Barrel Porting

TACAV · 04-17-2008, 01:15 AM

Im just throwing this out there, Im planning on getting a Ruger SP101 .357mag with a 3 1/16 inch barrel sometime in the near future.

I was planning on making it a really nice gun with a professional trigger job and maybe some different grips etc.

I was looking at some places that do custom work specifically on SP101s
one of the things some were doing was barrel porting. Anything from larger holes on the top of the barrel to the magna porting on the sides to cut down on muzzle flash interfering with your front sites.

I was just wondering what everyone else thought on the whole process. Whether it was worth it, the pros, cons, etc.

dogman2 · 04-17-2008, 01:52 AM

Mag=Na=Porting works real well. Both of my 454 Casull's are ported and made a great difference in recoil, same as my heavy caliber rifles and shotguns.

Coeloptera · 04-17-2008, 10:48 AM

Well, my Taurus 608 came with barrel porting. It's .357 Magnum and it really does make a difference. Shooting .38s through it feels like plinking with .22s and the .357 Magnum rounds feel very light and reacquiring is a lot easier. Take the holes on the top to reduce muzzle rise, you won't regret it.

- Coeloptera

TACAV · 04-17-2008, 12:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Coeloptera

Well, my Taurus 608 came with barrel porting. It's .357 Magnum and it really does make a difference. Shooting .38s through it feels like plinking with .22s and the .357 Magnum rounds feel very light and reacquiring is a lot easier. Take the holes on the top to reduce muzzle rise, you won't regret it.

- Coeloptera

hmm thats good. as opposed to the mag-na porting which is off canted to the side, my only concern with top ports would be the blast distorting my sight picture, but then again something like this

http://www.geminicustoms.com/DSC02023.JPG

does look really nice.

Coeloptera · 04-17-2008, 01:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TACAV

hmm thats good. as opposed to the mag-na porting which is off canted to the side, my only concern with top ports would be the blast distorting my sight picture, but then again something like this

http://www.geminicustoms.com/DSC02023.JPG

does look really nice.

How interesting. Here's mine: http://www.gunandgame.com/forums/att...s-cimg0540.jpg

I wonder if having the ports down the entire barrel length makes a difference in a shorter barrel like that. I haven't noticed any problems with seeing as the gases vent, though. I don't notice any additional flash traveling upwards.

Just be sure to clean them thoroughly though. Ports get filthy.

I have to agree though, it's very nice. Just unusual enough to be fairly striking.

- Coeloptera

ander254 · 04-17-2008, 01:44 PM

Thats some serious porting. I bet that would make a nice light show at night. If you had a really fast camera, you could get the fire ball coming up from every hole. It would make one heck of an ATT commerical, "raising the bar". I wonder if they could port in bettween the side and the top so at an angle. That way it would give downward resistance but also keep the flash out of the sights? Just a thought.

Coeloptera · 04-17-2008, 06:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ander254

Thats some serious porting. I bet that would make a nice light show at night. If you had a really fast camera, you could get the fire ball coming up from every hole. It would make one heck of an ATT commerical, "raising the bar". I wonder if they could port in bettween the side and the top so at an angle. That way it would give downward resistance but also keep the flash out of the sights? Just a thought.

I can't think of any technical reason you couldn't. After all, a suppressor has holes all over it. Nothing physical I can think of would prevent the gases from venting at a 45-degree angle rather than 90.

It may also have something to do with the fact that many barrels do not have perfectly round exteriors. Many are flat on top or at the sides. Making cutouts at the apex of angles may weaken it slightly, I would think. If you wanted to bend a square pipe, you wouldn't drill holes in the top or side, you'd saw slits in the corners.

- Coeloptera

DANA · 04-17-2008, 08:44 PM

Mine has the holes of diffrent sizes on the top

DANA

ander254 · 04-18-2008, 06:57 AM

My dad is looking at getting a 4" 608. I like how they come factory ported. We shot a 2" 686 which he really liked but wanted a 4" barrel and at $200 less than the 686 its not a hard decision.

dogman2 · 04-18-2008, 08:59 AM

Mag-Na-Port is angled to the back. It is suppossed to direct the muzzle forward and down. Rifle porting is about 45 degrees and 90 degrees off top center of barrel and most handguns are at 45 degrees and heavy kickers and snubbies can get the rifle porting on them. Shotgun porting is two rows of holes each side of top center. Again angled back.

chewy4480 · 04-18-2008, 01:04 PM

now i want to get my .454 casull done.

ClayMan · 04-19-2008, 08:07 AM

TACAV:

Here's a really good article covering the pros and cons of porting. And specifically, they test and compare a non-ported SP101 to a Gemini Customs ported SP101.

Check it out:

http://www.rohrbaughforum.com/port.pdf

ClayMan

TACAV · 04-19-2008, 10:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ClayMan

TACAV:

Here's a really good article covering the pros and cons of porting. And specifically, they test and compare a non-ported SP101 to a Gemini Customs ported SP101.

Check it out:

http://www.rohrbaughforum.com/port.pdf

ClayMan

nice article thanks!

