collapse

Advertisement


Author Topic: cva optima v2 success  (Read 4377 times)

Offline brew

  • Non-Hunting Topics
  • Trade Count: (+17)
  • Sourdough
  • *****
  • Join Date: May 2010
  • Posts: 1677
  • Location: yelm
cva optima v2 success
« on: December 05, 2020, 09:48:03 PM »
Decided to try something different this year and bought a CVA optima V2 to try it for elk hunting this year.  Never shot one before and did some research and decided on this one.   Ordered it online and it showed up.  Shot the gun with the pellet breech plug and bought some white hot pellets.  Didn’t get the groupings I wanted so bought the powder bp and shot it with blackhorn 209 powder and Hornady sst 250 grain bullets.  In 3 shots had it dialed in at 100 yards.  Never got a shot at an elk but killed a coyote with it during elk season.  My son and son in law both expressed interest in it so we bought them both the same gun for Christmas presents.  My son was archery hunting this year but SIL wanted to use mine for the late season deer hunting which started the day before Thanksgiving.  I said sure and would take him out but late elk season was still going on so I wanted him to have his own gun so we gave him his Christmas present early.  They came over to the house the weekend before Thanksgiving and he bought the powder bp and was able to get it sighted in within 4 shots.  Daughter shot it a few times and felt comfortable with it as well.  Went out that Wednesday and my wife had a shot with mine at a doe but forgot to cock the hammer before pulling the trigger…Oh well chalk this up to experience.  About 930 on Thanksgiving Day my daughter killed her doe with one shot from his gun. Her first deer ever.  Went out a couple more times that weekend but was never able to get the SIL a shot at the deer we saw.  Fast forward to this morning we went out again.  Not expecting to see much as the clear cold weather but surprisingly we found 2 does at the edge of a cut at 830.  SIL killed his doe with one shot and she’s chilling in the garage.  Very impressed with those optimas.  Really accurate and easy shooting.  Sorry no pics but they didn’t want them posted (camera shy I guess).  Will say those 50 caliber sst 250 grain hollow points create a devasting wound channel.  Now need to get out and have the wife kill her deer next weekend as we are supposed to get some weather moving in.  Will say very impressed with the accuracy and performance of those rifles. 
beer---it's whats for dinner

Offline The Big Game Hunter

  • Business Sponsor
  • Trade Count: (0)
  • Scout
  • *****
  • Join Date: Jul 2013
  • Posts: 259
    • https://www.facebook.com/biggamehuntingadventures
    • Big Game Hunting Adventures
  • Groups: SCI, RMEF
Re: cva optima v2 success
« Reply #1 on: December 07, 2020, 09:21:36 AM »
Congratulations on a great season with your Optima! I also hunt with a CVA Optima and LOVE it. Like you, I've also gotten excellent accuracy with Blackhorn 209 and Hornady SST bullets.
Just my :twocents: but while I think those bullets are outstanding for deer, I would not recommend using them on bigger game. I personally think they expand too fast for use on really, really big animals like elk or moose. Check out the 290gr Barnes TMZ or T-EZ (the T-EZ shot better for me in my Optima) and the 300gr Thor full bore conical. I've gotten really good accuracy with those bullets in my muzzleloader. Both will still expand really well, but they will also provide much deeper and more consistent penetration than the Hornady SST bullets.

Offline Apples

  • Political & Covid-19 Topics
  • Trade Count: (0)
  • Hunter
  • ***
  • Join Date: Jul 2009
  • Posts: 166
  • Location: E Wenatchee
Re: cva optima v2 success
« Reply #2 on: December 08, 2020, 02:54:06 PM »
May I ask what size charge you both are using? I too have a CVA and found the pellets did not work for me past the first shot, seemed like the bullet didn’t want to go down the barrel very easily.

