Andrew Tuohy tests Glock pistol comps.

[HCM]

Interesting. I still don’t think they are worth the relaibility issues they create for carry guns(aftermarket barrels, set screws, having to jack with spring weights).

If you run “real” ammo I.e. nato spec or +p you don’t need to jack with spring rates.

[DocGKR]

If you run standard Federal 147 gr you don't need to "jack with spring rates"....

[Artemas2]

I have been using the agency arms single port which is less efficient by design; with factory springs and have not had any issues even with 115 crap ammo. The only way I have been able to make it choke is one hand only and with a poor grip, that was with the crap ammo. 124 and 147 HSTs run fine with all manner of crappy grips.

[tgoldie00]

I am running a G19 Gen 4 MOS with a few add-ons. From a comp perspective I am running a Zev match barrel, a Zev Pro-Compensator, and Zev stainless guide rod with adapter (for Gen 4) and a few springs to get the tuning right.

As to the above points, in the 124gr NATO or +p category of ammo, no tuning was needed. The OE assembly or the Zev with 15lb spring run perfectly. To get it to run WWB or most range grade ammo in the 115gr category reliably, I had to dial down to the 13lb spring. Interestingly, Federal 115gr brass casing ammo was very unreliable with the 13lb spring, and thus I would have needed to go to 11lbs to run that (that spring causes issues with the striker spring, so no-go there).

As to performance, I would be lying...or at least eggagerating, if I told anyone that I felt some level of profound difference in the 115gr range grade of ammo I crank though the pistol most often. Honestly....it's just not really there.

-HOWEVER-

I can certainly feel a flatness to the cycle in the 124gr NATO application without reservation. I believe firmly in powerful use cases, the compensator is actually doing its job (and I think it fair to say nobody really contests the result in that context).

I purchased mine to tinker with. That particular pistol is not a carry piece for me...it is just for fun...and I like to tinker, so it satisfies that urge. Would I put a compensator on another 9mm pistol? Probably not...but it looks cool at the range and it's fun to shoot, so I guess there is that.

[Balisong]

Very cool article and experiment. Very informative and gave me a lot to think about. 2 things I wish they'd done, or maybe they'll do in a follow up:

1. Use HST 147 and Gold Dot 124 +P as the two ammo types. I'm sure what they used is fairly close in ballistics, but since defense ammo supposedly has extra care given to flash retardation it would be interesting to see how they compare to these "normal" ammo types, when it comes to flash but also performance. Seems like it'd also make sense cuz these seem to be the most popular "serious" 9mm rounds.

2. I wish the ported model used was a factory C model glock 19. The other one had slide machining and all that jazz. I'd like to see how the stock C compares to the otherwise stock compensated models. If it's similar performance it seems to me that'd be the preferred way to go since there are no extra pieces to assemble/bolt/screw together or whatever. Plus you could use smaller holsters if that's your preference.

All in all, great article though, really enjoyed it.

[DocGKR]

The stock "C" model Glocks have given problems in real world use.

[Balisong]

The stock "C" model Glocks have given problems in real world use.

What problems? Do they have trouble cycling loads or something? I never hear people talk about them. Only one I was ever around was a ported 10mm Glock that I put a few rounds through.

[EricG]

I currently have a Primary Arms Stealth Comp on a VP9 Tactical with an RMO6. I have been able to increase cadence with with the comp vs without.

Without the comp, the dot leaves the window, with the comp I'm able to track the dot through the firing cycle. Being fairly new to red dots, that was very exciting to experience.

I'm nearing 2k rounds and had 1 ftf (124 gr AE fmj) about the 50 round mark. I am running out of brands, bullet weights and bullet types to put through it.

I'm no advocate for their use but I'm convinced of their benefit.

Factory barrel and RCA

Sent from my VS810PP using Tapatalk

[DocGKR]

A US military unit purchased them early in the GWOT and discovered significant functional and reliability issues as the carbon built up between the slide and barrel. In addition, they threw out a lot of muzzle flash with some ammo types. This was all documented over at Lightfighter about 15 years ago.....

[DMF13]

https://www.omahaoutdoors.com/blog/2...nsator-review/

". . . there is something to be said for attaching a big weight to the end of the muzzle in order to keep it from coming up."

I am curious how much simply adding weight is really affecting muzzle rise, rather than the ports.