T/C Colorado legal loads

Mk7mmSTW

WKR
Joined
Mar 31, 2016
Messages
807
Location
Western Wyoming
Just grabbed a TC omega and a buddy grabbed a Encore for a upcoming CO deer hunt. We are switching the sights to globe and were looking for leads on a good CO legal load that shoots good with the barrel twist. I keep reading about Powerbelts and Thor but was hoping for TC pacific experience. Would like to start playing with loads now so I extend my comfort range with the gun by September.
 
Joined
Mar 2, 2013
Messages
378
Location
Lakewood, CO
Just grabbed a TC omega and a buddy grabbed a Encore for a upcoming CO deer hunt. We are switching the sights to globe and were looking for leads on a good CO legal load that shoots good with the barrel twist. I keep reading about Powerbelts and Thor but was hoping for TC pacific experience. Would like to start playing with loads now so I extend my comfort range with the gun by September.
Sorry I don't have specific TC loads but I'd suggest you research powerbelts before considering them. I know multiple people that have had bad results on elk including myself. Not sure if its all PBs but there are much better bullets IMO.

Sent from my SPH-L900 using Tapatalk
 
Joined
Nov 30, 2012
Messages
1,264
Location
Northern Idaho
Just grabbed a TC omega and a buddy grabbed a Encore for a upcoming CO deer hunt. We are switching the sights to globe and were looking for leads on a good CO legal load that shoots good with the barrel twist. I keep reading about Powerbelts and Thor but was hoping for TC pacific experience. Would like to start playing with loads now so I extend my comfort range with the gun by September.

You both MAY have a problem... TC uses a QLA on the muzzle end of the bore. You might do a search on the problems with a TC QLA. Many TC rifles rifle will not shoot a full bore conical with the greatest accuracy, but in the same breath I will say some do! If you call TC they will tell the rifles are recommended to shoot sabots...

In my case my Omega would shoot conicals very well. It turns out that my QLA was nearly centered on the bore of the barrel others are not.

This drawing try's to show the crux of the problem when the QLA is not centered on the bore.

TC-QLA.jpg
 

5MilesBack

"DADDY"
Joined
Feb 27, 2012
Messages
15,525
Location
Colorado Springs
My daughter used my T/C Omega on her elk hunt this last season, after getting a tag a week before the season. It was the first time either of us had shot it. We had two hours at the range to come up with a load. I had read a lot of negative stuff about the Powerbelts, so we tried the Federal BOR-Lok both copper and lead bullets first. They both grouped fine, but both of them slid around in the barrel after seating. Our only other option was the Powerbelt Platinum 338gr that I already had, on top of 100gr BH-209, and she was getting 3-shot 2" groups at 100. So they shot real well.

However, there was absolutely no blood at all that came out of the two entrance holes on her bull. And that was one of the complaints that I read about online about them. One of the 338gr bullets that we recovered weighed 199gr, so it shed just over 40% of its weight. But they did kill the bull. If we would have had to track that bull a ways, it would have been tough. He only went ~80 yards though.
 
OP
Mk7mmSTW

Mk7mmSTW

WKR
Joined
Mar 31, 2016
Messages
807
Location
Western Wyoming
You both MAY have a problem... TC uses a QLA on the muzzle end of the bore. You might do a search on the problems with a TC QLA. Many TC rifles rifle will not shoot a full bore conical with the greatest accuracy, but in the same breath I will say some do! If you call TC they will tell the rifles are recommended to shoot sabots...

In my case my Omega would shoot conicals very well. It turns out that my QLA was nearly centered on the bore of the barrel others are not.

This drawing try's to show the crux of the problem when the QLA is not centered on the bore.

TC-QLA.jpg

Thank you and yes I’m aware of the issues with non Sabor loads in the TC. But I know with some playing around it’s possible. Wife’s family has lots of farms in Iowa so I’ll be using it there as well and my deal was far to good to not buy it. Watched a dozen videos of CO smoke stick hunts with TC’s so I know people are getting results with something. Prob will grab the Thor diameter check kit and go fourth from there.
 

COOTER

FNG
Joined
Dec 25, 2017
Messages
32
Location
MI
I bought a new TC Pro Hunter for my last CO elk hunt back in 2016. I ended up selling that damn thing. It Did not like spitting any non saboted load I could find. I, for the life of me, could not tune a load for that gun. I talked to a lot of guys who swore by it, but they we shooting sabots, which are not legal in CO. I ended up with a CVA Accura V2. Love that thing. Used blackhorn 209 and Hornady FPB. I would not recommend powerbelts for anything.
 

CoHiCntry

WKR
Joined
Feb 15, 2013
Messages
1,004
Location
Colorado
My Omega shot lights out with a 250gr. Thor bullet and 90 or 100gr. of BH209. It would spit other conical all over the place. This was my Colorado hunting load for several years I had the Omega.
 
Joined
Apr 29, 2015
Messages
2,814
Location
Littleton, CO
Almost everyone I hunt with including me use a T/C Triumph. We all run 100gr of T7 behind a 295 aerotip powerbelt. I have never had an elk go more than 30-50 yards after being shot with that setup and I regularly have dropped them in the 80-130 yard range.

