Hi Folks,

I know a few people here use bushing compensators because you've posted pics of guns with them installed. I would really appreciate an evaluation of one of these things by somebody who uses one.

I would tend to think that the effect would be a combination of added weight at the muzzle and upward venting of gas. I've looked at videos of people shooting with them, and regardless of what anybody says, there is clearly upward venting of gas (With SOME makes of compensator, others show no gas deflection at all!), which even if it is occurring "too late" will still tend to work against muzzle rise. Consider that if adding 2 ounces of weight at the muzzle keeps the gun pointed better, an upward flow of gas producing only a few ounces of reaction force will do the same.

So, would anybody who has used one please comment? Please include the make of the compensator in your comment.

Hi Pokute,
I'd say anything venting up would be minimal. When you look at a screw on comp the bullet clearance is a couple of thousandths when the bullet passes through the end baffle and gas left with no where to go escapes up through the ports.
On a bushing comp where the whole end of the barrel goes through the end of the bushing there is really no restriction as the bullet passes through the giant hole and the biggest part of the gas follows it.
I'd say if there is any benefit, it is more from the extra weight than from the vented gasses. The extra weight will keep the gun locked up longer and pressure will have dropped some when cycling. I think that is the same if the weight is on the slide or barrel as in a screw on comp. They both start to move together.
I know they sell millions of them but I never saw any advantage to having one.
Good luck
Mike

On my 1911 you can't tell it is there.

I just reviewed a number of YouTube videos showing bushing compensators, and it does appear that the heavier compensators are the ones that seem to be doing something in the videos. The light compensators appear to do nothing at all in the videos.

This might also explain claims for improved accuracy with full-length guide rods, which put a little extra weight out front as well.

In any case, I'd REALLY like to hear from folks here that use them. Come on guys, you posted pics of your guns with these things attached, so you can't be caving in to peer pressure NOW!

I use one on my 1911. I don't understand this conversation about weight? The bushing on mine is light as a feather. I don't even know it's on there. Effectiveness? Probably a little, but not a lot.

This was the reason for my original question. There are bushing compensators that weigh less than half an ounce, and there are busing compensators that weigh several ounces. One of the super-heavyweights has no ports at all, and one heavyweight has baffles and fancy over-engineered looking ports.

Nobody could reasonably expect a bushing compensator to do the kind of job that a ported barrel can do, but a lot of people are convinced that their bushing compensator is helping them. I can't find any good data about their actual effectiveness, so I asked the question.

I wonder what sort of testing a company like Wilson Combat does to optimize the efficiency of their compensator, which they claim offers significant benefits? Or did they just design it to look sexy?

Comps work better on lighter/faster bullets that produce more gas. The barrel comp will be most effective as it will add muzzle weight without putting in more slide momentum. For most common 45 loads I would say the added weight has more to do with muzzle rise than actual venting.