Those of us old enough to have seen this before - and wise enough to have not forgotten the lessons learned - will see the current porting fad for exactly what it is.

At best it's just another crutch for people who either don't put in the time and effort to learn to shoot a handgun well - the "it stays on target so nice" - or are shooting too small a handgun for the cartridge - the "lighter is always better for concealed carry" crowd.

They get a lot of emotional and verbal support from people who have either never or have only rarely shot a ported handgun from a retention position.

When you have a lot of people who have fired no rounds or a low number of rounds with a ported handgun from a retention position with no issues, it creates a compelling ad populum argument in support of porting. However, the folks who think it's a good idea because "a lot of people do it" apparently fail to realize that an ad populum argument is still just a logical fallacy.

The fact is that if you shoot a ported handgun from a retention position long enough, you WILL get hurt. It's just like playing the slots in Vegas; you'll get lucky and feel like it's a great idea in the short term, but the longer you play the more you are going to lose - guaranteed.

You also run the real risk of getting hurt or at least distracted at the worst possible time.

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Someone above said weight is the best way to manage recoil and that comment was exactly on point.

The answer to reducing recoil in a Model 60 isn't a ported barrel, it's stepping up to a Model 66 or a 686+. I've carried all three and a 2 1/2" or 3" Model 66 and 686+ is not uncomfortable to carry all day long, and you WILL shoot them far more effectively than a Model 60, ported or otherwise.

Similarly, a porting a 9mm semi-auto is equally pointless. If you can't control the recoil of a 9mm, you're either skills deficient or you are shooting an excessively light 9mm. The Sig 938, Kimber Micro 9, etc, are great to carry but are subpar when it comes to shooting fast and accurately and the recoil is enough that most shooters won't put 100 rounds through one in a ranger session (and many that do develop a flinch.)

Again there's almost no downside in properly executed concealed carry to stepping up to a larger 9mm, like a CZ 2075 RAMI, or a CZ 75 Compact.

People who think they need to carry a ported .44 Magnum need to take a serious look at real world shoots and the relative effectiveness of the .357 Magnum versus the .44 Magnum. The very little extra juice you might get from a .44 Magnum just isn't worth the squeeze, especially if you have to port your .44 Magnum.