i have heard good things about the CVA line....

i would try and steer clear of the cva. there is a recent article stating that the guns cant safely fire the manufacturers powder charge causing some pretty serious damage to the guns. i'll look for the article.

t/c is always a good bet. try to find a thunderhawk or firehawk. really simple exposed inline. cheap to and they work GOOD!

interesting.... my buddy was thinking about getting a cva, i will pass that along to him....

The problem you're referring to with CVA muzzleloaders was fixed in 1996. They've all been recalled, so there's no reason to worry about it. If you're referring to anything written by Randy Wakeman, take it with a grain of salt. He's got a sort of vendetta against CVA, or so it seems, but he has some good points. To this day CVA doesn't stamp their barrels with the highest safe pressure the barrel has been tested to as other manufacturers do. I shoot a cheap CVA and it does awesome. It's 4 years old and I've never had a problem with it. The new Optima line is pretty awesome, and so are many of their others.

If you want a top-of-the-line muzzleloader for cheap, check out www.austinhalleck.com. They announced in October that they're closing their doors, and they're selling all their inventory. Check out the list of what they have left - you can get a 420 model in Satin Stainless with both wood and synthetic stock for under $300, and a standard 320 model with synthetic stock for about $210. amazing prices for one of the best black powder rifles on the market.

yeah wes, i was referring to randy wakeman. i didnt know they had their problem resolved though. thanks for the info. and i also didnt know that A&H was closing down. i may have to pick up one of their guns if they that cheap!! :wink:

yea bass pro, represent.................................. 8)

HF9,

According to Randy, the problem hasn't been resolved, because they still don't stamp their barrels the way he wants :roll: I will say this...I don't like the way CVA seems to hide things. Their public relations department could really use some fresh ideas. Back about 5-6 years ago Randy joined the CVA forum to get some info from the company about the recall and ask some questions. CVA owners...at least the ones on the forum...are very loyal, so things got pretty heated and he got booted from the forum and all his posts were deleted. I knew several members that thought he was onto something, but repeated emails, letters and calls to CVA from him and other members got no results. They eventually shut the forum down. To my knowledge, CVA has yet to acknowledge him and doesn't seem to care about the customers they may be losing due to what he writes about them.

Regardless, they still make a dependable gun that's one of the best values on the market. Their customer service is pretty good, too - they sent me some screws that I stripped while tinkering with mine, free of charge.

As for A&H, I've been dying to have one since I discovered them several years ago. You won't find a better looking, more accurate muzzleloader at any price. Now they're closing down and the $700 gun I want is under $300 and I can't get it. That's the one thing about being a future daddy...the expensive toys take a back seat to the needs of the wife and child But, I guess I can look at it as if I'm getting a new toy that's more expensive than all my hunting stuff combined!

yeah i want one of the Ah's my uncle has one and it shoots likea dream! i have a couple t/c and he says they dont compair.

jsut hold out, you may find one a few years down the road with a little use, and get a killer deal? never know.

congrats on the future baby wes.!

wes which one do you think is the best and which one did you want. They look nice i might just get one.