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Snagged a Bushnell 4200 3-9x40 for a nice price off our boards. It is destined for my CVA Optima V2. Already have the Blackhorn breech plug. Gonna load either 260/300 grain harvester scorpions. I was about to finish my midway order and realized I don't have any needed ML accessories.

With blackhorn, should I weigh it by way of volume or weight? What all do I need "accessories" wise? Anyone sell useful starter kits?

http://www.frontiermuzzleloading.com/t6453-need-supply-list-traditions-shooters

The tune up tip with the o rings will also be of great help to your optima.

I dont bother weighing my bh209 loads anymore, its just not needed.

I weigh my charges and dump them into the BH209 charge tubes. I also use rhe tubes to carry sabotted bullets. The weighed charges (70% of the volume charge) come up to the right mark on the tube, but I just think it's simpler and more exact to weigh. May not make any difference on target. If somebody wants to compare chrono readings between the two methods, go for it.

T/C makes a nice 209 holder set that lets you carry a few spares around your neck on a string as well as some in your pocket or bag. The two holders are rubber and protect the open end of the primer. On the same string you can carry a piece of piano wire for picking your flash hole. A short starter is a good idea, especially for the Scorpions which are kind pointy and might puncture your thumb. I made mine on a mini lathe from an old walnut table leg and an extended brass jag that I coned out to fit the pointy FPB bullets. Barnes sells different shaped seaters for various bullet styles. The polymer starters are light and strong. Look for one that has a hole that fits your ramrod end for seating tight bullets. Get a bunch of good patches because they're hard to find in stores.

A long range rod is handy for cleaning, loading at the range, and pulling bullets. Get one with a muzzle guard. Bullet puller, patch retriever, bore brush, solvent, micro-fiber lens cloth.

Thanks a lot gentleman.

I do not weigh and/or separate my bullets or powder.

If I were in a target competition, I would. But not for hunting or my range visits. It matters-not to me if shot #1 is an inch away from shot #2. If I get a 4" circle at 100 yards, they are all bullseyes to me. I shoot offhand in the woods and only use two sandbags for the barrel, when sighting-in.

Doesn't take much, to put a smile on my face at the range.

Should I buy the 260 or 300 grain harvester scorpions? Talking deer only here.

Gotta agree with you on the accuracy business. There's way too much teeth gnashing about that, centerfires included. If folks spent more time working on how well they could shoot instead of their rifles, they'd make out better in the field. I'll bet half the deer hunters never fire a round except from the bench.

I do however, use the steadiest position I can get into in the field, even very close.

I doubt very much that it matters. Whatever you can get; whatever shoots the best. The lighter ones should kick less, which might make a difference to you if your gun is very light.

One advantage of using pistol bullets is that, in addition to working very well on deer in the woods, they're reasonable in price and let you use cheap lead bullets of the same weight for practice. Compare the price of 100 250gr XTPs and loose sabots to the pre-assembled ML bullets. You can probably get 100 of the do-it-yourself rounds for less than $40. I'm sure the Scorpions will work fine, but they come pretty dear. That little gold pointy thing ain't that sexy to me.

The new Harvester website now sells the 240 gr in the Scorpion PT Golds.

I weigh my BH-209. 66 grains under a Barnes 250 T-EZ dropped four into their shadow last November. I use medical sample tubes for quick load carriers. I dump 7cc of powder which is ~66 grains by weight into several. I drop several of the Barnes in sabots with several primers into another one. I carry a little metal primer remover tool separately. My rifle, knife and a 20 foot piece of mule tape to drag Bambi with are the only other things I carry.

You will need sparkplug anti-seize compound (for the breech plug), a 50 cal cleaning brush, and a pin drill with a tiny drill bit to clean the breech plug.

Weigh or measure by volume, whichever you can do well. Westerns website lists the weight to volume conversion on the muzzle loader load data page. Weight is roughly 70% of volume. Blackhorn can be used in whatever centerfire powder dispenser you currently use. You dont need anti-sieze for the CVA quick release breach plug. Use a tiny bit of synthetic gun oil on the threads and wipe it off with a clean rag.

The Harvester bullets and sabots can be found cheaper than directly from Harvester and with lower shipping costs. Try Eds gunshop in NC.

Ask for Carlos
http://www.edsgunshop.com/