Taurus PT145 owners....Thoughts (esp on reloads)

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TennJed

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I am interested in a small 45 acp and the Tuarus PT145 has csught my eye.

I am looking for expeirences and opinions from Taurus PT145 OWNERS.....Please don't come in here and bash Taurus if you don't or have not owned a PT145......even if your brother in law's cousins son's football coach had a bad one;)

I would like to know from people with first hand knowledge to tell me how it preforms. Is it ammo picky? Have you shot reloads out of it? How does it carry. Any problems.

I will take suggestions though on other good small 45 acp under $400....just see if you can do it by telling what is good about your suggestion...not what is bad about taurus (I really don't want this to be a tuarus bashing thread....unless it was your your are bashing:)

Thanks
 
I do own one and use it for carry. I have shot factory ammo in it and had very few slide lick backs in the first 100 or so rounds. Not anymore.

I have fed it

UMC
WWB
F.C
Magtech
Tula and so on. I also have shot reloads thru it, just 10. They cycled perfectly. The sights are ok. You need to get use to them. Recoil is not bad from such a small gun. Fits pretty good in my hands. It's not a bad gun, it's also not the best. Many of them came with Their fair share of problems. Others experienced worst symptoms and others none.

One most common problem is thought to be the mags. Others have thought it was the slide. Take a trip over to Taurus Armed and you will get much more info.
 
Has fed all factory ammo and SWC reloads without issues.

slide length is comparable to Glock 26/27 and grip length is comparable to G19/23.

I highly recommend the Gen3 DA/SA trigger model over DAO models.
 
Listen to both posts on 3rd generation. Go with one, you'll not be sorry. I got mine to lighten the load during summer. Now it's my EDC. I download one in the mag, so 10 total with one being chambered.

It's nicely polished from the factory, feeds reliably, no issues with 3rd gen

As a note, I'm in a hot area that makes me sweat alot. I bought the stainless slide because I carry IWB. After 3 years, no rust, and hardly any wear.

When I got mine they were 275 bucks. I couldn't believe that it would be that good, but was unable to afford a Glock. I was blown away:D. As I carry 1911 also at times, I'm used to and like a manual safety on all my pistols. I know you don't need one, but in my situation I like it.

Only complaint is the same as other major pistols out there, why the heck are the mags so dang expensive!
 
If you are having accuracy issues with reloads, it may be due to oversized barrel not allowing proper bullet to barrel fit for consistent chamber pressures (mine mic'd at .453") which produced poor shot groups with my initial SWC test reloads.

Once I slugged the barrel and determined the oversized barrel, I switched to softer 12 BHN SWC Missouri Bullet and accuracy returned, even for lower pressure target loads. My current favorite accurate target/plinking loads are MBC 200 gr SWC with 5.0 gr of W231/HP-38 and 4.0 gr of Promo/Red Dot at 1.25"-1.27" OAL..

For plated bullets, I get good accuracy from larger diameter (.452") Berry's bullets. Jacketed (FMJ) bullets with exposed lead base seem to provide good obturation for accuracy and I drive JHP bullets at high-near max load data for accuracy.

CCI Blazer/Brass factory ammo uses larger diameter plated bullets and you may want to try it in your PT145 if you can't get accuracy with other factory target loads.
 
I forgot to mention that.

Mine is a 3rd Gen DA/SA. Listen to the others. The first gen frame did have the frame cracking problem. I don't remember what the second gen problem was. Weight is light. Can't complain really.

If there is something I hate about this gun, It's the Straight 8 sights. I carry IWB in a Uncle Mikes holster Size 16. It's a decent but cheap holster but fit my needs. No problems there.
 
I've had a 2d Gen stainless 145 for several years now. After the first couple of hundred rounds (occasional failures to go fully to battery) it runs perfectly with anything I feed it. I carry Federal 230-gr Tactical Bonded for "serious social occasions," shoot mostly WWB at the range.

