I decided to SBR my Thompson Encore. Got a great deal on a barely used MGM 10" 300Black barrel. I am using my AAC 762SDN6 suppressor but have a Liberty Infiniti in transfer. I bought the Infiniti because it is a titanium pistol suppressor that can be disassembled to be cleaned so I can use cast lead bullets.
The single shot Encore lets me shoot cast lead or the Lehigh maximum Expansion bullets, both subsonic. The AR15 only feeds the SMK subsonic, won’t feed the other two. I currently have it wearing a Trijicon 24G 1x4 scope. It is a very handy, quick handling rifle, perfect with the 300 black. I plan to take it hog hunting in my back pasture Thursday evening.
For length comparison is my 300B AR15 SBR. AAC 12.5" upper. DBAL D2 and PVS-14 from IdentMark in Rockwall, Tx.
For comparison are Missouri Bullet Co. 245g RNFP, SMK 220g, and Lehigh 200g maximum expansion.
My go-to loads are 220g SMK with 11.2 g of Accurate 1680. Crazy accurate at night with the DBAL laser and stops hogs DRT. I can’t wait to get some runtime in the little Encore.
I SBR’d a Contender in .300 Whisper about 9 years ago. I also went with a 10" barrel, which seems about right after adding a can.
You mentioned being able to load bullets that don’t feed in your AR. You should try some different powders as well. Some of the faster powders that don’t come anywhere close to cycling an AR will work just great with your Encore, and produce noticeably less noise. My biggest gripe about AA1680 is that it’s LOUD.
I’ve played with AA#2 some with 220, 200, and 180gr. bullets. I’ve also played some with some 147 and 150 gr. bullets in subsonic for a plinking load.
Other powders that aren’t as fast, but that I’ve found to be quieter than AA1680 are AA#9 and H110.
I also play with an upper with a Noveske .300FB barrel that I put together before the 300BLK came on the scene.
I wish there was a good and common bolt action system that could take barrels and caliber changes like the Thompson. I would love an SBR like that, but can not justify it on a single shot gun.
How much do you want to spend? Desert Tactical makes a pretty nice bullpup set up that changes out calibers from 308 to 338 in a matter of minutes. But it also runs $4,000+
Ready.Fire.Aim,
What OAL are you using with the 220 SMK’s in your AR?
Which out of the three 220’s have you found to be the most accurate and lethal on hogs?
I have a AAC Handi Rifle and plan on using that for just 220 subs and keep the 9" AR for supersonic 110-150 grain bullets.
With the contender you wouldn’t be able to put a stock on it without needing a barrel over 16"… unless he welded his suppressor to the barrel to make the OAL barrel length 16+ inches.
Edit: lets not derail the thread. Since you can buy rifle stocks for the contender I didn’t want anyone passing through this thread to get confused with your statement. Being that we were taking about rifles and not pistols.
