Ported Barrel Revolvers - Your Experiences

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Hello. I just acquired a 586 l-Comp. It has a ported, 3-inch barrel. The port is a single slot in front of the front sight. This is the first S&W that I have ever owned that has a ported barrel. I shot some 130gr Winchester .38 SPL through it and it shoots great and has very little muzzle flip with that. I then proceeded to shoot some Fiocchi 125gr SJHP .357 Mag and Holy-Concussion-Blast Batman! It has a stiff pressure wave that hits you in the face. Not painful in the least or even uncomfortable but very surprising. Is this what most people shooting revolvers with ported barrels experience? Are there any .357 Magnum loads that have less of a pressure wave? More? How about revolvers in larger calibers; .41 Mag, .44 Mag? What is the blast like on those. Please post any experiences, opinions, or advice that you have. Thanks.
 
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Ported barrels are a lot louder then non-ported barrels, and you wouldn't want to shoot it in a retention mode because the exhaust could fly up in your face. That is my two cents worth.
 
I have some experience with ported barrels, rifle, shotgun and revolver.

In general, I avoid them. However...

I do think that under certain conditions the porting can help reduce muzzle flip and help with faster follow-up. However, whether that really works on a short barrel, I don't know. The one handgun I've got that I think it works very well on is a 7 1/2" FA83.

I don't think it's louder unless you're under cover or in an enclosed space, in which case it is definitely obnoxious. Outside, I don't notice the difference.
 
Ive got a Taurus 44c tracker in 44mag ,ported,not good at nite,Blinds ya,woudnt be a good bedside gun,

and the report is way louder than standard 44mags,if you shoot it with out hearing protection,it would make ya deaf,

i allways use protection,but if it was a carry gun and you had to use it,in a pinch,without hearing protection ,its way too loud.

as for me i wouldnt buy another ported revolver ,but it does draw some looks at the range,mostly from the flame show,and the report

As far as muzzle flip.i dont notice any thing differant,the tracker is a 4 inch barrel

just my 2 pennies worth....Blue
 
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Ported barrels

In the early 1980's I put comp. slots in 1.125 dia. heavy barrels on S&W PPC and combat revolvers, 38, .357 and 45 acp. The blast was not bad but I put the slots in on about 30 degrees from the front sight. The barrel was back bored about 7/8" and threaded and a muzzle cap bored a little larger than the bullet dia. and threaded to fit the internal barrel threads the folks I did this for thought that it helped their scores by faster second shots by reducing the barrel flip. I have a couple of them that I still shoot, the blast was no more it seemed than one with out the comps, I think in your case the 3" barrel is what magnifies the blast. Jeff
 
I've always thought the muzzle blast from a 357 to be more uncomfortable than that from a 44 mag.
My ported guns are all 44 mags with 6" or longer barrels. The ports on them don't really making shooting uncomfortable.
 
There are so many variations of porting that it's hard to figure. Ever stand next to a guy at a line shooting a side ported gun...yeoww...:eek:

Top ported guns are the only ones that I see reducing muzzle flip significantly. But then, that's what muzzle brakes were about...back in the day.

Porting a 3" inch barrel makes little sense. The bullet is only pushed a little over 2" before the porting kicks in.

I don't get it. Why not just shoot reduced loads in a standard barrel...

giz
 
I have a Taurus .44 special, titanium, five shot, 2 inch barrel, with factory ported barrel. This supposedly weighs in at 18 1/2 oz, and even I was a little apprehensive prior to first firing it, but with the "ribber grip", and the porting, it is not near as bad as expected. Now some one mentioned not firing it from a retention position, which I will certainly agree with. Did it once, lost my hat, glasses were knocked askew, but was not burned or injured, just startled. I shoot a 200 grain +P, at aprox 1000 fps, so between the grip and porting, something makes it relative comfortable to fire. The only other ported I have experience with was a four inch 686, and while heavier, it had more perceived recoil than the .44 does. The .357 also had a much brighter nightime show than the .44 does, but part of that may be the way Taurus ports their barrels.
 
I recently fired a friend's ported 629. I noticed nothing out of the ordinary except that recoil was, perhaps, tamed somewhat.
 
I had my 4" 629 Magnaported, hoping to tame its significant recoil, and was disappointed by the results. A side-by-side observation of an identical gun w/o porting reveals somewhat less "muzzle flip" in the ported gun, but the overall reduction of felt recoil, plus the apparent increase of noise and blast (it was obnoxious to begin with...) made me regret the modification, especially at its considerable cost (almost doubled by round-trip shipping charges...) It was, and still is, uncomfortable to shoot. I think I'd been better off spending my money on practice ammo. On the other hand, this is a gun I carry only when at risk of encountering some seriously dangerous animal, and which I don't intend to fire w/o ear protection until I'm about to be gnawed on...
 
I have a 629 Compact Carry and a 629 Stealth Hunter. Both factory ported.

The 7 1/2 inch Stealth Hunter is a heavy barrel and it tames the most massive load.

The shorter Compact Carry helps with the hot loads.

I have never burned my face with the flash, but I keep it at an arms length!
 
ported barrels

I have 357's and 44's that are MagNaPort'ed. To be honest I can't really tell the difference when shooting full loads. Reduced loads I can get back on target quicker, but why have a magnum if your going to shoot specials. Needless to say I prefer to spend the money on trigger jobs than porting. :) As for the flash, I do most of my shooting in a lighted range. I hope I never have to shoot a magnum in the dark, or without ear protection because I'm certain I will be blind and deaf afterwards. :cool: :eek:
 
A good porting system will reduce muzzle flip and recoil. Magnaport one of the earliest is certainly one of the least effective.

