TRYING TO DECIDE BETWEEN A THOMPSON CENTER ENCORE OR A CVA OPTIMA PRO.BESIDES THE PRICE ARE THERE ANY OTHER DIFFERENCE ? IS THERE A WIDE VARIETY OF BARRELS AVAILABLE FOR THE OPTIMA AS THE ENCORE?

I feel really stupid! :oops: I read your post and replied below. I wrote the whole reply based on the Omega vs. the Optima. I edited my reply to reflect your actual question.

Here is my opinion.

TC makes all around excellent firearms. The Encore is a great design. It is easy to load, prime, shoot, and clean. The action seals the primer from moisture. The ability to buy extra barrels is a big plus. They are American made.

CVA also makes fine muzzeloaders. They are less expensive than others in most cases. A lot of folks read this as cheaply made. They must be pretty good or Winchester would not have CVA make the Winchester line of muzzeloaders. I know that CVA has a lot of its components made in foreign countries. A lot of thier barrels are made in Spain. I am not sure about the Optima barrel. The Optima design is nice also. It has the same advantages as the Encore. To my knowledge CVA offers no additional barrels for the Optima.

If money were no object I would hands down buy the Encore (I am a TC fan also). If money were an issue I would get the Optima.

If I wanted to buy a only muzzleloader I would pick the Optima also.

If you like TC muzzeloaders I do have another recommendation. Check out the TC Black Diamond rifles. They have two models. The Black Diamond, and the Black Diamond XR. The XR has a slightly longer barrel. I have one and love it. Another forum member Bayou Bow Hunter has one and like his also. They are comparable in price to the Optima. You can get it in a starter kit similar to the Optima with a lot of the accessories you will need. They aren't the break open style like the Encore or the Optima but they work great.

I hope this helps out.

Tomson center by far!