Larry, saying the rule of 96 "is pretty much out the window these days" seems to put your case too strongly. It's still a useful benchmark for comfortable shooting -- one just needs to keep in mind that it's not absolute, and make allowances for your points about load velocities and high vs. low volume shooting.
Jay
Jay, some people refer to it as if it were chiseled in stone. The 1925 British Rules of Proof included only chamber length and shot charge, nothing reference pressure. There was already a call for change to those rules prior to WWII--because of the recognition that all 1 1/8 oz loads were not equal, and that was not reflected in what was marked on the barrel flats. (The Brits didn't get around to changing the rules until 1954, when they started using the "tons" designations for service pressure.) So in that sense, the rule has been out the window for a long time, even in the UK. It's a useful benchmark IF your load doesn't significantly exceed the loads available 100 years ago in terms of either velocity or pressure. However, especially for those of us on this side of the pond--where the common belief seems to be that faster is always better, and our pressure standards are also different from the CIP norms--we've pretty much thrown that baby out with the bathwater.
