RE: TC Encore... Won't shoot under 3"
I had to do alot of work to get my encore to shoot. I had the action and barrel hole both milled out to accomidate an oversized hinge pin to where you need to tap it in. Before the holes were mismatched within .005". Second, I had my forearm freefloated, and pillar bedded. Lastly, a nice trigger job.
Went from a 2.5MOA or worse shooter to a .7MOA shooter.
Also, have you tried just using fireformed brass, and only nocking back the shoulders .002" or less?