1911 bushing compensator - damage?

M

Moloch

New member
Just wondering if a heavy bushing type compensator on a 1911 can damage the slide where the bushing is held. :confused:

I mean, during shooting the slide is pushed back at high velocity, now if the bushing is a lot heavier (compensator) than the original inertia exerts a lot of force on the lug and the tiny recess where it engages in the slide.

I'd like to install that compensator but I'm kind of worried that it will damage the slide over time.

Any experiences?

This kind of compensator, it simply replaces the original bushing, and with 2.4 ounces its a LOT heavier than the original bushing:

d2rA6lb.jpg
 
4

44 AMP

Staff
I do not know the exact answer to your question, but consider these points...

It's heavier, meaning added mass for the recoil to move. This, without anything else changing will slow down the velocity of the slide, which means the force acting on it has a reduced effect.

Rearward thrust is against the breechface, and the compensator is just "pulled along for the ride". Any rearward thrust from gasses acting against the compesator chamber will be borne by the front of the slide where the bushing covers it.

Rotational torque from recoil will be reduced, (less muzzle flip) and while inertia from the greater mass moving back into battery under drive from the recoil spring will be increased, the balance is the heavier mass moves slower, so, less force in total. And the contact area between the rear of the bushing and the front of the slide is LARGE, which would also tend to reduce stresses from torque "whipping" the compensator "down" when the slide stops moving foreward.

I won't say damage to the slide is impossible, but I consider it rather unlikely, and I would expect that IF anything is going to fail, it would be the small lug on the compensator, rather than the slide.

I'd think that with the comp "locked into" the slide, there isn't much "wiggle" possible and without that, the odds of breakage/battering are quite low.

Just my opinion, and worth what you paid for it. :D
 
J

Jim Watson

New member
I have not heard of a bushing comp putting additional wear on the gun. They don't do much but add weight and look Punisher Kewl because they do not have baffling close to bullet diameter.
 
M

Moloch

New member
@ 44AMP Thanks for your ''analysis'' - so with the additional weight slide velocity should decrease significantly resulting in kinda roughly the same wear and tear - and with a tight fit and support of the slide battering and torqueing is rather unlikely - that makes sense. :)

Jim Watson said:
I have not heard of a bushing comp putting additional wear on the gun. They don't do much but add weight and look Punisher Kewl because they do not have baffling close to bullet diameter.
Click to expand...

Yeah I know its probably not going to do much to reduce recoil, but it DOES look kewl and it may result in a little less muzzle flip due to its weight and location at the very front of the gun. :D
 
4

44 AMP

Staff
Adding a couple ounces of weight to the muzzle end of the gun will reduce felt recoil and muzzle flip even if the comp feature does not work!

Be advised that the extra weight might make the slide "sluggish" and may even result in unreliable function.

Slide function in a semi auto is a balancing act, between weight(mass), inertia, spring tension and the power (recoil) of the load being fired.

Sometimes adding a muzzle brake/compensator requires changing the springs, or the load to regain the balance of forces needed for reliable function.

Sometimes, it doesn't, either...:rolleyes:
 
1

101combatvet

New member
Moloch said:
Just wondering if a heavy bushing type compensator on a 1911 can damage the slide where the bushing is held. :confused:

I mean, during shooting the slide is pushed back at high velocity, now if the bushing is a lot heavier (compensator) than the original inertia exerts a lot of force on the lug and the tiny recess where it engages in the slide.

I'd like to install that compensator but I'm kind of worried that it will damage the slide over time.

Any experiences?

This kind of compensator, it simply replaces the original bushing, and with 2.4 ounces its a LOT heavier than the original bushing:

d2rA6lb.jpg
Click to expand...
That could be the least of your worries. Is this 1911 custom accurized?
 
M

Moloch

New member
44 AMP said:
Adding a couple ounces of weight to the muzzle end of the gun will reduce felt recoil and muzzle flip even if the comp feature does not work!

Be advised that the extra weight might make the slide "sluggish" and may even result in unreliable function.

Slide function in a semi auto is a balancing act, between weight(mass), inertia, spring tension and the power (recoil) of the load being fired.

Sometimes adding a muzzle brake/compensator requires changing the springs, or the load to regain the balance of forces needed for reliable function.

