optima

OK so i am loking to buy my first in line, budget 400$ absolute max, preferable closer to 3. I looked at a few at cabellas, to get an idea what i was really dealing with when surfing the web, and I found that the CVA optima has a markedly thicker barrel than the wolf, or any of the others...

I am a target shooter. I do not hunt. I like muzzleloaders for the ritual of capping, loading the powder, seating the projectile, taking a shooting position, sighting, and firing. If I fire a dozen rounds in an hour it is a lot. I have several muzzleloaders, but the two I prefer are my CVA...

Would this pistol be too long/heavy to target shoot off-hand with a "standard" two handed pistol grip (without external support) versus having to have one's secondary hand on the pistol's fore stock? It weighs 3.7 pounds and is 18.5" overall. There are a few videos of people shooting it...