Bought a new Taurus Judge today. One shot and ...
- Thread starter PcolaDawg
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PcolaDawg
Member
lol. No troll here. I'm just very new to handguns, and have had no reason to even know this forum existed. I bought my first handgun a couple of weeks ago (a S&W model 642) and bought a Kimber Ultra Crimson Carry II shortly after that.
I took my CCW class last week and one of the guns the NRA instructor took to the range was 'The Judge'. I shot it a number times, and it seemed like a great gun. And I like the thought of a revolver by my bed that shoots 000 buckshot.
And I still do. I am looking forward to getting a new Judge and having it be the main weapon by my bed to defend against a home invasion. I went to a gun show at the fairgrounds here in Pensacola today and talked to a number of gun sellers and none of them had heard of a problem like that with The Judge, so I do not anticipate ever having a problem like that again - with any gun for that matter.
But what I posted really happened. One shot and the barrel blew off. I know it's tough to prove a negative (I'm a lawyer), but I ain't no Troll. I do wish I had taken some pictures, though. Ultimately, though, I wasn't thinking about proving anything to people on a message board, so it wasn't really on my brain that I might have to prove it to people I don't even know. It happened during lunch and my first thought was to get it back to the gun shop in time for me to make a 1:30 meeting with a client.
So believe it or don't, I guess. If you have any specific questions or want my e-mail address, work address, and phone number, please send me a private message and I will be happy to discuss it with you.
nitestocker
Member
i no there are some taurus bashers out there but ive had nothing but good ones. ive had one model 85 and a 651 ti and a 651 in blue with lasergrips and have liked them all matter afact i carry the 651 or a glock 29 every day. i have not own any semis or the judge . but i have never had a problem with mine
I bought a new Ultralite DA only Judge a few weeks back. While I still have my barrel attached I did have an out of box problem- The darn cyclinder wouldn't rotate when pulling the trigger
Pondered what to do for awhile, the dealer was 70 miles away, shipping back to Taurus would be expensive...so I braved the consequences and disassembled it-
I removed the plate on the right side, the "hand" that rotates the cylinder wasn't working right, was jumping out of place. Found a small rod with a spring behind it in a hole bored into the back of the trigger assembly. The rod was jammed in the hole. Took a little effort to get it out since it was almost flush when jammed. Found the grease on the spring and in the hole was gritty with, I suppose, factory dirt. These are parts 33 Hand Spring, and 34 Hand Pin in the manual. Cleaned it all up and oiled the spring, rod and hole. Problem fixed.
I admit my Judge was an impulse purchase, but dang its a fun gun and I'm having a ball loading up .410s with various shot combos and playing at the range
Pondered what to do for awhile, the dealer was 70 miles away, shipping back to Taurus would be expensive...so I braved the consequences and disassembled it-
I removed the plate on the right side, the "hand" that rotates the cylinder wasn't working right, was jumping out of place. Found a small rod with a spring behind it in a hole bored into the back of the trigger assembly. The rod was jammed in the hole. Took a little effort to get it out since it was almost flush when jammed. Found the grease on the spring and in the hole was gritty with, I suppose, factory dirt. These are parts 33 Hand Spring, and 34 Hand Pin in the manual. Cleaned it all up and oiled the spring, rod and hole. Problem fixed.
I admit my Judge was an impulse purchase, but dang its a fun gun and I'm having a ball loading up .410s with various shot combos and playing at the range
jack the toad
Member
LOL Now that right there is funny.
To each his own but a taurus will never darken my gunsafe door.
I don't have pics but I've seen too many folks with taurus pistols and revolvers have problems.
Not that other brands don't but I'm sold on not owning a taurus.
Since we're bashing Tauri, I'll relate my personal experience With a PT-92. While firing the first magazine, the rear sights fell off and the slide locked half way back. Took it back to Bud's and traded it for a S&W Model 19. I've had the plating come off a new Model 29, and had the hammer snap off a new Ruger Black Hawk. I'm not really bashing any one brand. Lemons are possible in anything from guns to toasters to Cadillacs.
