Taurus Judge but which

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Ghostrider_23

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I've decide that I would like to have a Judge for the truck but need your input as to which one to get. Given the ammo shortage which one:

3" magnum

or

2 1/2"

3" or 4" barrel

When you pick please tell me WHY?????
 
S&W .357 magnum...Because the judge is about as useful as teets on a boar...;)

They still making them with a smooth bore?:rolleyes:

A good .357 magnum can fire .38 Specials and CCI magnum snake shot...Been shooting copperheads with my 9mmX19 and 115 grain HPs around here. Don't have to be soo close and I'm a good enough shot...:D
 
I like the thought of 5 '0000' buck pellets rushing out at ounce.

That doesn't sound good to youy?????
 
I like the thought of 5 '0000' buck pellets rushing out at ounce.
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I'd rather have a single 255gr. 45 Colt slug fired from a gun with a much shorter cylinder and decent rifling.

Opinions vary; this is America.
 
I like the idea of a 125 gr .357 round, a 250 gr .45 round, or a 240 gr .44 round rolling at HIGH speed.
The judge is popular right now... I wouldnt mind having one.
I bet I could trade someone who doesnt know better out of a good gun with it.


Jim
 
Yup...A Ruger will do too.

Ghostrider...You will have to excuse me (I really don't care, but). I'm a bit prejudice when it comes to the judge or any other Taurus for that matter. Taurus has issues. A few have launched their barrels down range or cracked at the barrel threads. The judge was (I believe) first manufactured with a smooth bore. Whether it is now I don't know.

They have been playing with shotgun and rifle combos for a hundred years or more and they still are not a sound investment in self protection. The judge is no different except for the short barrel that will have a problem launching pellets very far or with lethal force. (though they ARE scary lookin')(Ugly is more the word I was lookin' for)
 
If this is a "truck gun," then we'll assume you mean big rig. The owner/operator won't be shooting at football-field distances, he or she will be defending the cab. So we're talking pretty much point-blank range. For this application, the Judge is a viable call. You're thinking of loading .410 shells, so given the choice I'd go: 3" magnum and 4" barrel to maximize power and velocity. Used in the 10-foot range, the shells will be enough to rip the face off somebody and the followup .45 slugs are strong.

The conventional wisdom here is that the Judge is longer and unwieldly, underpowered, and what you want it to do can be better accomplished with a small-frame .357 - which can shoot shotshells, .38s and .357 mag, in a more compact package.
 
recoil can be unpleasent in the alloy versions according to reports. hence go for the steel models.

the 3 inch barrel will be a bit easier to swing around inside a vehicle, so as a result borrow one from a friend and see what seems to work best in the vehicle your going to carry in it.

a federal 410 handgun buckshot load followed by 255 gr semiwadcutters in a 45 colt will be verry efficient. its what id do with a judge.
 
The Judge is a good gun, if you learn it's limitations.

I bought the very first one I ever saw (before I saw any advertising of it). The day I bought it, I patterned it with #6 shot (the only shells I had at the house). It's a fun gun to shoot. Recoil is mild. But the pattern was horrible. Patterning distance was about 3 yards, at a large piece of cardboard (~4 feet square). The pattern it threw out looked like a 3 foot diameter doughnut. (Later patterns of 000 Buck faired a little better.)

I take the Judge to our (informal) skeet shooting. (I've broken a few that were over head shots. It's extremely difficult to do regularly.) But I use either .357 or 9mm for carry use. I wouldn't trust my life to a Judge. But then again, I didn't buy it with that intention.

Wyman
 
WOW,

OK, you all have changed my mind. I guess I'll keep my G-23 still I find it hard to believe that at 10 feet (legal distance for deadly force in my state) 410 3" magnum will not put a real hurting on someone trying to hurt you while you are driving caught off guard.

I mean come on everyone, at 10 feet you are going to hurt someone with a 22lr. It's hard for me to think that 5 '0000' pellets aren't as good as a 22lr.

Maybe I'm wrong but you all have set me straight. Thank you for helping me not make a $400 mistake.
 
Ghostrider...You will have to excuse me (I really don't care, but). I'm a bit prejudice when it comes to the judge or any other Taurus for that matter. Taurus has issues. A few have launched their barrels down range or cracked at the barrel threads. The judge was (I believe) first manufactured with a smooth bore. Whether it is now I don't know.
Click to expand...

No, it wasnt. How exactly would the manufacture it with a smooth bore in a handgun? That would be totally ilegal and unavailable for sale in the US. They have a much shallower rifling than others, but not a smoothbore.

