The Case for Compensators
Factory-compensated carry guns are coming on strong. Here’s what you need to know to sell them.
By David Maccar
The Springfield Armory Echleon 4.5F Comp 9mm boasts an integrated compensator. Concealed beneath the slide cover plate is the Echelon Comp’s patent-pending optic-mounting system.
It’s a fact: Compensated pistols are fast becoming standard equipment for a variety of applications that now include concealed carry and self-defense. Why? Because the design helps reduce recoil while also helping shooters deliver precision shots.
Today, there are a number of concealed-carry handguns that come from the factory either with an integrated compensator, like the relatively new Smith & Wesson Carry Comp M&P9 2.0 (Booth #12427) and Springfield Armory’s new Echelon Comp pistols (Booth #11217), or that ship with a more traditional muzzle-mounted comp, like the Springfield Armory Hellcat RDP.
For years, compensators were relegated to big handguns; here, I’m talking about bone-rattling magnum revolvers for hunting and semi-autos tricked out for rapid fire in competition shooting. So why should your customers want a compensator on a tiny carry gun in the first place? Because they work. Let me explain.
For all intents and purposes, in 2025 we can consider handgun compensators and ports as the same thing. The end goal of both has always been the same, to vent gas from a fired round upward, thereby reducing felt recoil and muzzle flip, making it easier for a shooter to get back on target faster for follow-up shots. That’s why they’re good for fast competition shooting—and for making rounds like the .460 S&W Magnum somewhat more manageable.
Compensators come in two flavors: those that attach to the end of the muzzle and those that are integrated into the slide for a better profile and ease of use.
Some old-school handgunners ported their carry guns, both semi-autos and revolvers; that’s why you still see customized officer-sized 1911s from the 1970s and 1980s with gunsmith-milled ports. A compensated or ported .45 ACP full-size gun is an absolute dream to shoot. And the industry has always flirted with them, while they, along with muzzle brakes, became widely accepted on rifles and hunting handguns.
Traditional compensators attach to the muzzle of a barrel. They have one or more baffled expansion chambers that redirect gasses upward through one or more ports. They are more effective than ports because they also slow down the barrel and slide during the firing sequence, reducing felt recoil. That does mean some compensated guns may have trouble cycling with lighter loads, and we’ll get to that in a bit. Nowadays, that definition has to be expanded to include an integrated compensator, which is essentially a large port with a shaped slide cut above it.
Dispelling Compensator Myths
So far, there are a lot of checks in the pro column for comps. They reduce muzzle flip and recoil; they allow a shooter to reacquire a sight picture faster; and they allow shooters to more easily handle hard-hitting and hard-kicking cartridges in semi-autos, like the 10mm. Compensators also help tame snappy recoil from a 9mm in small, super-lightweight polymer pistols and make a full-size steel 9mm feel like you’re shooting a .22.
But there’s always a tradeoff. Comps have been slow to be adopted by the CCW world because of what are largely a set of gun myths that the internet continually circulates.
The first myth says that when a comp directs gases upward, it also directs muzzle blast upward—right into the shooter’s field of view. That can affect a shooter’s vision in low-light situations, and as we all know real-world self-defense scenarios, unlike pistol competitions, often play out in low light and in tight spaces.
Tests have mostly laid this myth to rest by concluding that the size of a muzzle flash mostly depends on the type of ammo being used. Some loads produce a significant flash with or without a comp. If this is preventing a customer from buying a gun with a comp, advise them to test their carry gun with their self-defense ammo of choice in low light, training they should be doing anyway.
Another often-repeated downside goes something like this:“If you have to use a compensated gun to defend yourself in a tight spot, or if you have to shoot from an unconventional position, the gas will burn you.” Okay, sure, if someone fires the gun right next to their face, they’re going to experience a minor burn. And if they fire through a jacket pocket, the gas could singe their clothing. Even then, it won’t be a catastrophic event. You can also remind a customer that the gas ejected from the cylinder gap of any revolver produces a similar effect.
You might also hear someone ramble on about debris ending up in the ports and causing malfunctions. To this group recommend a different holster, one properly designed to accommodate a compensated pistol.
There’s one more downside that bears addressing: Much like muzzle brakes on rifles, comps make handguns louder. And this one isn’t a myth, it’s just the plain truth. It’s a side effect of the compensator’s function of venting hot exhaust gases.
The final concern a customer may bring up, and one you may want to mention to them, is that a compensator can affect a pistol’s reliability for the reasons mentioned above. They do slow down the movement of the barrel and slide a bit. If they thread onto the barrel, they also add weight to it, which can affect performance. And, of course, muzzle-mounted comps make a gun longer.
You solve the reliability question by telling a customer to get their comped handgun and ammo dialed in over a few hundred rounds to ensure reliability. That way they know exactly how the gun performs. In a severe case where they can’t get any ammo to function reliably, a lighter recoil spring may be called for.
But, the great thing about factory-comped pistols is they go through extensive R&D at their respective gunmakers, so these issues are thoroughly weighed and tested before the gun comes to market.
Lastly, today’s compensators aren’t the comps of even 10 years ago. Back in the day, a gunsmith had to time an aftermarket comp so it would thread onto a barrel tightly and be level when it stopped turning. Shims were involved, and removing one for cleaning, which is necessary when breaking down a semi-auto, wasn’t fun. New systems for attaching a comp, like Springfield’s proprietary Self Indexing design, make attaching and detaching as easy as a installing a suppressor. Of course, integrated comps never have to be messed with at all.
What You’re Really Selling
In the end, what you’re really selling is a better, less-punishing shooting experience, which translates to more fun when shooting and training. You’re also selling the promise of more reliable follow-up shots when it truly matters.
And compensators do work, especially on ultra-compact CCW pistols in 9mm. That snappy little round in a self-defense load can be awful for some people to shoot from a small gun, but the difference shooting the Hellcat, for example, with and without the comp is illuminating. And if a gun is easier and more fun to shoot, a person is more likely to train with it more often. And that is obviously a very good thing.
Springfield Armory’s Hellcat RDP uses a more traditional muzzle-mounted compensator.
“Tests have mostly laid this myth to rest by concluding that the size of a muzzle flash mostly depends on the type of ammo being used.”
Compensators help tame snappy recoil from a 9mm in small, super-lightweight polymer pistols and make a full-size steel 9mm feel like you’re shooting a .22.
Smith & Wesson Carry Comp M&P9 2.0 features an integrated compensator.