Taurus 605 Defender

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Ascot500

Ascot500

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I like it in concept - compact and light weight but with enough mass and barrel length to suit the .357 mag.
And it costs significantly less than the competition.
But I just read the review in American Rifleman and saw the accuracy results
Two inch groups at 7 yards - seven yards?
Sorry Taurus, that aint gonna cut it
 
That should work out to about a 7 inch group at 25 yards and their quality is luck of the draw at best. I own a couple of them one is a 85 ultralite that out of the box you pull the trigger in double action and the first 2 or three times I had to push it back forward. After that and dry firing it for a while and a good cleaning it turned out OK. I just got a 3 inch 856 also a new gun out of the box 1 chamber of the cylinder the timing is off (bolt doesn't engage notch in cylinder) if you cycle it slowly. Their customer service tried to tell me revolvers don't function that way you have to work them briskly. I told them I'm 67 years old and have owned probably 150 different revolvers in my life and I know better (currently have 15). Made them send me a prepaid shipping label and sent it back to them. Lord knows how many months before I get it back and I'll not be surprised if it's not fixed.
I bought both of these new on the net and had them shipped to my local FFL.
NO WAY will I ever buy another Taurus unless I can inspect it in person before I buy it. In fact it's highly unlikely that I'll buy another Taurus at all.
It's a shame because I like the design of a lot of their revolvers and they currently have several models with 3 inch barrels and have made other models in the past that had the 3 inchers which is one of my favorite barrel lenghts on a revolver. Unfortunatly the quality of manufacture isn't there and they must not have a quality control department at all.
My gun arrived at their facility a week ago last Monday by Fedex tracking and was signed for. Taurus doesn't even have the courtesy to email me they have it in their possession and a estimate of repair time.
 
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I really want to like this gun but past experiences with Taurus products and current reviews scare me off. I wish there were more quality 3" revolvers to choose from.
 
My only experience with Taurus is that in 1999 or so, I bought a new model 970 in 22 LR. That particular specimen has been flawless out of the box and has remained so all this time.

From the above comments, however, I would be hesitant to buy another Taurus due to quality/quality control issues. But, I understand this qualification applies to other manufacturers as well.

These days, I'm tempted not to buy any handgun without a prior hands-on inspection and examination.

Too bad things have come to this...

Bayou52
 
ECVMatt said:
I really want to like this gun but past experiences with Taurus products and current reviews scare me off. I wish there were more quality 3" revolvers to choose from.
Click to expand...
My advice is to buy a 3 inch SP101 or a older S&W model 60 3 inch.
I have one of each but I wanted the Taurus for a beater carry gun here on my farm but I want it to function as it was designed to.
 
Ascot500 said:
I like it in concept - compact and light weight but with enough mass and barrel length to suit the .357 mag.
And it costs significantly less than the competition.
But I just read the review in American Rifleman and saw the accuracy results
Two inch groups at 7 yards - seven yards?
Sorry Taurus, that aint gonna cut it
Click to expand...
Can't seem to find that review. Have a link? I searched the net far and wide and even searched their website.
 
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Ascot500 said:
In the (electronic) August 2022 Rifleman - page 39
Click to expand...

Found it.

The author seems to think that the 605 is derived from the 856. (It isn't. The 605 is the .357 version of the Model 85 which has been around for a long, long time. There' have been 3" 605s now and then for a long time.)

I have a 2" 605 on me right now. I'd buy a 3" if the opportunity presented itself.
 
I’ve got a recent mfg. Taurus 856.
It’s impeccable. Accuracy is FAR FAR , better than 2” at 7yds....
One ragged hole at POA/POI with 148gr DEWC’s over 3.0gr HP38.

It’s 6-shots, but .38Spl +P rated. That’s no big deal, though.
You’ll likely shoot .357’s once, through the 605.
I shot, along with my wife, a Ruger SP101 3” I won in a match, with 125gr Federal .357’s.
We both agreed, too much of a good thing!
She keeps it loaded with Ga. Arms 125gr JHP .38+P.
It’s now “hers”...

The Taurus 856 was $299 at Academy Sports. I had $150 in gift cards, 10% first responder discount, $20 off $100+ purchase, and 5% off balance charged to my cc.
It uses Colt Det. Spl. Size speed loaders.
It’s a “keeper”.
 
