Vortek StrikerFire LDR
This Traditions Muzzleloader Is A Marvel
The range setup — Winchester 209 shotgun primers, Hodgdon Triple 7 Starfire pellets
and Smackdown bullets along with a bottle of water and bag of patches for swabbing.
Coupled with the TAC2 trigger system, Traditions’s Vortek StrikerFire LDR will make you wonder if you’re shooting a centerfire rifle. Ignition is that fast!
This .50-caliber in-line is a break-action, striker-fired design with no external hammer. The gun is cocked when the tang-safety is pushed forward into the “firing” position. When it’s pushed down to the “safe” position, the gun is “de-cocked.” There’s also a shotgun-style side safety above the trigger guard and the gun de-cocks when you open the action.
The TAC2 system is a 2-stage competition-style trigger, factory set at 2 lbs. The Accelerator breech-plug makes seating shotgun primers a snap, while its easy removal makes for faster cleanup.
The tapered and fluted 30″ Ultralight chromoly barrel — coupled with the LT-1 alloy frame — makes the StrikerFire lighter than most muzzleloaders at 6.8 lbs. The camouflaged, synthetic stock has Hogue Comfort-Grip overmolding and the Stow-N-Go removable buttpad allows for a dandy storage space for such essentials such as patches, primers, bullets and powder pellets.
The StrikerFire LDR comes mounted with a Traditions 3-9×40 scope bore-sighted from the factory. Just a tweak of adjustment was all that was necessary to get me zeroed
Tank’s 100-yard targets testify to the accuracy potential of the Vortek StrikerFire LDR.
Loading
Traditions really thought this design out well. The palm-saving Quick-T ramrod handle is separate from the ramrod itself, doubling as a short starter for your bullets. Once the plastic sabot engages the rifling, it’s a whole lot easier to seat the bullet down the bore with the ramrod.
I used a pair of Hodgdon Triple 7 Firestar 50-gr. pellets as the kickstarter for my bullets. The star-shaped pellets burn clean and more consistently than regular pellets. They come in a pack of 60 conveniently loaded in 10 plastic tubes of 6 pellets each. Two pellets are the factory-recommended maximum load.
I followed the powder charge with one of Traditions new Smackdown Ridgeback sabot bullets. My choices were the 170-gr. HP “Bleed,” the 250-gr. polymer tipped “XR” and the 250-gr. “Carnivore.” I used Winchester 209 shotgun primers exclusively.
Shooting
Accuracy testing was done from the bench at 100 yards with a sandbag rest. Once initial sight-in was completed, I started shooting 3 shot groups at 100 yards. The gun and components easily kept groups at around 2″ and some were much better. This is outstanding accuracy for any muzzleloader.
Wrappin’ Up
The Vortek StrikerFire LDR, coupled with Hodgdon’s Triple 7 Starfire pellets and Traditions Smackdown bullets provide an accurate and deadly combination for any serious big-game hunter. The MSRP for the Vortek StrikerFire LDR is $699.
Traditions Performance Firearms
Ph.: (860) 388-4656
https://www.traditionsfirearms.com