Offline HighCountryHunter88

  • Trade Count: (0)
  • Sourdough
  • *****
  • Join Date: Feb 2010
  • Posts: 1198
  • Location: GRAHAM
Re: cva optima v2 success
« Reply #3 on: December 08, 2020, 04:20:59 PM »
 :yeah:
-Matt

Offline brew

  • Non-Hunting Topics
  • Trade Count: (+17)
  • Sourdough
  • *****
  • Join Date: May 2010
  • Posts: 1677
  • Location: yelm
Re: cva optima v2 success
« Reply #4 on: December 08, 2020, 06:24:46 PM »
the booklet that came with my optima said use 110 grains of Blackhorn 209 powder.  I had to buy the "powder" optima breechplug--its cupped to hold the loose powder charge as opposed to the b/p that came with it that is flat to shoot the pellets.  I think it i bought it off amazon for about 30 bucks.  when i originally bought the m/l i tried it with 150 grains of white hot pellets with the pellet b/p and had very inconsistent groups at 50 yards.  With the powder b/p and 110 grains of powder my first shot at 50 yards hit the right edge of the 2" circle i was shooting at 50 yards.  I moved the sight slightly left and hit the left side of the 2" circle at 50 yards.  Pretty good with my old ass eyes and open sight williams crosshair aftermarket sight i put on it.  cleaned it and backed out to 100 yards and sent one down range.  basically 1/2" high and dead nuts (attached photo).  have only shot a coyote with it while elk hunting.  60 yards away and dead bang.  The optima i gave my son in law told him to buy the powder b/p and be bought 777 powder and the same 110 gr and the same bullets i am shooting-250 grain hornady sst.  he had the same results.  in 3 shots he had his dialed in dead on at 50 yards and stopped shooting.  His gun has killed 2 does this season---his wife (my daughter) who has never killed a deer before killed her doe with one shot Thanksgiving morning at about 45 yards and he killed his first m/l deer this past Saturday morning about 50 yards.  I can't say enough about the ease of shooting these guns with powder and the accuracy.  Yes so far they have been close shots but for folks who have either never killed a deer or killed a deer with a m/l they are pretty awesome.  Weather has finally changed so will be taking the wife out this weekend to try and kill hers.  She had an opportunity the day before Thanksgiving on a big doe but also first year for her m/l and she was all lined up on a fatty at 50 yards but forgot to cock the hammer before pulling the trigger
« Last Edit: December 08, 2020, 06:38:50 PM by brew »
beer---it's whats for dinner

Offline brew

  • Non-Hunting Topics
  • Trade Count: (+17)
  • Sourdough
  • *****
  • Join Date: May 2010
  • Posts: 1677
  • Location: yelm
Re: cva optima v2 success
« Reply #5 on: December 08, 2020, 06:28:03 PM »
my confuser skills suck...both those pics need to be rotated 90 degrees clockwise.  That shot on the target was just above the bullseye
beer---it's whats for dinner

Offline The Big Game Hunter

  • Business Sponsor
  • Trade Count: (0)
  • Scout
  • *****
  • Join Date: Jul 2013
  • Posts: 259
    • https://www.facebook.com/biggamehuntingadventures
    • Big Game Hunting Adventures
  • Groups: SCI, RMEF
Re: cva optima v2 success
« Reply #6 on: December 10, 2020, 10:25:01 AM »
the booklet that came with my optima said use 110 grains of Blackhorn 209 powder.  I had to buy the "powder" optima breechplug--its cupped to hold the loose powder charge as opposed to the b/p that came with it that is flat to shoot the pellets.  I think it i bought it off amazon for about 30 bucks.  when i originally bought the m/l i tried it with 150 grains of white hot pellets with the pellet b/p and had very inconsistent groups at 50 yards.  With the powder b/p and 110 grains of powder my first shot at 50 yards hit the right edge of the 2" circle i was shooting at 50 yards.  I moved the sight slightly left and hit the left side of the 2" circle at 50 yards.  Pretty good with my old ass eyes and open sight williams crosshair aftermarket sight i put on it.  cleaned it and backed out to 100 yards and sent one down range.  basically 1/2" high and dead nuts (attached photo).  have only shot a coyote with it while elk hunting.  60 yards away and dead bang.  The optima i gave my son in law told him to buy the powder b/p and be bought 777 powder and the same 110 gr and the same bullets i am shooting-250 grain hornady sst.  he had the same results.  in 3 shots he had his dialed in dead on at 50 yards and stopped shooting.  His gun has killed 2 does this season---his wife (my daughter) who has never killed a deer before killed her doe with one shot Thanksgiving morning at about 45 yards and he killed his first m/l deer this past Saturday morning about 50 yards.  I can't say enough about the ease of shooting these guns with powder and the accuracy.  Yes so far they have been close shots but for folks who have either never killed a deer or killed a deer with a m/l they are pretty awesome.  Weather has finally changed so will be taking the wife out this weekend to try and kill hers.  She had an opportunity the day before Thanksgiving on a big doe but also first year for her m/l and she was all lined up on a fatty at 50 yards but forgot to cock the hammer before pulling the trigger
Interesting. I also go the best accuracy with my Optima with 110gr by volume of 777 and Blackhorn 209. That definitely seems to be a sweet spot for those muzzleloaers.

