weregunner
Member
You are in some luck sir.
www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=267041799
www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=267041799
What's right with a Taurus?
- Thread starter spanishjames
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Steve H
Member
This week I picked up a 605ployss2. Great little gun. See my range report in this forum.
Very cool 45! Id like one in 45acp. Someday... Scheels in Appleton recently had a 41.
george29
Member
- Joined
- Sep 23, 2006
- Messages
- 1,670
This is a positive thread so I will comply with the OP, might I just say there are two types of handgunners, those that don't have any problem with Taurus and those that do have a problem with Taurus as a SD weapon. As an innovative manufacturer, this has been true for the last decade, before that they were cloning weapons. I hear from online forums that their CS is very good but also have friends that have just the opposite experience. I'm what some of you would consider people like me a Gun Snob because I wil only buy field proven weapons that usually cost more. As a gun snob with personal experience of carrying a weapon in the line of duty, I have yet to meet a knowledgeable Soldier, Sailor or Police Officer that carries a Taurus, Kel Tec or other inexpensive weapon as their primary method of staying alive. Comparing a Second String anything to the primary is just ridiculous. My Dodge Neon is NOT comparable to a Ford F150, it's not even comparable to a Chrysler 300 but it cost much less and so far does what it has been required to do. It certainly excels at city driving but it does have it's drawbacks which are obvious. If it came down to a bare-bones WWI era Colt 1911 or a PT1911 I will take the Colt. I will choose the FN Hi Power over it because dozens of police and military agencies still choose it over the more modern Taurus. All of my Taurus revolvers (3) failed in one way or another but I have childhood friends that have multiple Tauruses that they swear by, none of these childhood friends however have ever worn a uniform.
For target shooting Taurus is as good as anyone if that's what floats your boat. For SD? It's your life so it's your gamble, just remember to ask every cop or undeployed soldier if s/he woud prefer a Taurus to whatever they did have.
On a positive note, they are cheaper.
For target shooting Taurus is as good as anyone if that's what floats your boat. For SD? It's your life so it's your gamble, just remember to ask every cop or undeployed soldier if s/he woud prefer a Taurus to whatever they did have.
On a positive note, they are cheaper.
Elm Creek Smith
Member
Also remember to ask them what their agency or the government issued them. Soldiers, outside of some Spec Ops type, don't get to choose what they carry. Most police agencies have specifications that are, in effect, brand specific; they dictate what you can carry; or they just require you to carry whatever they issue.
And, I'd remind everyone that what the police or military carry has little to do with self-defense.
What's right with Taurus is that they offer good products at a reasonable price. They aren't old Smith & Wessons, but neither are new Smith & Wessons.
ECS
george29
Member
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- Sep 23, 2006
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- 1,670
Taurus basher vs Taurus defender, gotta love it.
On a personal note, after 33 years of carrying weapons, I have never had three of any weapon other than Taurus show unreliabilty. I have new S&W and old S&W and none have failed to perform. Any mechanical machine can and will fail, Murphy will make sure your failure happens just when you hope that it won't. Taurus has just enough of a bad rep to force me to pay more for something with a better reputation. Ruger, S&W, Springfield, Glock, Colt, Beretta, FN etc all have proven Military & Police pasts. Like it or not Taurus is a great weapon for when you don't NEED a weapon.
)
Just remember, all I said was that there were two types
Please expand your thoughts. What does it have do do with? Budget? If so than they would all force their officers to carry Taurus, none do, NOT ONE! Politics? Sure, I can see that, force US Police to carry a US made weapon, oops, Glock has way too many police departments covered for this to be true. Reliability? Well, Glock have this cornered too, even this thread has plenty of Taurus owners who admit to a failure of some sort.
On a personal note, after 33 years of carrying weapons, I have never had three of any weapon other than Taurus show unreliabilty. I have new S&W and old S&W and none have failed to perform. Any mechanical machine can and will fail, Murphy will make sure your failure happens just when you hope that it won't. Taurus has just enough of a bad rep to force me to pay more for something with a better reputation. Ruger, S&W, Springfield, Glock, Colt, Beretta, FN etc all have proven Military & Police pasts. Like it or not Taurus is a great weapon for when you don't NEED a weapon.
