useless gun??? .38 Special, 2" barrel...and PORTED

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Regardless of the merits of porting a short barreled pistol, it is what you have. Go ahead and buy the SB Gold Dots. On the up side, they may expand. On the down side, they may not and will be no better than any solid bullet you may buy and you'll be out the $5 extra you spent on them.

If you want to test if the GD's expand when fired from your pistol, shoot them into some water soaked phone books or news paper and see what they come out like.
 
Option???...Remington Golden Sabers???

I am going to be taking my non-ported Taurus 85 and my ported Taurus 85 out this week and check them shooting the same ammos. Hopefully, I will be able to find a chronograph, also to check velocity.

An idea that I did have was using the Golden Sabers. They are considerably faster than other +P 125 grain JHP. From a 4" barrel they rate 975 fps vs 945 fps from other 125 grain ammo. And, they are rated at 264 fpe vs 248 fpe from a 4" gun. Any comments?

Thanks
 
Porting on a steel frame 38 snuby revolver, firing "normal" loads, probablly won't make much difference, but with these titanium, alloy,lightweight, guns, "I have one", they can use all the help that they can get to minimize the movement kick and twist, of the weapon using +p's or magnum loads for follow up shots. IMO, Besides some guys just like to put a damper on anything, or show you what an expert they are.
 
Southern Shooter -- Please advise us on your findings with your 2 model 85's. I have been pondering the same thing about my little 85 Ti with its 6 little ports.
 
Southern Shooter -- Please advise us on your findings with your 2 model 85's. I have been pondering the same thing about my little 85 Ti with its 6 little ports.
Click to expand...

same gun, same questions, also eagerly awaiting a response. thanks!
 
This won't help you much but i carry a Taurus model 85 and have it loaded with handloads. My loads are a 158 gr SWCHP from Speer with 5.3 grs winchester 231. The velocity i get is right at 850 fps. My barrel is not ported.

This was a +P load suggested by Jan Libourel several years ago. It shoots through 5 or 6 2 liter coke bottles filled with water. I haven't been able to catch one of the bullets yet. The first time i shot water with it i was about 5 ft away. At the shot i was hit between the eyes with a jet of water so hard it made a red spot on my forehead. My buddy thought this was pretty funny. I did not.

The bottles have 1" and larger holes so i believe the bullet is expanding.

I have a Taurus Tracker 44 mag with the porting and don't like the porting. I don't like it because i cannot shoot shot loads for snakes. The barrel has a rim on the end. I have considered reaming the end so shot loads can be used.
 
i own and shoot ported snubbys.......none of the negative myths have held true thus far.....
 
i own and shoot ported snubbys.......none of the negative myths have held true thus far.....
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Why would we want first hand experience when we have speculation?:rolleyes:

Care to elaborate on your experiences? Have you chrony'd ported snubs vs. unported?
 
I've been after a reasonably priced 6 shot snub in .32 mag.. Last Sunday I found a used Taurus 731. Fit and finish are excellent. The drawbacks are the gun is both LW and factory ported. There is no other snub offering from Taurus in this caliber. Because I'm an idiot I also own a .17 HMR taurus snub. The gun is steel with no ports. Because it's steel and same frame as a standard Taurus snub, with appropriate smaller bore and chambers the gun is disproportionately heavy. The caliber and frames should be reversed in these two guns with no porting in either. The Boys from Brazil should do more research.
 
What do they know that we don't?

So, about three hours ago, I got my promotional e-mail from the S&W 'Club 1852' with the 'first looks' and rebate information in it. I clicked on the promo link--then, picked the "firearms" and "new products" links, and scrolled down
.
.
.
to this New Performance Center Offering:

A Model 67 - Carry Comp

That's a 35-oz K frame, 6-shot, 38 caliber revolver.

But, hey, it also has an adjustable rear sight and 'chamfered charge holes.'

170324_large.jpg


Sounds like the marketing boys at work again.

Jim H.
 
why get a ported gun that you will carry and only use in self defence.I have a model 85 not ported.Very accurate for a 2" barrel.I only shoot a few rounds thru it when I go to the range.I also ground the spur off the hammer it was sticking me in the gut.
 
Yeah, I definately think that a ported wheel gun looks sexy. But, for self defense I would suggest otherwise.

Perhaps a compensator would be more appropriate...

Sorry, just rambling on.
 
The Speer 38 Special +p Short barrel is rated at 860 fps out of a 2" ported barrel. This round has passed all of the FBI protocol test and should perform satisfactorily. Check out Speer's web site.

I personally don't see the need for a ported barrel in 38 or 357 for that mater but I do like my ported 44 mag.
 
SouthernShooter. If at all possible, I'd like to also hear back if you are able to shoot a few rounds out of both revolvers at night.

My club is outdoor and 24/7. An older guy suggested before I adopt a carry piece I try candidates at night. What a revelation! A short barreled 357 completely blinded me. The 38 less so. I mean, the fireball from the 357 was like I imagine a flash grenade effect but less so.

I'm curious to hear if the noise about the porting making more flash is real or a legend.
 
Porting on a 2" snubby? Yes. Yes! YES!

Have you nay-sayers actually ever fired a ported revolver? If you had, you would know how well it works.
Have you ever even fired a 2" Airweight with +P ammo? If you had, you would know how much they NEED porting.
If you haven't, maybe you should try it.