Word of caution: a guy we hunt with has the bone collector edition which is rated for magnum loads (150g) and he would shoot 150gr. DO NOT shoot 150gr behind a powerbelt. He is the only guy who has had trouble with terminal performance and wounding animals, which I suspect is due to bullet deformation coming out of the barrel with such a hot load and soft bullet.

Powerbelts relatively soft when compared to most bullets, but they have been beyond deadly in my experience. If they miss all bones they will mushroom out and expel all their energy in the animal (at 125 yards I found the bullet bulging out the skin on the back side without passing through). If they hit a bone they will fragment and do even more damage to all vitals (I found half the bullet up in the neck one time and the longs were ripped to shreds).
 

robAK

Lil-Rokslider
Joined
Mar 19, 2017
Messages
195
Location
ALASKA
X2 what CoHi said. Have T/C Omega with thor 250 gr and 100 gr of BH209 powder. Very accurate out to 250 yds.
 

bgbuck153

Lil-Rokslider
Joined
Dec 30, 2015
Messages
283
I’ve owned a tc encore for about 14 years and I’ve played and shot a lot of deer with many brands of saboted bullets. The hornady SST’s is what a lot of people shoot around my area but I wasn’t happy with terminal performance. This year I switched to the Barnes spitfire MZ in the 245 grain. 1” group at 100 yards and a 4 shot 2 1/2 inch group at 300 yards. I killed a 139 5/8 ten point in the Ohio late season at 80 yards facing straight on. It dropped in his tracks and I recovered the bullet near his hind legs. Absolutely perfect mushroom just like the picture on the package. 2 weeks later my girlfriend killed a doe broadside at 192 yards..... it was behind the shoulder breaking one rib on entry and one on exit but the bullet exited the deer so we didn’t recover it. the entry hole inside the cavity was about the size of a quarter and the same on the exit. I’m sold on them. The deer made it 40-50 yards just pouring blood. For a muzzleloader bullet to perform at that near 200 yard range with entry/exit
holes says something for me.... bad a**. So to recap.... 150 grains of triple 7 pellets and 245gr Barnes spitfire MZ
 
Joined
Apr 29, 2015
Messages
2,814
Location
Littleton, CO
I’ve owned a tc encore for about 14 years and I’ve played and shot a lot of deer with many brands of saboted bullets.

The OP is specifically asking for CO legal loads, which means no sabots (power belts are legal). This is part of the problem with T/C is their rifles seem to like saboted bullets a lot better.
 

LandYacht

WKR
Joined
Jan 25, 2014
Messages
773
Location
Frisco
I’ve had good luck with the Hornady FPB in 350 grain. I put 110 grains of Blackhorn 209 to power it and its done the trick.

I had the 300 grain tumble on me when I was developing loads.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Joined
Oct 26, 2016
Messages
322
Location
Colorado
I use the No Excuses 460 grain in my T/C Pro Hunter FX. My gun likes the .503 size best with 90 grains of triple 7 behind it. I had a lot of trouble with power belts and even the T/C lead slugs. They would keyhole the targets indicating to me that they were tumbling not spinning. The No Excuses bullets are much longer and seem to be more accurate for me.
 
Joined
Jun 28, 2018
Messages
2
I just bought the thor kit 2 size with my TC encore and they all fall freely to the bottom of the breach with no need to push with the rod? This was my plan to use the thor, but now I'm unsure where to start with this rifle for CO muzzleloader this year?

Sent from my XT1650 using Tapatalk
 
Joined
Jun 28, 2018
Messages
2
Well I spoke too soon, just for sh$$ and giggles I tried them one more time and the largest Thor did not fall through ,just the first inch or so where the bores rifeling is not there( pushed it through with rod about same as sabots as far as the force it took...) maybe a little easier than a sabots

Guess I'll order some of them and give a try with them and blackhorn 209

What's best primer with this setup to start with

Drew a muzzleloader license for Colorado!!!( first time with muzzleloader this year)

Gotta get load that's happy worked up soon...

Have heard TC encores will either shoot these bullets or they won't b/c of the end of barrel not being rifled all the way?

Any information appreciated

Sent from my XT1650 using Tapatalk
 

flyfshrmn

FNG
Joined
Jan 14, 2016
Messages
5
I use Powerbelts for both elk and deer. At short range, unless you hit bone, I have found they do not expand well. But, if you hit heart/lung, the animal will not go far. the most I have had to track is about 120 yards on a high lung shot on a mule deer. Lungs were shredded. The bullet entered high left between ribs just behind the diaphragm and exited mid right between ribs behind the shoulder. Minimal blood trail, but the chest cavity was full. The load I was using, 85 grains BH209, chronoed about 1570 at the muzzle with 245 grain PB.

the good thing about your shots was that the bullets stayed with the animal. That means that all the energy was expended on him and not wasted with through and through hits.
 

cooperjd

WKR
Joined
Dec 30, 2016
Messages
473
Location
Mount Pleasant, SC
ordered a Thor test pack and found the .502s were best fit in my T/C Omega.
100gr of blackhorn behind the 250gr .502 Thor shot great this weekend. 1.5-2" groups at 100 with iron sights. For me, that's great shooting as i have not shot irons in quite some time.
 
Top