Ported Handguns

I'm not a fan of ported handguns. Neither is Teddy Jacobson.

For those not in the know, porting is when you drill holes in the barrel of a gun so that you can use exhaust gases to help control recoil. This is especially important in powerful but small guns like the ultralight titanium and scandium revolvers in .357 magnum. Remember that as you make a gun lighter you make the recoil from a bullet heavier. Basically these guns are so light (12-14 oz.) that the recoil from a magnum round will shake the bullets their brass cases and potentially tie up the gun. Recoil is extremely fierce.

This has become more importantly lately because of the concealed carry revolution going on in the US. More and more states are moving to "shall issue" carry permits so more and more people are buying little powerful guns to carry. The ultralights are little and easy to carry in a pocket. But unfortunately some folks don't stop to think about what porting means to a carry gun.

It means don't shoot it in your pocket (the big strength of the revolver). It means you need to worry about where the muzzle is pointed and where the ports are pointed. Otherwise you may badly burn yourself or your loved ones. Similarly you need to worry about destroying your night vision with the increased muzzle flash.

For a while there some gun companies like Taurus ported everything in sight. I think they have started to realize that so they're new models like this little 9mm beauty are available unported. Mmm pretty revolver.