CVA Cascade Short Barrel Review: Big Power, Small Frame

If you’re looking for a compact bolt-action rifle that doesn’t compromise on performance, the CVA Cascade Short Barrel (SB) deserves a closer look.

In today’s review, we’re taking a deep dive into the Cascade SB — a lightweight, feature-rich rifle that’s built for maneuverability in the field and surprising accuracy at range.

Let’s jump in.

CVA Cascade History

CVA is a well known brand among smoke pole subscribers, I can remember hearing about CVA muzzleloaders as far back as I can remember.

Connecticut Valley Arms has been around since the early seventies, and before entering the centerfire market had been best known for pioneering inline muzzleloader rifles.Their bolt-action inline muzzleloaders likely had something to do with the Cascade’s development. As it would seem they decided to bring their manufacturing and knowledge to the centerfire realm with the Cascade series of rifles. 

CVA has been aided in their ascent by its parent company BPI Outdoors, who purchased the company just before the turn of the last century. BPI manufactures multiple brands in the same space as CVA, which also adds to their knowledge and position.

CVA Cascade Features

1 One-piece bolt

The single piece construction makes the bolt very robust.

2 Threaded Muzzle

The ⅝-24 threaded muzzle allows adding brakes or suppressors

3 Dual Sling Studs

With two sling studs up front for both bipod and sling attachment

4 Detachable Magazine

The polymer 4-round magazine is quick to load and feed

5 Remington 700 Trigger

Compatible with a huge aftermarket support

6 HD bolt-release

Does double duty to time and stop the bolt, and release it

7 MOA Guarantee

Manufacturer guaranteed to shoot MOA or better

Other Cascade Models

There are quite a few different versions of the Cascade rifle from CVA. You can break it down into six basic families:

All of these rifles share the basic Cascade Action features, but there are a couple left-handed models mixed into the group, as well as some family specific features.

There are various color finishes and camo patterns to choose from as well. An impressive variety of calibers are available in the different models as well. Almost every popular caliber folks are after these days, as well as the reliable old cartridges as well. And even some straight-walled cartridges like the 350 Legend and the 450 Bushmaster.

There’s literally something for everyone in the Cascade lineup.

CVA Cascade SB Review

As usual, I would take the Cascade up into the Rocky Mountains above my home to test it out.

The solitude seems to help focus on the function and flaws of the guns I test. But before we got to that point, I would need to prepare the rifle for this outing. 

First up the rifle would need a scope, I settled on using the Athlon Optics Heras SPR 6-24×56. The rifle had come with some Weaver scope ring bases installed, so I simply bolted up the scope using a set of Warne split rings. With the scope leveled and mounted I boresighted it using my toolless method.

Next up I would stick a Harris 6-9 bipod to the front sling-stud for supported shooting. And lastly because I’m a purist, I installed my Banish Meateater suppressor on the muzzle. Before doing so I changed out the suppressor’s muzzle bushing to the smaller 6.5 for maximum suppression. 

I gathered up a variety of ammunition to test in the rifle, with factory options from Federal, Hornady, and Sierra. And again because of the purist in me, I also brought some of my favored handloads to see how the Cascade liked them. 

For maximum compactness, I also shot the Cascade with only a muzzle brake installed.

For that I used the Patriot Valley Arms 6.5 Jet Blast brake. It is self timing, and very lightweight, which makes it quick and easy to install and remove. And it is exceptional at reducing felt recoil while shooting, even with a modest cartridge like the 6.5 Creedmoor.

Shootability

The oversized bolt handle makes for easy operation of the action.

It has a smooth lift and stroke, better I would say than some of the typical comparable actions. There is less slop in the bolt while it is open, giving a much better feel of quality and control. 

It came as no surprise that the trigger felt great, while I saw no reason to adjust it. I like knowing that I can. It’s also nice to know you could swap it out for one of the popular aftermarket triggers like Timney or Trigger Tech.

With such solid construction, the Cascade SB has minimal recoil, particularly with a suppressor installed. I could see myself adding a stock pack to the rifle, as the comb is a touch low for the scope as I had it mounted. 

Reliability

Cycling cartridges through the Cascade was fantastic.

The polymer magazine is particularly slippery, which resulted in flawless feeding. So smooth in fact that there is little difference between running the action with or without cartridges. The bolt uses a sliding extractor to pull the cartridge from the chamber, and the single plunger ejector does a fine job of expelling the spent cases from the action. 

