If you found this article while surfing the web or in a Google Search, you may have also noticed some other articles that present an extremely negative picture of both Blackpowder Products, Inc. and our CVA muzzleloading brand.  Unfortunately, this is nothing new to us, as most of it relates to Connecticut Valley Arms, Inc.’s Voluntary Recall — which was initiated way back in 1997.  Most of these negative “articles” are actually several years old, but it seems that every so often they resurface and cause a rash of new internet chatter.  As the current General Manager of BPI, I’d like to provide you with a little background information that will give you some insight as to why these persons would practice this “internet terrorism” against our company.

You’ll notice that all of these “hit pieces” originate from one of two individuals.   One of them has been engaged in an internet smear campaign against BPI and our CVA brand for several years now.  Interestingly, the last time we checked, he works part-time for one of our competitors, Savage Arms Company.  As for the other, he is a private investigator employed by a law firm that specializes in product liability lawsuits. Over the past several years, both of these men have essentially been working together for this law firm, apparently in the pursuit of clients for whom the firm can potentially file gun accident lawsuits against BPI.   As a part of this effort, the private investigator has recently set up a website on which he publishes, for the most part, information from the various court filings that were made in relation to accidents that occurred during the use of these recalled CVA guns – guns that were made in 1995 and 1996.  Needless to say, neither of these “gentlemen” could be considered unbiased commentators on CVA products.  To the contrary, both have a financial interest in publicizing only the information — be it selected, partial, distorted, and/or blatantly false — that would provide some sort of advantage to their law firm and/or publicly damage the reputation and business of BPI/CVA.

As for the recall, it is certainly no secret that, way back in 1997, Connecticut Valley Arms, Inc. did in fact initiate a voluntary recall of one design of an in-line gun that was made in 1995 and 1996.  And, it is also no secret that a number of people were injured with these guns.  However, Connecticut Valley Arms, Inc. took responsibility at that time by issuing the recall, and BPI (the current owner of the CVA brand) is continuing the recall effort in an attempt to find all of these guns.  So far, about 96% of the approximately 55,000 recalled guns have been accounted for.  The CVA Voluntary Recall is still in effect, and BPI continues to mention this in our CVA catalogs and on our CVA web page, and will be until every recall gun is found.  Other than the voluntary recall of these 1995 and 1996 guns, no other CVA gun model has ever been recalled for any reason.

Now, in regard to the present rather than the past, the guns that are marketed under the CVA brand today bear little if any design similarity to those that were recalled in 1997.  In fact, none of the barrels we use today are sourced from outside vendors.  Rather, they are all made in the Bergara Barrels factory, a facility that is wholly owned by our parent company.  In addition to building the barrels for all CVA guns, Bergara Barrels also makes some of the most respected after market barrels available today, as well as providing barrels to many other highly reputed gun manufacturers throughout the world.  Because of our direct control over the barrel making processes, today’s CVA guns, when used as instructed, are as safe as any muzzleloader on the market.  Also, in terms of materials and construction, they are of equal, if not superior, quality to those of any of our competitors.  This fact has been illustrated by the success that the CVA brand has enjoyed for the better part of a decade now – as the # 1 selling muzzleloader brand in the world.

As a potential or present CVA owner, it is essential that you are able to use our guns with total confidence.  And, certainly, reading the ramblings of characters like those I mention above can understandably shake that confidence.  While there is nothing we can ever do that will erase the history of a product recall from 15 years ago, I do hope that I have provided you with a balancing perspective that will counter the misinformation that you may read about our company on the internet.

If you’d like to learn more about today’s CVA guns, and why they are now taking the market by storm, please check out our website at www.cva.com.

By Dudley McGarity