To someone standing off to the side the most objectionable thing about a ported gun is the blast and noise.

There are certain applications where porting makes sense and others where its of little use or a detriment.

Len
 
My personal opinion regarding porting is negative. Don't like the additional noise and blast.

YMMV
 
In years past I have fired several revolvers with ported barrels in .357 and .44 mag calibers. I agree with the other comments about the blast and flash.

I think a ported barrel would be worthwhile on a hunting handgun, used outdoors in daylight conditions. On a defensive piece, like your 586 L-Comp, I think porting is a big mistake. The more noticeable blast is almost certain to make a follow-up shot more difficult, and the flash (directed upward right into the user's sight picture area) will certainly have an adverse effect on night vision capabilities.
 
I've been carrying and using magna-ported revolvers in .357 and .44 magnum since 1982. My scores on our fast moving qualification course improved measureably. The only drawback I've experienced has been powder residue build-up on the front sight blade.

These guns were frequently shot from cars. I had no difficulty with this. The trick is to get the revolver through the open window and outside of the car. These days guns that are used from vehicles are often suppressed, a lesson learned over time. Also, the revolver is seldom used anymore, having given way to the modern autoloaders.

I have nothing negative to say about magna-porting. It worked for me over the course of a career and I am pleased with the results.
 
I had a Taurus Model 44 in .44 Mag with a compensator. No issues with it until I scoped it.

First shot splattered lead and residue all over the front of the scope. Ooops !

Took a toilet paper roll cardboard, extended the end of the scope, fired it off. It immediately crumpled the cardboard and blew it off over my head.

Took a piece of roofing tin flashing, rolled it around the toilet paper roll, put it on the end of the scope (extending out to the end of the barrel), fired it, the roofing tin immediately collapsed and flattened out.

I then took a 1" to 1-1/2" PVC Pipe Adaptor from Home Depot which was the perfect size to go around the scope and extended to just past the comp. It worked. I then painted the inside flat black and used it for 8 or 10 years, sold the extension with the gun.

Dan R
 
I shoot .357 magnums, regularly, from sevaral different model S&W's of various barrel lenghth. I don't notice any increased noise level, when shooting my 586 L-Comp. I shoot at a rather dimly-lit indoor range and have never suffered from the blinding muzzle blast that others here speak of. As for the percussion blast that hits you in the face, that happens with all of my short-barreled .357 magnums.
 
I have a Mod. 29 that is magnaported, and notice no undesirable blast back at me, but it does tame recoil and muzzle flip. I shot a 1911 with a "comp'td" barrel for several years in IPSC competition, and had no problems with it, and yes it did help with muzzle flip and follow-up shot time.
 
Other than alot of flash with carry ammo, shot at night, I've no problem with the port on my pre lock 586-5 L-comp.......well......other than cleaning the port. The cleaning is a chore, for me.

As to debris/gas hitting your face in a close in situation, simply cant the revolver (and thus the port) away from you, 45 degrees left or right. Problem solved. Nice revolver the L-comp. Regards 18DAI.
 
My friend has the same gun w/o porting. Using my rounds in both guns, 265g cast @ 1200fps, his is painful, mine is not.

Only downside is a dirty front sight at the end of a session.

P8180020.jpg


IMO, short barrels benefit the most from porting.

I have 6" and longer that show little to no benefit from porting.

Flash blinding etc, not evident to me, but I've only been shooting these ported guns for 20 years.
 
I've fired L-comps and K-Comps. If they're more offensive than unported guns, they didn't make an impression on me in that regard. But the port didn't make an impression on me as being especially helpful either.
 
Joni_Lynn said:
I like the S&W Power Port design but the Magnaporting appears to be a waste of money.
Click to expand...

I can assure you that when you are sending .454 Casulls loaded at 65k psi or so downrange through a 7 1/2" tube, the Magnaporting works quite nicely! ;) Whether something else would work better, dunno - too expensive to find out!
 
I never had my FA 454 ported but I've had several 44 mags ported as well as my FA 44 mag. I would expect it to work better as the pressure rises but still I can't really tell much difference with my 44 mags.
 
Yep...and didn't mean to be picking on you or picking a fight...my hunch is that lower pressures and/or shorter barrels reduce the effect, but I'm not a scientist.

FWIW also, if I'd bought it new, I would have bought a straight tube. This one was an early FA83 and came to me as a second owner, so it was what it was.
 
They work better on a longer barrel due to the longer barrel, the port has a bit more ..........what would you call it...............leverage I guess. The more leverage and/or the more pressure the better it will work.
 
Magnaporting

In my early years of shooting my 5" 625 in IPSC matches, I got crazy and had the gun magnaported. The porting had minimal effect with factory .45 ACP ammo. Then I learned USPSA would not let me use ports so I retired the gun to the safe.

Then a few years ago, I had that same gun reamed to take the .460 Rowland cartridge. I load a 250 gr LSWC bullet to over 1100 fps and believe me the ports do a great job taming the recoil.

In IPSC shooting, all open guns have a variety of compensators and ports. The comps work best with very high pressure/high velocity rounds. In fact, people were experimenting with very light bullets at such high velocities our steel tagets were getting severely dimpled. At one time there was a minimum bullet weght of 115 grs. to lessen the damage.
 
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