to port or not to port

[saym14]

my dad is getting a 12 Ga Legacy sport. should he get it ported? it seems to be a lot, like $400 more for the ported version. is it worth it ?

shooting clays, trap, skeet, throwing our own and a little dove or pheasant hunting now and then.

[KB Fab]

I read on the internet that it is quite desirable to have a ported gun in a duck blind.

[tucker301]

Shoot it first and then decide.

[Hookster]

I read on the internet that it is quite desirable to have a ported gun in a duck blind.

 

The internet is always right.........

[KB Fab]

The internet is always right.........

 

Oh.......you know how the internet goes, win a few and lose a few.

[htathelizzo]

magna port will do it for relatively cheap compared to what you are describing in the different models

[saym14]

I read on the internet that it is quite desirable to have a ported gun in a duck blind.

 

why ?

 

he shot one ported. its hard to demo every gun before buying. I doubt that ona first time demo the everge guy would tell the dif between ported or not.

[M1014]

google porting and you''ll see its advantges and disadvantages,,the advantage outwieghts the disssssssss,,,the first Benelli ported that I know of was there Practical model,,what pleasure to shoot.

[Deldorado]

would installing a ported choke have the same results?

[tucker301]

would installing a ported choke have the same results?

 

No, you would have way too much money left in your wallet.

[timb99]

Absolutely, positively, a waste of money (for shotguns, anyway.)

 

The much ballyhooed sales propaganda of drastically reduced recoil are bogus. Well regarded ballistics calculations show porting can only reduce recoil by about 2 to 4 percent, at most. Well over 90% of shotgun recoil is due to the mass of the shot and wad, and only a little due to gas jetting out the barrel.

 

Ports work by redirecting some of the jetting gases laterally, instead of axially along the barrel centerline.

 

Rifles, on the other hand, have a much higher percentage of their recoil attributable to jetting gases, and this is why porting is effective for rifles. Especially large case magnum cartridges which require a lot of powder. Try shooting a .338 mag, with, and without a muzzle brake, and you'll understand.

 

Shotgun porting, as long as the ports are on the top of the barrel, DOES reduce muzzle rise. As far as I am concerned, this is the ONLY benefit of shotgun barrel porting, and even this is kind of dubious. How often do you fail to get a second shot off due to muzzle rise?

 

Since ported chokes have the ports all around them, they are not capable of reducing muzzle rise. Each jet cancels another jet out on the other side of the tube. And they're really not effective at recoil reduction, either.

 

Your mileage may vary.

[timb99]

Oh, and they DO make the gun louder (bad in a duck blind) and have been known to blow hot plastic wad chunks out the ports, too.

[saym14]

thanks - I doubt he will duck hunt. anyways it seems like a lot of $$$ to reduce muzzle rise a little bit.

[M1014]

Oh, and they DO make the gun louder (bad in a duck blind) and have been known to blow hot plastic wad chunks out the ports, too.

a bit critical,considering you have never heard of the Benelli Practical model,or shot one,,no wad sticking,,just alot of fun.

[MtGoat]

The recoil reduction is not the primary reason one ports a gun (a trap or sheet gun anyway). The primary reason is to limit muzzle rise for follow-up shots as well as less felt recoil (the gun comes straight back as opposed to "flipping" up on the shooter). That said I have not heard much about the screw in choke tubes that have porting. Most porting is back from the muzzle a bit so don't know if the ported chokes help much or are a gimic as they are ported radially and not just on top of the barrel as with standard porting.

 

Pat

[twowheelhooligan]

I own a Supersport(factory ported) and a Browning O/U (factory ported). To reduce recoil you either A) add weight to the firearm B) Shoot a lighter load in shell C) Change caliber/gauge.

 

I find the porting to actually be a pain for cleaning! It's cool at low-light to see the fire breathing dragon, but I find no benefit from the porting. As mentioned above, *MAYBE* for follow-up shots in skeet, doubles trap, etc.

 

If I could've gotten my O/U UN-ported, I would've, but it wasn't an option.

 

Pay extra for it? NO. take it if it comes on the gun I like and fits? Okay I suppose.

 

Only real downside is cleaning and side blast/concussion to those near you.

 

Best of luck!

 

2-wheel!

[saym14]

hmmm. I never noticed any extra noise flash of cleaning issues with my ported O/U.

[timb99]

M1014

 

No, you are right, I am not familiar with the gun you mention.

 

I answered the question in the context it was raised, that is, "...shooting clays, trap, skeet, throwing our own and a little dove or pheasant hunting now and then..."

[timb99]

saym14

 

If you shoot the gun at dusk (depending on the ammo you may use), you will sometimes see a flash out the muzzle and ports.

 

I have found ported barrels, be it shotgun or rifle, to be noticeably louder than un-ported.

 

And everyone I know who does a lot of sport shooting (skeet, trap, sporting clays) complains about cleaning the ports. Its a common complaint.

[Duggan]

I absolutely would not pay money to get a shotgun ported.

 

If it came that way ... I guess I could deal.

 

TimB is dead on with his assessment of porting, brakes and how they work.