Highland Ranger
Member
I'm still holding a grudge from the Smartgun fiasco . . . I'll pass on Taurus as long ans S&W and Ruger are still in business.
ratherbehunting
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Taurus Judge Gun
The same thing happened to me. Purchased Taurus Judge shot it one time and barrel blew off the end of it.
Taurus told me they had never heard of this happening before. Obviously it is a lie!!!
They don't even act like they are concerned about it one bit.
I am having a hard time with Taurus in their responses to returning phone calls or even reviewing my gun.
The same thing happened to me. Purchased Taurus Judge shot it one time and barrel blew off the end of it.
Taurus told me they had never heard of this happening before. Obviously it is a lie!!!
They don't even act like they are concerned about it one bit.
I am having a hard time with Taurus in their responses to returning phone calls or even reviewing my gun.
krs
Member
The newest model Judge that can chamber 3" .410 shells is the cover girl for the January 2009 issue of "The American Rifleman" one of the NRA's monthly magazines. This is the second time they've done a review and both articles are generally positive.
They freely acknowledge that their test accuracy even at short combat ranges of 3, 5, 7, and 9 yards wasn't great, the writer said that he felt that a centered hit by five 000 buck pellets totalling 350 grains at some 800 fps would be devastating as a defensive measure.
The author concludes that the Judge is the most versatile combat revolver since the civil war LeMat, a black powder revolver that had a shotgun barrel under it's pistol barrel.
Unless I missed it there is no mention of failures. Now I ask you, would the NRA view it through rose colored glasses? Weight of opinion heavied by advertizing dollars?
They freely acknowledge that their test accuracy even at short combat ranges of 3, 5, 7, and 9 yards wasn't great, the writer said that he felt that a centered hit by five 000 buck pellets totalling 350 grains at some 800 fps would be devastating as a defensive measure.
The author concludes that the Judge is the most versatile combat revolver since the civil war LeMat, a black powder revolver that had a shotgun barrel under it's pistol barrel.
Unless I missed it there is no mention of failures. Now I ask you, would the NRA view it through rose colored glasses? Weight of opinion heavied by advertizing dollars?
mgkdrgn
Member
The Judge "is what it is", and what it is is a -short range defensive weapon-. It's not meant to be used at 25 yards ... more like 25 feet (which I believe is still more than twice the distance of most SD encounters involving pistols). It also isn't "pretty", and the 3" chamber version is even less so.
That said, my Judge ultralite loaded with 5 rounds of 00 buck weighs less than my Glock 26. Either out my car window, or at "across the room" distances (at least in my house anyway) that 00 buck is going to put you in a world of hurt ... and there is no way I'm going to miss you with all three of them (I only have the 2 1/2 in chamber, 3 balls of buckshot per round).
I haven't shot that much 45 Colt from it ... but the first 5 rounds I did shoot put down 5 8" steel plates at 15 yards with 5 shots. That's accurate enough for me.
It's a "niche" gun, for sure. But it fills that niche quite well. I'll keep mine, thank you.
That said, my Judge ultralite loaded with 5 rounds of 00 buck weighs less than my Glock 26. Either out my car window, or at "across the room" distances (at least in my house anyway) that 00 buck is going to put you in a world of hurt ... and there is no way I'm going to miss you with all three of them (I only have the 2 1/2 in chamber, 3 balls of buckshot per round).
I haven't shot that much 45 Colt from it ... but the first 5 rounds I did shoot put down 5 8" steel plates at 15 yards with 5 shots. That's accurate enough for me.
It's a "niche" gun, for sure. But it fills that niche quite well. I'll keep mine, thank you.
PcolaDawg
Member
Yeah, that's interesting. My Judge, filled with 000 buckshot, weighs less than my empty S&W 625JM. Kind of surprised me. Since I have gotten the weapon back with a new barrel, I have fired a lot of rounds through it, from #6 birdshot to 300g Colt rounds, to 000 buckshot and I am impressed with it, and I enjoy shooting it. It is now my 'beside the bed' revolver, and once spring rolls back around, it'll be my work gun when I'm working around my property.
It can do a lot of different things and I like having it with me when I'm outside on my property. And, I've found it to be pretty accurate between five and ten yards, which is all I'll need from it.