I recently adapted it for a laser by mounting half of a scope mount under the barrel. The new ones already have a rail.:cool:
 
I have the PT-145 Millenium PRO. Earlier models had the frame cracking problem. I was lead to believe that the PRO models fixed that. I have not had any problems with mine. It is my EDC in either a small of back belt slide, Fobus paddle or Smart Carry. If I have baggy slacks on I can even pocket carry it or stick it in a rear pocket of jeans w/ a long enough sweatshirt or jacket. Down here I sweat a LOT. That is why I got the stainless slide. The other parts are not stainless and I have noticed a bit of rust now and then on the safety lever, slide lock lever, the extractor and loaded chamber indicator, the stupid Taurus keyed locking system, the magazine release and even the pins that hold the metal rails into the polymer frame. I usually try to clean and lube it every couple of weeks so that circumvents most of the rust in the summer. I don't have the problem in the winter or in the Fobus (keeps gun away from my skin). I guess I have more acidic skin than normal. They do not offer my sights anymore, but mine came with 3-dot tritium night sights. I have had it about 8 years now and still love the way it fits my hand. I also like the thumb safety. Great gun for the price.
I can not tell you about reloads, but it likes the Taurus Hex bullets best. And of course, they are no longer available. I hear the CorBon DPX ammo is the closest thing to them. 2nd best ammo was the Federal Hydra-shock. Getting that 10th round in the mag requires a strong thumb, but that was another selling point- size vs magazine capacity. I give it 2 thumbs up!!
 
The problem I had with reloads was that they were put together very badly. I could see they weren't even perfectly set in the cases. This was a box of reloads I bought at a flea market. I shot 3 of them and took the rest back the next week and they gave me my money back. They were there all the time and were selling reloads all the time. I had bought a lot of other stuff from those guys and they knew I recognized bad ammo when I saw it.
Click to expand...

The reason as to why you roll your own. :)

I used an Uncle Mike's holster for a year or so until the flap wore out and the gun started digging into my side. It really wasn't a bad holster before that happened.
Click to expand...

Same thing here. It becomes a pain. Literally. Theres many holsters out there that can fit it even if it is not mentioned.

Taurus PT-145 Mil Pro 3rd Gen SA/DA. This is the one your looking for as it is the one that most people use. And yes, Its the same one I have.
 
I have one. I polished the breech and now it looks real big from that side! Had a problem with one mag sent it back and they sent me a new one. No more problems. Real easy to conceal even though it is a staggered stack. You have to practice with it to get to know her. Like being married she won't show her meanness until after the honeymoon! Sometimes your thumb will release the mag. Sometimes you will forget the safety is on or your thumb will put it on and you will go nuts when it does not fire. The good thing about all this is if you drop the thing ans a perp picks it up they just might not be able to shoot you! I really like mine. My bug is a Kel-Tec .32 ACP.
 
I don't have one per se, but I DO have a Gen 3 PT111, which is in the same family, and boy is it one sweet little pistol! I carry it when I'm over at my Brother's farm or down in the creek bed, and it's so small you don't know it's there until you sit down. I've yet to find a holster I like that I don't have to sign away my firstborn to get, so I just keep it tucked in my old leather Dickies belt, and the belt takes the little pistol no complaints.

I've fed mine a little bit of everything. WWB, UMC, Blazer Brass, and I keep some Hornady Critical Defense in there just in case. Maybe 300 rounds no problem.

I like it so much that I gave my other handgun to my brother. I feel more than safe carrying the Mighty Mite. Though now I kinda wanna find one in .40 and .45, and round out the set.
 
Five or so years ago I bought a 24/7 C 45. It was reliable and fairly accurate, so I bought a slightly smaller PT745. [single stack PT145] To be kind, the gun was horrible. I sent it back twice and it stayed for six weeks both times, but Taurus never got it right. It would still FTFeed 20% of the time. Because of the lack of CS, I eventually sold the 24/7. I decided no more Tauruses.
 
I have the newest generation Millenium Pro in blued. Finish comes off a little too easily for my taste but I carry it either in the car or IWB, so what can I expect right? I've fed it no reloads but I have fed it Winchester white box, Remington Golden Sabres, PMC and Hornady Critical Defense, which is what I carry. Not a single hiccup. Very accurate and reliable for a 350 dollar pistol.
 
I just bought a PT 145 Pro new at a gun show, pick it up this Tuesday. What are the visual differences between the 3 generations?? How can I tell if my gun is new or has been sitting in the gun store for years?????
 
Look at the sights. The 3rd gen Mil-Pros have Heinie figure eight (1 dot on front, one dot on rear) sights. IIRC the 2nd gen were DAO and the 3rd gen are SA with a second strike in DA. Also I believe they started in the NZ serial number prefix range.

Hope I remember correctly. I've had both gen's but a friend bought the 2nd gen guns from me. In the picture the black slide guns are 2nd gen and the stainless slide guns are 3rd gen.
Dallas Jack
 

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I carry a PT-145 most all of the time. Have not had any issues with it whatsoever - multiple FMJ and JHP ammo types and weights. I'm not super happy with the Heinie sights, but they're not bad once you learn the sight picture. Shoots comfortably enough that I get in weekly practice with it.
 
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