Thor II Black Thor

[Deleted]

Got a small supply of the Thor II's to try out. I wanted to try them out in the Optima as the original .500" Thors are a slip fit and leave me nervous to use during hunting season as i'm afraid that they would move off the charge.

I used 100gr Blackhorn209, CCI 209M primers and the 250gr Thor II @ 100 yards. My worse group was 1 1/2". That is, If you can call that bad :!: Pictured is my best 3 shot group, the low shot was my first shot of the day with an oiled up barrel. I have a bad habit of forgetting to swab before i go out.




This Black Thor uses a Graphite ring coating around the base of the bullet. It is a One size fits all set up. They will be made in a stanard size of .5045" and the Graphite shaves off very easily when loading. I can actually get them started with the ramrod without any problems.

Ive also shot these in the new CVA Wolf and the same deal. They shoot excellent out of that wolf.

[whyohe]

that is some nice shooting! I under stand your concern. you could try knurling above the graphite to give you a tighter fit just to hold it in place.

[Deleted]

Actually the issue was with the original thor.s The Thor II's with the graphite solved my concerns. I shouldnt have any problems with the bullet coming loose this year. Have to try them out in a cabelas hawken, That sucker has some issues down towards the breech end of the barrel. Opens up quite a bit down there.

[deadon]

If I understand you correctly, it sounds like you have a buldged barrel GET IT CHECKED OUT.

[Deleted]

no bulges, just typical of barrels that dont get quality machining. This is a cabelas hawken. I even have a spare barrel in the closet i got in trade some years ago. It to has the same problem down towards the breech.

[artjr338wm]

Frontiergander,
I just checked the Thor WS and I could not find the particular bullet you are describing here. Did I miss some link or something while at the Thor WS? Or is this a new bullet not yet for sale to the GP?

The only Thor bullets I found there were their original ones with the thin skirt on the bottom similar to a french "Mini" ML bullet.

Arthur.

[artjr338wm]

One more thing Frontiergander.
Can you give us any evaluation based on your first hand experiences of the graphite skirt, it's over all durability, and how will the skirt hold up in storage or when exposed to repeated impacts that it would typically be subjected to while in being carried in the field when hunting.

I ask because I hunt alot of public ground and I am on the move as much as not.

Thanks,
Arthur.

[Deleted]

the thor II's that i got are pre-production bullets. OPG Gun Ventures wanted me to test them out and see what i thought of them. These should be out this fall, Along with a 300gr ballistic tip thor.

The graphite skirt is very durable, I had no trouble with it at all, No crumbling or anything like that. When you start it down the bore, the graphite shaves off and leaves you with exactly the amount needed to firmly hold it into place.

The "skirt" is the same as the original thor, they seal up TIGHT. A 245gr Powerbelt with 100gr american pioneer does over 1850FPS. The Thor with the same powder charge and 5 grains heavier in weight, does 2,150FPS through my chronograph! That should tell you how much better the hollow base does on the Thor VS the Powerbelt.

If you are worried about carrying the muzzleloader barrel down while on an ATV or while hiking during the hunt with the muzzle down, It will really depend on the size of your bore. Always test that! When i hunt on an ATV or even while hard hiking, i will check my load to be SURE nothing moved.