Offline Apples

  • Political & Covid-19 Topics
  • Trade Count: (0)
  • Hunter
  • ***
  • Join Date: Jul 2009
  • Posts: 166
  • Location: E Wenatchee
Re: cva optima v2 success
« Reply #7 on: December 12, 2020, 03:42:24 PM »
Thank you for the info I have ordered the new B/P and have the black horn powder and I am hoping for the same results that you have had. Let me ask you this did the rifle still load fairly easy after the first shot or did it load harder?

Offline callturner

  • Political & Covid-19 Topics
  • Trade Count: (+2)
  • Longhunter
  • *****
  • Join Date: Jun 2020
  • Posts: 648
  • Location: nine mile falls Washington
    • n/a
  • Groups: nra
Re: cva optima v2 success
« Reply #8 on: December 12, 2020, 04:24:29 PM »
I shoot a CVA v2 also . Blackhorn loads the same every time. 777 needs to be swabbed after every shot as it creates a crud ring. I shoot 300 gr Speer Deep Curls .452 in a Harvester crushrib sabot. You should clean your breech plug after every 10 shots or so but I have fired over 60 shots with Blackhorn without cleaning the rest of the gun. I was shooting 77 weighed grains (110 by volume) but later moved up to 84 weighed gr (120 by volume). The Deep curls will flat drop an elk DRT!

Offline callturner

  • Political & Covid-19 Topics
  • Trade Count: (+2)
  • Longhunter
  • *****
  • Join Date: Jun 2020
  • Posts: 648
  • Location: nine mile falls Washington
    • n/a
  • Groups: nra
Re: cva optima v2 success
« Reply #9 on: December 12, 2020, 04:27:54 PM »
My pardoner shooting the same load in his TC at 90 yds, 1 shot.

Offline Apples

  • Political & Covid-19 Topics
  • Trade Count: (0)
  • Hunter
  • ***
  • Join Date: Jul 2009
  • Posts: 166
  • Location: E Wenatchee
Re: cva optima v2 success
« Reply #10 on: December 12, 2020, 05:36:09 PM »
looks like it works!

Offline brew

  • Non-Hunting Topics
  • Trade Count: (+17)
  • Sourdough
  • *****
  • Join Date: May 2010
  • Posts: 1677
  • Location: yelm
Re: cva optima v2 success
« Reply #11 on: December 12, 2020, 06:41:26 PM »
Thank you for the info I have ordered the new B/P and have the black horn powder and I am hoping for the same results that you have had. Let me ask you this did the rifle still load fairly easy after the first shot or did it load harder?
first year m/l for me and I've cleaned mine entirely after about 4 shots...overkill I'm sure.  I have no issues loading after the first shot but my SIL's does seem to load a little harder.  Not sure but think I read somewhere that not all 50 cals are the same diameter...maybe mine is a little bigger ?
beer---it's whats for dinner