The haters will hate, the lovers will love. Decide which one you are. I would like to have one for snakes and whatnot. If I feel the need to launch a .45 colt load, it would be from my blackhawk. I would also be afraid of one of my ruger only loads getting into that taurus and speed-disassembling it.
 
ghost dont let people disscourage you
there are alot of people that hate the judge and took way to much stock it that box o truth review
if anyone honesttly thinks that the .45colt or .410 0000 buck loads wont perform out of a judge stand in front of one once and see how comfortable you feel... EXACTLY my point
no matter how small or large or "worthless" a firearm is no one wants to break that rule

yes the judge is an oddity and yes its not as effective as other firearms but honestly i wouldnt feel undergunned with one
and yes i own a 3 inch magnum model
i also own an LCR and a 1911 so the judge isnt my first choice for my own defencive handgun but you can be sure that if i had to use it i wouldnt be scared that it couldnt do the job
 
Ghostrider_23 said:
...still I find it hard to believe that at 10 feet (legal distance for deadly force in my state)...
Click to expand...

Legal distance for self defense? As in, you can't shoot anyone from closer than 10 feet, or can't shoot anyone further away than 10 feet?

And either which way, that's ridiculous. I'm supposed to close within 10 feet of the guy with a gun to stop him - or alternately, try to backpedal 10 feet from the guy with the knife?
 
recoil can be unpleasent in the alloy versions according to reports. hence go for the steel models.
Click to expand...

No. No. No.

I've owned both steel and Ultralite, in 2-3/4", 3" bbl. I sold the steel one and kept the Ultralite. I still use it as a beater around the farm. The reduced weight makes it way more comfortable to wear on the hip than the steel one was, and I even like it better than my S&W Model 64 (with Pachmayrs on it) sometimes, especially when sitting in a tractor seat, because the Judge is slightly more compact, especially at the grips, (and noticeably lighter too.) Hunter makes a thumb-break leather holster especially for it that is really "just right" for farm and woods carry.

As far as "recoil", OK maybe it recoils more than my steel one did, and certainly more than the .38, but it is certainly not objectionable at all. A 12 ga 3" magnum I find a little "unpleasant", but a .410 / .45 Colt in a handgun "unpleasant"? C'mon people... ...did I stumble into Granny's Knitting and Quilting Forum somehow?


That said, it's still a snake gun as it's only "semi-ideal" use.

Les
 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ghostrider_23
...still I find it hard to believe that at 10 feet (legal distance for deadly force in my state)...
Click to expand...

Legal distance for self defense? As in, you can't shoot anyone from closer than 10 feet, or can't shoot anyone further away than 10 feet?

And either which way, that's ridiculous. I'm supposed to close within 10 feet of the guy with a gun to stop him - or alternately, try to backpedal 10 feet from the guy with the knife?
Click to expand...

I'm curious about this too? What state?

Wyman
 
still I find it hard to believe that at 10 feet (legal distance for deadly force in my state)...
Click to expand...

A hostile man with a knife is considered an imminent deadly threat at 21 feet. This sounds like gunshop gossip to me.

As for the Judge, there are much better choices for defense. I'd take a charter bulldog .44 over the Judge.
 
Just as a postscript, the Hunter thumb-break leather holster I referred to above that is specifically fitted to a 2-3/4 chamber 3" bbl Judge is Hunter # 1185 0844.

"Perfect" holster for a pretty OK farmer's sidearm... (Ultralite version)... :D

FWIW,
Les
 
get a 3" or 4" ruger gp100 and be done
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Not to dog you, or question the venerable GP100, but how can "one" revolver be recommended as the final perfection?

I'm just sayin'...

Les
 
Not to dog you, or question the venerable GP100, but how can "one" revolver be recommended as the final perfection?
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ok ok ok get a 3" and a 4" so you will have "two" revolvers, not "one"

jk but anyway

i would choose that as a truck gun because i see a truck gun a a gun that can/may be used for many different purposes, thus must be able to take many different loadings. .357/.38 is one of those cartridges that you can generally bet you might find in jim bobs Ace Hardware in old dusty town USA...no matter what brand/bullet/fancy specs/wadcutter...most any old loading in .357 mag will probably do whatever you ask it to do in a pinch

now say what you will but i doubt you will find .45LC or your special 000000000 .410 buckshot loads in big joes army/navy surplus in route 66ville out in nowhere county


I also can see a truck gun sitting for long periods of time unused (im not saying thats good practice, but you cant say that doesnt happen)...therefore i would trust a revolver that sits there with no stressed parts/no need to stay "wet"/ no need to try and remember "did i chamber it when i put it away?/ insert odd tendencies of some autos, to perform when and where i may need it..no questions...unless youve done something seriously horrible to your revolver, your 99.99999% guaranteed 6 .357 rounds when you drag that ole revolver out of the dusty glovebox from under the taco bell wrappers (my truck) lol
 
Yes, I agree wholeheartedly. A GP100 would be a better truck-glove-box-gun than a Judge.

Les
 
If it just a truck gun I would get the 4" barrel. Longer sigtht radius and a little more velocity are a good thing IMO.
 
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