For what it's worth...
I shoot a load of 158 grain SWCL over 8 grains of Power Pistol in .357 Magnum cases. It's my 'full-charge-factory-duplication-practice' load. It works in my 2.5 inch S&W M19 (K frame steel) pretty well. The bang and recoil make it feel like a full load and the cases come out with no undue ceremony.
I did try 7.5 grains first. I may go back to that, as recoil seemed about the same.
If'n I was you, I'd do a bit of a progression. In a .357 Magnum case, start at 7.4 or 7.5 and work up in .2 grain increments. Stop at either 8.5 grains or when you achieve what you think is a proper velocity - whichever comes first. If you are using .38 Special cases, lower the charges appropriately. The cases are probably about as strong, but the smaller case capacity jacks the pressure up real quick.
Depending on your particular revolver, you may want to adjust that a bit.
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