I'm working up some very basic black powder loads using brass Magtech shells, and got to wondering when and where peak pressures occur with black powder. I am guessing that smokeless "keeps pushing" further up the barrel with its various controlled burn rates and has a longer, flatter curve than BP. If the BP pressure curve is a sharp spike just after ignition it would seem that a brass shell might offer a small measure of added strength versus a paper cartridge when shooting black powder in 19th-century breechloaders. Anyone out there know the facts?
