Effect of MagnaPort on the value of a gun.

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coleslaw

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I would like to add another to the family and have been looking at Model 29s and 629s, their values, what they are being sold for, etc. Some I run across are MagnaPorted. How does this effect the value of an otherwise excellent condition 29-2 or 629-no dash or some other older .44 Mag? I haven't shot one. Does it make a substantial difference in how the gun handles? Thanks.
 
I am not sure about how a magna-port gun shoots, I have never fired one. I do know, from reading many posts here about the subject, a magna-ported barrel does reduce the value of a revolver. I remember one post from a member, who is also a FFL, that stated $100 per port price reduction in his shop.
 
I am not going to get into value, except to say that usually the first thing I do on a magna-ported 29 is replace the barrel. I don't like magna-ported handguns, or rifles.

I do still have one 4-inch gun with a magna-ported barrel. It does seem to reduce muzzle jump "a bit." I have heard some say that by reducing muzzle jump the violence of the thrust straight back into the web of the hand is increased. I don't notice that to be so.
 
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It usually wouldn't increase value, unless you found the right buyer, but I can see it decreasing value. If it was MannaPorted I would take it but not pay a premium.
 
MagnaPorted are not as easy to sell as those without. That goes hand in hand with a lower price. Majority of people just don't want them.
 
I dropped off a gun to Magnaport for an action job but specifically did NOT want the ports. I hate 'em.
 
Back in the late 70's I put together my dream gun for a duty weapon. A 4 inch Colt Python, Armaloy finish, Magna-ported, and a Reeves Jungkind action job. I can honestly say that I did not see that much of difference in the handling after the magna-port.

As far as value goes, it would depend on what the gun was and your intentions for it. As a shooter, I would not consider magna-porting to be a detraction on the value of a weapon. If I was concerned with a guns value as a collector piece, then yes, magna-porting would lower the value of a weapon.
 
I have one Magnaported Smith Model 625 that I had done many years ago. The ports do very little to reduce felt recoil with .45 ACP ammo which doesn't run very high on pressure. I had that revolver converted to .460 Rowland. With the ammo loaded hot the ports do reduce muzzle flip(and also drive the grips straight back).

The value of my gun is definitely diminished by the porting. However, I believe there are some factory PC or Lew Horton special runs with Magnaports that may hold their value.
 
A little while back I bought a magnaported 57 with the long barrel off a consignment shelf. I would prefer to have found one without the ports, but they didn't bother me enough to keep me from buying the gun that was available. Nothing in the performance of the revolver makes me think it would shoot better or more comfortably if the ports had not been introduced. This gun remains the centerfire revolver that I fired most accurately the very first time I took it to a range.

I guess if I could make a choice between side-by-side ported and unported versions of a gun I wanted, I would prefer the unported gun on general principles. If the ported gun was cheap enough in comparison (say 20% less), I might take that one and use the money saved to buy something else. Saving 10% would probably not be enough to push me toward the ported gun.

So as I listen to myself, I seem to be saying that I have a preference, but I'm not passionate about it. That's the position on long-barreled revolvers. On short barrels -- four inches or less -- I am dead set against ports.
 
Had a rifle ported back in Mag Na ports early days it was a waste of money. Today there are some porting systems that effectively reduce recoil and speed up shot to shot recovery.
 
Thanks for the responses. I have developed an interest in S&W revolvers over the past couple of years and as I look around, I will occasionally come across a very nice gun that has had the porting done. It is always a disappointment to me since originality is important to me, even if a gun shows honest signs of use. Just wondered what others thought.
 
I passed on a 4" 29-2 recently because it had the porting. I did an A/B test years ago on a couple of different models I gained access to each with and without porting and found no real difference I could discern. I always shot a lot of lead reloads and know that lead accumulates in the ported guns and must be cleaned out periodically and that can be a pain.

It lowers the value in my book. Some folks say they like it and they can tell a difference. To each his own.
 
1) "Does it make a substantial difference in how the gun handles?"....No; after 400 rounds, I couldn't tell the difference.
2) Re: value....I've never seen where MNPort has been good for the gun's value; never.
Of course, mileage varies; however, I see 'that' and I keep on moving.
 
I've always been a basic bare bones stock kind of person. when I see that it just detracts from the gun.
 
I would not pay a premium for a Magnaported barrel on a shooter, and would pay much much less for Magnaporting on a potential collectors handgun.
 
I wouldn't pay a premium. However, all other things being equal, the porting would not be a deal breaker for me.

The porting is not a help to most people because it really doesn't do much if you're shooting low power target loads. Which are what most people shoot most of the time. And in larger heavier guns, it doesn't help much either.

I used to have a 57 and when I shot full power .41 Mag loads, I couldn't tell much difference. Maybe some, but nothing to write home about. A friend had a 27 with an 8-3/8" barrel. I used to shoot it a lot with him. He had it ported, and we really couldn't tell much of a difference, even with hot .357s. However, I had my 66 ported, and believe you me, I could really, really tell the difference when I put hot .357s in it.

So, if you don't like 'em, don't buy 'em. That simply leaves more for those of us that either like 'em, or are ambivilent about them.

Take Care, God Bless, And WATCH Your Back!
 
I don't like it but if I get the gun at a hot price, why not. It does make a little difference on my 500 but I wouldn't spend money getting it done.
 
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