H&R handi rifle or Thompson encore for youth shooters.

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Merritt79

New member
I am looking at a single shot rifle to start getting my daughters into shooting more. Right now I am trying to decide on a thompson encore or the handi rifle. For those who own the handi rifle how do you like them and have you had any problems with them? This gun is also going to be used for shooting prairie dogs as well. I have done some research on the handi rifle. comments please.

Thanks
Rick M
 
Had one (Handi Rifle)in .223 that I wish I had back. That being said, the Thompson is a much better built weapon although I've never owned a Thompson. If those were my options, I would choose the Thompson.


Chupa
 
Handis are great rifles. I have a .223 and .45-70. They are not the quality of a TC, but they are not $400-800 either. Sometimes they take some tweeking to get em to shoot straight but thats what makes Handis fun. Mine have been perfect. They are availiable in every caliber imaginable. A .223 or .17 would be great for young shooters.

Go over to Greybeard Outdoors forum and you can read about everything you can think of about Handis.http://www.go2gbo.com/forums/index.php?board=126.0

Here is my .223

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I bought my grandson a handy rifle,bad deal.It was hard to shoot,bad trigger,almost discouraged him.Set it aside and got him a better rifle,not 800 but better shoots better,easier to shoot well and he did much better,and is a very good shot.I would get them something easier to shoot to learn with.The Encore would be good but a bolt gun would OK.If you want single shot just put one bullet in it.No offence meant to handi owners,just my opinion.
 
Originally Posted By: tnshootistI bought my grandson a handy rifle,bad deal.It was hard to shoot,bad trigger,almost discouraged him.Set it aside and got him a better rifle,not 800 but better shoots better,easier to shoot well and he did much better,and is a very good shot.I would get them something easier to shoot to learn with.The Encore would be good but a bolt gun would OK.If you want single shot just put one bullet in it.No offence meant to handi owners,just my opinion.

You know tnshootist could be right. Handis dont have good triggers. They may not be suited for new young shooters. But for us gun nuts Handis are addictive.
 
I would add a third choice. And that would be the TC Contender. You can pick up a good used action in the $300 range with no problem. And on Specialty pistols you can get about any barrel you want for about $150. I just sold(yesterday) a 22 Hornet barrel on there for $155 shipped.

Pick up a 22 LR barrel and a 357 magnum barrel. And you will have two fine barrels. And the 357 Magnum will make a great deer killer for her to any reasonable distance. And the ammo will be cheap. Heck you could shoot 38 Special's. Also there are a ton of inexpensive stocks available. So cutting one short for a kid is easy.

Also the Contender is a bit smaller and lighter for her to carry. Think about it. I think the Contender Carbine is the best choice in the world for teaching a youngin-regardless of how much more you spend. Tom.
 
I have both in the safe. The second rifle I bought my son after a savage single shot .22 bolt was a handi in .243. The handi is accurate enough for a young shooters skill level and beyond. In fact side by side on the bench I think you'd be hard pressed to notice a difference. My TC will do MOA but when it heats up the POI travels a little ways then settles in. You won't get tore up if your little one drops it or it gets dinged up as oppsed to a $500 plus TC with nice wood.

The TC has the barrel switch option over the Handi as the Handi needs to go back and get fitted while TC or Bergara barrels are off the shelf. The TC has the better trigger but the Handi isn't that bad compared to a stock AR or something like that. The Handi can wear a youth stock then switch out to a full size stock.

They both will bring home porkers.

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I'm seriously considering getting a Contender for my daughter right now. My wife and I shoot Encores but the handiness and smaller frame and easier hammer pull of the Contender really makes the most sense.

The real debate I'm having is if I should get the G2 or the G1.

Which would fit a kid's hand the best do you think?
 
Merritt79,,,I think you need to consider how long your daughter may want to shoot the rifle, after she becomes proficient with the shooting aspect...I guess it comes down to how much do you want to invest...

My son-in-law got a .223 Handi a few years ago to go on a PD shoot with us and was amazed at it's accuracy (he had never shot game past 40 yards, and was hitting PDs at 200-300 yards)...As posted earlier, the trigger could use a little help, but it wasn't 'that' bad...I do understand that some of them can be 'not quite as nice' as his

One of the other guys that I shoot with has a TC that he uses for PDs and Silhouette matches, and it's deadly accurate with a variety of barrels that he has
 
I have owned both and have never regreted trading the Encore. On the other hand i do miss the ultra handi rifle in 223 . I may of had a bad one but the trigger on my encore would bottom out a RCBS scale before it fired . Very hard to shoot well, besides you can buy 2 or 3 handi's for what the encore costs. just my .02 worth .
 
What about a rossi? I know the barrels are little bit more than the handis are. Someone told me that they are in between the handi rifle and tc. Anyone one own a rossi.
 
the handi is by far not the prettiest thing i own. but like all ugly girls. they get the job done and dont complain about you neglecting them. they enjoy the time you spend with them.
 
IMO the Encore is by a far a better rifle. You can get the trigger down around 3lbs, most all of them are accurate, and overall better built. That said, I think Handi's are still useful because they can take a beating, and most of the time you don't care too much if does!
 
Originally Posted By: Merritt79What about a rossi? I know the barrels are little bit more than the handis are. Someone told me that they are in between the handi rifle and tc. Anyone one own a rossi.

Yes, I bought the Rossi with the 23" heavy barrel in .223 (1:12 twist) for my wife and son for their first rifle and it's pretty accurate. The trigger was (still is) a 4lb pull straight out of the box and I caught it on sale at Academy for $199 a while back. Better buy out of the single shots mentioned ….IMO (my son-in-law owns a HANDI & ENCORE). I replaced the factory stock and forearm with a tactical CS stock and forearm for around $60. Bad part, it weighs around 9 lbs and the regular barrel w/ 1:9 twist is around 8 lbs

I bought a Savage Edge in .223 (now called the Axis)22" free floated barrel w/1:9 twist, bolt action, and a 5 round removal mag for $260.00 out the door at Wally World. The trigger pull was 5.5 lbs out of the box, but I replaced the trigger spring with a weaker spring out of a pen and the pull is now 3.5 lbs and it weighs 6.5 lbs. It out performs my Remmy 700 SPS Varmint with the x-mark trigger set at 2 lbs at half the cost.

I would recommend buying the Savage Axis youth which has the 20" barrel, light weight (few ounces lighter than the 22"), accurate, much better buy (long run) and you could always use it as a truck gun, etc

Pics added (camera phone, poor quality):

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i own a TC Pro Hunter and its a fine rifle/smoke pole. My Muzzleloadder barrel is 28in and has the Leupold Ultimate slam scope and it shoots 3 bullets into a perfect clover leaf. I also had a 300 win mag bbl. a 20" 500 S&W bbl, and a 24" 223 BBL and they all shot under and inch. The 500 bbl stayed closer to the 1.5inch group range. But my 9 year old nephew shot the 223 alot and he loved it. Heck you can even get the TC in pink camo.
 
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