Taurus .38 special...good gun?

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cdove72

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Girlfriend wants gun for protection, been all over town in search of a gun and seem to found a good one at Gander mountain.....its a taurus .357magnum that can also handle .38 specials.....sound like a good gun for her???
 
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Depends on the model. She may not like shooting one of the featherweight snubbies. Also any revolver chambered for the .357 magnum can shoot the .38 spl.
 
We've got a Taurus .38, model 85 snubbie. It's all steel and a nice little shooter. Came with rubber grips that make it pretty comfy.
 
It depends if you don't mind that additional size and weight over a regular 38 special +P.

Is concealabilty a factor?

Personally, I wouldn't buy a Taurus. I've always had Smiths.
 
Taurus are good if you can't buy American. They have a clone of the S&W Bodyguard with a hammer shroud which I think is the best concealable revolver. Their service has been good from my experience.
Have you looked for a used American revolver?
 
My wife shoots the Tuarus .38 spl. I think its the 850, i don't know though. Stainless stubbie with concealed hammer and rubber grips. She likes it a lot. Doesn't have unmanagable recoil for her, which was a must. She can typically burn through 100 rounds at the range with no problem. I say go for it.
 
Taurus are good if you can't buy American. They have a clone of the S&W Bodyguard with a hammer shroud which I think is the best concealable revolver. Their service has been good from my experience.
Have you looked for a used American revolver?
Click to expand...

Clones indicate that the parts are the same. They aren't. Taurus uses a different ignition system than S&W. Very few parts interchange. A clone 1911, as an example, uses few, or no, proprietary parts, allowing interchange.

The XD, and the M&P look basically like a Glock, but they aren't clones.:)
 
Not at all!

Taurus guns are very poorly made with little if any customer support. Their lifetime service means it will take you a lifetime to get service, if you are lucky. I have had several and they were all lemons, from the .22s to .38 snubs and .357s, to .44s, 9s .40s and .45s. I have had them all and they were all junk. I tried to get some fixed, but gave up after several months of waiting and going back and forth and around and around with them.

A snub .357 is a good idea since it can be loaded with anything from target .38s to bear stopping magnums. But do you and your girlfreind a favor and look at some quality guns like the Ruger SP101s or GP100s or, better, IMO Smith and Wesson J-frames or even L-frames with the 2-3" barrels. You will spend a little more up front, but save yourself a lot of money and headaches down the line. Plus, you may save your GFs life.

Happy hunting :)

Shooter429
 
I have a Taurus 94. The difference between it and old Smith revolvers is night and day.

Out of the box, my 94 had to be sent back to the factory. The cylinder wouldn't turn properly and kept getting stuck. I received it back, and while it functions correctly now, is not nearly as accurate as my other guns. I attribute its inaccuracy to its horrible timing. FWIW, turnaround time including shipping was exactly one month and the box stated it went back to Brazil. My PT-140 on the other hand, has been great with no problems at all.

I would also not suggest a snub nosed .357 for a first time shooter. The excessive recoil and short sight radius will only encourage flinching and make her uninterested in shooting.

I'd suggest an older Smith model 10. They're a dime a dozen, with most going for $150-250 depending on condition. The trigger is much better as is the timing, as long as it's been properly cared for.
 
I really liked to look and the ergos and kept hoping they would get better

I guess I was a bit overly optomistic in my younger days. Not to mention the price tags are very nice, so I kept hoping for a better product-kinda like the Japanese cars or even Hyundai. My fist ones were poor, but they got better over time. Now they are about as good as other cars on the road. The Hondas became really great. Sadly, Taurus has not gotten better over time, despite lots of technological advances and design updates, their execution and quality as well as service remain abysmal. I finally gave up hope and conceded to the obvious. They are comitted to turning a profit without increasing quality or customer service. In fact, I think they might be worse now than in their earlier days. They are poor quality products for not so cheap prices.

Avoid them like Avian flu.
Shooter429
 
I guess I should add that I had the gunsmith I bought the gun send it back, rather than contacting Taurus myself. I don't know if this had any impact on the speedy turnaround time.
 
we have an old 38 S&W special ctg, 4" barrel, i dunno what kind of loads its rated for, was grandpops when he was on the police force i think. shoots real well matt black along the top really reduces glare, i think i saw a 38 S&W(probably not the same model) in the paper for 200 recently, so they can be had cheap.
 
Taurus began as an import through Interarms, in the 1980s. That's less than 30 years. How can anyone have bought so many of these guns, and 100% of them all be bad? NOBODY will continue to buy from such a company.

The interesting part is that so many people have had much better service, and products, from Taurus than the nay-sayers can account for.

I own an even dozen, some of them 20+ years old. They range from .22 to .45 ACP, and none has had to be returned because of a factory failure. Many have well over 10K though them, at that. The chances of, over 20+ years, always picking up a 100% gun should be impossible, given the ratios brought here by the Taurus-bashers Assoc. :)

What type of personal protection? CCW, or just for at home? The at-home gun can easily be a 4" version. The heavier weight, and longer sight radius, will make shooting any load more comfortable, and accurate.

If you had started this with saying that you wanted to buy a Ruger, the same idiot remarks would have been made. Had you wanted a Smith, you would have been counseled to buy an older one, without "that dangerous lock".

Some people seem to thrive on telling others that their choice is always wrong.
 
I carried a stainless model 85 in the late 80's for a backup and sometimes off duty gun as a LEO. I used 125 JHP +P ammo and it was a good, accurate little gun that warded off abuse and weather and ankel holsters and coat pockets. I highly recommend one as (mine at the time) weighed a little more than the S&W model 36 so recoil was a little better.
 
Taurus makes a good gun.
Notice I said good not great.

Now for the IMPORTANT STUFF.
Go to WWW.CorneredCat.com
Take your girlfriend to the gun shop and direct the employee that you are only there to provide funds and that said employee is to find whatever gun your little sweety desires. When that is done, have said employee fit her with whatever holster and other carry devices that she desires.
Then after she fills out all of the forms and paperwork, you pull out your credit card and pay for it.
Buying a gun to carry includes the Belt, Holster, Reserve ammo carriers and carry ammo along with the time and ammo to know how to use the thing in problem situations.

It is a great idea to get a person a self-defense tool but they need to know how to use it and how to carry it.
 
Mr. Williams, to hear tell from these pages, there are NO great guns. Somebody always has a problem with whatever you put up.:)
 
A "Lifetime Guarantee" is no good when you're dead because your Taurus malfunctioned...Get a Ruger or S&W.
Click to expand...

Why, is there any difference in your life-span if either of the other mentioned malfunctions? You know, like that lock on the S&W that everyone here screams about, or the problems with Ruger that are also outlined on this forum?
 
I've got a Taurus 650 SS 357 with the concealed hammer. I carry it with 38+P+. It has always gone bang when I pulled the trigger. Never a malfunction. Not all Taurus are junk. You can get a lemon in any brand. I can carry it in my coat pocket and fire through it if necessary.
 
i have been tempting to buy a taurus 357 mag, but i figured i'd rather pay an extra $ and grab either a ruger or SW
 
A "Lifetime Guarantee" is no good when you're dead because your Taurus malfunctioned...Get a Ruger or S&W.
Click to expand...
Neither Ruger or S&W have closed down their repair facility due to lack of work.
 
Take a look at the Ruger SP101. If you're interested in CCW, the Smith 642/442 is really "the only" CCW piece in the world.

The rest are all imitations. :)
 
I have a Taurus revolver, and so does my buddy. Both good revolvers which have served us well. As good as a Smith? Duh, no. Good enough? Heck yes.
 
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