While we experienced no malfunctions while shooting the Cascade SB, it did seem that because of the tight fit of the bolt to the action it was susceptible to crud building up. After shooting quite a bit, some of the debris from shooting did cause the feel of the bolt to suffer a little.

Not a huge deal, but worth noting.

Ergonomics

I will say this about the rifle, as I pulled it naked from the factory box, my first impression was different.

I wouldn’t say the gun is heavy, but it feels thick and stout. It has a robust and solid feel that delivers a great sensation of quality. 

The rubberized exterior is very easy to grip, and feels good in the hands. The buttstock too is very unlike to slip out of place, as it too has a soft rubber feel. This helped when running the oversized bolt knob, generally there is great purchase on everything. The safety requires a fair amount of pressure to engage, which is fine by me. That makes it harder to accidentally safe the rifle in the heat of the shot.

Releasing the magazine from the rifle is done at the front of the magwell. It was very easy to eject the magazine, I was actually worried it might be too easy, resulting in a lost magazine. But the release is safely recessed to avoid just such a thing.

Accuracy

I had a lot of hope for the Cascade in the accuracy department.

I wouldn’t say I was let down, I was just hoping it was going to be a touch better. It definitely liked the Sierra Bullets Match King ammunition, and would regularly print 3/4 MOA five shot groups. I am quite confident that with a little load work up I can get it shooting even better.

As it was, I was using the Cascade SB to engage targets the size of a deer’s vitals at 300 and 450 yards without a care in the world.

It certainly made me wish I was deer hunting with this little rifle instead of just playing.

Value

A quick search of the internet shows the Cascade SB we tested here today can be had for under $650.

In my opinion, that is a pretty good price for what you are getting. There is a great deal of competition for rifles like this in the four to seven-hundred dollar price range. For a touch more money you can get something very similar like a Franchi Momentum or a Tikka T3. And for a little less money, you can get something like a Ruger American Gen 2. All of these are good choices, and very competitive.

I would say that the Cascade seems to match the quality of the higher price point rifles mentioned above, despite its lower price. 

Cascade Pros and Cons

Keeping in the same line of comparison with those other comparable rifles, I wish the Cascade had a higher comb to rest your cheek on. Both the Ruger and Franchi mentioned have a high-comb that is perfect for sight alignment. And while 6.8 pounds isn’t heavy in my opinion, the Cascade could shave a little more weight by adding some flutes to the barrel. Some folks might prefer the rifle was fed by AI pattern magazines, and I’ll admit it would hurt my feelings. But as good as this magazine works and fits flush, I’d keep it just like it is. 

The action on this rifle feels great, it cycles cartridges smoothly and is built to last. Great trigger and magazine operation matched by good looks across the board on this rifle. There is little not to like about the Cascade,and it is compact and great for maneuvering through forests and mountains.

A CVA Cascade Start Pack

A good hunting rifle needs some proper accessories, here are some I would recommend.

A Good Scope is a must for a rifle like this. I used the Athlon Optics Heras SPR 6-24 which was a great fit. If you are looking for something a little more compact (and I wouldn’t blame you), I also like the Heras SPR 2-12. Both are good options for hunting in the big country I roam.

A Bipod goes without saying, and the dual front sling studs are meant for a Harris SL bipod like the one I used.

A Lightweight Suppressor is worth the added length and weight in my opinion. I used the Banish Meateater for the majority of the testing. It made everything about the Cascade better and more pleasant to shoot. 
A Comfy Sling like the contoured and rubberized Quake Industries fits the rifle just right and keeps it from wandering off your shoulder as you hike.

Final Thought on the Cascade SB

I was very optimistic about how I would feel about this rifle, and after shooting it for a few weeks now I think those feelings were right.

The CVA Cascade SB is a very stout little rifle, it has smooth function with fantastic features for hunters. It is compact and very maneuverable which is handy when you are pursuing anything. 

It shoots well and has very reliable operation, again, one of the few things I would change if I could would be to flute the barrel to lower weight. But even that isn’t much of a problem. I really like the Cascade SB, and I look forward to taking it into the forests this fall to put it against our mule deer and elk.

I expect it will perform very well.

How to Care for Your CVA Cascade SB

Take a few minutes to learn how to properly take apart and clean your CVA Cascade. We found this well made video on how to clean your muzzleloader:

Important Links and Manuals for Your CVA Cascade

We have gathered the links below for the manufacturer’s website and operator’s manual.

• CVA Manual