Taurus 85 - My First Revolver

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holdencm9

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Hey all,

Acquired my first revolver over the weekend...a Taurus 85, DAO, blued with wood grips. I bought it from a family friend who inherited it. So we took it to the pawn shop, they offered her $130, I gave her $160. Hope that was fair to all parties. She got more than she would have if she just pawned it, I got it cheaper than I would have otherwise. I wasn't really in the market for a revolver but she has a toddler now so she just wanted to get rid of it. I figured, why not? The metal looks nice, the grips have some wear and tear on them.

Is there a way to determine when it was manufactured, based on the serial #? Is there anything else I need to know about this little guy? I think I will replace the grips with some hogues (for the looks as much as the feel) and take it to the range occasionally. It probably won't replace my LCP or CW9 for carry, but I guess it is another option.

It rattles but I think I have already determined from my internet research that is 'normal' for this model revolver. I also thought the left side metal piece behind the cylinder might be bent but I think I determined it is designed that way (so the cylinder can go back in smoothly).

Thanks!
 
Put some ammo through her and make sure she works right. If it don't ship it to Taurus to take advantage of the lifetime warranty that takes just as long to utelize. No but really the 85 is a pretty solid gun. And that's a pretty good deal.
 
I just boght my 2nd used Taurus mod 85 today for $200.
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A used blued 85 sell for $200 to $260 around here.

The piece behind the cylinder that sticks out on both sides is called the recoil sheild. There is a cut out on the left side to make it eisier to close the cylinder.
Check that the action looks up properly by (1st make sure the gun is unloaded) Cock the hammer and hold it back as you pull the trigger, Then let the hammer down slowly while keeping the trigger pulled to the rear. Once the hammer is down and keeping the trigger pulled, wiggle the cylinder and see if it is locked and will not turn. With the trigger still held to the rear, push on the right side of the cylinder to see if the cylinder moves to the left. You shoud look ad the front of the frame where the cylinder crain and the frame meets. This gap should move very little when you push on the right side of the cylinder.
 
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I would have to say that was a pretty good price for it and you helped out a mom in need.
Win/Win if you ask me!
 
Congratulations! Nice pickup. As you say, you both did better on the deal that you would have otherwise.


If you go to Taurus' website and put in the SN, the site can give you the year of manufacture.
 
If you don't care for the newer grips try hogues soft rubber grip that lets 3 finger on for better control. I carried a 85ss for 20 years. Great revolver.
 
Thanks for the replies, guys!

Walking Dead, I did get a chance to shoot it before buying it. While I was not as accurate as I would have liked, it seemed to shoot fine and be mechanically sound. I think most of the inaccuracy could be attributed to me :)

Gunny, I saw right after I posted that you had a good pickup on a Model 85 too! The stainless looks awesome...although I think I will like the black on black of mine too, once I put some hogue grips on it. "Recoil shield" yes, I couldn't remember what it was called. (See, still new to this whole revolver thing) It is a DAO though so is it possible to do the check for the action lockup. Also in your thread you mentioned an additional hammer safety. What is that and how do I know if mine has it? Is it not safe to carry if it doesn't have that (without keeping the tube in front of the hammer empty).

From tubeshooter's advice I figured out the exact model is 2-850121 and production year is 1993.

Thanks again everyone!
 
holdencm9
You can check for the action lockup by just dry firing the gun and hold the trigger to the rear.
Your gun is safe to carry fully loaded. It has a built in transfer safty bar safty. The gun will only fire if the triger is held to the rear when the hammer falls. You will not be able to see it on your gun, due to it being hammerless. This does not mean that your gun does not have a hammer, just that it is not exposed.
Here is a pic of both of my Taurus 85s. The matt stainless is a newer model with the beef up front of frame and crane. The newer one has the added safety lock on the back of the hammer. A key is used to turn the lock which locks the hammer so that the gun can not be cocked.
 

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You did very well on that--it was a win/win for you & the family friend. Some of the triggers on those small framed Taurus wheelies are real smooth. Hope it works out well.
 
If you want to find out when it was manufactured there are two ways to do that.

The first is to call Taurus Customer Service number at 1-800-327-3776 and give them the serial number.

The second way is to click on www.taurususa.com/find-model.cfm

The first way usually gets better results.

Own a 85CH which is so old....... :)

85s have been the bread and butter guns for Taurus for many decades.
 
Mine is a 1990 non +p darn it, but a really slick action. If anyone try's wolf 's lighter hammer spring you will be very suprised how light the trigger pull will be and for me 1500 rounds with it in. Put in right after i started cc'n a pistol. No FTF. 4 1/2lb da pull, sa is only 2 1/2lb. Its been used by several friends for there cc class's. 2 bought taurus 85's as there first cc's.
 
It is said that no changes were made between the officially +P and non +P rated model 85s. Year of official changeover was 1995.


Mine is just before the official designation. I don't go out of my way to shoot +P, but I also don't worry about occasional use. I load up with +P for defense and don't lose any sleep at night. You shouldn't either.
 
holdencm9
Taurus 85 - My First Revolver
Click to expand...


You got an awesome deal, of course it depends on the revolver's condition. The concealed hammer 85s are ok guns. Just don't do a steady diet of +P out of it. For that matter, do a serial number check with Taurus to determine whether it is +P rated. Some of the early ones are not. I had one from the early 90's that was not +P rated.
 
I have been thinking about getting one of these to break into revolvers, but I have yet to find one anywhere near that price.
 
Hey guys, I got the Hogue grips and put them on and went to the range the other day. The 85 shoots pretty darn well! The hogues are WAY more comfortable for me, and I like the black on black look, rather than the wood grip look. I shot like crap at first, but towards the end of the box was getting little 3" groups at like 7 yards. (Well, I consider that good for me, and the intended purpose of the gun, even though I know the gun is way more accurate than that).

I did find out that the year of manufacture was 1993. It spit out a model number too (2-850121) so not sure if that means it is +P rated or not, but from the sounds of it, they should be fine with some +P, just not a steady diet.

I have been thinking about getting one of these to break into revolvers, but I have yet to find one anywhere near that price.
Click to expand...

Yeah usually at pawn shops and LGS's I see them for around $250.
 
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