Would anyone buy a taurus .357??

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cfrench

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i am wanting to buy my first handgun. want to buy a revolver and have been doing alot of reading on the internet. there are alot of opinions about taurus. would like to know what people on this site think. i think the finish on the taurus looks better than some s&w i have seen. i'm sure s&w is better i just noticed the finish on the guns. thanks for the help...
 
taurus is hit or miss. more miss, in my experience.

i would only buy a Taurus in a face to face transaction, and i would go over every inch of the gun before i opened my wallet.

there ARE good Taurus revolvers out there but they are the exception rather than the rule.
 
See my post here for a recent new Taurus .357 purchase.

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=603340

Would I buy one again? Sure, they made it right. And I really look forward to shooting the gun, I plan to shoot the heck out of it.

I would not say the finish of my Taurus is better than any Smiths I've owned, nor Rugers, and certainly not my Colts. But it's not like the Taurus finish sucks either, it's decent.
 
If you are contemplating a new .357 I would suggest a Ruger. They are better guns than Taurus and Smith.

Taurus earned a bad reputation and has gotten much better. Smith had a good reputation and have gotten much worse. Quality between the two is pretty even, depending on the specific gun. Since Taurus is much more reasonably priced...it is a no-brainer.

Of course getting an experienced revolver person to help you buy used is the best thing to do. (and read the sticky at the top of the page on how to check one out...it is very good)
 
There are few brands of revolver I would buy. Taurus isn't one of them. There are a few more brands of auto I would consider. Taurus doesn't make the cut here either. Taurus serves only as a good example of a company to avoid.
 
I bought a Tuarus tracker .44 for my backup gun while bow hunting. It's had about 2k rounds though it over the last 3 years and I think it was a great value. It is the only revolver I've ever had and has had zero problems. In fact it shoots every bit as good as my buddies Ruger red hawk(might not hold up as long with extra hot rounds though since the Ruger more beefy).

To me it really depends on what you want to use it for.
 
I'll also add that I've been told buy a few gunshop workers that they don't see or hear of many problems out of Tuarus revolvers but the pistols are another story.
 
I own a Taurus 66B4, 7 round .357 mag and couldn't be happier with it.

The customer service on the other hand is a joke and as bad or worse than dealing with city hall.
 
I have a friend who has a Taurus 4", we've been shooting together for a number of years and he's had no issues and it's been accurate.

I've been thinking about a 6" Raging Bull in .41mag, but haven't pulled the plug yet. :D

Bob
 
Very hit or miss as mentioned. I know one guy who loves his. If you get a good one it's a good value. For me.....no, I won't buy one. I don't agree that the Smith has dropped to the Taurus level of quality. They've certainly dropped but not that low. I don't and won't own a Smith with a lock and today's quality level but they are still a fine firearm. As a diehard Smith fan, I'll have to say that Ruger is trying their hardest to win me over. They build some quality firearms. Not the fit and finish of the older Smiths but very nice. A big plus for me is that the Rugers and Smiths are American made.
 
I have had one Taurus revolver, a model 94 in .22 LR. It is not as smooth or refined as a S&W kit gun but it was also much less expensive. It has served well and without problems for the purpose I bought it. If you have the money get a S&W, Colt, or Ruger but the Taurus is an OK revolver.

Taurus 22 revolver sm.jpg
 
The customer service on the other hand is a joke and as bad or worse than dealing with city hall.
Click to expand...

Come on, that's being a little hard on city hall, don't you think?:p DMV maybe? :D

I have experienced Taurus customer DIS-service. My advice, just ignore the lifetime warranty. If something breaks, take it to a reputable local gunsmith for repair. Worth every penny IMO. That said, sounds like maybe their CS is making a turnaround in the last 6 months. We'll see though.


Taurus is hit or miss, but it seems to be more tied to specific models. For example, the 66 .357 Magnum is nearly always trouble free and highly regarded. Like anything else, lemons do exist. The 66 seems to have a lower percentage than other Taurus models. The .22 LR Model 94 OTH, is at the troublesome end of the spectrum. Some have good ones, like Steve above. Most seem to be turds, to one degree of stench or another. Mine rated about a 10+ on the stinko meter. :banghead: It was truly a pile, my fault for not checking it out close enough before buying.

That said, I own a wonderful 3" .44 Special model 431. I would consider a 66 again one day (had a great 6" model, stupidly traded it) for the right price. Usually when I find them they are priced the same as S&W Model 66s. :(
 
I think the fact that you feel the need to poll us on whether or not Taurus is a good brand says it all. Am I saying that Taurus isn't good? No, I can't speak to that as I have never owned one, only shot a few.

If you got one it would most likely work fine, but I would still pay the extra 100 bucks and get a Ruger for the peace of mind. I have only had to send a gun back to Ruger once and they replaced the guilty part and I picked it up a week later, no cost or problem whatsoever.
 
Well, I don't own a Taurus .357 but I do own the PT145.

Anyways, If you can, Look around at your LGS for maybe a used Ruger. It would probably be in the price range of a new Taurus.

You can always try it and if anything, There warranty can take care of it. Although, There has been a lot of up and downs with that....

I picked up a Ruger GP-100 .357 Mag for $285 OTD. I would call around and see what I can find.
 
I have a model 689 with a 6 1/2" vent rib barrel...

It shoots very well and has been 100% reliable since day 1 (20 years ago).

The bluing is very nice and has held up well.
 
Lots of people have. Some have had issues, some not. The ones who have had issues are the ones you'll hear more from, but they'll rarely volunteer to back up what they say (examples so far are posts 6, 9, 11, 16, and 22.) I'd bet most are not speaking from experience, just from webwarrior chatter.
It's hard to say which way the pendulum actually swings.
Mine (M66) has been trouble-free the entire 24+ years I've had it, even after spending years 3 through 5 on the streets changing hands from one thug to another who-knows-how-many times after being stolen in a burglary.
It was my first gun, bought as a 21st birthday gift for myself.
 
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