Since this thread has been resurrected I don't feel too bad posting here. I actually had to join this forum just to talk to you fellows that seem to be using HS-6 a lot. Even though I don't own a single S&W (I feel a little sheepish about joining)

I have plenty of .38spl brass, and a fair amount of CCI 550's, and Hornady is a stone throw away from where I live, so there is a plethora of the 158gr LSWC and LSWCHP bullets available. I also have a few pounds of HS-6. So I figured, "meh, why not?"

I'm trying to work up a load close to "the FBI load". I'm not after barn burners, but a well rounded load that I can use for practice, but would still be sufficient against wild dogs, two-legged intruders, etc. So somewhere in the 850-950fps range seems reasonable. I have a 3" SP101 and 4" GP100. I will always stick to at least a 3" barrel.
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I started at 5.9gr of HS-6 under the LSWC and worked up, starting with the SP101 first. I had a really hot load around 6.7gr and I'm not sure why. Extremely stout recoil, flattened and cratered primer, it was also pretty obvious that the case was under extreme pressure as it was slow to release from the cylinder wall as it slammed backward scrape marks and wall thinning at the bottom of the case. I also noticed I was losing accuracy past about 6.4-6.5gr. I ended up firing the last round of that cylinder without issue. And then ended up firing two more cylinders full in 6.8 and 7.0. No more hot loads, but continued poor accuracy.

This was over the winter at an indoor range, so I couldn't really use my chronograph. I'm planning on going fishing over memorial day weekend with my wife and kids, and some other friends. Nowadays I stick to using a Huntington Compac handpress and carry all my gear in a bag. I'll also take my chrony with me. So my questions;

- If I'm getting anywhere over 850fps on 6.3gr or less of powder, do you think it's worth going higher?
- Do you guys trim your cases, if so what length? I plan to make sure I have 100 cases trimmed before I go.
- Roll crimp, I assume. How much? Light, heavy? I'm supposing heavy because I want good pressure for HS-6, but I would like to confirm.

Anything else I should be aware of?

Thanks.