F.I.E. Titan .25ACP?

[Joe Link]

My dad found two of his guns he hid from us kids back when we were young (15+ years ago, I guess he hid them very well and forgot where they were). One of them is this little pocket auto, which looks like it's made by a company called F.I.E.? I assume Titan is the model name, and it's chambered in .25ACP.

I'm just curious if anyone knows anything about these guns. I've never heard of the company and can't seem to find much information. I'd really like to know how to take the gun down so I can clean it, as the slide is extremely stiff.

 

[Ala Dan]

In compliance with THR rules, I won't bash the F.I.E. Titan .25 auto; but
rather just leave it like this- an inexpensive firearm that may or may not
work most of the time~!

Put it in your collection, and forget about it.

 

[lee n. field]

Made by Tanfoglio. They come in steel and aluminum frame versions.

There's one around here somewhere, technically my daughter's. I put a box of ammo through it once, with no failures, so it's not Jennings grade crappy.

 

[Zero_DgZ]

It's a Saturday night special, but believe it or not it's one of the better ones. I owned one for a while. Couldn't hit the broad side of a barn with it and it was way too expensive to feed versus a .22... But it looked cool - mine was exactly the same as yours, chromed with the fake pearl grips and in nicer shape than your example - And against all expectations it went bang every time.

It would start to stovepipe those little tiny casings beginning about the last magazine out of a box of 50 rounds... What's that, 6 magazines worth? 7? To clean it, pull the slide fully to the rear and then up. It may take some coercion... When I first got my example I didn't think it came apart at all, until someone else came along and put the requisite elbow grease into it to muscle the slide off. You can clean it without disassembly by removing the grips and applying a can of brake cleaner, also...

And if you take your mag(s) apart, grind about 1/8" off of the legs on the bottom of the followers for a quick and dirty +1 mod that doesn't seem to affect the reliability of the gun any. Numrich still had mags for these things when last I checked, about two years ago.

 

[MJZZZ]

That gun brings back memories. I had one of those 25 years ago, I didn't trust it then and wouldn't trust it now. Mike

 

[Zero_DgZ]

I should clarify that I wouldn't trust it because of the gun but because it's a .25 ACP. In a self defense situation, you may as well stick that bullet in a straw and blow.

 

[Joe Link]

Hmm, I'm still not able to get it apart no matter how hard I try. I just pull the slide all the way back and pull up?

 

[DomMega]

I saw one of those blow up in a kid's hand in the desert once. Like everyone is pretty much saying, its fine if you want to clean it up and put it in your collection but if you're looking to attain self-protection from it I would look elsewhere......and fast.

 

[Joe Link]

Yeah I'm definitely not planning on using this for protection. I don't know if someone with a ton of adrenaline and/or drugs would even notice they got shot with a .25 caliber pistol, let alone the fact that as you guys said this is of questionable quality. Do you guys think it'd be alright to plink with occasionally?

 

[DomMega]

Just about anything is alright to plink with occasionally. Just make sure the internals are in decent functioning order because like I said, these guns are notorious for blowing up in your hand. That's a lot of shrapnel going into your hand and possibly your face, not pretty. So just do some really good maintenance on it before taking it out for a shoot and you should be ok. Bad things happen when they're neglected.

 

[engineer88]

Wow, I really have to disagree with this being a POS or any such. I just bought one today and it is a solid, seemingly well made little pistol. Is it a .45acp, heck no. Is it a neatly designed little pistol, heck ya!

I will be shooting it in a couple of days and see how reliable it is, but I like 'em!

 

[NG VI]

Anyone else find the name "Titan" ironic?

 

[turkeythigh]

i may have found a resource for you to strip it down
http://kaiservontexas.blogspot.com/2008/02/fie-corp-titan-25acp-11.html

 

[turkeythigh]

i may have found the tear down info you were asking about.
http://kaiservontexas.blogspot.com/2008/02/fie-corp-titan-25acp-11.html

 

[turkeythigh]

i may have found the tear down info you were asking about.
http://kaiservontexas.blogspot.com/2008/02/fie-corp-titan-25acp-11.html

 

[MCgunner]

In compliance with THR rules, I won't bash the F.I.E. Titan .25 auto

THR rules prohibit brand bashing? Why am I having to constantly defend my Taurus revolvers if such is the case?

Actually, a lot of those little zinc alloy .25s worked rather well. Might not be exactly what I'd call accurate (side of a barn accurate if inside the barn), but I even had an RG Mod. 26, .25 auto that fed reliably and always went bang. I no longer have it, sold it, but it served its purpose. It was the only gun I ever had to defend myself with. I didn't have to actually fire it, the sight of it ended the mugging attempt, but hey, it saved me from an armed robber. He'd brought a knife to a gun fight.

Yep, I agree, there are far better choices now days. Of course, concealed carry is legal in Texas now and I no longer have to think about tossing the gun in the bay. Yeah, that might not be "high road" but when the government steps on your civil rights, right to self defense, you gotta do what you gotta do. GW Bush finally made me a law abiding citizen.

 

[Cowboybootnut]

If your town ever has a gun buy-back, the F.I.E. Titan would be a great gun to turn in, then use the money you get for it to buy a better gun........

 

[mljdeckard]

I giggle a little bit at hearing the word "Titan" used in the same sentence as .25 acp. I hate the .25 just as bad as everyone else in here, particularly the one who recommended blowing it through a straw. (I'm going to use that one in the future.) It's very effective if you can get the bad guy to hold still so that you can put it in the BG's nostril long enough to shoot him.

HAVING SAID THAT, If you got it for free, and you're not relying on it as a defensive gun, clean it up a little and have fun. F.I.E guns aren't terrible, I've had a Nylon 66 F.I.E. knockoff for 25 years that's been great.

 

[jackstinson]

I have the F.I.E. Titan and the QFI SA-25 version....both function flawlessly. The Titan is one of the most reliable inexpensive .25acp's ever made.

 

[Dr.Rob]

I have one, and its currently the only firearm I have not fired in my safe. Need to change that.

 

[ilbob]

once a long time ago, a guy had one at a range and he let me shoot it. i was unimpressed, but was able to hit a paper target set out maybe 10 feet away without too much trouble. i didn't have any problems getting it to shoot.

 

[TIMC]

I have had one of the little Tanfoglio 25's for many years. I don't shoot it much, sometimes years between range time but it always goes bang. I have never had an issue with it. I think it is a nice little pocket pistol.

 

[Cannonball888]

Tanfoglio Titans are NOT a POS. Yes, they are inexpensive but they are really well-made using gun steel and no pot metal. My Titan II .380 is my longest-owned gun and it has never malfunctioned even once. BTW, FIE was the big importer for Tanfoglio until they became defunct and EAA took over.

 

[geologist]

It looks like an Astra Cub.

 

[Gunfighter123]

I had a Titan many years ago --- it started to GO BANG when I chambered a round EVEN with the safety on !!!

Now , some will say it was a problem with the firing pin being "stuck" out ----- I don't think so.

I used it in a Chicago "buy back" program and got $90 if I remember right. I do remember I paid $70 for it brand new.