from T/C for the regular Encore except that fancy breach plug.
Good luck on making the decision.
 
i would love to have one, but its a little tough for me to drop 8 bills on a gun that i'll only use one week a year
 
If your only looking for a straight muzzle loader look for a CVA Optima Magnum. They are hard to find now with the Optima Elite Hunter around.

Optima is just like Thompson Center Encore except you cant change barrels and its alot cheaper. I just bought a CVA optima for $259 a couple days before MN muzzleloader season.
Hope this is another choice.
Dean
 
Thanks for the responses. Over here we have the entire month of December to muzzleloader hunt but are limited on scopes to 1x. This must not be the case in Iowa after keeping a close eye on the scope thread.

Bwhntr4life - is it realistic to use an extra barrel with this gun or is it just a marketing tool to sell more guns? I checked the website and they must have a dozen different calibers to chose from for other barrels but it looks like you have to also buy a different forearm. Did you opt for the thumbhole stock or regular w the limbsaver inserts? Have you taken your breachplug out and looked at the machining of the threads on the inside of the frame. The one I looked at last night looked a little hokey. It looked as if they drilled and tapped and then milled/machined out the threads on both sides resulting in an oblong looking hole to allow the plug threads to clear when turned 90 degrees. Supposedly they are manufactured to very tight specs but it appeared less than desireable. Maybe it was just that particular gun. I was told by the salesrep that you did not need to clean after each shot and to not use the bore butter...what are you using to clean and lube?
 
Bwhntr4life - in going back through the cleaning thread I see where you use hot soapy water for cleaning. I presume that requires breaking it down for immersion??? Is it something you do every hunt or just at the end of the season? Sorry for all the questions, never had a muzzleloader and would like to know what I'm getting myself into.
 
I have a 45 caliber regular Encore and a 50 caliber Pro Hunter and I love them both.

My girlfriend shoots the 45 now and all I added to it was the sims butt pad and Leopold scope. Shoots like a dream.

Over the years I've owned a few other brands and one was a shoulder punisher!

Can't wait for late muzzy to get here to break them in!

Chris
 
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Bwhntr4life - in going back through the cleaning thread I see where you use hot soapy water for cleaning. I presume that requires breaking it down for immersion??? Is it something you do every hunt or just at the end of the season? Sorry for all the questions, never had a muzzleloader and would like to know what I'm getting myself into.

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You dont have to break the gun down and submerge the barrel. Just stick the end of the barrel in a small bucket of hot soapy water, then run a jag with a patch down the barrel. As you run it up and down it will draw the water up the barrel due to the suction. I only clean mine if I shoot it, and at the end of the season. If you switch barrels, you will have to buy another forearm but they are not all that expensive.
I would love to have the Pro Hunter just for that breach plug, mine can get sticky if I dont remove it every few shots. I also added a limbsaver recoil pad, which was a nice addition when shooting more than 100g's of T7.
$800 is pretty steep, but the Encore is a damn nice rifle. You could knock off at least $200+ with the standard model, either way I'd go stainless.
 
Once you clean w hot water do you let it dry and then swab w something like Sheath Rust Preventitive by Birchwood or just leave it dry w nothing?
 
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Over here we have the entire month of December to muzzleloader hunt but are limited on scopes to 1x. This must not be the case in Iowa after keeping a close eye on the scope thread.

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Yes, you are correct on this. Here in Nebraska scopes on muzzleloaders cannot magnify. In Iowa it's legal to use magnifying scopes on muzzleloaders.
 
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Once you clean w hot water do you let it dry and then swab w something like Sheath Rust Preventitive by Birchwood or just leave it dry w nothing?

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Actually I often use the wifes hair dryer to really dry out the nooks and crannys, then just give it a light coat of oil inside and out. I used to think ML's would be a pain to clean, but with todays propellants it really isnt bad at all. Compared to cleaning a copper fouled high-power rifle, I would say ML's are very easy to clean. Having an open breach design (like the encore) helps alot with cleaning, as opposed to a bolt action design.
 
I bought the original Encore years ago and love it!!! My 11 year old shot his first deer with it this year. Recoil is so light with 100gr. of powder that he loves to shoot it. It's agreat gun for young kids for that reason. I think it really helped him not to be gun shy. Haven't had my hands on the new Encore but I'm sure it's a great gun also. It is pricey and I'm not sure if all of the "updates" are worth the extra $$$.
 
Sorry took so long to reply, off playing war this weekend.

Most of your questions have already been asked. So I will try and answer the ones you directly asked to me that others havent already responded to.

Extra barrels, is possible but some do require a different fore end

I have removed the breech plug but did not pay much attention to the threads per say. I did look at if allowed any blow by back to the shooter with I seen none on the thread so must fit fairly tight and just to figure out how the 1/4 turn really worked (which is a awesome feature for those quick repairs or just for removing the breech plug)

Just for acuracy I do clean the gun after each shot when sighting in but beyond that just at the end of the day, pyrodex is very corrosive and dont want to give it a chance to do its job.

Bore butter I use if it is going to sit for a extended period of time (acts like gun oil) But before loading the gun with a charge I will fire a couple caps off just to help remove the bore butter from the barrel.

Lube question not sure what you mean but I do not lube anything when installing a charge will cause inconsistency in flight of sabot or whatever bullet you choose, barrell needs to be dry as it can be.

Cleaning, Like Timberpig stated, just hot soapy water in 2ft x 2ft bowl and fill it half way with water and then add soap. ( I just use Dawn dishwashing soap) Dont have to drown your barrel, just enough water to go past your front sight is plenty when holding it vertical near the rear sight.

Breaking down a encore requires about 1 min of extra work, remove the screws the hold the fore end on and then the pin that holds the barrel to the receiver and then remove the breech and you are dont, I just do this so I can add gun oil to the moving parts and the outside of the barrel a lot easier.

M/L's are a awesome way to get first gun opportunity at that buck you are chasing or hunt the last 3 weeks of the season with a gun.
Oh and you can reach out and touch something with them also. If you dont live in the bottom 2 tiers of counties in Iowa this is the closest thing that comes to hunting with a rifle.

Scopes can be any power also.

Feel free to PM me or keep posting if you have any ?'s

Good luck
 
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