Handguns and comps: just toys?

[Pistoler0]

I just thought about this topic as I was posting on another thread regarding 10mm, 45 Super and 460 Rowland.

My starting assumption is that handguns are primarily self defense tools, and they can also be hunting and recreational/sporting implements.

Comps on firearms exist to tame the recoil of powerful rounds, but the cost is a considerable increase in muzzle blast/concussion.

Of course, hearing protection exists to dampen and protect from the damage that muzzle blast causes, but there are situations in which the donning of hearing protection might be difficult or not possible:

1) When attacked by wildlife, bears, mountain lions, or wild people
2) When hunting and taking an opportunistic shot.

Yet, these two situations are the ones in which the increased power of magnum rounds is really useful, and the handguns chambered for these are the ones that are often comped! The 460 Rowland comes to mind.

So, as its use without hearing protection makes a firearm downright injurious to a shooter's hearing...

.. are comped handguns mostly range toys or competition sporting articles?

What do you think?

 

[DaleA]

Well, as I've mentioned in several other posts here recently, I got a chance to shoot an S&W .460 magnum. It's a very heavy gun and had an 8 inch something barrel and a compensator on it and it wasn't bad at all to shoot.

The thing is I don't know what it would be like to shoot if the compensator was not on the gun so I really don't know how much the "comfortable shooting" aspect of the gun was due to its heavy weight and long barrel and how much to the compensator.

 

[mehavey]

 

[Pistoler0]

Then you also NEED this:

 

[44 AMP]

but the cost is a considerable increase in muzzle blast/concussion.

To be clear, compensators/muzzle brakes don't increase the blast, they redirect it so you FEEL it differently.

I've read some things from Rowland, and he says the 1911 must be compensated to run his round, and does not approve of any conversion that isn't.

There's no free lunch and powerful guns are also LOUD.


EVERY firearm, used without hearing protection will damage your hearing.

 

[T. O'Heir]

"...Comps on firearms exist to..." More about controlling muzzle jump. Recoil reduction is just a bonus. They are mostly for range use though.
"...firearm downright injurious to a shooter's hearing..." That's mostly on an indoor range and it has nothing to do with the calibre. One shot out of a .22 Short or LR will cause permanent accumulative hearing damage indoors.
"...attacked by wildlife..." Is extremely rare. So is attack by "wild humans' but two legged predators are not afraid of you.

 

[Shadow9mm]

firing any gun without hearing protection WILL cause permanent damage every time.

I use linear compensators on my rifles. They are designed to push sound and blast forward of the shooter. linear compensators can reduce the sound to the shooter by approximately half or about 3db (sound is weird, every 3db increase or decrease represents a doubling or halving of the sound pressure its exponential not linear) here's and example.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1WhbyrvAvEU

so in theory it pushing the sound away could halve the volume using a compensator could in theory double or more than double the sound pressure directed at the shooter.

In short I think compensated guns should only be used when hearing protection can be guaranteed.

One other issue, I think they are donwnright bad for defensive use as at night they can blind you

 

[Geezerbiker]

I don't think the compensator is the problem with firing a handgun and night and being blinded by the flash, it's the load.

I offer this antidote for what it's worth. Many years ago a few friends and I where up on Larch Mountain East of Portland, OR late fall or early winter target shooting. You would want to be up there in December without a snowmobile. Anyway I dropped my keys and couldn't get back in my home. About that time my brother showed up so one of my friends, my brother and I went back to where we had been shooting. We found the keys right away and since the place we had been shooting was a 3 sided rock quarry backed by a park service road, we felt safe doing some night shooting.

Now getting to the relevant part of the story... I had started using H110 powder for the first time in my .357 Mag loads. All my other loads were with 2400 or one of a few fast burning powders for light loads. The H110 loads lit up like a camera flash and all the other loads had dull yellow flame and were no where near as bright.

I'd like to know what powder was being used in that gun in the picture.

Not handgun related, many years ago I was given a couple pounds of milsurp IMR 4831 and I loaded minimum loads with it for my .30-06. I noticed an orange flash in the scope but I didn't think anything of it until someone asked me how I was getting that 3 foot fire ball out of my barrel. Needless to say, I stopped using it...

Tony

 

[NoSecondBest]

If you talk to serious handgun competitors you’ll find that they don’t actually consider a muzzle brake and a compensator to be the same thing and aren’t intended for the same purpose. A compensator is usually associated with something added onto the muzzle, not part of it. It’s intended purpose is to direct the energy from the muzzle blast upwards so that the shooter can stay on, or close to on target between quick successive shots. A good compensator with the correct load will allow the shooter to actually be able to see the target throughout the entire cycle when using a red dot type sight. In speed shooting contests you aren’t competitive in classes where optical sights are allowed without using a compensator. A good one with the right load produces remarkable results.

 

[Shadow9mm]

I don't think the compensator is the problem with firing a handgun and night and being blinded by the flash, it's the load.

I offer this antidote for what it's worth. Many years ago a few friends and I where up on Larch Mountain East of Portland, OR late fall or early winter target shooting. You would want to be up there in December without a snowmobile. Anyway I dropped my keys and couldn't get back in my home. About that time my brother showed up so one of my friends, my brother and I went back to where we had been shooting. We found the keys right away and since the place we had been shooting was a 3 sided rock quarry backed by a park service road, we felt safe doing some night shooting.

Now getting to the relevant part of the story... I had started using H110 powder for the first time in my .357 Mag loads. All my other loads were with 2400 or one of a few fast burning powders for light loads. The H110 loads lit up like a camera flash and all the other loads had dull yellow flame and were no where near as bright.

I'd like to know what powder was being used in that gun in the picture.

Not handgun related, many years ago I was given a couple pounds of milsurp IMR 4831 and I loaded minimum loads with it for my .30-06. I noticed an orange flash in the scope but I didn't think anything of it until someone asked me how I was getting that 3 foot fire ball out of my barrel. Needless to say, I stopped using it...

Tony

yes, but this now means that you have to try and find a factory defensive loading with low flash, or hand load and again, select a low flash powder. It really limits your options.