I'm going to buy a muzzleloader for my son, to use for deer hunting.  He borrowed one last year, got his first deer with it, and was hooked.  I was looking at this CVA Optima V2 from Midway for him.  Is this a decent rifle?  I don't want to break the bank for one, but also want one that's fairly decent.

Also, any help with loads and cleaning products would be much appreciated.  We've shot it before, and he's loaded it from already-prepared speed-loaders, but I'm not sure what powder and bullet were used.

Like I mentioned, we're new to the black powder stuff, so any criticisms or suggestions or websites I can be directed to will be greatly appreciated.  Thanks!

how old is your son.

buy a used Knight or T/C .209
777 loose powder and one a .50 powerbelts for easier loading
CCI or Winchester .209 primers

clean the gun and action with a 50% solution of windex and water.

Looks like a decent gun. I have been eye-balling a Traditions Pursuit which could be the twin for that one.

Right now I have a TC Firehawk.  I use #11 caps not 209 primers.  For a load i use 70 grains of Pyrodex RS loose powder under a .54 caliber sabot loaded with a .452 XTP hollow-point bullet.
I find it extremely accurate and it doesn't kill my shoulder.

It has a SS barrel so cleaning is a breeze.  I use The Original #13 Bore cleaning solvent 'til the patches come out clean, then Bore Butter as a final lube.  I like the quick-remove breach plug on the one you linked.  It should make cleaning even easier.

Thanks for the suggestions. He's 23, been shooting since he was about 12 or so.

go Knight or T/C
preferably stainless steel.

WATER is all that is needed to clean the gun. Don't use too much oil as it is not good with black powder. I clean all of mine over a weeks time. I clean it then skip 2 days to let it sit muzzle down. Then run a patch down the barrel. Then repeat bay letting it sit for a couple of more days. If I am done for the year, I then oil it in and out. Then once a month after that.

The Optima V2 is pretty nice, I own one in stainless and it's quite the tack driver. I use the Power Belt bullets (295g .50 cal ballistic tip) over 150 grains of Triple 7. I prefer the Power Belt bullets over Sabots, because they don't seem to foul your barrel with melted plastic as quickly. The bullet itself is a full .50 cal too, not .45 cal like with most Sabots. I have fired as many as 10 shots with this combination between cleanings, with little or no loss of accuracy. For the money, I think you would be hard pressed to beat the Optima.   Muzzle.Loaders.com has the combo package now for $360 delivered, scoped and bore sighted...................

I got no dog in this but when I was researching inlines I came up on this:

scary

Very good read, quite an eye opener. I had to closely inspect my V2 after reading this, and I'm happy to say I think I'm good to go. Had I read this prior to making my purchase, I might have gone another direction. I have fired nearly 100 rounds through mine all with 150gr loads, so far no problems. but I will be inspecting those breech plug threads every time I clean it. Thanks again for the heads up article, otherwise I would have never known there was a problem..............................