reducing pressure.

[jumpsteady]

Correct me if I am wrong but the 3 ways to reduce pressure are
1) Less Powder
2) Less crimp, and
3) Seat bullet out further
 
Now if I use less crimp and push the bullet out further over the same powder charge, I should get about the same velocity, right? I have a .357 Max Contender with 180 grain XTP's over 18 grain of H110 that I was having problems breaking the gun open with. Like an excessive pressure problem. Just wanted to make sure that I was going about this the right way to reduce the internal pressures. Thanks

[Graybeard]

All are partially correct but all can be very wrong as well.

Less powder works IF it's a powder that takes to lighter charges. Some powders if you reduce below listed loads actually increases pressure. Ball powders as an example.

Crimp isn't a real factor in pressure normally. Case tension should be adequate and is far more important to give proper burn.

Depending on how far out you seat the bullet you can in fact raise pressure not lower it. For instance if you seat into the rifling pressure will be higher than a normally seated bullet. Same if you seat too deeply pressure goes up.

[huntswithdogs]

 You may look at another powder. In rifle powders, some create a lot of pressure while others don't, but they maintain the same velocites.
I don't/won't mess with lower charges of H110/296. This powder DOES NOT like to  be reduced.

HWD
 

[SHOOTALL]

the hornady handbook 4th edition only list W296 not H110. for their 180 gr bullet. Their 160 gr bullet list both. Both have very close charge weights. Why not try W296 ?It may be a reason they did not use it .

[JoeG52]

the hornady handbook 4th edition only list W296 not H110. for their 180 gr bullet. Their 160 gr bullet list both. Both have very close charge weights. Why not try W296 ?It may be a reason they did not use it .

W296 and H110 are the exact same powder.

[SHOOTALL]

now they are but back when the 4th ed was written 1991 not sure , charge weights were a few 1/10's different .
 He may have issues with the locking system . I had about 7 Contenders over the years and most would be hard to open from time to time . Sometimes even with out fireing a shot . The lock up can be troublesome from time to time .

[quickdtoo]

You can back off on the load a little, the Hornady 8th lists a start load of 17.3gr H110 at a COL of 1.890" with the 180gr XTP in their Contender pistol data.

Tim