I wasn't bashing Taurus as a target/training gun (best used to train for some type of failure drill
)Just remember, all I said was that there were two types
Note the bold, italics and underlined word that says, " Self Defense." I wasn't bashing Taurus as target weapon. I'm still not but as a SD weapon you are gambling where you don't need to. It's your life bud, your choice.
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lloveless
Member
George29, FWIW I know knowledgeable LEO's in small agencies that have to buy their own weapons(caliber dictated by the agency). These men and women carry what they can afford. Yes Taurus, Keltecs, and Charters grace their holsters as much as used S&W, and Rugers. My first ever malfunction with any firearm was with the KT p-11 in the first 10 rounds with failure to go into battery using cheap foreign ammo. A quick lube job and eureka it was 100%. About a year later I bought a S&W 4506 exact same thing. All mechanical things will quit on you at some point. I know an engineer who won't carry an semi auto for ccw! I have never had a Taurus, but if I find a used .44 spcl I will be buying.
ll
ll
jad0110
Member
I've observed the same myself. I was one of those that had a bad experience. Actually, to call it merely "bad" is being very polite. Others have had great experiences with their CS. Same goes for their guns. Some are great, others are crap. If Taurus was a person, I'd describe these highs and lows as bipolar disorder.
And again, I'm not bashing Taurus, you just have to be careful with them and inspect them closely. That goes for any gun though, just more so for Taurus in my own experiences. And Ruger revolvers, interestingly. That "built like a tank" reputation they enjoy seems to be a challenge to some people to hand load 1/4 sticks of dynamite in the chambers on a regular basis, which means a lot of used Rugers I come upon are absolutely beat to crap and back. Like Taurus, I won't buy them sight unseen either. But YMMV.
I do love the wide range of revolvers Taurus offers. The 5 shot 44 Spl and 45 Colts are particularly interesting, and I consider myself fortunate to own a good one.
george29
Member
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- Sep 23, 2006
- Messages
- 1,670
Taurus has a great selection, I agree. I asked a friend who is an FFL and does all the gun shows now that he is retired from making computer components and as a former weapons instructor in the BP how Taurus can keep it's prices so much lower than Smith. His answer was you can't make a cheaper S&W than S&W unless you skimp somewhere. He said that Taurus makes beautiful guns on the outside and skimps on the mechanics on the inside, they then give you the lifetime warranty betting that the odds will be that there will be more good guns than lemons. He went on to say that there is another company that does the exact same thing, they are call Hyundai. Hyundai builds clones and then they slap on the automatic 10 year / 100,000 mile warranty. That was enough of a gimmick for a while but has worn off so now they have the Hyundai Assurance Guarantee. These are all gimicks to cover the fact that you can't build a Honda at Hyundai prices, but these cars do work and most people that I know bought them were single mom's in their 40's and up that wanted to join the SUV club but didn't have the money for a CRV. I wonder if that is the same for the Taurus crowd? Now, before someone accuses me of being rich, I am not. I am a Janitor and make $22,000/yr and my police pension is non-exsistent because it is used to cover my child-support payments, so that certainly takes me off the snob list. I do however have an appreciation for making a good stand if ever I would need to again and I would hate to have a friend eulogize me by saying, "too bad his gun went click instead of boom." I have had three revolvers lock up on me using Taurus and even if they were the only three lemons that Taurus ever made (which I know for a fact isn't true), I would stay away from them due to not having enough confidence in my weapon to start something that I don't know I could finish because of a mechanical problem. HOWEVER, I believe that the Tauris model 85 was better made mainly because they are Tauruses biggest sellers and I never owned a model 85. In fact, I am willing to go out on a limb and say that all the older 9mm that are Beretta clones as well as all the 38's are probably OK. My guns were the Tracker in 44 and the 905 and one other that skips my memory. They all had the same problem which was that after one or two shots the cylinder locked up and it took a tool to open it. I don't say that can't happen to a S&W but it hasn't to me.
