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Why choose a .20 besides Practical?

Some people like the 20 Ackley Hornet but that one I personally didn’t like very much. The accuracy is there like it is with most any 20 cal, but that super thin brass is just a pain to deal with. Has to be kept annealed but if you anneal it for a split second too long you can ruin it. Then there’s the issue with piercing and popping pistol primers. Primers fail before you get to where you want to be on speed and if you switch to a SR primer then you can split necks with too much pressure. If you like to test various powders and primers to get the full potential in a round like I do, you’ll end up losing a lot of Hornet brass in the process until you find your sweet spot. Such a touchy round. Using fast pistol powders, thin cup pistol primers, and all coupled with paper thin brass is a good recipe for disaster. And every rifle can be completely different so what works ok in someone else’s 20 AH can end up blowing primers or splitting necks in your rifle.

Then if you go with a straight 20 Hornet, the brass stretches and splits in no time even with medium loads since it is already so thin and really has no shoulder angle to retard the growth.

Cool little round when you get it shooting good you want but really not worth the headache for the mediocre performance it delivers.
 
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Ledd Slinger said:
Some people like the 20 Ackley Hornet but that one I personally didn’t like very much. The accuracy is there like it is with most any 20 cal, but that super thin brass is just a pain to deal with. Has to be kept annealed but if you anneal it for a split second too long you can ruin it. Then there’s the issue with piercing and popping pistol primers. Primers fail before you get to where you want to be on speed and if you switch to a SR primer then you can split necks with too much pressure. If you like to test various powders and primers to get the full potential in a round like I do, you’ll end up losing a lot of Hornet brass in the process until you find your sweet spot. Such a touchy round. Using fast pistol powders, thin cup pistol primers, and all coupled with paper thin brass is a good recipe for disaster. And every rifle can be completely different so what works ok in someone else’s 20 AH can end up blowing primers or splitting necks in your rifle.

Then if you go with a straight 20 Hornet, the brass stretches and splits in no time even with medium loads since it is already so thin and really has no shoulder angle to retard the growth.

Cool little round when you get it shooting good you want but really not worth the headache for the mediocre performance it delivers.
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what powder were you using? I did have a few issues when I was using little gun, that powder is to unpredictable for this case. (in my opinion) also, I use cci450's, thicker cup .025 vers .020
 
chuckshooter said:
what powder were you using? I did have a few issues when I was using little gun, that powder is to unpredictable for this case. (in my opinion) also, I use cci450's, thicker cup .025 vers .020
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I bet AA1680 or CFE black would be good in the 20 Ackley hornet
 
I seriously contemplated rebarreling one of my 527 17HH and turning it in to a 20 HH and shoot something like the Hornady 24gr NTX but the longer I thought about it, other than just because, I couldn't reconcile the idea it would do really anything different or gain much over what I do with them as 17HH. I actually like 20 cals better than 17's and maybe if I was starting fresh and didn't already have a couple 17 Hornets I would consider building a 20HH but even at that I'm not sure I could sell myself on it over the 17HH.
 
Prose said:
I just ordered one! Order 1308! I didn't know about the free shipping!
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Ok, I will send you a refund too. I have to wait until tomorrow as they have not actually run through yet.

You ordered the light varmint. I am dong the math on that on right now!!!

Hey, what was that muzzle thread?.
 
20 TAC is like the 20 practical, 223 run in die, load n shoot. Sure you have to fireform the tac, but basically it's a 1 step size n go like the 20P
 
