Problems with Taurus .45 ACP

[Dr Detroit]

I purchased a Taurus Tracker 45 ACP 2" snub revolver a couple of months ago. It uses full moon clips for loading. I am having a problem and wondered if anyone else has had a similar one.

4 out of 5 times when I place the loaded full moon clip in the cylinder and close it, it is very difficult for the cylinder to move. For instance, I close the cylinder and try to pull back the hammer for an SA shot. It is very difficult to pull back the hammer because the cylinder doesn't want to rotate. Or if you shoot it DA, same problem, very difficult to pull the trigger because again the cylinder is very hard to rotate. Sometimes its no problem at all. Sometimes if you open and turn the cylinder so it closes in a different position there is no problem. But usually after the first shot or two it doesn't want to rotate again. Works fine when not loaded. Easy to dry fire.

I bought a new package of moon clips in case some were bent. Did the same things again on the first try with the new ones.

Anyone else own one of these and have this experience? Any suggestions? I will call Taurus this week if no one has a solution here.

Thanks for your help!

 

[RON in PA]

I've got a 45 ACP Tracker with a 4" barrel and have put 250 rounds through it without a hitch. The Taurus 5-shot full moon clips work fine, very easy to load and unload.

You say that that you are having trouble 4 out of 5 times. Are you using factory ammo or reloaded? If primers are high you will have the kind of trouble you are describing. Are the cartridges going all the way into the chamber? If you can eliminate the cartridges as a culprit then it may be a problem with the hand or extractor star. If that's the case then it's back to Taurus. One more thing, is the extractor bottom clean? Maybe some crud got between it and the end of the cylinder, its got to be clean.

 

[Dr Detroit]

sending it back

Thanks for the info. I inspected it further this morning. No problem with the ejector and I am using factory ammo. If I don't use the full moon clips the cylinder just clears the frame (area where the firing pin is located) so when you pull the trigger the cylinder can rotate easily. If I use the clip for loading the gun, the back of the cartridges rub against the frame. Especially 2-3 of them. I held the gun in front of me looking at it from the side view. You can see light between the frame and cylinder without the moon clips but when you load it with them, the cartridges are rubbing so tightly against the frame that no light can get through. It appears that gap is not wide enough. Now the bottom side of the cylinder you can see a slight bit of light. So maybe the cylinder is not seated properly and needs to be realigned.

Anyway I guess its Taurus problem. Ever have to deal with their customer service?

Thanks!

 

[JoeHatley]

Doc,

Sounds like a headspace problem. I'm not sure what Taurus specs would be, but I'm betting they are very similar to S&W. Sould be .006 gap at both ends of the cylinder. Barrel to cylinder gap and recoil shield to back of cartridge case.

High primers, dirty gun, or loose ejector rod can also cause similar problems.

Good Luck...

Joe

 

[Dr Detroit]

called Taurus today

Thanks for the info. I called Taurus today. They are going to take care of it. They are handling freight both ways. The only bad news is that it will be 3 weeks before I get it back. They are apparently backed up a bit.

I am using factory ammo, I checked the ejector star area for any dirt, etc. I cleaned the gun extra thoroughly to make sure the cartridges were seated all the way into the cylinder, etc. Still that gap problem at the top.

Thanks again!