No Bs Opinions on Taurus Revolvers!

Status
Not open for further replies.

possum

Member
Joined
Oct 12, 2005
Messages
8,941
Location
Concord, N.C.
So what do ya'll think, don't hold back either bad or good! Everything from accuracy, durability, reliability, and all that basic stuff. i appreciate it! I was looking into the model 605 or the model 85, it is for my mom. Be advised she has pollio(sp?) but it only effects one side of her body, so it needs to be light weight, She might be one and a half handed but she has a strong left hook! that i have been on the recieving end of!:) but I want it to be able to put em down hard! Please i am open for any suggestions but please, tell me about your experiences with these and other models of Taurus revolvers if you please! thank you all!
 
They are good revolvers in my opinion. I've never ran across one that I had any trouble with. They are plenty reliable and accurate for revolvers in their price-range. That being said, I'd still prefer a Ruger or Smith over them. Just what feels good in my hand and I'm confident in using.
 
The 669 .357 I have is extremely accurate. Reliable too. Awesome single action trigger out of the box. Fit and Finish is good enough that a S&W fan friend of mine almost mistook it for a S&W! (The porting gave it away.)

I will add that this particular example is 10 or 11 years old.
 
I own an 85, an 850 and a 94. All are excellent guns.

If you can find one, I would recommend a 85B3. It's the 3" barrel version of the 85. Then I would recommend the 110gr Federal Hydra-Shok 39spec round (Pick the PD38HS3H). From my own tests, this cartridge clocks in at @960 fps ten feet from the muzzle of a Ruger Sp101 (3 1/16"), accuracy is high and recoil is VERY low. Finally, I would suggest replacing the grips with Excaliber Oversize Finger Groove grips. They are sized just right for medium hands, and naturally promote a good grip and good trigger finger placement. This package should provide for a good overall protection handgun, reasonable in weight and low in recoil. When you first get the gun, strip off the grips and flush out the action with a full can of WD40. Many of these Taurus guns ship with a lot of gritty junk covering the action, making the trigger pull feel far worse than it really is. After the WD40 has done it's job, clean that out with a good CLP. A bunch of dryfiring afterwards would help also.

My 85 has been a superb performer, although it will soon be replaced by a S&W 340PD. It is accurate and reliable. The trigger is light and smooth in both DA and SA. I have the Excaliber Boot Grip Laser Checkered Rosewood grips on it right now. They are a bare minimum grip that aids in CCW. My 850 will soon be my wife's primary CCW, and will have the oversized grips I mentioned above. She purse carries, switching between Coronado and Galco carry purses, and the concealed hammer of the 850 will allow firing the gun while it's still in the purse. The 94 originally had problems with a seizing cylinder, but a trip back to the factory fixed that. It is extremely accurate for a 2" 22lr.
 
I've got a 617 and a 4 inch .357 Tracker. Both are very good, and shoot just as well as the S&W revolver I have. The porting in both makes shooting .357 rounds better, and .38 specials have almost no recoil at all.
 
The fit and finish on my 85 is as good as any gun I have come across. The trigger pull was harsh at first. Now that it is broken in, it is better than my J frame.

My model 94 stainless is another story. Tool marks all over the place, the top of the front sight is on a slight angle. The trigger pull after over 1500 rounds still is not that great. Before any one asks how I could have bought such a gun in the first place the answer is that I wanted a plinker I could flat out neglect and not feel bad about it and this one fits the bill.
 
I own a 617, 66 and 94. The DA trigger pull on the 94 is awful. The 66 is an early version and is ugly with some obvious visual flaws (I bought it used very cheap). All 3 function perfectly. The 617 is my loaded nightstand gun. The Ugly Duckling 66 is what I keep loaded in my desk at home. I trust them to work.
 
I own two.

One is my M-44 (44 mag) which I carry during deer season. It's a great big reliable gun with a slick trigger. And it is very accurate. Ask my 2004 8 pointer.

The other is my most frequent carry piece lately, the 651B which is a snubby 5 shot .357. Nice trigger, and very accurate. Surprisingly accurate for a snubby.

Both guns have excellent fit and finish. I have S&W's and Rugers to compare them to, and they DO compare very well in quality.

No BS.
 