Ledd Slinger said:
Some people like the 20 Ackley Hornet but that one I personally didn’t like very much. The accuracy is there like it is with most any 20 cal, but that super thin brass is just a pain to deal with. Has to be kept annealed but if you anneal it for a split second too long you can ruin it. Then there’s the issue with piercing and popping pistol primers. Primers fail before you get to where you want to be on speed and if you switch to a SR primer then you can split necks with too much pressure. If you like to test various powders and primers to get the full potential in a round like I do, you’ll end up losing a lot of Hornet brass in the process until you find your sweet spot. Such a touchy round. Using fast pistol powders, thin cup pistol primers, and all coupled with paper thin brass is a good recipe for disaster. And every rifle can be completely different so what works ok in someone else’s 20 AH can end up blowing primers or splitting necks in your rifle.
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Thats why you need a Killer bee .218 Bee Brass necked to .20 caliber with an Ackley shoulder, thicker brass than the hornet and isn't prone to case head separation

SDH
 
SongdogHunter said:
Thats why you need a Killer bee .218 Bee Brass necked to .20 caliber with an Ackley shoulder, thicker brass than the hornet and isn't prone to case head separation

SDH
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Yeah that would definitely be better. No pun intended.

I’m all loaded up to test a 20 PPC so will be working with that round for the time being. It’s a two step neck down process using Norma 6 PPC USA brass (because 22 PPC barely exists anymore) but it’s not bad. After the neck down process it’s just load and shoot.
 
5spd said:
20 TAC is like the 20 practical, 223 run in die, load n shoot. Sure you have to fireform the tac, but basically it's a 1 step size n go like the 20P
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Hey, 5spd
yes, one simple pass and shoot,

I had a forming die, but a regular die worked better
 
Ledd Slinger said:
I agree Lil gun was very volatile but does work. Alliant 2400 worked the best for me to deliver decent speed without piercing primers. But still the brass life is bad because those shoulders and necks are just way too thin. Brass would probably fare better with a tight match dimension chamber reamer and custom dies so you minimize working the brass but I wasn’t about to spend that kind of money on a little Hornet round.

......
Sherm, 1680 would probably be a good powder for the round. That being said, some of the speeds Todd Kindler posted 20 years ago have got to be complete bogus. No way in hell he was actually getting nearly 3500 fps with a 33gr bullet in a 24” barrel from a 20 Ackley Hornet using 1680 unless he was blowing the case walls apart and having to use new brass every firing. So in my opinion he was either lying about it or his chronograph was faulty. The round is NOT capable of those speeds with safe pressures. I would even doubt that claim with extreme excessive pressures.
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I use 1680 in both the 20ah and in the killer bee. My 20ah brass is holding up just fine.
 
chuckshooter said:
I use 1680 in both the 20ah and in the killer bee. My 20ah brass is holding up just fine.
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Have to be running pretty mild loads in the 20 AH then.

My other issue with the 20 AH is the lackluster impacts with the lighter bullets at low velocities. A 204 Ruger launching a 39gr Sierra BK at 4000 fps or a 6mm Rem launching a 75gr HP at over 3500 fps is a sight to behold when it hits a ground squirrel at 100 yards or less.
 
Ledd Slinger said:
Have to be running pretty mild loads in the 20 AH then.

My other issue with the 20 AH is the lackluster impacts with the lighter bullets at low velocities. A 204 Ruger launching a 39gr Sierra BK at 4000 fps or a 6mm Rem launching a 75gr HP at over 3500 fps is a sight to behold when it hits a ground squirrel at 100 yards or less.
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in my 20ah I run 14grs of 1680 with a 32gr vmax. and I get 3450 fps. In the killer bees 16.5 gets me 3600 fps.

There's nothing like speed and rpm's to launch these critters. I have to admit, I do love the aerobatics and that's why I don't bother taking a 22rf.
 
I use the same die to work 17 MIV, 20 VT and 221 Fireball. I just change bushings. My VT brass gets fired once or twice a year in dog towns. I have close to 500 pieces. I've never cracked any and they all shoot fine. I think you guys are making too much of the slight difference in 204 chambers, but maybe that's just me. BTW- I have a 20 Practical 20 VT and a 20-223AI. Love them all. The VT is the one that gets shot most in a dog town, followed by a 223AI that a friend named the "Vulcan Death Ray".

Rick
 
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