Coeloptera · 04-19-2008, 05:43 PM

Very interesting article and it confirms what most of us have experienced: ported barrels reduce muzzle rise and allow a slightly faster reacquisition of the target.

I don't know about one thing, though. I never noticed any increased concussion directed my way. Then again, I'm very used to larger calibers for pistols (frankly, for me, if I'm firing a wheelgun, let's start at .357 Magnum), so it might just be me not registering it. In fact, the only round that ever surprised me was the first time I fired the .40 S&W round. It was a bit punchier than I had expected it to be.

I also have to agree with the author about the night vision. The muzzle flash is going to be hovering in my sight line no matter what, with about the same amount of light going out into that space. A pistol is so slender an object that I can't imagine it can shade that very much.

I have a question about muzzle velocity, though. Does position of the porting matter? If the porting is at the very end of the barrel only, is the bullet's muzzle velocity going to be impacted more than if the porting extends the length of the barrel?

The front sight does get dirty though, as I mentioned before. But I never notice it until after I'm finished shooting and that's usually at least 50-70 rounds.

- Coeloptera

04-17-2008, 01:15 AM	#1
TACAV Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2005 Posts: 609	Barrel Porting Im just throwing this out there, Im planning on getting a Ruger SP101 .357mag with a 3 1/16 inch barrel sometime in the near future. I was planning on making it a really nice gun with a professional trigger job and maybe some different grips etc. I was looking at some places that do custom work specifically on SP101s one of the things some were doing was barrel porting. Anything from larger holes on the top of the barrel to the magna porting on the sides to cut down on muzzle flash interfering with your front sites. I was just wondering what everyone else thought on the whole process. Whether it was worth it, the pros, cons, etc.

04-17-2008, 01:52 AM	#2
dogman2 Banned Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Iowa Posts: 133	Mag=Na=Porting works real well. Both of my 454 Casull's are ported and made a great difference in recoil, same as my heavy caliber rifles and shotguns.

04-17-2008, 10:48 AM	#3
Coeloptera Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Las Vegas Posts: 1,853	Well, my Taurus 608 came with barrel porting. It's .357 Magnum and it really does make a difference. Shooting .38s through it feels like plinking with .22s and the .357 Magnum rounds feel very light and reacquiring is a lot easier. Take the holes on the top to reduce muzzle rise, you won't regret it. - Coeloptera

04-17-2008, 01:44 PM	#6
ander254 Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 235 Images: 5	Thats some serious porting. I bet that would make a nice light show at night. If you had a really fast camera, you could get the fire ball coming up from every hole. It would make one heck of an ATT commerical, "raising the bar". I wonder if they could port in bettween the side and the top so at an angle. That way it would give downward resistance but also keep the flash out of the sights? Just a thought.

04-17-2008, 08:44 PM	#8
DANA Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: WAITSFIELD VERMONT Posts: 1,595	Mine has the holes of diffrent sizes on the top DANA

04-18-2008, 06:57 AM	#9
ander254 Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 235 Images: 5	My dad is looking at getting a 4" 608. I like how they come factory ported. We shot a 2" 686 which he really liked but wanted a 4" barrel and at $200 less than the 686 its not a hard decision.

04-18-2008, 08:59 AM	#10
dogman2 Banned Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Iowa Posts: 133	Mag-Na-Port is angled to the back. It is suppossed to direct the muzzle forward and down. Rifle porting is about 45 degrees and 90 degrees off top center of barrel and most handguns are at 45 degrees and heavy kickers and snubbies can get the rifle porting on them. Shotgun porting is two rows of holes each side of top center. Again angled back.

04-18-2008, 01:04 PM	#11
chewy4480 Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Maine Posts: 122	now i want to get my .454 casull done.

04-19-2008, 08:07 AM	#12
ClayMan Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Posts: 86	TACAV: Here's a really good article covering the pros and cons of porting. And specifically, they test and compare a non-ported SP101 to a Gemini Customs ported SP101. Check it out: http://www.rohrbaughforum.com/port.pdf ClayMan

04-19-2008, 05:43 PM	#14
Coeloptera Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Las Vegas Posts: 1,853	Very interesting article and it confirms what most of us have experienced: ported barrels reduce muzzle rise and allow a slightly faster reacquisition of the target. I don't know about one thing, though. I never noticed any increased concussion directed my way. Then again, I'm very used to larger calibers for pistols (frankly, for me, if I'm firing a wheelgun, let's start at .357 Magnum), so it might just be me not registering it. In fact, the only round that ever surprised me was the first time I fired the .40 S&W round. It was a bit punchier than I had expected it to be. I also have to agree with the author about the night vision. The muzzle flash is going to be hovering in my sight line no matter what, with about the same amount of light going out into that space. A pistol is so slender an object that I can't imagine it can shade that very much. I have a question about muzzle velocity, though. Does position of the porting matter? If the porting is at the very end of the barrel only, is the bullet's muzzle velocity going to be impacted more than if the porting extends the length of the barrel? The front sight does get dirty though, as I mentioned before. But I never notice it until after I'm finished shooting and that's usually at least 50-70 rounds. - Coeloptera