Can't wait to come across my first Copperhead. I haven't killed one yet, because whenever I've found one, I've had to run into the house to get a shotgun and by the time I get back, it's too late. Not THIS summer!
Like Onmilo said...
More often than not, when any machine blows up, there's more to the story than the operator who blew it up wants to tell. Shirking responsibility is part of our culture now.
I'm no devotee to Taurus, but I also think claims of a catastrophic malfunction should come with some evidence. I own two Judges (one steel, one Ultralite) and owned another Taurus .38 revolver in the past. All function(ed) as advertised.
Les
More often than not, when any machine blows up, there's more to the story than the operator who blew it up wants to tell. Shirking responsibility is part of our culture now.
I'm no devotee to Taurus, but I also think claims of a catastrophic malfunction should come with some evidence. I own two Judges (one steel, one Ultralite) and owned another Taurus .38 revolver in the past. All function(ed) as advertised.
Les
PcolaDawg
Member
Well, Les, I now have 57 posts, does that make me less of a troll? PM me and I'll give you my cell phone and we can talk about it. I can also give you the name and number of the gun shop I took it back to about 30 minutes after I bought it, along with the .410 #6 birdshot shotgun shell that I shot which caused the barrel to blow off.
I bought the gun. Took it home. Went out to the backyard. Loaded it with the .410 2.5" #6 birdshot I had bought along with it. Took one (1) shot and the barrel blew off. No lie. Nothing more to tell, and I'm not trying to shirk anything.
But, like I said, I would be happy to discuss it with you, so PM me. I'm new here and don't want to start off on the wrong foot. Like I said above, Taurus got the gun back to me very quickly, and I've shot a lot of rounds through it since and really enjoy the gun.
And I have since learned my lesson on here. Here's a picture of me shooting some 000 buckshot through the gun shortly after I got it back. I don't expect to ever have a problem like that again, but if I do, I'll make sure not to post about it on here without a series of photographs, an affidavit, and a metallurgists report with a full spectron microscopic analysis.
Here I am in my backyard shooting my repaired Taurus Judge. REALLY!!!!
JR47
Member
ratherbehunting has exactly one post, and that was a "me too". THAT smells more like a troll.
I've had much worse luck with S&W, HK, Sig, and Colt than I have with Taurus. Funny thing is, when somebody reports that, it's always, "well, just send it back, they'll fix it", even after several trips, the same advice holds.
What Smartgun did Taurus buy into? I remember Colt was developing one for NJ, and that went nowhere. I also remember S&W buying into Clinton's scheme, as well. Now, somebody is trying to tar Taurus with the same brush? How about something factual for us on that.
I've had much worse luck with S&W, HK, Sig, and Colt than I have with Taurus. Funny thing is, when somebody reports that, it's always, "well, just send it back, they'll fix it", even after several trips, the same advice holds.
What Smartgun did Taurus buy into? I remember Colt was developing one for NJ, and that went nowhere. I also remember S&W buying into Clinton's scheme, as well. Now, somebody is trying to tar Taurus with the same brush? How about something factual for us on that.
Being totally in love when I first saw the Judge at my local gun shop, I asked a little about the strengths of the firearm, specifically the long cylinder... The guy at the desk said that they only had on problem with the firearm. And that was that the revolver basically blew up in some poor fellow's face, said the owner of the guns shop. But, what was different from this guys problem to yours was that the guy apparently shot OVER the maximum recommended hand loads, of course shooting the .45 LC from his gun. Sorry, but I don't have specific grains of bullet and amount of powder used, let alone the brand of propellent. Anyways, when this guy shot, the top of the revolver, and the top of the cylinder with the spent round chambered in it blew completely out.
So that's what makes me think that your experience with your revolver was just a factory error because you used the RIGHT AMMO. The guy I'm telling you about obviously did something stupid and that's why his blew up.
Oh, and thank God you didn't get any shrapnel to the eyes or hands when you shot. Your really lucky that you didn't get hurt or even killed.
So, all I recommend to do is go out, buy a new on and have some fun Good luck.
