I've been loading 13.5 grains of LilGun with the 40 Vmax for almost 2 years. It was below the Hornady max at the time. I recently noticed that they lowered their max but 13.5 gets the best accuracy from my Handi Hornet. I have the 1:12 twist.
This load has dropped several coyotes. All one shot kills from 60 to 150 yards. Most of my shooting with the hornet is ground squirrels. The Vmax seriously blows them up.
Its funny, but I have lost interest in target shooting with the hornet. Its always so good, so I don't mess with the load. I just keep 100 or so loaded up and available for when the squirrels start getting out of hand or we spot a coyote sneaking through one of the pastures.
I used to reach for something in 30 cal for the coyotes, but no more. The handi is it.
Oh, and I use Winchester Cases and CCI SR (400) primers. Getting 13.5 grains of LilGun in the case isn't hard once you work out your technique. I never tried the electric tooth brush, sounds like a good idea. I drop the powder slowly and tap with a pencil to settle the powder as it fills.
The 40 Vmax is really nice because of the boat tail. Makes it easy to seat the bullet, which can be an issue and having the powder so close to the mouth of the case doesn't make it easier. The 35 Vmax is a flat base bullet and can be harder to seat. Its a great bullet, but when loading for the handi we are not limited to the COL that fits in a magazine. So, why not use a longer bullet.
I haven't tried the 50 Vmax. I expect its a great bullet also but I stopped looking after finding success with the 40 grain bullet.
Enjoy
Bob A