I am going to buy a muzzleloader for hunting deer in iowa ,we cant use rifles to hunt deer, and my dad and i are talking about going on an elk hunt in a couple of years. He has a 300 weatherby mag which shoots nice. I am thinking about maybe getting the encore for the muzzleloader then buying a rifle barrel for the elk hunt. It would be cheaper then buying a nice rifle and after the elk hunt i dont know if i would use it for another hunt. What does everyone think about this idea? My dad has an old 8mm mauser that he sporterized but i would rather spend the money for a encore since i would be spending alot of money for the elk hunt and would hate for something to go wrong with the 8mm. What does everyone think about this idea?