I have a 24" .405 Winchester barrel for my Encore. At just over 7 pounds, it's a fairly light compact gun perfect for bear out of a stand. I load it with 300gr Barnes solid copper bullets pushing 2250fps at the muzzle. Thank goodness for the Simms recoil pad. That thing has a fairly harsh kick and a mean muzzle jump. You really have to be holding onto it when you touch it off. I have been concidering a muzzle brake to eliminate the muzzle jump, which I feel is the worst part of shooting it.