So as a man that only earns a very small income but has in the past had to defend himself on the job everyday, I personally would never put my trust in a company whose reputation is a coin toss at best. If I had no other choice I would buy a used S&W M10 knowing that I have a gun built on tolerances meant for combat, in fact my go-to gun is a M13-3 3" blued. My CCW is a 640,, my bedside is a 357 Vaquero (the old heavy one), my bedside rifle a pre-1984 Marlin (357) just acquired. My other bedside is a Mossberg. I only own and operate tried and true USED weapons. If they malfunction when I most need it then Karma got in the way, if my phantom Taurus malfunctioned when I most needed it then Karma was not to blame but a bad choice on my part (for SD).
So as a man that only earns a very small income but has in the past had to defend himself on the job everyday, I personally would never put my trust in a company whose reputation is a coin toss at best. If I had no other choice I would buy a used S&W M10 knowing that I have a gun built on tolerances meant for combat, in fact my go-to gun is a M13-3 3" blued. My CCW is a 640,, my bedside is a 357 Vaquero (the old heavy one), my bedside rifle a pre-1984 Marlin (357) just acquired. My other bedside is a Mossberg. I only own and operate tried and true USED weapons. If they malfunction when I most need it then Karma got in the way, if my phantom Taurus malfunctioned when I most needed it then Karma was not to blame but a bad choice on my part (for SD).
weregunner
Member
First of all check the gun very carefully BEFORE buying which a lot of people do not do. The reason for a lot of the cylinder binding or problems having to do with the innards needing cleaning prior to range use.
Taurus guns come with different kinds of greasy preservant that needs to be cleaned out prior to the gun going to the range. Many do not do this and cannot figure out why the gun doesn't work as advertised.
I own over 20 Tauri revolvers and have not had any problems with any of them. Pick a model and I can come with hundreds of pages of links or threads showing the problems are not happening at the rate others claim and have nothing definite to back things up with. No hard data.
I also own over 7 Taurus pistols and they give sterling service.
Chuck Karwan,Massad Ayoob, and many other highly credentialed been there and done that gun writers/professional instructors have documented many stories where Taurus products saved lives. Tha includes many Gun Digest Books publications, Police Bookshelf Books (those are still available), and other publications show the same thing.
Taurus is also figures in being labeled as go to guns for those who are on a budget and need something that is reliable ,durable, and combat accurate. That's by these same world class gun instructors. It's documented thoroughly that police or anyone else who has to buy their own gun that Taurus is a excellent choice. That's whether it's pistols or revolvers.
Even Stephen A. Camp and Dick Metcalf were or are in that group.
Since there is no overall hard core data about Taurus being trash you folks might want to back off on that.
The anecdotal stories like these that there "has to be something wrong because I say there is" without factual support is basically being false and self serving. Also arrogant and conceited. Since the mental state of the Taurus owners is called into question, and there are mililons of us out there world wide, we will not take that lying down. It follows, if Taurus were garbage, then the people who actually use them for protection are idiots and fools. What competent person would use one? There are millions of us Taurus owners for whom that is a direct insult and a falsehood.
That would be the self proclaimed "Annointed Ones" who profess that they alone know better than anyone else what is what. Everyone else is irrelvant in their eyes.
We who own Taurus actually take use a critical eye,use common sense, and judgement in making our choice of gun to protect us and our loved ones. We also use common sense checklists before buying the gun.
People who own Taurus also normally own other brands of guns as well. I for example own Beretta,Springfield,SIGs,and Rugers.
Others own only Tauri and have had their needs met and have no reason to look any further.
And one problem with a gun is not a broad brush paint of a whole brand. I can do the same for any of the gun brands out there. That includes S&W or any other company.
It is amazing that gun brands,makes, or models that do have actual problems that need fixing are ho hummed at as no trouble, but if it is a Taurus things are considered catastophic. Makes no sense.
