Editor’s note: Chad Schearer of Great Falls, Montana, host of “Shoot Straight with Chad Schearer” on the Sportsman Channel, has traveled all over the world hunting with a Muzzleloader. This week, Schearer will tell us about his African Muzzleloader hunt.
Question: Chad, how many-different animals have you taken in Africa?
Schearer: Over the years, with a muzzleloader, I’ve taken a Cape buffalo, a 2,000-pound eland, an impala, a duiker, a warthog and many other animals.
Question: Did you hunt with any of the new Bergara barrels other than the .50-caliber black-powder barrels in Africa?
Schearer: No, I didn’t take any of the modern Bergara barrels. I wanted to hunt this time with muzzleloader, so I chose a .50 caliber. However, I have hunted in Africa with modern Bergara barrels for wildebeests and a few other animals in years past.
Question: What bullet did you use when you hunted and took the Cape buffalo?
Schearer: I used a 510-grain PowerBelt Dangerous Game Bullet, which is a steel-tip bullet that PowerBelt no longer makes.
Question: How did that bullet perform, Chad?
Schearer: The CVA rifle and this bullet were life savers. The buffalo charged me. He was at 60 yards, coming straight at me. I shot him right above the brisket as he came straight for me, and the bullet lodged in his hindquarter.
Question: What did your guide say when you told him you wanted to use a CVA black-powder rifle to take a Cape buffalo?
Schearer: He said, “This hunt should be interesting.” And the hunt did get really interesting when the buffalo charged us. I shot, and for a few seconds, a big cloud of smoke was in front of us, 
making seeing the buffalo difficult. So, the guide didn’t know if I’d hit it. But we learned that as soon that PowerBelt Bullet hit the buffalo, he whirled and dropped 50 yards from us. When my professional hunter saw how efficiently the CVA rifle with the PowerBelt Bullet put-down that big buffalo, he was really impressed. That’s the only dangerous African game I’ve ever hunted.
Question: Chad, which rifle did you use?
Schearer: That hunt was 5-years ago, and I used the CVA Kodiak Pro.
Question: So, what would you say is the main factor to ensuring a successful black-powder hunt in another country?
Schearer: Plan ahead. Make sure you have your blackpowder and percussion caps in camp before you arrive, and use a good travel agent, like Gracy Travels International, Inc., (www.gracytravel.com) out of San Antonio, Texas. Gracy Travel specializes in African travel, and they’re an expert at taking care of all the problems that can occur when hunting in Africa. They’re also a consolidator, which enables you to get good deals on airline travel, and they’ll send you all the information you need to make your hunt as problem free as possible. Next, make sure you have a good outfitter. In Africa, we hunt with Mafigeni Safaris (www.mafigeni.com).