stans
Member
Detonation can occur with light charges of slow burning powders. In pistols such powders as W-296 and H-110 should not be downloaded more than 5% below maximum. The same applies to slow burning rifle powders. But when downloading pistol cartridges, you will be using fast to medium rate powders. These are very easy to ignite and will not detonate. The myth of detonation stemmed from 38 Specials loaded with 2.7 grains of Bullseye under a 148 grain lead wadcutter. Some reloaders had the cylinders bulged or chuncks blown away with this load. If I remember correctly, this was a question in the NRA magazine "American Rifleman" about a year ago. No one could make such a round detonate, so the logical conclusion was either a squib load had been fired and a live round was fired behind it or the case was actually loaded with 5.4 grains of Bullseye.