Exhibit A:
http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/taurus-revolvers/8307-taurus-vs-s-w.html
Exhibit B:http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/taurus-revolvers/4695-show-us-your-taurus-revolvers.html
Exhibit C:
http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/taurus-1911s/2127-show-us-your-taurus-pt1911s.html
Exhibit D:http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/700s/31959-700-series-picture-thread.html
Exhibit E: http://www.taurusrmed.net/forums/24-7-series/28745-show-us-your-24-7-a.html
Exhibit F: http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/millennium-pro-pistols/38254-millennium-pro-picture-thread.html
Exhibit G: http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/pt92-post-your-other-taurus-pistols.html
Exhibit H: http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/taurus-revolvers/15648-revolver-buyers-checklist.html
If the check list is used in the exhibit H link then a vast majority of buying problems vanish or are caught before the purchase. There are checklists out there for buying pistols as well.
Taurus guns come with different kinds of greasy preservant that needs to be cleaned out prior to the gun going to the range. Many do not do this and cannot figure out why the gun doesn't work as advertised.
I own over 20 Tauri revolvers and have not had any problems with any of them. Pick a model and I can come with hundreds of pages of links or threads showing the problems are not happening at the rate others claim and have nothing definite to back things up with. No hard data.
I also own over 7 Taurus pistols and they give sterling service.
Chuck Karwan,Massad Ayoob, and many other highly credentialed been there and done that gun writers/professional instructors have documented many stories where Taurus products saved lives. Tha includes many Gun Digest Books publications, Police Bookshelf Books (those are still available), and other publications show the same thing.
Taurus is also figures in being labeled as go to guns for those who are on a budget and need something that is reliable ,durable, and combat accurate. That's by these same world class gun instructors. It's documented thoroughly that police or anyone else who has to buy their own gun that Taurus is a excellent choice. That's whether it's pistols or revolvers.
Even Stephen A. Camp and Dick Metcalf were or are in that group.
Since there is no overall hard core data about Taurus being trash you folks might want to back off on that.
The anecdotal stories like these that there "has to be something wrong because I say there is" without factual support is basically being false and self serving. Also arrogant and conceited. Since the mental state of the Taurus owners is called into question, and there are mililons of us out there world wide, we will not take that lying down. It follows, if Taurus were garbage, then the people who actually use them for protection are idiots and fools. What competent person would use one? There are millions of us Taurus owners for whom that is a direct insult and a falsehood.
That would be the self proclaimed "Annointed Ones" who profess that they alone know better than anyone else what is what. Everyone else is irrelvant in their eyes.
We who own Taurus actually take use a critical eye,use common sense, and judgement in making our choice of gun to protect us and our loved ones. We also use common sense checklists before buying the gun.
People who own Taurus also normally own other brands of guns as well. I for example own Beretta,Springfield,SIGs,and Rugers.
Others own only Tauri and have had their needs met and have no reason to look any further.
And one problem with a gun is not a broad brush paint of a whole brand. I can do the same for any of the gun brands out there. That includes S&W or any other company.
It is amazing that gun brands,makes, or models that do have actual problems that need fixing are ho hummed at as no trouble, but if it is a Taurus things are considered catastophic. Makes no sense.
Exhibit A:
http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/taurus-revolvers/8307-taurus-vs-s-w.html
Exhibit B:http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/taurus-revolvers/4695-show-us-your-taurus-revolvers.html
Exhibit C:
http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/taurus-1911s/2127-show-us-your-taurus-pt1911s.html
Exhibit D:http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/700s/31959-700-series-picture-thread.html
Exhibit E: http://www.taurusrmed.net/forums/24-7-series/28745-show-us-your-24-7-a.html
Exhibit F: http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/millennium-pro-pistols/38254-millennium-pro-picture-thread.html
Exhibit G: http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/pt92-post-your-other-taurus-pistols.html
Exhibit H: http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/taurus-revolvers/15648-revolver-buyers-checklist.html
If the check list is used in the exhibit H link then a vast majority of buying problems vanish or are caught before the purchase. There are checklists out there for buying pistols as well.
