Any thoughts on the .19-.223 from Calhoon vs. the Tactical .20? Performance, ease of reloading, availability of bullets? How do either of these perform out of pistol-length Contenders? Pluses and minuses of either one? Looking for some insight here.

I am not sure about performance between the two, but if Calhoon ends up tango uniform like Starke, the 19 caliber bullets are going to be hard to come by.

The industry seems to be backing the .20 cal. There are, to date, six or seven bullet manufacturers and a dozen or more different weights. Berger is rumored to be coming out with 3 or 4 different weights this summer, including a 50 grain low drag bullet. That said, I think shooters of the various Calhoon chamberings like them very much.

Jordan

I know of one bullet maker about to make rebated boattail 19's for himself, and I am trying to get him to make enough to let me sell some. Berger is going to bring out more bullets, along with jackets so that us 20 caliber bullet makers can make bullets. This will help enormously. They are due out mid to late summer, with the jackets coming out afterwards.

19 shooters love the caliber, have not seen one that doesn't. I guess what I would do is continue to ask around and make a decision after. I know that there are several 19 shooters on the Saubier.com site, and if you ask this question there, you'll get a bunch of replys.

I wouldn't want to have that decision.....build both.

Good questions? I've got Tactical .20 on the brain, a big part of that is, ( aside from Unbelievable ballistics ) the availability of Hornadys reasonably priced and very accurate 33gr V Max. I shoot V Max's in Hornets, .223's, .22-250's, a 6BR, a.17 HMR, and a .17 Mach IV. I have a lot of faith in this bullet, plus I totally agree with Tony . Calhoun says adios you got a paper weight. I'm a guy that bought a 5MM Remington when it first came out, it's a boat anchor now. If you get a chance check out " Small Caliber News " a magazine thats focus are just these kinds of questions, a great read.---Shoot Safe---montdoug

I came VERY close to getting a .19/223 barrel for my
Encore. James Calhoon makes a great one-stop shop
for getting everything you need, and his bullets are
a bargain.

The only reason I opted for the Tactical 20 was the
sole place to get the bullets was from Calhoon. That
made me nervous.

As for the difference between the two ballistically,
there just isn't that much, unless one wants to make
a barrel burner out of his Tac 20.

I really dont see a short supply of Calhoon bullets. IF something bad were to happen to Calhoon, I would bet a shiney new dime that some other swager would step right in.

Another thing to consider is the fact that Dan Cooper is building his Mod 21 in this round.

Not that I would not like to see more 19 cal. bullets, I think that would be a very good thing.

Moutdoug,

Kind of off-topic, but you could have your 5mm Rem converted to centerfire by Schroeder or Certech and start shooting it again so it will no longer be a boat anchor. This centerfire version of the 5mm Rem is called the 5mm Craig. They also produce centerfire reloadable cases for it. Sounds like a good way to bring a rifle back from the dead. Plus, you could reload with the Hornady 33-gr V-Maxs. Search www.saubier.com forum for more info. Peace.