NRA Gun Gear of the Week: Shield v. Shield—Recoil

by
posted on August 13, 2017

Opinions vary about the utility of ported barrels and slides, especially on 9-mm guns—not exactly a behemoth chambering—and especially on a personal defense pistol. But after shooting a standard, non-ported Shield side-by-side with the ported Performance Center model—as well as many other subcompact pistols—American Rifleman's Joe Kurtenbach is convinced there is merit to the arrangement. In such a small, lightweight gun, any feature that helps get the barrel and sights back on target quickly could be a life-saving advantage.


Not willing to drill holes in his trusty Shield, however, Kurtenbach instead turned to Talon Grips for an alternative form of recoil management. Talon Grips specializes in purchase-enhancing, textured grips panels that are affordable, and as easy to apply as a sticker. They are also some of the cleanest, most sophisticated and precisely designed stickers you’ll ever encounter as they feature a heat-activated adhesive and are cut to fit specific gun models perfectly, even incorporating channels and windows that align with the host firearm’s lines and logos.


Kurtenbach chose the black rubberized grip for the project Shield, and application was easily accomplished with the help of a hair dryer. The grip’s texturing was a vast improvement over the molded frame—which was already quite good—and even though the Talon grip added just a very thin layer of material to the sub-1”-wide frame, the project Shield actually felt substantially larger in hand.

On the range, the grips offered performance on par with the ported barrel and slide, and Kurtenbach thinks they may be the best value of the whole project.

To see the application process, and for more commentary, watch this week's NRA Gun Gear of the Week video above.



Additional Reading:

NRA Gun Gear of the Week: Shield v. Shield—Concept
NRA Gun Gear of the Week: Shield v. Shield—Sights
NRA Gun Gear of the Week: Shield v. Shield—Trigger
NRA Gun Gear of the Week: Conclusion



 

Latest

Forehand & Wadsworth British Bull-Dog right-side view nickel-plated gun revolver with black grip
Forehand & Wadsworth British Bull-Dog right-side view nickel-plated gun revolver with black grip

I Have This Old Gun: Forehand & Wadsworth British Bull-Dog

Many eagle-eyed NRA members viewing the 1993 Western “Tombstone” no doubt recognized the Forehand & Wadsworth British Bull-Dog so deftly welded by actress Joanna Pacula, portraying Big Nose Kate, during a contemptuous card game between Doc Holliday and Ed Bailey.

Medal Of Honor Marine Receives Henry Repeating Arms Tribute

Henry Repeating Arms presented a Spirit of the Corps 250th Anniversary Tribute Edition rifle to Maj. Gen. Livingston for going above and beyond the call of duty on May 2, 1968, during the Battle of Dai Do in Vietnam.

Preview: Duramag 1911 DS Magazines

Duramag’s 1911 DS Magazines are compatible with numerous 9 mm Luger-chambered 2011-style handguns on the market.

Colt Monitor: The FBI’s “Fighting Rifle”

In the years between the World Wars, a rare variation of the Browning Automatic Rifle proved its reputation as an effective, devastating automatic rifle for combat between the country’s lawmen and its outlaws.

The Armed Citizen® May 19, 2025

Read today's "The Armed Citizen" entry for real stories of law-abiding citizens, past and present, who used their firearms to save lives.

Report Shows Inventory, Prices Have Dropped At Firearm Retailers

Nearly all gun and related gear inventories at retailers dropped in the last 12 months. So have most prices paid at the counter, according to the year-over-year comparison detailed in the latest RetailBI report.

Interests



Get the best of American Rifleman delivered to your inbox.