Offline The Big Game Hunter

  • Business Sponsor
  • Trade Count: (0)
  • Scout
  • *****
  • Join Date: Jul 2013
  • Posts: 259
    • https://www.facebook.com/biggamehuntingadventures
    • Big Game Hunting Adventures
  • Groups: SCI, RMEF
Re: cva optima v2 success
« Reply #12 on: December 13, 2020, 05:26:02 AM »
Thank you for the info I have ordered the new B/P and have the black horn powder and I am hoping for the same results that you have had. Let me ask you this did the rifle still load fairly easy after the first shot or did it load harder?
first year m/l for me and I've cleaned mine entirely after about 4 shots...overkill I'm sure.  I have no issues loading after the first shot but my SIL's does seem to load a little harder.  Not sure but think I read somewhere that not all 50 cals are the same diameter...maybe mine is a little bigger ?
There can indeed be slight differences in bore diameter from muzzleloader to muzzleloader and it's not uncommon for .50 caliber muzzleloaders to have .500", .501", .502", or .503" bores. Certain bullets (like Thors) are also very sensitive to bore size. A .001" difference in bore diameter can make a big difference in ease of loading, especially with a dirty bore.

Offline callturner

  • Political & Covid-19 Topics
  • Trade Count: (+2)
  • Longhunter
  • *****
  • Join Date: Jun 2020
  • Posts: 648
  • Location: nine mile falls Washington
    • n/a
  • Groups: nra
Re: cva optima v2 success
« Reply #13 on: December 13, 2020, 07:31:57 AM »
Thank you for the info I have ordered the new B/P and have the black horn powder and I am hoping for the same results that you have had. Let me ask you this did the rifle still load fairly easy after the first shot or did it load harder?
first year m/l for me and I've cleaned mine entirely after about 4 shots...overkill I'm sure.  I have no issues loading after the first shot but my SIL's does seem to load a little harder.  Not sure but think I read somewhere that not all 50 cals are the same diameter...maybe mine is a little bigger ?
You are right . Different bores take different size bullets or sabots . The crush rib sabot is too tight for say the TC bone collector so they make a smooth version that works . Bores generally run .501 to .504 depending on the maker of the gun,

Offline brew

  • Non-Hunting Topics
  • Trade Count: (+17)
  • Sourdough
  • *****
  • Join Date: May 2010
  • Posts: 1677
  • Location: yelm
Re: cva optima v2 success
« Reply #14 on: January 09, 2021, 07:08:48 PM »
bought our son the same m/l i have for Christmas...cva optima v2.  his brother in law also got the same gun.  they both came over today to shoot them for the first time.  i gave them a list of things they needed to buy to get started as neither of them have ever hunted/shot muzzleloaders before.  They both came over with a butt ton of stuff they bought--bullets,primers and powder-both pellets and loose powder.  They each started with pellets and within 5 shots they both were hitting the bullseye with 250 grain SST's. We all were pretty impressed that out of the box m/l's and dudes that have never shot them before were able to have that amount of accuracy.  kinda nice to have an area that we can shoot behind the house and they are looking forward to coming over again and shooting.  Good thing for me as they are going with pellets and me and my son in law are shooting loose powder.  They have about 4 containers of blackhorn 209 that they aren't going to use but me and SIL can.  Easy trade for that loose powder for some peach pie shine and some jalapeno cheddar pepperoni
beer---it's whats for dinner

 


* Advertisement

* Recent Topics

Springer Fishing Opportunity 3/29 & 3/30 by Blacklab
[Today at 12:48:56 PM]


Long Beach Clamming Tides by dilleytech
[Today at 12:39:19 PM]


Let’s see your best Washington buck by abhold87
[Today at 12:03:27 PM]


Bearpaw Season - Spring 2024 by bearpaw
[Today at 11:45:41 AM]


Walked a cougar down by Rainier10
[Today at 11:17:49 AM]


SB 5444 signed by Inslee on 03/26 Takes Effect on 06/06/24 by hughjorgan
[Today at 09:03:26 AM]


Springer 2024 Columbia River by WSU
[Today at 08:31:10 AM]


Average by lhrbull
[Today at 07:31:56 AM]


CVA optima V2 LR tapped hole for front sight by Remdawg
[Today at 07:09:22 AM]


Which 12” boat trailer tires? by timberhunter
[Yesterday at 08:22:18 PM]

SimplePortal 2.3.7 © 2008-2024, SimplePortal