Tallball
Member
- Joined
- Oct 2, 2014
- Messages
- 7,805
I had a $300 gift card that I needed to spend on something before it expired. I found a Taurus GX4 online for $249, and Taurus has a $50 mail-in rebate between March and June. With tax and shipping it was $299 total. My FFL decided not to charge me this time, so it will be $249 OTD on the pistol when I get the rebate check.
I'm not a fan of Taurus semiautos (their revolvers and Beretta clones are generally okay). I'm not a fan of polymer striker pistols in general, even though I have a bunch that function properly that I can shoot okay. I'm not a fan of semiauto carry pistols if I can carry a revolver instead.
But the G43 and LCP9s pro that I don't carry are starting to look pretty outdated. After the P365 came out, those things were immediately obsolete. If I'm going to have a small 9mm pistol to not carry, I want it to be thoroughly modern. No more of those tiny six-round mags for me.
The GX4 came in a "meh" plastic case with two 10-round magazines and nothing else of interest. I cleaned and lubed it after I picked it up. It takes down by turning a big slot 1/4 turn with a screwdriver instead of the usual "line it up and push the side release out". Needing a screwdriver is not my preference, but I don't have to field strip in the trenches during WW1, so NBD. The barrel was dirty and the rails were bone dry. The rails are nice and long. The mags are Mec-Gar. The barrel and chamber and slide look smooth and nice as far as the machining goes. The finish on the slide was thoughtfully pre-scratched.
Ergonomics for someone with XXL hands were okay. (Keep in mind I can cover the whole thing with my hand and have hand left over.) I could only seem to get my pinky on a small corner of the grip. The trigger seemed fine. The sights were okay. The texturing is a little rougher than I like, but okay. The mag release was easy. The tiny slide release required pulling back on the slide a little. It came with a bigger palm swell piece, so I installed it.
When I shot it today the ergonomics were a little different. I can cram my hand higher on the grip than I thought and get most of my pinky on it. The mag release is so close to the slide release on a pistol this small that I have to hold my thumb just so or I will foul one of them. If I pull the trigger normally it will pinch my finger every time. I found a mildly unnatural finger position that allows me to shoot it without getting pinched. The slide release is like any other tiny slide release. The sights are fine and IDC about the texturing.
I slipped a little bit slingshotting it once and the first round failed to feed. I hit the mag release three different times without meaning to and it didn't fire (I guess it has a mag safety?). It had no malfunctions that I didn't cause directly.
I fired about 50 rounds through it, in between other pistols. Shooting groups of five, the first couple were pretty good, but I needed to get my trigger finger lined up better or I would have started flinching. After I got my finger and thumb situated properly, the pistol shot fine. Most of my groups of five would have all hit an orange at seven yards. I can already shoot it pretty well for a pistol its size, and should improve with practice.
I probably prefer the GX4 to my G43. It fits my hand a little better. The trigger is still a "sproingy" striker trigger, but it's shorter and lighter than the Glock trigger. The Glock does have slightly better sights, but the ones on the GX4 are fine - they just lack the white outline I like. It holds four more rounds. That's not a big deal to me, but it's something.
Next time I'll go with a friend and we'll shoot the Taurus back-to-back-to-back with the Glock and Ruger. I'm pretty sure I'll like the Taurus the best of the three. That's fine. I'm still going to prefer to carry a 38 snub anyway, but at least the micro 9mm that I'm not carrying will be thoroughly modern - small and light and high capacity.
I'll post a (boring) photo after I get it clean. I added a spectacular scratch of my own to complement the one provided by the factory. The pistol seems okay as a shooter, but I'm suspecting the finish might not be the absolute best.
I'm not a fan of Taurus semiautos (their revolvers and Beretta clones are generally okay). I'm not a fan of polymer striker pistols in general, even though I have a bunch that function properly that I can shoot okay. I'm not a fan of semiauto carry pistols if I can carry a revolver instead.
But the G43 and LCP9s pro that I don't carry are starting to look pretty outdated. After the P365 came out, those things were immediately obsolete. If I'm going to have a small 9mm pistol to not carry, I want it to be thoroughly modern. No more of those tiny six-round mags for me.
The GX4 came in a "meh" plastic case with two 10-round magazines and nothing else of interest. I cleaned and lubed it after I picked it up. It takes down by turning a big slot 1/4 turn with a screwdriver instead of the usual "line it up and push the side release out". Needing a screwdriver is not my preference, but I don't have to field strip in the trenches during WW1, so NBD. The barrel was dirty and the rails were bone dry. The rails are nice and long. The mags are Mec-Gar. The barrel and chamber and slide look smooth and nice as far as the machining goes. The finish on the slide was thoughtfully pre-scratched.
Ergonomics for someone with XXL hands were okay. (Keep in mind I can cover the whole thing with my hand and have hand left over.) I could only seem to get my pinky on a small corner of the grip. The trigger seemed fine. The sights were okay. The texturing is a little rougher than I like, but okay. The mag release was easy. The tiny slide release required pulling back on the slide a little. It came with a bigger palm swell piece, so I installed it.
When I shot it today the ergonomics were a little different. I can cram my hand higher on the grip than I thought and get most of my pinky on it. The mag release is so close to the slide release on a pistol this small that I have to hold my thumb just so or I will foul one of them. If I pull the trigger normally it will pinch my finger every time. I found a mildly unnatural finger position that allows me to shoot it without getting pinched. The slide release is like any other tiny slide release. The sights are fine and IDC about the texturing.
I slipped a little bit slingshotting it once and the first round failed to feed. I hit the mag release three different times without meaning to and it didn't fire (I guess it has a mag safety?). It had no malfunctions that I didn't cause directly.
I fired about 50 rounds through it, in between other pistols. Shooting groups of five, the first couple were pretty good, but I needed to get my trigger finger lined up better or I would have started flinching. After I got my finger and thumb situated properly, the pistol shot fine. Most of my groups of five would have all hit an orange at seven yards. I can already shoot it pretty well for a pistol its size, and should improve with practice.
I probably prefer the GX4 to my G43. It fits my hand a little better. The trigger is still a "sproingy" striker trigger, but it's shorter and lighter than the Glock trigger. The Glock does have slightly better sights, but the ones on the GX4 are fine - they just lack the white outline I like. It holds four more rounds. That's not a big deal to me, but it's something.
Next time I'll go with a friend and we'll shoot the Taurus back-to-back-to-back with the Glock and Ruger. I'm pretty sure I'll like the Taurus the best of the three. That's fine. I'm still going to prefer to carry a 38 snub anyway, but at least the micro 9mm that I'm not carrying will be thoroughly modern - small and light and high capacity.
I'll post a (boring) photo after I get it clean. I added a spectacular scratch of my own to complement the one provided by the factory. The pistol seems okay as a shooter, but I'm suspecting the finish might not be the absolute best.
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