9mm Performance Center Ported Shield vs Non ported Shield recoil help!

[OKFC05]

The only thing I can think of is people been using them in IDPA I believe its Bug Class and the ported barrel gets them back on target faster. I shoot a 9 Pro L with a comp and it does help. Don

Porting and comps are ILLEGAL in IDPA, all divisions, including BUG. If people are shooting them at your club's IDPA matches, they should be shooting as NOT FOR COMPETITION, which means no score.

 

[awmp]

Perfect timing on this thread.

I am a huge Shield fan and have three 9mm Shields and on 45 Shields and I was seriously thinking of getting a ported version.

I will just stick with what I have.

I will tell you have I have tried to replace my shield for carry many times and never found anything better.

 

[Bilzer]

I shot with a guy who was using a ported shield and we both broke down our pistols to clean them. His barrel was filthy compared to mine and there was NO OIL whatsoever on the barrel as it looked like it was all gritty where the barrel bushing meets. Mine was considerably cleaner (regular shield). After seeing that I decided to keep my regular shield and just add the Apex trigger to it.....

 

[franzas]

I wonder if the pressure lost in the Cylinder/Barrel gap of revolvers is why most (if not all) revolver rounds use larger cartridges than their self loading Pistol counterparts.

BTW: Nice catch on the PC Shield only being available in a Thumbs Safety version.

All common revolver rounds today are decedents of an original black powder loading. Black powder is bulky and low pressure, thus the need for the long cases. Loaded with [most] smokeless powders, there is very little case fill, as opposed to a 9mm (designed as a smokeless round) which is usually crammed full. When magnums came out, they lengthened the cases, so they would not chamber in their shorter counterparts' cylinders. That is why revolver rounds are "bigger;" they are mostly wasted space.

 

[Valueman]

I have both a standard Shield and a PC Shield. Does the porting make a difference in muzzle flip? Yes. Without doubt. Enough to make a critical difference? No, not in my opinion. It's still more about the Indian than the arrow. But, I love both of my Shields. I bought the PC version primarily because I found a great deal online, and actually paid less for it that I paid for my regular Shield. Both get carried on a regular basis. I do agree that on the PC version I would have preferred night sights to the FO. In fact, I changed mine to NS.

 

[stonebuster]

PC shield 9mm

I own a PC shield 9mm that I found used after previous owner decided he didn't like it after 40-50 rounds. I'm sure I'd have been happy with non-ported version but with night sites and improved trigger for the same price as new standard model I went for it. So comfortable to carry I forget it's there. As far as a small loss of velocity, I carry it for what I would expect to be a close encounter of the worst kind which probably be measured in feet.

 

[dben002]

I own Shield 45 non ported..spoke with knowledgeable people prior to purchase about the ported model. All agreed that there really is no functional benefit and they all seem to think it was just marketing and "the cool factor". The other down is that the ported barrel really gums up the inside of your slide faster.

 

[Navyguns]

I own Shield 45 non ported..spoke with knowledgeable people prior to purchase about the ported model. All agreed that there really is no functional benefit and they all seem to think it was just marketing and "the cool factor". The other down is that the ported barrel really gums up the inside of your slide faster.

I have to respecfully disagree. I shot both versions and I purchased the ported 45 Shield and feel there is about a 15-20% reduction in muzzel flip and felt recoil. I would not have spent more money on the ported version if I did not notice a difference. I have a thread about my PC Shield 45. Either way you have to get what you want.

 

[mlk18]

The evils of porting is like the lochness monster, a lot of people claim to have seen them but no one can prove it. As I have said before, most people who tell tall tales about porting have never touched a ported gun let alone trained with one. Way too many parrot commonly held misconceptions because some internet personality said so and they took it as gospel.

My department (and several other departments in the area) issued Glock "C" models for years and no one experienced a single issue with them. Not at night shoots, not during CQB training, not during tactical drills, not ever. Although I do agree you have to be judicious with your firearms maintenance, as you should with every gun you own.

I can definitely tell the difference in muzzle flip between my ported Shield and my non-ported Shields. But not near as much as I can tell between my Glock 23C and my Glock 23.

