reload the fi rst three, but have no expe- rience with the .17s. I have found that handling the .20 caliber components is enough of a challenge for my trifocals, so I decided to drop the .17s from con- sideration. Having done quite a bit of work at the reloading bench and the range with the .223, .204 Ruger, and the Tactical .20, I learned that the Tac .20 has a slight performance edge over the other two. Out in the wide open spaces of southeastern Colorado, you need the very best performing combination you can bring to the hunt. I’ve hunted there for 12 years, and I don’t ever remember having a day of hunting in which there was no wind or negligible wind. It’s the nature of the land. The Tac .20 has an interesting his-
tory. It was designed by Todd Kindler, who also has designed several other .20 caliber cartridges and had hunters and benchrest shooters getting one-shot kills and making ragged holes in paper at 200 to 400 yards with .20 caliber centerfi res long before the .204 Ruger was even con- sidered for development by commercial manufacturers. He provided input to the development teams at Ruger and Hornady during their work on the .204 Ruger. Todd’s work with the various companies that build reamers, barrels, and bullets in .20 caliber helped open the door for the .204 Ruger’s rapid rise in popularity. It’s a fi ne cartridge, indeed. Once I decided on the Tac .20, my
attention turned to deciding what bullet I would work with to build the round that best suited my needs. I wanted a bullet that had a BC that would help it buck the ever-present wind. I needed a high enough muzzle velocity to reduce the necessity of major holdover concerns out to 400 yards. And, fi nally, I wanted to be assured that when the bullet introduced itself to the prairie dog, it would explode violently enough to ensure a humane kill over a wide spec- trum of ranges. Careful research of my reloading logs and my hunting diaries revealed that over the last few years I had the most consistent results when I employed the 32- and 40-grain Hornady V-Max bullets. I have worked with sev- eral high quality bullets from most of the major manufacturers, and have never been disappointed in the performance of their bullets. (Remember, I’m trying to sort out the very best from the very best!) It came down to which ones had
given me the most spectacular results on the most regular basis. My search for the famous “red mist” led me to the conclusion that for this particular hunt, the V-Max bullets came out on top. These polymer-tipped bullets come with a fi ne pedigree. Joyce Hornady, the company founder, advanced the philosophy of “ten bullets through one hole.” When he began his career as a hunter/shooter the primary supply of cartridges and bullets came from U.S. military surplus. While this ammunition was adequate for combat situations, the growing number of demanding hunters and marksmen in the civilian world, like Joyce, demanded more. He began his quest for the perfect bullet in 1949. By 1958, Hornady had moved his operation into an 8,000 square foot plant that had a 200-yard underground testing facility, and the business of making the “ten bullets through one hole” philosophy became a reality. Whether it was XTP, A- Max, V-Max, SST, Interbond, or LEVER- evolution, the bullets that came out of the plant in Grand Island, Nebraska, had to meet the most severe standards of quality. I felt quite comfortable that a Hornady V-Max would fi t into the “A” team concept very well. I returned to the reloading logs to
determine which combination of bullets, powder, and primer had given me the best accuracy at the highest, safe muzzle velocity. Normally, when I reload, I fi nd the most accurate load combination I can develop without regard to muzzle velocity. Many of my favorite loads
The Tactical .20 with 40-grain load proved it could shoot.
are well below anywhere close to the maximum allowable chamber pressures cited in the reloading manuals. For my Colorado hunt, I wanted to push the muzzle velocity up as much as I safely could while still hanging on to the ac- curacy objective of ½ inch at 100 yards. I began with the 40-grain V-Max, which has an advertised BC of .255. My normal “walking around” load for this bullet in my Tac .20 is 20.2 grains of Benchmark. This combination produces a muzzle velocity of 3,100 fps and a chamber pres- sure (CUP) of 39,230. My software pro- gram indicated that I could increase the powder charge to 22.4 grains, achieve a muzzle velocity of 3,440, and still keep the chamber pressure below 50,000. I began working my way up, 0.2 grain at a time. At 22.2 grains, my groups began to
A Kimber SVT, loaded with Winchester Power-Points, is the rimfi re backup rifl e used early in the morning.
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