Editor’s Note: Terry Oertwig of Purdin, Missouri, a CVA Pro Staff member, hunts big game nationwide and worldwide with his CVA Electra. We’ve asked Oertwig why he has so much confidence in the CVA Electra and to give us some first-hand reports on how the Electra has performed for him when he’s hunting elk.

Question: Terry, why do you have so much confidence in the CVA Electra?
Oertwig: I’ve found it to be the most-accurate muzzleloader I’ve ever shot. It’s easy to clean, it’s lightweight, and with the ambidextrous composite stock, hunters can shoot this muzzleloader right- or left-handed. I was really pleased with the trigger and the light trigger pull. The Electra has everything I’ve wanted in a high-quality muzzleloading rifle.

Question: Are you ever concerned about the ignition system on the Electra?
Oertwig: No, because the safeguards on the Electra show when the battery is working properly, and when the battery gets low. The battery life in the Electra lasts 600 hours, if it’s not turned-off, or for 500 shots. That’s more shots than most people will shoot in a lifetime.

Question: Tell me about your elk hunt with the CVA Electra.
Oertwig: I was hunting out West, and the weather was really windy. Although we’d seen several elk, I hadn’t spotted one I wanted to take. Finally, we saw a really-nice bull down in a bowl. I liked this bull because he had whale-tail-shaped antlers. Instead of his antlers going straight-up, they grew backwards. When we first saw the bull, he was scratching his rear end with the tips of his antlers, which really impressed me. As I was getting into a shooting position, the bull winded us and went down into a valley where a river flowed. The guide followed the elk. The elk came out of the river bottom and moved out behind some brush. We followed that bull for about 1/2-mile before he looked back to try and see us. When the elk couldn’t spot us, he turned sideways. I took the shot when he was at about 70 yards. I could tell the bullet hit the bull hard. He ran 30 to 40 yards to a lone cedar tree and fought that tree with his rack until he thought he’d whipped it. Then, he took one step back and fell over dead.

Question: Where did the bullet enter the bull?
Oertwig: It entered the chest cavity and went right through both lungs.

Question: Were you ever concerned about the Electra igniting the powder?
Oertwig: No. I knew I could depend on the CVA Electra and its patent-pending ARC Electronic Ignition. I’ve shot close to 1500 rounds through the CVA Electra and have never had a problem. I do clean my Electra after the shot. The CVA Electra is far better than any blackpowder rifle I’ve ever shot.

Check back soon for more information on CVA Muzzleloaders & elk hunting.