 

[Whitwabit]

As far as range time on it, I wear a lead mask so not worried about that, but as far as FPS lost, not sure it would make that much of a difference but then again most .357 velocity is on average 100fps faster than 9mm so a loss of 40 to 50fps could be significant. But the fact this model has an enhanced trigger and fiber optic sights almost makes it worth the extra dough.

What's a lead mask ?? Have never heard that reference before ..

 

[pyro]

There is always a difference in muzzle flip with a ported pistol vs a non ported pistol of the same model. This can be measured from still frames in motion photography. The degree of flip decreases with a decrease in muzzle energy. 9mm is pretty tame compared to 357 magnum. The shooter may be more or less sensitive to this. I have owned a ported 9mm M&P CORE and a non ported 40 cal M&P CORE. After a 1000 rounds through each, I was pretty oblivious to differences in muzzle flip even though there had to be some. The ported 9mm however left significant powder residue all over the barrel and inside the slide. Not only that, it tended to bake on the barrel and wouldn't readily clean off without some extra work. This was not worth it to me and I sold it. I still have the 40. I have to admit there is the cool factor with porting and there nothing wrong with giving it a try. Not everyone's experience is the same.

 

[CBStuard]

My SIL had a glock .40 w/ a compensator (Correct term?) that he used for a while in USPSA. Muzzle stayed really flat so it was impressive. But it was all outdoors. Looking at a few youtube vids of a ported Shield and the comments here about others close by, including one's self in an SD situation, says to me there is very limited use. And then the extra cleaning. Ughh.

 

[lmcm&p]

I have read with great interest the port/standard debate. I just purchased the PC Shield in 9mm as I do like the FO sights and the trigger seems to be much cleaner/brisk that the standard. I have not shot it yet. What about changing the barrel to a non ported one and leaving all else the same?

 

[Ziggy2525]

The evils of porting is like the lochness monster, a lot of people claim to have seen them but no one can prove it. As I have said before, most people who tell tall tales about porting have never touched a ported gun let alone trained with one. Way too many parrot commonly held misconceptions because some internet personality said so and they took it as gospel.

My department (and several other departments in the area) issued Glock "C" models for years and no one experienced a single issue with them. Not at night shoots, not during CQB training, not during tactical drills, not ever. Although I do agree you have to be judicious with your firearms maintenance, as you should with every gun you own.

I can definitely tell the difference in muzzle flip between my ported Shield and my non-ported Shields. But not near as much as I can tell between my Glock 23C and my Glock 23.

One of the reasons I've seen published for not using a standoff on the front of a self defense semi-auto is that for a very close shot, flesh and clothing can get entangled in the stand off and prevent the pistol from going into battery. A hard malfunction to clear quickly.

If that's really an issue, would a compensated barrel have the same problem?

 

[Wally West]

Ported guns are loud. Just a warning. I found this out with a Springfield 45acp V10. Loud as in deafening. It did reduce the muzzle flip quite a bit, though but for me the trade off was not worth it.

 

[Ranger17]

Ported guns are loud. Just a warning. I found this out with a Springfield 45acp V10. Loud as in deafening. It did reduce the muzzle flip quite a bit, though but for me the trade off was not worth it.

I can't speak for other guns' noise levels but at my local indoor range i don't really notice a difference in sound level between my ported PC Shield in 9 and my regular full size MP 9. I use similar 115fmj ammo in both.

 

[Smooth1]

I've got a non ported shield & have thought about getting a ported 1 just for fun

 

[xdmshooter59]

Folks, I own a regular 9mm Shield and the stock trigger and recoil is very tame, no complaints. But was thinking about the ported model. Will I definitely feel less recoil? Is it really noticable? I did read that ported models end up throwing hot gases and other particles towards the shooter, thus increasing chance of lead exposure etc..

Short answer is, you will NOT feel a significant difference in recoil / muzzle flip between the standard and the PC version. Not enough to make a difference in a defensive situation IMO.

I did an unscientific comparison between the two and wrote about it here. http://smith-wessonforum.com/smith-wesson-m-p-pistols/506657-ported-shield-9mm-vs-shield-9mm.html

As far as shooting a ported gun from retention. Take a look at this video. Starts at about 2:00 in.

Ported M&P Performance Center Shield from Smith & Wesson - YouTube


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