Member consensus on Taurus

In the last 8-10 years, I have purchased several new Taurus revolvers (in no particular order):

2 x 605s
1 x 85UL
1 x Gaucho
1 x 992
1 x M44

All have proven reliable and accurate enough for my needs. The M44 was the most recent and the fit/finish is surprisingly good even if the trigger is a tad heavy. I think the red insert on the front sight is a sticker instead of paint and if/when it departs, I plan to replace it with a dab of fingernail polish and keep going.

My experiences with their customer service have been positive. The first was when the captive recoil spring on my PT145 Millennium (Gen 1) freed itself and locked up the pistol. Taurus CS was responsive and repaired it quickly. I have never had any issues with the 2 x PT111 Millennium Pros I also have or the PT92 or the 2 x PT1911s.

My second experience was a DOB lookup on a 445. CS answered both the phone and question with alacrity.

I like the 992, particularly the ability to quickly change cylinders. I do not shoot it much these days but would not hesitate to buy one if it were competitively priced.

I've owned .38 Special Model 85 and 856 that functioned well with no issues.

Have had a few of their semi-autos over the years (a PT138 Mil. Pro., PT111 Mil.Pro., and a PT92). All three were decent enough in their build quality though the triggers and safeties left something to be desired and the sights on the PT138 and PT111 never seemed to line-up right on target for me.

Tallball said:

My G2C was great, other than the weird long trigger pull.

Click to expand...

The long trigger pull has been addressed as new G2Cs I bought for my sister/BIL several weeks ago now have improved SA/DA trigger.

So you get light SA trigger pull all the time that allows for fast follow up shots and DA trigger if second strike on the primer is needed (Nice feature).

i have had 2 for several years.
one is a .357 snubbie that i use for cc sometimes, the other is a 1911 (from early 2000's?)
i really like both, no problems with either.
the 1911 may be the most accurate handgun i have, except for maybe the colt python i have (which are both more accurate than i am).
feeds anything and everything, including my reloads, and i'm probably not the best reloader in the world.

they do lots of custom work (or did; don't know about now) at the factory. i occasionally carried it in colorado (i live in texas) because when they first passed their cc law, you had to have a
gun with at least a 4-inch barrel.

I have had two different handguns and had problems with both.

The Revolver had timing issues and the semi auto was only good for practicing clearing FTF jams.

I will never bet mine or my family's safety on anything that has the Taurus name on it.

Subpar quality at best IMO spend your money elseware.

Taurus had a bad reputation. Their revolvers were solid, their semi-autos were 50-50. We used to joke that they called it a lifetime warranty because it would take a lifetime to get it back if you sent one in for repair. They even sent a pistol sent to them for repair from our shop in Florida to a completely different shop in Ohio. I wouldn't buy a Taurus if they were the last manufacturer on the planet.

However, since they have moved from Miami to Georgia, they have completely turned themselves around. Their warranty service is much faster. And they are winning quality awards. Something new to Taurus.

It's hard to change gun owners minds. They aren't open to change. I will bet you that 90% of the people that are telling you they are garbage haven't even touched or fired one of their new pistols. They are comfortable, reliable, accurate and the quality is there. And I don't let internet gun snobs make my decisions for me.

Cayle said:

Taurus had a bad reputation ... since they have moved from Miami to Georgia, they have completely turned themselves around. Their warranty service is much faster. And they are winning quality awards. Something new to Taurus.

Click to expand...

Cayle said:

It's hard to change gun owners minds. They aren't open to change. I will bet you that 90% of the people that are telling you they are garbage haven't even touched or fired one of their new pistols. They are comfortable, reliable, accurate and the quality is there. And I don't let internet gun snobs make my decisions for me.

Click to expand...

I recall handling Glocks in the 80s and going, "What the ****? Who would make gun out of plastic? This won't last!" ... then this 1911/Sig P226 "metal gun" fan became a convert and switched to Glocks for USPSA. I did the same for Taurus going, "Ugh, horrible DAO trigger and cheap/poor quality control pistols ... they won't last!" ... then "Hey, this G2C isn't so bad" ... to "Dang, these new G2C/G3/GX4 are pretty good ... and SA/DA triggers are nice out of the box"

There's a sucker born every minute (David Hannum) , which is why Taurus is still in business.

2 or 3 PT92 -> all worked great, sold to move on to something else
PT92C -> for the wife many years ago, still resides in the mix
8 3/8" 44 Mag -> replaced a PT22 that failed mightedly, no customer service issues on return
4" 669 357 Mag -> bought used in the 80's, shoots great, no problems
4" 94 22LR -> replaced a PT22 that failed mightedly, no customer service issues
856 HyLite 38 Special -> pocket carry snub
94 Lightweight 22LR 9 shot snub -> heavy DA trigger pull but otherwise fun to shoot
TCP 380 Auto -> pocket carry auto, picky about ammo but shoots great with the right loads. Was always skeptical of this one yet it has surprised me with reliability, given proper ammo

Have been looking at a TX22 Steel Plate Competition so it will be the next Taurus purchase.

TarDevil said:

Where did you hear that?

Click to expand...

Internet hearsay from 20 years ago.

I can't help but notice that guys who own or have owned several and who have really put them through their paces often seem to have a more favorable opinion than guys whose buddy had one 15 years ago....

For many years online I have been coming across the "common knowledge" Attitude that Taurus (along with a couple of others) should be avoided.

There were a few instances that I paused to read along the way where someone actually detailed their bad Taurus experience, so I knew that it was not all smoke. I also knew that over time there were folks with the same types of stories about ALL of the firearms MFRs, so ... a grain of salt was in order to stabilize perspective on the subject.

