How far has Taurus come?

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abrink

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It's my understanding that they were not very good when the started out. I heard they got a lot better though. Allthough i'm mainly asking about their autos i wouldn't mind knowing about their revolvers. My dad a while ago said he shot the taurus and the trigger was very bad and you never knew when it was going to go off.

So my question to you is, how far has taurus come and would you ever consider buying one of their handguns?
 
I have not owned a Taurus. I am not impressed with the ones that I have handled. I have it from two gunsmiths that you should not trust your life to a Taurus, so I do not.

Many people have had them for years and swear by them, but I would rather a used Smith than a new Taurus.

How many major police agencies use the Taurus line? That is my criteria for a gun purchase. If it is a Sig, Ruger, Glock, Smith, Beretta, etc., I say go for it. I will not buy a Taurus until a lot of major police agencies issue them.
 
My understanding is kind of the opposite - I have a circa 1988 Taurus PT92 I bought new. That was only a couple years after they bought the Beretta manufacturing plant in Brazil. They changed the safety location from the slide to the frame, but otherwise cranked out Beretta 92s for much cheaper. Mine has been flawless since new.

The complaints I've heard are about the more recent guns. Really, though, I think the biggest beef with Taurus is the promote the heck out of "lifetime" warranty, but then customer service is difficult to deal with. I would wager (a little) that today's Taurus autos are as good as most, and better than some.

I think following the lead of police agencies is too narrow of criteria. Let's face it, while I would hope an agency wouldn't outfit with outright junk, other than that they put it out for bid - cheapest acquisition and maintenance costs win!

I don't know of too many agencies that issue Sig, HK, Kimber, etc., though most would say they are quality manufacturers. They are just too expensive. Other manufacturers are too small - Kahr, etc.

For the money, Taurus is tough to beat. I don't buy that many guns, so money is way down on my list, but if only had a few hundred bucks I would consider Taurus.
 
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recently acquired a 38spl snub nose ultra light. other than the 5 shot capacity it is a very nice shooting gun. trigger is not the best but after a while you learn it.
 
I have better stuff; Kimber, Ruger, S&W, Colt. That said, the sidearm I depend on most often for concealed carry is my Taurus 651B snubbie .357. It has thousands of rounds through it and is well made, tightly fitted, nicely finished, and a great sidearm.

For hunting, I have a S&W 629, a Ruger Super Blackhawk and a Taurus M-44. The Taurus gets taken out when the weather turns to hell, or when I'm not sure what I'm getting in to. Like my snubbie, it's durable, reliable after thousands of rounds, and has earned a place of respect in my safe and in my holster.

Both of mine are 2002-2004 manufacture. I think Taurus makes a great sidearm.
 
I have two M66s pre-lock that are fantastic, especially the one with the newer 4" with transfer bar lock work (circa early 1990s, I think, was bought used). Smoother trigger than the older hammer block lock work in the 3". Both are tight, time perfectly, and accurate to the max, the 4" being more accurate than any DA Ruger or K frame Smith I've owned. My M85SSUL has the slickest out of the box DA trigger I've owned, far superior to the J frames I've tried. The 85 was bought new 12 years ago.

The ones from the 70s were not highly regarded. I don't know 'cause my oldest one is from the mid 80s, the 3" one with the hammer block action. That one has seen enough heavy loads (I bought it used) that the Pachmayr gripper it came with was worn flat on the back side from recoil. It is still tight and times perfect and is very accurate. Lots of holster wear on the bluing, but I got it for $180 at a gun show a few years ago so that don't bother me.

It is the most bashed brand out there, slightly in front of Kel Tec, another brand I very much like. So, go figure. :rolleyes: Even Ruger gets bashed on this board. I mean, if it ain't a Smith (usually pre-lock/mim), it's junk according to the bashers. Whatever, I didn't listen to such crap, just bought one and one has turned into three. I own Rugers, Rossis, a Kel Tec, even a pre-lock Smith. About the only major revolver brand I haven't owned is Colt, never had a Colt, but I'm not going to sit here and bash 'em because I've never owned one or have preferred to buy other guns in the past.

