Balancing Act

Earlier this year Thompson/Center Arms unveiled the Encore Prohunter Firestick, a .50-caliber muzzleloader that combines the proven break-open platform with a revolutionary FireStick ignition system to deliver a new standard in muzzleloading performance. By utilizing encapsulated, pre-measured powder charges, the Federal FireStick Ignition System ensures repeatable shot performance, faster reloads, and easier cleaning. Other features of the rifle include a counterbored muzzle that simplifies bullet seating while enhancing downrange accuracy, a Swing Hammer ambidextrous rotating hammer spur that allows easy access when using optics, a FlexTech recoil reduction system, and a button-rifled stainless-steel barrel.
All very well and good, but what many retailers probably don’t know is how Avient helped T/C create this rifle. Headquartered in Avon Lake, Ohio, and employing approximately 9,000 people worldwide, Avient is a global materials solutions company whose products include colorants, advanced composites, functional additives, and engineered materials. In this case, the ProHunter Firestick’s barrel takes advantage of Avient’s Composite Heat Release technology.

“Avient’s proprietary, multi-layer carbon fiber and ceramic composite technology applies the concept of thermal inertia to expedite heat release from the barrel bore to improve overall performance,” says Yves Cordeau, Avient’s market and technology development manager. “Thermal inertia measures how quickly a material returns to ambient temperature after heating. Materials with lower thermal inertia cool faster because they offer less resistance to releasing heat from the material into the air. Higher-density materials typically have higher thermal inertia, or cool more slowly, than lower-density materials.”

“Avient’s Composite Heat Release technology leverages the concept of thermal inertia to reduce internal barrel temperatures. Avient has specifically formulated the ceramic middle layer to reduce thermal inertia and quickly transfer heat outward from the steel bore.”

In general, carbon-fiber-modified barrels offer the ability to reduce the weight of a barrel without sacrificing stiffness, thus maintaining accuracy. Carbon fiber is a lightweight, high-strength fiber that boasts up to five times the stiffness-to-weight ratio of traditional barrel steel. 

“There are several different designs and technologies used on barrels in the firearms industry today,” says Cordeau. “Still, most share a common challenge: managing the heat generated while shooting and maintaining accuracy over multiple rounds. In the case of carbon-fiber-modified barrels, this is no different. How the barrel handles heat is crucial to its performance. Some technologies bond the carbon directly to the steel, which can have issues due to differing thermal properties between layers; others have air gaps between the steel and carbon, which can behave as an insulator, effectively trapping heat and exaggerating the effect on accuracy.” 

Avient’s solution to this challenge is to provide its customers with a specially formulated ceramic layer that rapidly transfers heat away from the barrel bore while bridging any gaps between the thermal properties of the composite and the steel. 

In the case of the T/C Arms CFT-X barrels, what did Avient engineers do to help create this product?

“The team of engineers and scientists at Avient researched, formulated, and developed the ceramic and carbon-fiber-composite technology applied to these barrels, as well as the process to bond them all together with rigorous precision manufacturing standards,” Cordeau says. “This system was created to allow our customers to customize it and use it in ways that best achieve their specific goals—all in a lightweight, high-tech barrel.”

Cordeau also notes that the Avient team and the engineers at T/C Arms worked together and “tailored a solution around their steel barrel cores to optimize layer thickness for weight savings, heat dissipation, and stiffness. After a few iterations with different design parameters, a final layup and design were selected, leading to the current product.”

This kind of expertise is not lightly acquired. According to Cordeau, developing an effective carbon-fiber barrel takes much more than the ability to combine carbon fiber, resin, and metal. “A fundamental understanding of composite structures is essential because the performance of the finished barrel depends on how the fibers, resin system, and metal liner work together as a single engineered component,” he says. “Engineers must understand how fiber orientation, laminate design, material selection, and processing methods influence stiffness, vibration behavior, heat transfer, and long-term durability. Even seemingly small changes in composite construction can have a meaningful impact on performance. Hence, a strong grounding in composites engineering is critical to producing barrels that perform consistently from one part to the next.”

Beyond composites expertise, carbon-fiber-barrel development requires knowledge spanning materials science, mechanical engineering, manufacturing, and testing. “Designers must understand how different materials respond to thermal cycling, repeated firing loads, and environmental conditions,” says Cordeau. “At the same time, manufacturing teams must maintain tight control over layup, curing, machining, and inspection processes to maintain performance across every barrel that goes out the door. Success comes from balancing all these disciplines to create a barrel that delivers reliable performance under demanding conditions. Ultimately, the best carbon-fiber barrel technologies are the result of a deep understanding of both advanced composite materials and precision manufacturing.”