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Blackhorn 209

Fletch

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I bought a CVA Mpuntain Rifle and at the same time got a Blackhorn 209 breach plug.... Off the top of my mind I forgot what load I shot as far as BH209 was concerned... However I did shoot the Barnes T-EZ 250 grain sabots... Shot very well though and was very easy to clean up... I did run into one problem that made me go with 777 Magum pellets.... When dumping the powder charge down the barrel I had a lot of powder left in the tube do to static electricity... No matter how hard I tapped it on the barrel it just jumped around.... So heres your tip for today to avoid this..... Wipe tubes out with a DRYER SHEET prior to putting in powder... As for the BH209 breach plug they are available in most sporting good stores... Another thing I found out is if you switch your stock breach plug over to a BH209 one... It will also work fine with pellets... Don't know why they don't just install a BH209 breach plug on all guns at the factory??? When using BH209 you should also use the hottest 209 primer available... The primer of choice seems to be CCI Magnum 209 primers... Going back to BH209 this year....
 

Lundy

Member
1,307
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Some guns may require a different breech plug to get a little more fire to BH209 as it is a little harder to ignite, but before you get a new breech plug try hotter primers. Not all 209 primers are created equal. Try the Federal 209A and the CCI magnum. We have not needed to change any breech plugs on any gun we switched and they all go bang every time we pull the trigger.
 

5Cent

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12,333
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North Central Ohio
Picked up a jug, nozzle and brass measurement tool from FFF yesterday. I forgot to get some different primers, only have the Remington Kleanbores at home.

I got to looking at the different breach plugs and there is a substantial difference between the OEM CVA Optima vs. the BH209 specific model. I'm going to try a few rounds with the Kleanbores and stock plug and see what see does.
 
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bowhunter1023

Owner/Operator
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Appalachia
Just shot my Optima Elite with OEM breech and BH209 for the first time ever. First shot was a hangfire, but I forgot to prime the barrel. Next 3 were fine. Went to 120 gr. and jumped up to a 300 gr. Shockwave. Gun kicks a little more, but I have little doubt it'll knock the piss outta one. First shot was on the money despite the hangfire, but I suspected #2 and #3 to be more appropriate, so I made 2 clicks right, 4 down and fired another clean bore shot which hit the same hole as the first. Shooting at 55 yards, so I called it good. I never have shots past 125 yards, so no need to beat up my shoulder!

20181228_142141.jpg
 
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bowhunter1023

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Appalachia
Found a BH209 breech for cheap, so I bought one. If Adam agrees after his research, then I feel good about spending the $23. Ordered a new PalmSaver ramrod, sabot jag, measuring tubes and a new sling while I was at it. Pricey day in the muzzleloader world! Had that Christmas jingle burning a hole in my pocket. 😂
 

5Cent

Dignitary Member
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12,333
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North Central Ohio
Found a BH209 breech for cheap, so I bought one. If Adam agrees after his research, then I feel good about spending the $23. Ordered a new PalmSaver ramrod, sabot jag, measuring tubes and a new sling while I was at it. Pricey day in the muzzleloader world! Had that Christmas jingle burning a hole in my pocket. 😂

Lol, whoa, I didn't know I had work to do.

I'll be picking up one from Cabela's even though it is more $. Using a gift card so I'll have to report back on the plug from farm n fleet Jesse.
 
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5Cent

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North Central Ohio
Wow, this is fun again! Got the new plug yesterday, wanted to see if the the Kleanbores would work and they did just fine this AM.

1 hit it's mark high. No doubt the ignition is faster and more kick.

I moved her down and then sent 2 & 3 which is good enough to kill and I usually call it quits. I ran 2 patches down the barrel/cleaned plug and 4 was aim small miss small, dead nuts.

Why the hell did I wait so long and miss 3 deer before changing lol!
IMG_20190103_093403.jpg
 

bowhunter1023

Owner/Operator
Staff member
48,921
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Appalachia
Well, back to pellets.

I had an "oh shit" moment yesterday when I pulled that data sheet off Blackhorn's website, which I had not done previously. The one on the bottle is slightly different and like more than one dipshit before me I'm sure, weighed a volumetric measure and was shooting 26 grains too much as a result. Thankfully, my Optima Elite will take 150 grains of pellets, which means I was roughly 5 grains too hot for the guns max rating. That was the first issue. The second was the breech plug I ordered does not fit my model of CVA and after reading the fine print, I see why. Shame on me for not reading the fine print before I ordered.

So... I weighed out new loads and now I'm having ignition problems. After 3 duds and 3 hangfires with a little troubleshooting in between, I was very uncomfortable heading to the woods this weekend with the Blackhorn. Thankfully, I have a half box of pellets left and they work.

Shots 1 and 2 doing as Adam would say "aim small, miss small" @ 55 yards. Made 2 clicks right and called it good.

20190104_143407.jpg
 

OO2

Well-Known Member
2,565
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In the Uplands
Bummer to hear Jesse. I got my blackhorn shooting okay. I’m shooting 86 grains (volume). Started off @ 25yds hit paper so moved back to 50 and hit roughly same spot. Moved back to 100 hit low. Adjusted to far up. 2 more shots put me back where I wanted. One hitting same hole as 25 yds and last shot @100 touching orange. Can’t wait to kill the target again Jan 8th.
 

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Fletch

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Definitely. Seems to be the #1 recommendation.
Definitely.... When I got my CVA I joined a muzzle loader forum to get some input as what to do with loads etc. 99% of the guys said go with Blackhorn 209, but get the Blackhorn Breach Plug and use CCI Magnum primers as Blackhorn needs a hotter primer... Heck why not use the hottest primer anyway for pellets etc... I ordered my breach plug directly from CVA... And the number one bullet of choice was the Barnes T-EZ 250 grain...