In the past year I have purchased a Taurus 856 revolver and, separately, 2 Taurus G3c s/a pistols. I was very pleased with the apparent quality of the revolver and, subsequently, decided to buy a G3c which (along with another good sale) led to my purchase of the 2nd.

My limited time with these handguns has done nothing but improve my impressions.

FWIW.

bdickens said:

Internet hearsay from 20 years ago.

Click to expand...

That isn't credible enough to keep me from buying a Taurus.

GBExpat said:

In the past year I have purchased a Taurus 856 revolver and, separately, 2 Taurus G3c s/a pistols. I was very pleased with the apparent quality of the revolver and, subsequently, decided to buy a G3c which (along with another good sale) led to my purchase of the 2nd ... My limited time with these handguns has done nothing but improve my impressions.

Click to expand...

DesertFox said:

2 or 3 PT92 ... PT92C, 8 3/8" 44 Mag -> PT22 ... 4" 669 357 Mag ... 4" 94 22LR -> 856 HyLite 38 Special ... 94 Lightweight 22LR 9 shot snub -> TCP 380 Auto ... looking at a TX22 Steel Plate Competition so it will be the next Taurus purchase.

Click to expand...

TarDevil said:

That isn't credible enough to keep me from buying a Taurus.

Click to expand...

There's a reason why hearsay evidence isn't allowed in court.

All this reminds me of all the bashing Hi Point gets about their carbines. Yes they are ugly, yes they are heavy. But they function reliably and are pretty accurate for such a cheap carbine. And yes I own a Hi Point Carbine that has never let me down.

The same goes for the Taurus revolvers I own.

And as others have mentioned. A lot of manufacturers have had quality control issue, especially over the last two years. I am not a brand snob and always check over every firearm I purchase along with doing a bunch of research before the purchase. This helps me avoid lemons. And every manufacturer will have lemons slip out. What matters is how a company takes care of the customers. And by the sound of it, Taurus is improving on this.

12Bravo20 said:

All this reminds me of all the bashing Hi Point gets about their carbines. Yes they are ugly, yes they are heavy. But they function reliably and are pretty accurate for such a cheap carbine. And yes I own a Hi Point Carbine that has never let me down.

The same goes for the Taurus revolvers I own.

Click to expand...

I used to Poo Poo Hi-Point and swore I would never own such a gun until I shot one and I was impressed by the accuracy and reliability ... It went bang, every time.

Those who haven't shot new Taurus models in recent years maybe pleasantly surprised.

12Bravo20 said:

A lot of manufacturers have had quality control issue ... What matters is how a company takes care of the customers. And by the sound of it, Taurus is improving on this.

Click to expand...

BTW, here are some Hickok45's recent review of Taurus pistols:

• Taurus Raging Bull
• Taurus G2C
• Taurus G3
• Taurus G3C
• Taurus GX4

Had a late 80's manufacturered PT-92 that was a very nice pistol.

Many thousands of rounds and never a single malfunction, although it wasn't terribly accurate.

Traded it off but always kind of regretted it.

Best friend had a 6" 669VR .357 mag made in roughly the same time frame that was a huge piece of ****

Had to use vice grips to pull the brass out wether with .38 spl or .357 mag.

Spit lead/copper from day one and periodically the thing would just lock up.

It went down the road quickly.

Personal opinion is, unless I had extremely limited finances I would pass.

Although, I also feel that, if I owned other, proven firearms I could afford to take a chance since I wouldn't be confined to one, potentially dubious gun.

Taurus does have some interesting pieces and I have to give them credit for a very extensive product lineup.

They don't seem to be content to rely on the same old design.

Three Taurus Revolvers (two .357 snubbies and a .44 mag all pre-lock) and three Tx-22 rimfire autos. Never had a problem with any of them. I've had the revolvers for 25 or so years and the semi's about 2 years. Shot them all plenty. The .44 is my go-to front door gun if I'm not carrying my EDC for some reason.

I don't consider myself a fan of Taurus, but I do own a PT1911. I've only run several hundred (north of 500, not sure where exactly) rounds through it, but it ate every round I've fed it, from commercial HP's to nasty, dirty reloads that jammed another shooter's race-tuned ParaOrdnance. Totally reliable and more accurate than I'm capable of demonstrating. Other than the mushy trigger (which I'll get around to fixing one of these days, I swear...), I have no complaints.

I own a Taurus 455 , snub nosed , 5 shot , 45 acp , ported barrel , loads with full moon clips .
Bought new in 2005 , well made , tight tolerances , all stainless steel , nice trigger .
Scary accurate ... why a snub nosed revolver shoots such tight groups I'll never know ... but this little big bore belly gun is mine forever .
My daughter has a 445 , snub nosed , 5 shot , 44 special , well made , decent trigger and she used it to stop a armed robber in her place of business ... one shot , left handed to the bad guys mid section put him on the floor and out of the fight . He could have left with the money but he told the four to face the wall and get on their knees ... she said I just knew he wasn't going to leave any witnesses ... I removed my revolver and when he turned his gun back on me I pulled the trigger ... just like you taught me Daddy .
The 445 works quite well on bad guys ... she's going to keep her's too.
Gary

I've owned one and two friends owned Millennium Pros. I wasn't impressed. I pawned mine and never looked back.

I wouldn't own another BUT people whose opinion I respect say that their QC has improved dramatically over the last several years.

I wasn't too impressed with the Millennium or 24/7 series.

What are the members impressions of newer Taurus models like these in recent years?

• Taurus G2C
• Taurus G3
• Taurus G3C
• Taurus GX4