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76shuvlinoff
Member
Well said. I own Kimber (ever read any Kimber bashing?) Ruger, Springfield and Walther. My long guns are Marlin, Marlin, Marlin, Remington and Winchester.
I had one Taurus 9mm for over 15 years and I'm still kicking my own butt for selling it. I recently picked up an abused Taurus .38 service revolver, I checked it out, cleaned up and it is working fine for me.
I had one Taurus 9mm for over 15 years and I'm still kicking my own butt for selling it. I recently picked up an abused Taurus .38 service revolver, I checked it out, cleaned up and it is working fine for me.
weregunner
Member
I like your taste in guns!!
wiringlunatic
Member
- Joined
- Dec 29, 2011
- Messages
- 35
Second pistol purchased was a Taurus 85 4" .38 Special (first was wife's .32 H&R) I had shot maybe 15 rounds out of handguns when I first fired this. The second set of 6 I stood up and fired SA offhand at a plate (about 9" diameter) at 25 yards. EVERY shot rang it! A friend of mine described a Taurus as a "S&W with looser tolerances. You can bury it in sand, dig it out and shoot it." That's exactly what I need. I do handyman work and auto repair, sometimes in less than perfect neighborhoods. I get my gun dirty. The left side of it is rusty from sweat (yeah, yeah, I'm neglectful) No matter what, I know I can count on it to go bang EVERY time and hit what I'm pointing at. All for $140 out the door used in like-new condition. I would probably never trust a semi as a daily carry piece -- I've heard people bragging about how their Kimber "only misfired once per clip for the first 1000 rounds" Sorry, no time or money to send 1000 rounds downrange just to make my gun trustworthy and I don't want to know what it does to them to fill them with drywall dust or metal fragments from grinding. My Taurus -- I can trust it.
On another note: a friend of mine used to be a New York City cop (in Manhattan, I believe) They were given a choice of several weapons that the department would buy for them. One of them (the one he chose) A TAURUS!
Oh, one more thing: two of my friends have Raging Bull .454 Casulls. THAT GUN IS AWESOME! We were firing at an indoor range, and he drowned out about 12 lanes of firing. Everyone stopped and looked to see what had made that noise. I was standing about 6 feet behind him and felt the concussion on my chest. When I shot it, I definitely knew I had some power in my hands, but it was clean, smooth, and straight in its recoil. My friend was putting up about 4" groups at 25 yards with it. It was WAY easier to keep on target than my wife's .32 H&R topbreak. Great guns, great prices, reliable, solid feel, and solid performance. What more do you want? Something that costs 3x as much so you can brag about how much you spent?
On another note: a friend of mine used to be a New York City cop (in Manhattan, I believe) They were given a choice of several weapons that the department would buy for them. One of them (the one he chose) A TAURUS!
Oh, one more thing: two of my friends have Raging Bull .454 Casulls. THAT GUN IS AWESOME! We were firing at an indoor range, and he drowned out about 12 lanes of firing. Everyone stopped and looked to see what had made that noise. I was standing about 6 feet behind him and felt the concussion on my chest. When I shot it, I definitely knew I had some power in my hands, but it was clean, smooth, and straight in its recoil. My friend was putting up about 4" groups at 25 yards with it. It was WAY easier to keep on target than my wife's .32 H&R topbreak. Great guns, great prices, reliable, solid feel, and solid performance. What more do you want? Something that costs 3x as much so you can brag about how much you spent?
76shuvlinoff
Member
Thank you. It's funny that when I bought the kimber I thought I was buying quality and I have to say even with all the internet horror stories I have ZERO issues with that .45. It seems we can't help but irritate people with our choices. Kimber makes people mad. Taurus make people mad. I think if I order up a Glock and post about it I'll have it all covered because they make people mad too!
I must be the luckiest guy in the world. The only serious malfs I have had were with a Springfield Ultracompact V10 .45 that just needed a new extractor and recoil spring. Admittedly I don't do the round counts many guys here do in competition, I'm just Joe Sixpack toting a self defense weapon and plinking in the back yard.