There are a few brands I won't touch anymore so if someone had a bad Taurus in the past, I can sort of relate. I don't do AMT or Auto Ordinance. In fact, I gave up on cheap 1911s all together. Everyone says RIA and others are decent, I'll let them enjoy those. I'll pass. :D If someone feels that way about Taurus, I do quite enjoy mine. :D I don't think it's the greatest thing since pancakes, but they're good guns and are quite reasonably priced.
 
I'm pretty happy with my Taurus 85 snub nose .38 exept for the fact that it only holds 5 rounds. No problems with the trigger at all. Be sure to stay away from their .22LR because they are always jamming!
 
I've been carrying a Taurus Mil Pro PT145 for about a year now. I have shot thousands of rounds through it and even my own reloads and have never had a single problem with the rounds feeding. Never a jam. Can't say that with other auto handguns that I've shot.

As for the trigger - I find it funny that someone would write that they wouldn't even know when it would go off. Sounds like user error rather than a problem with the gun itself.

I'm sure they could do better with customer service, but that's not what you asked.

Anyhow - I don't think you can go wrong with either auto or revolver.

Good luck.
 
Be sure to stay away from their .22LR because they are always jamming!
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You talking about the little tip up .22s? I had a Beretta version that was a jammamatic POS, too. I steer clear of 'em regardless of brand. The .22 revolver, M94, everyone says has a stiff trigger in DA. I've not tried one, but it's a pretty universal comment. I have a little stainless Rossi 511 "kit gun" that has a pretty rough DA, but is nice in SA and very accurate, so I don't really desire a Taurus 94 anyway. Kit guns ain't about DA shooting anyway, though, .22 being about my least favorite defense caliber.
 
Yes, used to be junk as far as finish goes, but I think they are a better company now. The Dodge of guns IMO.
 
I don't know. I really wish I did know. I used to subscribe to the theory that they were bad; now much better, but you hear so many stories of revolvers out of time, sights falling off, etc., that you become very skeptical that they have fixed the QC problems. I have not had any problems with MY Tauri (I have 3 and have had 3 others, for a total of 5 revolvers and 1 semi-auto), but then again I didn't and don'tput thousands of rounds through mine either. The Taurus guns certainly seem nice and solid, and have very innovative features and model offerings. I *really* like the look and feel of their revolvers, esp. the RB series.
 
I bought a pt92ar when they first came out with the accessory rail about 3 years or so ago. I've only put a few hundred rounds through it, but it and my sks are the only autos that I've owned/shot a lot that didn't jam on me at least once.
 
I have the following:

PT145
PT92
650
431
450
85TI

I find the revolvers to be serviceable. The Beretta based 92/99/100/101 series autos to be probably the best Taurus is capable of. The PT145 is a regular carry. Had a PT99 when I turned 21 and put about 10k through it without the slightest hitch. Traded it on something else (IIRC, a S&W 6904). At their best the Taurus handguns are equal in function to S&W. Their QC still has far to go.
 
You have to remember that most gunsmiths, though respectable and totally competent in their fields, are stubborn old guys.

The same is true with old guys who know lots about guns.

Thus, even though S&W has been taking a nose-dive in quality, there are still a lot of fan-boys, who don't recognize the change, because they have good memories.
 
I used to consider the Taurus because of their price. But around these parts, there's not much of a price advantage and more traditional manufacturer's guns can be had for about the same amount. That said, who's to say they're not as good. I don't know. I do know though, that I think their finish doesn't look as nice as I'd like, and I'm just not so attracted to their semi-autos or revolvers.
 
I bought my first Taurus revolver in 1973. A 4'' .38 special,it had a nice blued finish,was smooth and accurate. I now have an M44 w/6'' ribbed and ported barrel that is the equal (accuracy and smoothness of action) of my S&W 686. I have no experience with their autoloaders.
 
