When I needed to return a very early production example E Series 1911 TA pistol to S&W some years back they sent me a shipping label to their Fedex acct. and had Fedex pick up the pistol from my home.

No need to travel at all.

I believe the problem with shooting plated bullets through ported barrels lies in the possibility of plating material shavings being ejected through the ports possibly resulting in injury.

IIRC, plated Berry bullets and others have a warning on their boxes that they shouldn’t be fired in ported barrels.

BTW: my M&P barrels, each with several thousand rounds through them, have become smoothly polished from use, but not scored. (.40 and 9mm)