Editor’s Note: Tony Smotherman lives outside of Murfreesboro, Tennessee, and has hunted only with black powder since 1994. Today Smotherman will tell us how and why he became a blackpowder-only hunter.
Question: Tony, why did you decide to hunt exclusively with black powder?
Smotherman: I started reading outdoor magazines from the Midwest, because that area seemed to be where some of the biggest whitetails were being taken. I began traveling to Illinois, Indiana and Ohio, hunting and trying to learn all I could about taking trophy whitetails. I found out that many of the gun seasons in the Midwest were either shotgun or muzzleloading seasons. Back in the early 1990s, when I first started hunting these states, I quickly learned that blackpowder rifles were far-more accurate than the shotguns that shot slugs in those days. Soon I realized I was spending so-much time in these other states that I wasn’t at home in Tennessee during conventional rifle season. So, I just gravitated away from hunting with modern rifles, because I learned I could take more and bigger bucks in these midwestern states by hunting with black powder.
Question: You were once on the Knight Rifle Pro Staff, is that right?
Smotherman: That’s true. I hunted with Knight Rifles for more than a decade.
Question: Why did you decide to start shooting CVA muzzleloaders?
Smotherman: CVA’s Apex is the main reason I started shooting CVA rifles.
Question: What did you like about the Apex?
Smotherman: I really like its accuracy and adjustable trigger. The barrel on a rifle can be extremely accurate, but if the trigger isn’t smooth and crisp, the shooter will never be as accurate as his gun.
Question: How much pressure do you like to have on your trigger?
Smotherman: The Apex has a trigger that’s adjustable from approximately three to five pounds. You can customize the trigger to suit your trigger-pull preference. All you need is a flathead screwdriver.
Question: Why do you like a light trigger pull on your muzzleloading rifle?
Smotherman: If your trigger pull is not crisp and clean, the hunter will have a tendency to jerk the trigger rather than squeeze it. When you jerk that trigger to make the gun fire, in most instances you’ll pull-off the target.
Question: How far out do you feel like you’re accurate when you’re shooting the CVA Apex?
Smotherman: I never hesitate to take a shot out to 200 yards. I use the Alpen Apex 3-9X42 riflescope on my CVA Apex rifle.
Question: Tony, why do you like that scope?
Smotherman: First of all, this scope is easy on the pocketbook. You don’t have to spend next month’s mortgage payment for your house to buy a quality riflescope. I’ve found that the Alpen riflescope has just as high a resolution, brightness and accuracy as much-more expensive riflescopes do. With the naked eye, you’ll never know any difference between the Alpen Apex and that riflescope that may seem as though it costs the same as your monthly mortgage.
Question: Tony, where are you headed this season?
Smotherman: We’re headed to Casper, Wyoming, for an elk hunt. We’ll be hunting during gun season. However, instead of using a conventional rifle I’ll use my CVA Apex.
Question: Have you hunted in Casper, Wyo., before?
Smotherman: Yes, I have. I took a 320-inch 6×6 bull out here 2-years ago. I took that bull at 120 yards with a blackpowder rifle.
Question: Why do you choose to hunt elk with a muzzleloading rifle instead of a conventional rifle?
Smotherman: Because I’m a 100% blackpowder hunter.
Question: Tony, how are you loading your CVA Apex?
Smotherman: I’m shooting 110 grains of Blackhorn 209 powder, because this powder is extremely accurate, and it’s clean burning. This powder is not available in pellets and only comes in loose powder. Too, I just prefer to shoot loose powder. I believe that loose powder is always the most-accurate charge, because it’s always consistent when you compress it. Once you pack the bullet on top of the powder, there are no air pockets. This is not to say that pellets aren’t accurate, but I’ve found that to be the most accurate I can be, I prefer the loose powder. If you use pellets, you can get air pockets in the barrel between the powder charge and the bullet, because those pellets don’t always stack exactly perfectly in the barrel. But when you pour loose powder down a barrel and seat the bullet on top of that loose powder, you’ll have no air pockets in the barrel. And, the powder is always packed the same, and you can shoot more consistently.
Question: What primer are you using?
Smotherman: I prefer the Winchester 209 primers. Many primers on the market today are a weaker form of the 209 primers. But the 209 Blackhorn seems to have a higher-ignition point. I prefer a standard 209 primer to any other.
Question: Tony, you’ll be gone for 7-10 days. How will you clean and care for your CVA Apex?
Smotherman: The weatherman’s predicting 2 inches of snow for the area we plan to hunt. If that’s true, I’ll dump my powder charge every day. When you spend the time and money required to go from the East to the West to hunt elk, you want to put all of the odds in your favor when you get the opportunity to take a nice elk. That’s the reason I’m so meticulous about the rifle I choose and the powder charge, bullet and primer that I use. I’ve learned that the CVA Apex, loaded the way I’ve described and using the Alpen optics, gives me the best chance for success afield.
To learn more about Tony Smotherman and his hunting adventures, visit www.camospace.com/travelinhunter.