A guy I work with bought a new Optima this fall and went to the range with his buddy. Being inexperienced in muzzleloading his buddy said he'd load it for him. He handed him the gun back for him to shoot after loading it. The buddy who loaded it was watching the target with his binoculars and said after the shot " what were those branches flying through the air?" It was the ramrod. It was the very first round fired out of the gun. Lesson learned. Do everything yourself.