I have 5 Sigs, 2 Kimbers, 5 Beretta's,3 Colts, 5 Rugers and a laundry list of others, 55 in all and adding 2 more Rugers tomorrow. Only 1 Taurus in the bunch. It's a 6 1/2 ported 357 Tracker. I picked it up because it was NIB for only $280 from a guy selling his guns for a down on a house. I took it to an indoor range 15 minutes after purchasing it. 5 of the first 7 rounds went through one hole you could cover with a nickle at 30' the other 2 where within 1/2". I honestly thought I was missing the target completely. I don't usually shoot that well with my "good" guns. Trigger wasn't as nice as my Colt revolvers but probably as good as my Rugers. Fit and finish are nice, (I own a machine shop so I know metal finishing).

Never dealt with their customer service so I can't say one way or the other but I have heard some bad things about it. I think it may be you either get a good one or a bad one. Only other Taurus I ever had was a PT99 and only put 1 magazine through it. Seemed to work well and looked/felt good. Traded it offafter only a couple weeks so don't realy have enough experience with it to know if it was a good gun or not. Will be looking at another Taurus 357 Monday. If it looks and feels tight I will pick it up to use as a carry on the quad piece. Don't want to carry an expensive piece in all the dust, mud and water and at $250 for the Taurus I'll give it a chance.
 
Taurus 24/7 Pro .45ACP

I have a Taurus 24/7 Pro .45ACP in stainless.
I've heard mixed reviews, but for the price, I thought, "what the heck".
I loved that it really fit my hand much better than the Springfield XD, Glock 21 and Smith & Wesson M&P. I also liked that it has a mag capacity of 13 + 1, so I took the plunge.

I have to say I was not disappointed, rather, I was happily surprized!
I cleaned it immediately before going to the range and shot a few hundred rounds. I cleaned it after every mag for the 1st 50 rounds.

My only criticism is about the sights. I really don't like them and there aren't many choices right now. I also wish there was a better offering of holsters, but I can't blame Taurus for that, now can I...

Would I buy another? Well, yes I would.
In fact, I'm looking for a deal on a Taurus 24/7C Pro .45ACP in stainless. This would be their compact version...

Of course, like any weapon, it should be cleaned and broken in properly before I have a chance to make an opinion about it...

God Bless,
Doc S
 
Taurus history.

Taurus began with revolvers and made them pretty well and this hasn't changed. They might not be of the same ilk as S&W or such, but they are fully functional and reliable. Then Taurus got into autoloaders. There were problems at first and lots of them. Rather than trying to tweak the product in production, they stopped making them for a bit, solved their problems and jumped back in with both feet. Their autoloaders are now of the same quality as their revolvers. Maybe not as gussied up or slick as a S&W costing twice as much, but then they don't cost twice as much. I wouldn't be ashamed to pack one.
 
They haven't come far enough. It's been my experience that they were much better back in the day than they are now.

When your front sight falls off on the first magazine full, you find the rear sight installed backwards, and the crown of the barrel cut completely out of whack, it shows you have absolutely no attention to detail.
 
Not far enough is my vote. Especially with polymer semi-autos. QC and customer service don't exist at this company.

I've had 9 new Taurus handguns since 1996. Still have 4 and they are keepers; no problems from 2 others; that leaves 3 that had serious manufacturing defects where I had to go through hell to get them fixed and back.

So in my experience at least, you have a 1/3 chance of getting a bad gun.
 
So in my experience at least, you have a 1/3 chance of getting a bad gun.
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Did you bother to even LOOK at it before you bought it? I hear guys gripe about Taurus, Smith, Ruger, Charter, this and that which they bought have end shake, timing problems, yadda, yadda. It's like they put on a blind fold before they walked in the shop!

It's a little tougher to check out the autos, I admit, but a sight installed backwards? :rolleyes:
 
It's a little tougher to check out the autos, I admit, but a sight installed backwards?
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Yep, I didn't notice it. It slipped by. Honestly, I would bet that most people would have missed that. In fact, I had the weapon for 3 months before I noticed it.

The only reason I noticed the blade was installed backwards was because I was going to paint the blade white and while doing so I happened to notice two recessed dots on the front of the rear sight blade where paint SHOULD have been.

How often do you look at the front of your rear sight blade?
 
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