Sometimes, it doesn't, either...:rolleyes:
Click to expand...

The gun has slide cuts taking away some weight, so by adding weight via the muzzle brake I might be getting back to the original weight (with better weight distributions to reduce muzzle raise). In any case, I will fiddle around with the spring weights anyway to see what works best.
101combatvet said:
That could be the least of your worries. Is this 1911 custom accurized?
Click to expand...

The gun in the picture is not mine, just used it as reference for the kind of brake I'm using.

74A95 said:
Readers might find this article on bushing compensators of interest;

https://www.shootingtimes.com/editorial/reducing-recoil-traditional-vs-bushing-compensators/99649
Click to expand...

Thanks!
 
1

101combatvet

New member
Personally, I think you'll be wasting your money. The barrel bushing to barrel fit is a critical element in the accuracy of a 1911. In all likelihood replacing it with a compensator of this type might make target accusation time better, but accuracy might be compromised. If you're dead set on having a ported 1911 get an extended barrel and get a shop to port it for you. If you can get an extended match barrel, all the better.
 
B

BillM

New member
Personal opinion. Bushing compensators are a waste of time and money.
If you want an effective compensator, have your gun re-barreled. Threaded
for a screw on comp, or made with the comp integral. There are also barrels
available with an extended sight block that add sight radius and front end
weight without any porting. None of these options are cheap.

If you want some additional front weight to help with recoil, drop in a full length
tungsten guide rod. Around $100.
 
M

Moloch

New member
Guys, I know the bushing compensator wont work wonders, or nearly as good as a proper caliber-sized compensator. I have comps on my polymer guns, proper ones on threaded barrels, but I'm sure sure it will work a bit simply because of the weight distribution. And SOME of the gas will hit the cuts and reduce recoil a tiny little bit.

So to sum it up, it looks cool, its easy to install, its not very expensive, it will help a tiny little bit. That's worth a try in my book! :D
 
R

RickB

New member
I was surprised to find Wilson Combat selling a bushing comp, thinking it's not much of a performance enhancer, but they claim a measurable recoil reduction with their part.
I'd go for the tungsten rod, if added weight is important, but the bushing comp does have some wow factor.
 
1

101combatvet

New member
Moloch said:
Guys, I know the bushing compensator wont work wonders, or nearly as good as a proper caliber-sized compensator. I have comps on my polymer guns, proper ones on threaded barrels, but I'm sure sure it will work a bit simply because of the weight distribution. And SOME of the gas will hit the cuts and reduce recoil a tiny little bit.

So to sum it up, it looks cool, its easy to install, its not very expensive, it will help a tiny little bit. That's worth a try in my book! :D
Click to expand...
Does anyone care about how "cool" your pistol looks once they see your group size? Don't fool yourself; the only "cool" is punching out the X ring.
 
M

Moloch

New member
101combatvet said:
Does anyone care about how "cool" your pistol looks once they see your group size? Don't fool yourself; the only "cool" is punching out the X ring.
Click to expand...

I could not care less about what other people think of my guns or how good my group sizes are. I train to become better than I was yesterday and I modify my guns so *I* like them.

I'm a better shot than 85% of the people on my local range for sure, so I don't worry to much about making a fool of myself in terms of accuracy. Not that I care much about that.
 
1

101combatvet

New member
Moloch said:
I could not care less about what other people think of my guns or how good my group sizes are. I train to become better than I was yesterday and I modify my guns so *I* like them.

I'm a better shot than 85% of the people on my local range for sure, so I don't worry to much about making a fool of myself in terms of accuracy. Not that I care much about that.
Click to expand...
Cool, then you don't need the compensator after all.
 
1

101combatvet

New member
Moloch said:
According to the tests in the link provided by user 74A95 the bushing compensator helps to reduce recoil by about 20-28%. And I find it looks good. That's two good reasons to install it.
Click to expand...
At the end of the day, the only thing that matters is accuracy.
 
4

44 AMP

Staff
At the end of the day, the only thing that matters is accuracy.
Click to expand...

To a benchrest shooter, maybe....:rolleyes:

Sufficient accuracy is vitally important, but its not the only thing that matters. Power matters, too. Sometimes, so does speed.

If the bushing compensator doesn't decrease the accuracy of the gun or the shooter, or its reliability, the rest is just personal preference.
 
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