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Oh poo. Another Taurus thread. I kind of had one planned, but I was hoping we could go a week or two without another one first.

I've owned a dozen or more Taurus revolvers. One needed factory help to go bang. The rest all went bang.

Yeah, the 605 is an older model. Is it just a thicker Model 85? That's what I always assumed.

So pretty much this, just a little bit thicker.

View media item 4567
 
Ascot500 said:
But I just read the review in American Rifleman and saw the accuracy results
Two inch groups at 7 yards - seven yards?
Sorry Taurus, that aint gonna cut it
Click to expand...
Different ammo in different guns shoots differently. What the reviewer shot may not be what that particular revolver likes, that may not be the case for every 605.

By far the more important aspect to me in a handgun (with fixed sights no less) is did the firearm shoot to POA? I can't stand any handgun that requires me to aim off target to hit it.
 
I have 2 605 poly protectors. One of them has always functioned just fine while the other will lock up/hang up while cycling which has rendered it to dangerous to shoot so it stays put away. I never tried to send it to taurus because Im not paying shipping. Both of them were pretty accurate considering they have 2 inch barrels though. I could, with a few exceptions, stay in the 10 ring with an occasional flyer at around 50 feet which is accurate enough for me.
 
JB111 said:
I have 2 605 poly protectors. One of them has always functioned just fine while the other will lock up/hang up while cycling which has rendered it to dangerous to shoot so it stays put away. I never tried to send it to taurus because Im not paying shipping. Both of them were pretty accurate considering they have 2 inch barrels though. I could, with a few exceptions, stay in the 10 ring with an occasional flyer at around 50 feet which is accurate enough for me.
Click to expand...

How old is the one you have trouble with? If you got it recently and it was new Taurus will pay the shipping both ways to their repair facility.
 
br549arkie said:
How old is the one you have trouble with? If you got it recently and it was new Taurus will pay the shipping both ways to their repair facility.
Click to expand...

Ive had it for several years. I bought it new but the problems didnt start until I had it over a year, Taurus wanted me to pay shipping, wasn't happening. So after about the 3rd time that it locked up while trying to fire it in double action with the hammer at half cock it got put away.
 
Did you talk to Taurus about it? If it's dangerous they ought to be eager to repair it (but then again we're talking about Taurus).
 
br549arkie said:
That should work out to about a 7 inch group at 25 yards and their quality is luck of the draw at best. I own a couple of them one is a 85 ultralite that out of the box you pull the trigger in double action and the first 2 or three times I had to push it back forward. After that and dry firing it for a while and a good cleaning it turned out OK. I just got a 3 inch 856 also a new gun out of the box 1 chamber of the cylinder the timing is off (bolt doesn't engage notch in cylinder) if you cycle it slowly. Their customer service tried to tell me revolvers don't function that way you have to work them briskly. I told them I'm 67 years old and have owned probably 150 different revolvers in my life and I know better (currently have 15). Made them send me a prepaid shipping label and sent it back to them. Lord knows how many months before I get it back and I'll not be surprised if it's not fixed.
I bought both of these new on the net and had them shipped to my local FFL.
NO WAY will I ever buy another Taurus unless I can inspect it in person before I buy it. In fact it's highly unlikely that I'll buy another Taurus at all.
It's a shame because I like the design of a lot of their revolvers and they currently have several models with 3 inch barrels and have made other models in the past that had the 3 inchers which is one of my favorite barrel lenghts on a revolver. Unfortunatly the quality of manufacture isn't there and they must not have a quality control department at all.
My gun arrived at their facility a week ago last Monday by Fedex tracking and was signed for. Taurus doesn't even have the courtesy to email me they have it in their possession and a estimate of repair time.
Click to expand...

Well I'll have to give some credit to Taurus. Got the 856 back today exactly 2 weeks after I shipped it and the timing is perfect now. The paperwork says they replaced the cylinder assembly. You figure 2 days shipping each way and 2 weekends when they were closed it works out to 6 days repair and turnaround time. I'd say that pretty darn good.
 
JB111 said:
Ive had it for several years. I bought it new but the problems didnt start until I had it over a year, Taurus wanted me to pay shipping, wasn't happening. So after about the 3rd time that it locked up while trying to fire it in double action with the hammer at half cock it got put away.
Click to expand...


