Tallball
Member
- Joined
- Oct 2, 2014
- Messages
- 7,826
I have changed every spring (and the firing pin) in my S&W Model 642. A local gunsmith also worked on it. It has yet to meet my standards for reliability in a SD handgun.
As a result, I "rescued" an abused/neglected Taurus Model 85 2" snub as a sort of stopgap 38 j-frame snub to carry every once in a while in my back pocket until the Model 642's problems were resolved.
The little Taurus had surface rust all over it, a few spots of the finish were totally ruined, the grips were full of grease and dirt, the cylinder area and barrel were filthy, the trigger was stiff, the cylinder spun slowly, etc.
After some hours of work I had it cleaned up and functioning properly. It's the fourth Model 85 I've owned, so it was no surprise to me that it shot various varieties of 38 special just fine. And its trigger is pretty good for a Taurus. After I put a couple hundred various rounds through it for reliability check, I ground off off the hammer spur, and now I carry it in my back pocket when I walk the dog.
One day I was hiking around in the woods near the creek with my aforementioned doggy, and realized it would be easy to carry something larger when I'm out in the countryside. I have some semiauto pistols that would work, but I grew up with revolvers and they're more natural for me.
I wanted something bigger than a j-frame, but not as big as a 4" Model 10 with large grips. I found a 3" Taurus Model 82 from 1992 in very good to excellent condition. It had the tiny wooden OEM grips. I replaced them with some NoS "agent grips". I guess most people would call them boot grips. They're easier to conceal than the original grips, and they fit my hands better. They extend more towards the trigger guard than the originals, like adding a t-grip. Towards the butt they get thinner than the original grips, but that doesn't matter to me because with my gorilla hands I have to tuck my pinky under the butt of every j-frame and k-frame that I shoot anyway.
I took the Model 82 to the range with a friend today. We put maybe 75 rounds of assorted ammo through it - some of his reloads, and various stray rounds from my range ammo can. It was completely reliable. The trigger was smooth for a Taurus. We shot it at paper targets at seven yards. In single action either of us could put six rounds quickly into a baseball-sized group every time. In double action it was more like a softball, and maybe a flyer sometimes, but still pretty good. The sights are good for fixed sights, though I need to paint the front sight a brighter color. After I get used to it over a few more range visits, I will get better shooting it in double action.
The "new" Taurus is a medium-framed service revolver, which is something I'm very used to shooting. But the barrel is an inch or three shorter than I'm used to, and the grip is smaller (I use big target type grips on my K-frames). I kept having the feeling that I had a squib, or that I'd just shot a 22. The recoil felt way too light. My friend laughed and told me that I was shooting it just like I shot my j-frames.
Yeah, he was right. The barrel and grips are kinda short, so my hands thought they were shooting a j-frame and they were expecting more recoil. It was interesting and probably helped me shoot better.
Anyway, that's the true story of why I bought this Model 82. I did some digging and discovered I have a nice leather service type holster and nice leather higher up on the belt holster that both fit it. After I shoot another bunch of rounds through it, I'll see how I like carrying it. If I end up carrying it regularly, I'll regretfully grind off the hammer spur. If it ends up being more of a range toy, I'll leave it as is.
I'm not sure if it's rated for +P. Any advice on non +P SD ammo would be appreciated. I also need to paint the front sight something other than black. I've been doing red lately, but I'm open to other options. If there is a better carry grip for a medium-framed revolver like this, I have no objection to trying others.
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As a result, I "rescued" an abused/neglected Taurus Model 85 2" snub as a sort of stopgap 38 j-frame snub to carry every once in a while in my back pocket until the Model 642's problems were resolved.
The little Taurus had surface rust all over it, a few spots of the finish were totally ruined, the grips were full of grease and dirt, the cylinder area and barrel were filthy, the trigger was stiff, the cylinder spun slowly, etc.
After some hours of work I had it cleaned up and functioning properly. It's the fourth Model 85 I've owned, so it was no surprise to me that it shot various varieties of 38 special just fine. And its trigger is pretty good for a Taurus. After I put a couple hundred various rounds through it for reliability check, I ground off off the hammer spur, and now I carry it in my back pocket when I walk the dog.
One day I was hiking around in the woods near the creek with my aforementioned doggy, and realized it would be easy to carry something larger when I'm out in the countryside. I have some semiauto pistols that would work, but I grew up with revolvers and they're more natural for me.
I wanted something bigger than a j-frame, but not as big as a 4" Model 10 with large grips. I found a 3" Taurus Model 82 from 1992 in very good to excellent condition. It had the tiny wooden OEM grips. I replaced them with some NoS "agent grips". I guess most people would call them boot grips. They're easier to conceal than the original grips, and they fit my hands better. They extend more towards the trigger guard than the originals, like adding a t-grip. Towards the butt they get thinner than the original grips, but that doesn't matter to me because with my gorilla hands I have to tuck my pinky under the butt of every j-frame and k-frame that I shoot anyway.
I took the Model 82 to the range with a friend today. We put maybe 75 rounds of assorted ammo through it - some of his reloads, and various stray rounds from my range ammo can. It was completely reliable. The trigger was smooth for a Taurus. We shot it at paper targets at seven yards. In single action either of us could put six rounds quickly into a baseball-sized group every time. In double action it was more like a softball, and maybe a flyer sometimes, but still pretty good. The sights are good for fixed sights, though I need to paint the front sight a brighter color. After I get used to it over a few more range visits, I will get better shooting it in double action.
The "new" Taurus is a medium-framed service revolver, which is something I'm very used to shooting. But the barrel is an inch or three shorter than I'm used to, and the grip is smaller (I use big target type grips on my K-frames). I kept having the feeling that I had a squib, or that I'd just shot a 22. The recoil felt way too light. My friend laughed and told me that I was shooting it just like I shot my j-frames.
Yeah, he was right. The barrel and grips are kinda short, so my hands thought they were shooting a j-frame and they were expecting more recoil. It was interesting and probably helped me shoot better.
Anyway, that's the true story of why I bought this Model 82. I did some digging and discovered I have a nice leather service type holster and nice leather higher up on the belt holster that both fit it. After I shoot another bunch of rounds through it, I'll see how I like carrying it. If I end up carrying it regularly, I'll regretfully grind off the hammer spur. If it ends up being more of a range toy, I'll leave it as is.
I'm not sure if it's rated for +P. Any advice on non +P SD ammo would be appreciated. I also need to paint the front sight something other than black. I've been doing red lately, but I'm open to other options. If there is a better carry grip for a medium-framed revolver like this, I have no objection to trying others.
View media item 4130
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