Originally Posted by
longbowelk
Just so everyone knows, I personally would not shoot 150 grains of loose powder or 3 pellets. I am only interested in the lead conicals. Do not care or desire the Powerbelts. I have considered the Thor. Sabots are out as my main deal is elk in Colorado. I plan on calling CVA and checking this out. All I can say is if this rifle can handle 150 grains it ought to be able to handle a lead conical 425 to 460 with a moderate load of 80 to 85 grains(vol) BH209 or Black MZ. No exceptions are made in the manual, just it voids your warranty if you shoot lead conical over 400 grains. Of course I have never heard any mention of this on any forum or any of the CVA marketing materials. Thanks to all, Alan
I'll repost my answer from CVA
Ok, just got off the phone with BPI. The guy said that the reason the 400 gr is listed is they have not tested anything over that weight. He said they have talked about doing some testing and publishing it. I told him I don't see why they would not do it as they have a large portion of the market. He did mention that it would not void the warranty. I told him no way would I put 150 grains of powder/pellets behind a 450 grain lead conical as if the gun did not blow up it would kick me way too much. I did mention that in the material I got with the gun there was a chart included showing a 444 grain copper clad bullet using 100 grains of pellets. I told him I don't see but 6 grains of difference in bullet weight and I am shooting 20 grains less powder. He said they get this call about once a week. I told him they should take it out of the manual and replace it with a safe chart. One other thing he did say that it was mainly in there for people that cast their own bullets. Well, I cast my own 450's and I told him I certainly wouldn't cast a 600 grain and think it was 450. I could tell the guy was nice and really had nothing to confirm the sentence. See below from the manual. I'm going to not worry about this deal as I do not feel that 80 to 85 grains of BH209 or Black MZ with a 450 or 460 grain lead conical is not safe. Ok, 3 negatives in last sentence. To clarify, I am going to keep shooting the 85V gr of powder and the 450 to 460 gr lead conical as I believe the so called Magnum rifle can safely handle the load.
From the manual:
LEAD CONICALS
The lead conical is one of the oldest designs around for muzzleloading guns. These
bullets are typically heavy in weight and feature a hollow base that expands with
pressure to seal the bore. Although lacking in some modern features they remain
effective on short to medium range shots and are ideal for use in states that do not
allow projectiles with plastic parts. Do not use lead conical bullets weighing over
400 grains in your CVA rifle.