Seems a shame to put a problem gun into stasis. I think I'd try to get satisfaction from Taurus. If they still want you to pay shipping, do you know any local smith's? Might try a decent sized gun store, many will work with several and the Taurus actions are not a mystery.

Over the years I've taken in two smith's, a Taurus, and probably various makes and models I've forgotten at this point.

I was charged seven dollars to fix a Taurus judge and zero dollars for a Smith. You just never know. Might be worth a try.

If your confidence in it is shaken, you could fix and it send it down the line.
 
JB111 said:
I have 2 605 poly protectors. One of them has always functioned just fine while the other will lock up/hang up while cycling which has rendered it to dangerous to shoot so it stays put away. I never tried to send it to taurus because Im not paying shipping. Both of them were pretty accurate considering they have 2 inch barrels though. I could, with a few exceptions, stay in the 10 ring with an occasional flyer at around 50 feet which is accurate enough for me.
Click to expand...

You ever take a look inside and give it a good cleaning? Might be something simple.
Myself I don't care for having a non functioning stuff around especially when it comes to a firearm.
 
br549arkie said:
You ever take a look inside and give it a good cleaning? Might be something simple.
Myself I don't care for having a non functioning stuff around especially when it comes to a firearm.
Click to expand...
I like to tinker. I'd have more fun and a since of accomplishment by figuring out what the issue is, and then fixing it myself vs sending a gun in.
 
br549arkie said:
Did you talk to Taurus about it? If it's dangerous they ought to be eager to repair it (but then again we're talking about Taurus).
Click to expand...

I called them when the problem showed itself. They said I had to pay shipping because I had it for longer than a year. That was the end of it. If Smith & Wesson and Ruger can pay shipping on 15 year old guns, taurus can pay shipping on one that is 15 months old.

defjon said:
Seems a shame to put a problem gun into stasis. I think I'd try to get satisfaction from Taurus. If they still want you to pay shipping, do you know any local smith's? Might try a decent sized gun store, many will work with several and the Taurus actions are not a mystery.

Over the years I've taken in two smith's, a Taurus, and probably various makes and models I've forgotten at this point.

I was charged seven dollars to fix a Taurus judge and zero dollars for a Smith. You just never know. Might be worth a try.

If your confidence in it is shaken, you could fix and it send it down the line.
Click to expand...

We have a shortage of gunsmiths in my area. The closest one that I know of is a solid hour or more drive and he has a backlog that is 2 years long. Ive thought about taking it apart myself but I dont really know a lot about working on revolvers. Im sure I could learn but at the time fixing it just wasnt important enough to me so I put it away and carried the other one like it.

br549arkie said:
You ever take a look inside and give it a good cleaning? Might be something simple.
Myself I don't care for having a non functioning stuff around especially when it comes to a firearm.
Click to expand...

Ive never taken it apart, mainly because it is poly and Ive never worked on many revolvers, much less one that is polymer framed. I wasnt really worried about it being unusable because I have another one just like it so I figured worst case scenario use it as a parts gun. Talking about it here is making me get the itch to tinker with it though, I may take it out tomorrow and see if I can take it apart and check it out, as I said, even if I make it worse, it can always just be a parts gun for the other one.
 
Yep,Can be a parts gun either way if you don't find the problem. Don't know where you are but where I live temps have been from about mid 90's up to 107F it'd be a good project in the air conditioned house.
 
JB111 said:
I called them when the problem showed itself. They said I had to pay shipping because I had it for longer than a year. That was the end of it. If Smith & Wesson and Ruger can pay shipping on 15 year old guns, taurus can pay shipping on one that is 15 months old.



We have a shortage of gunsmiths in my area. The closest one that I know of is a solid hour or more drive and he has a backlog that is 2 years long. Ive thought about taking it apart myself but I dont really know a lot about working on revolvers. Im sure I could learn but at the time fixing it just wasnt important enough to me so I put it away and carried the other one like it.



Ive never taken it apart, mainly because it is poly and Ive never worked on many revolvers, much less one that is polymer framed. I wasnt really worried about it being unusable because I have another one just like it so I figured worst case scenario use it as a parts gun. Talking about it here is making me get the itch to tinker with it though, I may take it out tomorrow and see if I can take it apart and check it out, as I said, even if I make it worse, it can always just be a parts gun for the other one.
Click to expand...

Go to Taurus armed.net and do a search for 605 poly disassembly. There's a write up on there.
 
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