They may look with disdain upon anyone foolish enough to shoot a gun without a compensator or ports.
Oh, the humanity!
Thats called confirmation bias.
Is porting worth the effort or just a bunch of noise? Check out this comparison of a ported and un-ported 1911 Garrison to find out.
then only consider information supporting your opinions.
Ports and Comps
First, lets consider the terminology we will use when discussing this topic.
A comp allowed shooters to shoot faster, more accurately and more smoothly, so they dominated the circuits.
Ken Kelly, guru of Mag-Na-Port, is hands-on in the shop daily. His company revolutionized the concept of ported guns.Image: Mag-Na-Port
Some of those elaborate comps vented loads of pressurized gases and were, indeed, quite loud.
I think, more than anything, thats what prompted many non-competitors to wonder what the big deal was.
Id tend to agree.
The Mag-Na-Port process puts cuts not only in the barrel, but also matching ones in the slide. Image: Michael Anschuetz
This perceived hacking away at potential velocity has turned many shooters off to the idea of comps or ports.
I want every bit of velocity I can get!
Can Less Be More?
The author had an un-ported blued Garrison 9mm for the test (right) and a stainless model he had ported (left).
In 1972, Mag-Na-Port burst onto the shooting scene on the cover of an issue ofGuns and Ammomagazine.
These elegantly shaped, small rectangular ports on a guns upper muzzle area were almost unnoticeable.
Complicated shapes can be produced, and Larry realized he was onto something.
The Mag-Na-Port porting cuts are extremely subtle and do not change the profile or handling characteristics of the pistol. Image: Michael Anschuetz
Mag-Na-Port technology was introduced to the shooting public and soon gained its approval.
Many called the technology a game-changer.
Today, Mag-Na-Port is run by Larrys son, Ken Kelly, and is more popular than ever.
Most of the loads used in the test. Roy dug deep into his stash to find a good cross-section of velocity, bullet weight and other features. Image: Author
The process can also be used on rifles and shotguns, as well as handguns of all kinds.
A revolver just has ports through the top of the barrel near the muzzle.
Mag-Na-Port has been doing their magic on factory guns of all sorts for decades.
The author is shown here with his two Garrisons as well as the detailed notes from the testing. Image: Author
Its well proven and got me thinking.
Lets see what really happens in the real world, I suggested.
I wanted to determine how much velocity something like Mag-Na-Portingreallycuts.
And, if it does lower the velocity, to what degree and does that percentage really matter?
Is the reduced muzzle flip worth a bit of velocity loss?
I figured using a relatively straightforward, but high-quality 1911 as the base for the test made sense.
So, I requested two stock 5Springfield Armory Garrison 9mm pistols.
One of them went to Mag-Na-Port so they could do their magic with two ports.
Soon we got a Your guns done, call from Ken Kelly and it landed at my FFL.
My idea was simple, but time-consuming.
Each load would have five rounds fired from each gun and Id collect the data.
Ive also always assumed (dangerous, right?)
a comp or port-style modification would negatively affect velocity a good deal.
I just wasnt sure who would get the finger pointed at them.
Testing Ported Barrels
I ended up with more than 25 loads from my stash of 9mm ammo.
Kindly see the chart for specifics.
I shot the un-ported stock Garrison first, followed by the Mag-Na-Ported version.
About 300-odd rounds later I was done with the shooting portion.
Refer to the chart for details and numbers.
The velocities listed are an average of five rounds for each load.
I also downloaded a decibel meter app for my iPhone.
Doing some experimenting, I found it seemed to be reliable.
My chainsaw showed it was as loud as a chainsaw, according to their chart.
Its just FYI info for you to compare against the full-sized 9mm autos.
Call it a bonus.
First, lets get the noise question out of the way.
I started the test firmly convinced the Mag-Na-Ported gun would be a lot louder than the stock gun.
The light/high-velocity loads were the most obnoxious in either gun.
According to my research, thats not significant, although it is louder.
As a test, I also fired a .44 Magnum, promptly pegging the meter at 120.
I suppose it was actually louder, since the meter couldnt read higher.
I read online some gun reports can approach 140.
Hence, they might seem louder.
The real surprise for me came as I assembled the velocity data.
I had expected the ported Garrison to show significantly lower velocities, at least with some loads.
But nope, and as a matter of fact with some loads it was just a tad higher.
Overall, there were five loads showinghighervelocities in the ported gun than the stock gun.
I profess I dont know why or how that is.
The chart shows the loads compared so you’re able to see for yourself.
FMJ for instance is fine in either gun.
The Speer Lawman 147-gr.
you’ve got the option to have much more variance than that just in round-to-round differences.
A few, like the Buffalo Bore loads, were almost spot-on with the velocities listed on the boxes.
But they test with real guns, not pressure barrels.
What additional perceived blast there might have been was hardly noticeable, at least to me.
Would a ported barrel for concealed carry work?
Ill look into that.
If you favor un-ported guns, thats fine too.
That energy has to go someplace, so it goes backwards into you.
Or how the flash might blind you at night.
Ive also shot ported guns close to my body with no ill-effects.
So, my final word?
I wouldnt worry about this one bit.
Shoot ported guns if you like them, or un-ported if they float your boat.
Ill call it a draw, with each side having their own set of advantages and disadvantages.
And, wanting to try out Mag-Na-Porting it might just be a good excuse to buy a new gun!