Ported guns make a lot of noise. So do all guns. Ported guns have muzzle flash. So do all guns. In fact, revolvers have "cylinder flash" and blast that comes out both sides of that funny round thing in the middle. I don't hear anyone complaining about THAT.

My experience with an UN-ported Airweight was that a 30 round qualification course was enough to leave my hand swollen and sore for a week. Porting would have reduced that damage and perhaps made training fun.

As for the dangers of all the flash ... I know, because I've actually seen this, that with an UN-ported barrel, the flash appears at the muzzle, right "behind" the front site. With a PORTED barrel, some of that flash is redirected and appears 1-2" ABOVE the front site. It is less distracting up there out of my direct line of sight. I also know that different loads have different amounts of flash. Many premium brands of LE or self defense ammo use powders that have almost no flash (see fall 2007 "American Handgunner" for photos).

So, porting reduces recoil, making it easier to train; reduces muzzle flash, making follow-up shots more accurate; and it does not increase muzzle blast, since we already have plenty of that coming out of the cylinder gap. My 2" Airweight 637 will be making a trip to Magaport very soon. Maybe yours should too.
 
Why not just shoot those Speer rounds into a ballistic medium and dig them out to see for yourself? I regularly shoot my handloads into a homemade "Ballistic Buffalo" and dig them out so as to examine their expansion. It worth a try.

BTW... I doubt that ported barrel is going to have such an affect on the Speer rounds as to cause nothing more than a tickle. They're still lethal, and I wouldn't want to get shot with them or any pistol round no matter how ballisticasly-challenged some people think they are.
 
I also have one of the first year Taurus 85T's with ports. The thing weighs less than a pound. Even with with the ports after 100 rounds at the range my hand hurts the next day. Anyone who wants can shoot a lightweight all day if they want, I just want 100 rounds once or twice a month to stay in practice. The whole "if you shoot it close to your face it will hurt" aguement is moot, in my opinion. I don't know about you, but ALL my revolvers have a barrel/cylinder gap (to say nothing of muzzle blast) I don't want anywhere near my face if I have to touch off a round. The flash from the side, even on the 15-3 4" with a gap af around .003", is as wide or wider than the flash upward from the ports on my titanium 85. And the "why get ports on a self defense gun your only going to carry and not shoot much" argument is even worse. A 2" .38 is hard enough to stay on top of if you shoot it a lot. If you take it to the range once a year and run one box of shells through it, then depend on it to maybe save your life, good luck with that. You're a better man than me. Even at a 100 to 200 rounds a month I sometimes wonder if I'm practicing enough. And yeah, I do pretty good at the range. The range ain't the alley or dark side street at night. I have tried the Remington LSWHP, 135 grain Speer, and a host of others, and the Remingtons are pretty bright in low light. Also, while my SP101 and both the 2" and 4" K frames like lead just fine, the Taurus shoot jacketed bullets better.
 
I too have an early 85T. I have Crimson Trace grips which are hard and I too have had it after 50 rounds of full power loads. It is a very unpleasant gun to shoot.
 
Sell it, buy a non ported version, in my humble opinion.

I've had the chance to fire a couple of ported guns, and in calibers where the physical recoil is not strong enough to be a problem (read: 9mm, .40s&w, .38spl) the ported guns always felt worse to me than the unported counterparts - the muzzle blast pressure, noise, and gasses/powder were really much worse...especially bad in the .40s&w I saw that was ported...

Cylinder gap flash is one thing - out the sides of the gun - but out of the top of the barrel is not the same deal at all.

I'm a heck of a lot more likely to have to angle the gun up in front of me from a below eye level attitude than I am to ever turn the gun parallel to myself (?! i'm shooting at something next to me without looking at it?) and fire it at face level.

It is true that a snub .38 is hard to 'stay on top of' if you mean hard to stay proficient with, but that is mainly due to the crappy sight radius and usually heavy DA triggers than the recoil.
 
Have you nay-sayers actually ever fired a ported revolver? If you had, you would know how well it works.
Click to expand...

Recoil is subjective. It ain't just newtons and foot-pound-seconds, it's also about how it feels. Two people can shoot the exact same gun and get two different impressions from the recoil. Porting can increase recoil for the blast/muzzle flash sensitive.
 
Results are in !!!! And, it is a mistery...need experts here

Ok, I took the Taurus 85 revolvers to the range this weekend. And, the results were surprising.
**********************************************************
Clear day. About 70 degrees. About 70 percent humidity. No wind.

3-shot strings

Master Chrony----Alpha Model set up at roughly 5 yards from muzzle
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Taurus 85 Ultralite non-ported

***White Winchester 130 grain FMJ***
Velocity
701.7
740.0
726.2

Average
722.63
-----------------------------------------------------
***Speer Gold Dot 135 grain +P Short Barrel***
Velocity
892.8
855.9
891.9

Average
880.2
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Taurus 85 steel ported

***White Winchester 130 grain FMJ***
Velocity
765.7
747.6
750.2

Average
754.5
-----------------------------------------------------
***Speer Gold Dot 135 grain +P Short Barrel***
Velocity
909.9
923.1
907.9

Average
913.63

Now, look at the numbers guys. The ported barrel .38 Special stomped my non-ported revolver. Why???

As far as the powder flash from the ports go...there are enough quality low flash self-defense ammos out there to deal with that concern. Honestly, I know that it was daylight, but I did not see any flash from the ports at all. Nor, did the other guys standing there watching the ports.

Whatever the reason...the ported barrel gun stays.

Thanks
 
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