Would I trust a Taurus for self defense? Yeah but not the current project plinker .38 I just picked up. It was neglected before I got it and needs time to prove itself. No matter what brand I purchase next it's going to have to prove itself before I tote it.
jad0110
Member
I agree with you on inspecting before you buy. I've goofed a couple of times in the past by not inspecting carefully enough and bought guns I probably shouldn't have (a binding Taurus 94 with an awful rough trigger - and yes I had the inards cleaned out and relubed, and a 2" S&W Model 15 with a bulged chamber). On the 94, the internals were cleaned and the cylinder gap was okay (about .004 IIRC). I kick myself for not looking at the extractor star, I suspect it was boogered up something fierce, but I'll never know now. That gun is long gone now.
I know what you are saying, but OTH, a majority of gun owners (not just Taurus owners) just buy a gun then stick it in a sock drawer unloaded with the ammo in the top shelf in the closet, without firing it once, and figure they are GTG. So they wouldn't know if it (a Taurus, Ruger, Charter, Glock, etc) works or not. Sad but true.
woad_yurt
Member
At least one side is....
Plastikosmd
Member
- Joined
- Oct 16, 2011
- Messages
- 828
Had a 454, raging bull. Should have never sold it
CollinLeon
member
Disgraceful... There's no purpose in having a gun around if it is not loaded...
S&W-Keeper
Member
They have a lot of models.
orangeninja
Member
- Joined
- Dec 4, 2003
- Messages
- 3,117
Taurus has turned out the occasional booger, but honestly so has S&W, Glock, Kimber, Springfield and just about every manufacturer I can think of. The WORST gun I've ever owned was a Charter Arms, right after that was a Springfield XD (that I sent back twice) and finally got rid of. I have had a Taurus start slipping on the cylinder but they fixed it. I have had a Taurus poly gun frame crack and they sent me a brand new gun. Sorry, I don't really have anything bad to say about a company that would do that.
mgkdrgn
Member
All of my Taurus products have treated me just fine. Judge, 450, Rossi M92 in 454 Casull (see a pattern here?)
rcmodel
Member in memoriam
What's right with a Taurus?
They have a great advertising department, and budget!
rc
They have a great advertising department, and budget!
rc
Jeff Holt/
Member
- Joined
- Jul 20, 2010
- Messages
- 17
We recently bought 3 Taurus semi's the 840, 845 and 809 compact
The 809 is the most reliable of the three, the 840 skips a feed every 5-7 rounds or so and the mag is loose inside the grip. The 845 has been back twice for repairs; trigger bar and again for a broken extractor. (Not even 50 rounds through it yet) I really wanted to like this gun for a carry weapon but I can't rely on it yet. Nice designs and features on the guns but cheaply made parts. I don't think I'll be buying any more of them.
I have bought the 85ul and that went back for twice for the same screw repair that holds the cylinder post and spring. I've had better luck with my 44 mag tracker talo.
As I understand it, the same parent company owns Smith& Wesson and I hear their quality has gone down in recent years and that more and more of the new guns are now being made in Brazil also.
What I do like about them is the lifetime repair policy. Looks like I'll be using it alot.
The 809 is the most reliable of the three, the 840 skips a feed every 5-7 rounds or so and the mag is loose inside the grip. The 845 has been back twice for repairs; trigger bar and again for a broken extractor. (Not even 50 rounds through it yet) I really wanted to like this gun for a carry weapon but I can't rely on it yet. Nice designs and features on the guns but cheaply made parts. I don't think I'll be buying any more of them.
I have bought the 85ul and that went back for twice for the same screw repair that holds the cylinder post and spring. I've had better luck with my 44 mag tracker talo.
As I understand it, the same parent company owns Smith& Wesson and I hear their quality has gone down in recent years and that more and more of the new guns are now being made in Brazil also.
What I do like about them is the lifetime repair policy. Looks like I'll be using it alot.
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