I have a Raging Bull in .454 and I've shot a few other Taurus revolvers. I believe they're just as good as anything out there, even though they feel a little "odd." I attribute most of that to the rubber grips they use though, not the more important frame structure. Despite "feeling odd" to me, I shoot/shot quite well with 'em. Grips are an easy fix.
 
Taurus 85

I bought a Taurus 85 that was new. The action was rougher than the S&W j frame that I own. It finally broke in and is now as smoother than the Smith.It took a long time for it to break in. Plan on a lot of dry firing. Get some snap caps for it. :)
 
Taurii

Quality control is spotty. Their warantee service has a BAD reputation. Triggers are not consistent from one example to the next. So you want to give a prospective purchase a really thorough examination.

I had a 44 Special snubby with a chamber alignment problem. I had a 357 Mag with a timing problem. On the other hand I have a 44 Mag and a Raging Bull in 45 Colt that seem quite good. (Yes, that Raging Bull really is chambered for 45 Colt, not 454 Casull, it's a six holer.)

Bottom line, if you have a good one you have a good one, but if you have a bad one, you have a really BAD one.
 
I have had several since 1985 and currently own three M85, including the 3incher mentioned before, and a 445

I have no negatives on any of them but would also agree that the 3" 85 is preferable
 
I have never owned one but I have been seriously checking them out latlely. I have the feeling I will be ownnig a .357 and a 9mm revo here real soon. I would prefer an SP101 for 9mm CCW but since those are hard to find and expensive when you do, I have been looking at taurus.

IMO they are fine guns nad have come along way in the last few years.
 
I have to, a M85UL and a M66. Both are accurate, well made, good shooting. I do prefer Ruger and Smith revolvers, but the Taurii I have are just as good as any Ruger or Smith I own or have owned as far as function. The 85 has a very smooth DA and SA trigger. The 66's trigger is a little stiffer in DA, but SA is great and that thing is the most accurate DA revolver in .357 I have yet to own, more accurate than the 686 a buddy has. It's equally accurate with .38 or .357, which is unusual, and that's why I've kept it. It's a satin nickel finish, very nicely finished and fit is flawless. Fit could be a little better on the 85, very slightly out of time on one cylinder, but doesn't effect the function of the gun and you really have to play with it to tell. Frankly, I've had Smiths with out of time cylinders. Difference is, I didn't hesitate to sent the Smith back. All the gripes about Taurus service has me hesitant to send this one in when it shoot just fine, nothing functionally wrong with it, I just like my cylinders to be perfectly in time. So, I just ignore that little flaw in fitting and it shoots just fine.

I can't gripe about the function of either revolver 'cause it's more than just adequate. Both guns shoot VERY well an being revolvers are flawlessly reliable. That 66 is an absolute tack driver and perfectly fitted and finished. I've fallen for that one and while I'd like to have a somewhat lighter weight .357 to carry outdoors or maybe some IWB, this one's so friggin' accurate I'll never trade it. I may add a Tracker titanium or a Ruger SP101 to the collection, but I ain't sellin' that 66! I gave just under $200 for that thing at a gun show, probably the best, most KILLER deal in a handgun I've ever made.

I've been through one M19 Smith, one Ruger Security Six, and one Rossi M971. While all of these guns shot well, had things I really liked about 'em, I traded 'em. The Ruger was deadly accurate with .357s, was rather poor with .38s and wadcutters. The Rossi was decent with either .357 or .38, but nothing to write home about. The Smith was better, but didn't like .38s either. I wanted a .357 that was a tack driver with either and the Taurus is it! I have a single action Ruger Blackhawk 6.5" barreled gun that's just as accurate, but it's a big, heavy revolver by comparison. It makes a better hunting revolver in the caliber. I hardly every shoot it, but I've kept it 'cause I don't sell accurate guns.:D

To close this, I have to say the finish on the M85 is flawless, too. That one cylinder's timing is the only gripe I have with the gun and it doesn't effect function and frankly, most ordinary gun owners probably couldn't tell that cylinder doesn't time perfectly. You have to pull the trigger though very slowly just right to get it to leave the cylinder out of battery before the hammer falls. In actual use, it don't happen.
 
Good & Bad

Hi Y'all,

I have owned a couple or 3 over the years. I had a Mod.85, .38 Spec.
Good little gun.
I've also had a .357, and still have a .45Colt. All were stainless.
I throw the Mod 450, .45Colt snubbie under the seat in the truck,
once in awhile. It's good to have along.
I've bought them new and used.