So that's what makes me think that your experience with your revolver was just a factory error because you used the RIGHT AMMO. The guy I'm telling you about obviously did something stupid and that's why his blew up.
Oh, and thank God you didn't get any shrapnel to the eyes or hands when you shot. Your really lucky that you didn't get hurt or even killed.
So, all I recommend to do is go out, buy a new on and have some fun
Good luck.I'll take your word for it, PcolaDawg. No disrespect intended, but if I had a new gun blow the barrel off, I'd sure as hell take a photo of it.
I guess my response came from my impression that some folks seem to badmouth Taurus just because other people do. Having known a lot of folks that find Taurus' moderately-priced revolvers to be reliably functional, I hate to see those posts that seem to be reflexive bashing. I take it your experience is for real. I'm glad you weren't injured.
Regards,
Les
PcolaDawg
Member
Yeah, but a photo from someone you don't know won't tell you a whole lot either, unless you decide to believe the person who posts the photo. I have a sneaking suspicion that I could've posted 20 photos and some folks are going to remain suspicious that 'the whole story' wasn't told or something. That's fine. A healthy skepticism is not a bad trait to have, anyway, and I'd like to think that's a trait I possess as well.
Regardless, I would have likely taken photos of it, but
A) I wasn't hurt by it. Heck, it didn't even kick that much. I didn't even realize the barrel had blown off until I walked up to the target to see what had bounced towards it, and realized when I saw it that it was the barrel to the frickin' gun.
B) I had picked the gun up at the shop during a lunch break, shot it during said lunch break, and needed to get back to the office for a meeting, and
C) I wanted to get it back to the gun shop asap so they'd believe me. Frankly, I'm not all that concerned whether a message board full of anonymous folks believe me or not. But it was such a bizarre thing that I was afraid the gun shop would think I was loco, since they didn't know me personally. I figured if I ran it RIGHT back to the shop, along with the spent shotgun shell that they had just sold me as well - that they'd believe me and take care of it.
They did believe me (although they had never had that happen on any gun they've ever sold, according to them). And, through Taurus, they took care of it. They also tried to get me a brand new Judge, but they couldn't find one before mine was repaired, so I took the repaired one back. And, so far, I have been very happy with it.
So, no hard feelings, I just wanted to let you know I will defend the story. It is the truth, believe it or don't.
JR47
Member
Still waiting to hear about the Smartgun fiasco.
krs
Member
It should be obvious to everyone....but in case it's not, do not load #6 birdshot in your Judge - it's designed to fire double ought buck!
PcolaDawg
Member
I'm not sure if this is directed at me but, if it is, I have no idea what you mean by 'Smartgun fiasco'. If it's not directed at me, then nevermind.
Macmac
Member
PcolaDawg,Wel i would have liked some photos, but understand it is too late.
I work with metals and can sometimes see flaws in steels once they are broken. I have the idea the gun was broken when you bought it, and it was so from the instalation at the factory, which makes you harmless to the fact it broke.
On the other hand I am not familar with how these barrels are installed. More or less this is one of 2 ways. Threaded in like a bolt, or pressed and pinned.
Either way being broken can happen.
My interest in the gun is I might like one, but I sure don't want one that breaks on the first shot like yours did or worse.
It looks to me like you are well on your way to re-building trust for this fire arm.
I work with metals and can sometimes see flaws in steels once they are broken. I have the idea the gun was broken when you bought it, and it was so from the instalation at the factory, which makes you harmless to the fact it broke.
On the other hand I am not familar with how these barrels are installed. More or less this is one of 2 ways. Threaded in like a bolt, or pressed and pinned.
Either way being broken can happen.
My interest in the gun is I might like one, but I sure don't want one that breaks on the first shot like yours did or worse.
It looks to me like you are well on your way to re-building trust for this fire arm.
jimmyraythomason
Member
Sounds like Taurus customer service came through as well. (Unlike many posts to the contrary.) I have and have had several Taurus revolvers(no Judge or semi-autos) and have been very happy with them.
moooose102
Member
sorry to hear about your misfortune. glad to hear you didnt get hurt. your real problem has just started, dealing with taurus's customer service! of which there really isnt any!
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