we put in for our first ever ML hunt here in N.M. the hunt starts in OCT,, me and my uncle both have Encores 50cal bought at the same time last year we still havent worked up a good load yet guess we better get busy
i like loose powder he prefers pellets, any suggestions on loads for the Encores, were both excited about this hunt and hope we get drawn,N.M. has the draw system and we didnt get drawn for any thing last year were hopefull this will be a better hunting year for us

Good luck in the draw, what did you put in for? I am still looking things over to decide what I and the boys will put in for.

I don't have an Encore so no specific loads to profer. In general, if you go with something like a 300 grain sabot bullet you should be good for deer or elk using around 100 grains of powder. Just need to find a load that shoots accurately and consistently.

Good luck with the draw.. what are you hoping to get picked for?

This draw system is a little strange to us in Wisconsin except for black bear. We put in every year to hunt bear knowing we will probably not get a permit. Fail to enter in one of the years, and you loose your preference points. When you accumulate enough points, then you are moved forward in the harvest permit application process. It took me six years to get my last bear harvest permit.

Since you have Encores, they are probably going to shoot Shockwaves real well. 100-150 grains of powder. Loose or pellet. The 250 grain would work on deer and elk. For elk you might want to go with a bonded shockwave for better penetration, although the standard one I am sure has taken a lot of elk as well. Shot placement is the main thing. Some other projectiles you might want to try are Nosler Partition, and Barnes Expanders.. All of them are great bullets.

Personally if I were after elk I would look at the 300 grain bullet. For deer, the 250 grain would be my choice... Good luck.

Understanding that every gun is an individual and you have to adjust the load to suit the harmonics of your own gun ,I will offer a few suggestions.
If you need a long range load try the 200gr Shock Wave , [50 cal barrel 40cal bullet BC.269 SD 167] start with 100gr and work up dont quit till you reach the guns max; some guns reach more than one point where they are in tune and you will have more than one load to chose from, try Pyrodex,777and Black Horn 209.
With these other bullets start at 90 and work up.
Gold Dot 250 for deer size and 300gr for bigger same for XTP
If you are inclined to fancy expensive bullets all the all copper bullets shoot well especally for elkand bear. Lee

The Encore ML Manual is here:

http://www.tcarms.com/assets/manuals/current/Encore_Muzzleloader_Manual.pdf

starting at page 44. It is best to get your rifle shooting with what the manufacturer recommends then branch out from there---I would use a ShockWave. After you determine your Encore is accurate with factory recommended loads then you can branch out into something a bit better. For elk I would recommend a
Nosler Partition 300g .458 rifle bullet or a .452 pistol bullet or
a 300g Barnes Expander MZ or
290g Barnes TMZ or a
300g Barnes Origonal.

The Expander and TMZ comes with it's own sabot, you can try that and see if it works for you. Use an Orange MMP sabot with the 300g .458 Partition and Barnes Origonal, use a Crushed Rib sabot with the .452 Nosler. If your familiar with the CF world and you use a favorite bullet in that world, find the .458 rifle bullet of that maker and match that to an MMP Orange sabot. Most guns have a sweet spot for a given weight of bullet, say 300g, and most will shoot accurately at that sweet spot. With the encore that is between 100 and 150g, usually around 120g. My brother has an encore, he shoots 150g of Pyrodex pellets with a Harvester 300g SaberTooth, he use to shoot Powerbelts at 150g but no longer does. Encores are excellent MLing rifles. Chap Gleason