They are not as pretty or as smooth working as an S&W.
They are not as Strong as a Ruger. I like Ruger revolvers.
And, I have several.
The Taurus revolvers I've had were good, cheap, reliable handguns.
I'd buy one again, if the price was right & if I had the dinero in my
pocket at the time.

It's your dollars. If you like them, buy 'em.
'At's what I do.
Have Fun.
Old John
 
I have owned a number of Taurus revolvers, and still do. I have also had occasion to disassemble and 'smith their interiors on both my own and others.

From a quality perspective, older guns going back several years sometimes had issues, but so did other makes. Current production guns seem to be much better, and I would not hesitate to buy and/or carry one.

I would advise that if you want to buy one of the lighter snubbies, get a .38 Special, not a .357 Magnum. I also prefer the all-steel guns or aluminum/steel ones over the Total Titanium models. About 1000 dry-fire "clicks" will smooth out the action considerably. Do not fool with the springs.
 
I have three now. A model 85, a 617 and an 851BUL. I find all three of them to be very accurate out to abut 25 yards, especially for snubbies. I personally like the grip of the 617 the least of all of them. The 851 is carried regularly. I also sold a 608, not because I did not like it though. I think the Taurus line is generally a good value, but checking out each one prior to purchase is a good idea. Of course it's a good idea with any other manufacturer too.
 
My main carry gun is a Taurus 450 (.45 LC) 2" snubbie. At about 17 oz, it is light enough for ankle carry and due to the grips and ported barrel, easy to shoot. It's more than accurate enough for what it's intended for. I also like the fact that it is very corrosion resistant. And I really like shooting 260 gr LSWC handloads out of it. I like big bullets...:)
Biker
 
I've had three. The first was my first centerfire gun and it was flawless through many thousands of rounds 6" stainless .357 that I wish I hadn't traded off. The Second was a 3" .44spl that I fully expected to be the equal of the first- It was not. Horrible trigger, sent it in to their "Custom Shop" for a trigger job and it came back unable to ignite any primer I put in it, sent it back and it returned the same way- got rid of it quick and swore off the brand. Years later I got a ultralite tracker .357 in a multi gun trade and figured I'd use it for my daughter with .38's. she hated it and I didn't have any desire for it so it's gone too.

Bottom line with me, one great, one horrible and one that just couldn't overcome the reputation built by the second one.
 
Taurus 651

I wrote a mini review of my Taurus here.

The fit & finish on my Taurus is good and it has been reliable. I would recommend it.

Better out of box trigger than the S&W 642/442, BTW.

Alternative to Consider:
How lightweight do you need? If you can go all-steel, you may have other, even less-pricey options.

A used .38spl S&W Model10 with a 4" bbl is usually an under $200 proposition. I just came across a S&W M10 in nickel with a 2" snubby bbl right at $200, as well. Another interesting revolver was a Model 12 snubby 2" (same as M10, but aluminum frame) for $175.

IMO, a used S&W K-frame .38spl (models: 10, 12, 64, 65, lots more) is awfully hard to beat, quality & value-wise. Also, if recoil is a problem, the K-frame loaded with target wadcutters is a viable, very low recoil option..

The K-frame S&W usually can have their triggers tuned better than Taurus or other S&W snubbies.

-----

Last, .357mag may not recoil a lot to a healthy male, but a partially paralyzed female is going to have issues with recoil in nearly every case. If you do go for a lightweight snubby, be sure the load is not too stout. Again, target wadcutters would be something to look at.

Good luck in your search.
 
I've a bright stainless Model 85 CH made in '92 ... excellent fit and finish, locks up tighter'n a bank vault, great trigger pull, as accurate as any S&W snubby I've ever owned. My brushed-stainless finish Model 94, a couple years old, is quite well made, looks great, quite accurate so far, but haven't shot it much because ... the trigger pull, both DA and SA is not very good. Once I get it fixed, I'll use it more.

Based on my experience with these revolvers, I like Taurus revolvers and am open to buying additional revolvers from the company. I like my Model 85 better than my S&W 637 and 642; it's right up there with my Smith 36 as my favorite snubbies ...
 
Owned a 605, presently have a mod 85UL and a Tracker in 44mag. All of them have been good shooters, reliable, with a decent fit and finish. Never a problem with any of them.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top