Taurus Revolvers - Yay or Nay?

[BehindBlueI's]

I mentioned the model 15 because I have seen some security company trade ins running around. The triggers on these old guns are quite nice.

For the love of my pre-Christmas pocket book: no links, please.

 

[level0]

No experience with Taurus revolvers, but I've heard mostly good. It's cheaper at kygunco.
https://www.kygunco.com/Product/View?ItemNo=106668

Slightly less, $287.38, at Guns Midwest: https://www.gunsmidwest.com/tau-2820041-82-38sp-4in-fs-bl.html

 

[level0]

A local gun store had a flash sale on the stainless model 85 Taurus so I went and looked at them, I was impressed enough to buy one and took it home and checked it out.
It had a .005" barrel cylinder gap, the cylinders were .3575, the double action trigger was 11.5 lbs. single action was 3 lbs. And very smooth.
I didn't find any machining marks anywhere. Finish was smooth and uniform. I took it to the range and shot several different loads through it and it performed flawlessly and shot to point of aim at seven yards. I loved the grips and the sights even though the sights were also stainless.
I couldn't find anything wrong with it at all and I loved the price.
What's not to like?

I skipped this sale and have been kicking myself ever since. Assuming you mean Point Blank. I went in there two days after the sale and one of the guys told me he was still honoring the deal. Shoulda woulda, I won't pass again at that price.

 

[BJones]

I have several Taurus revolvers and find them to be very reliable. I have actually had less trouble with the Taurus's that I have than I have had with the S&W revolvers that I own.
I would not hesitate to purchase a Taurus

 

[ppg1949]

I bought a model 94 the first year they came out. I've put
several thousand rounds through it without a single glitch.
The finish & craftsmanship was very nice. The gun is very accurate. I put some Pachmeyer grips on it for a hold. I'd buy Taurus again.
it for a better grip. Very happy with it.

 

[1nderbeard]

Generally, I don't like Taurus. I had a snub .38 that I shot well, and my brother continues to shoot well however. If I'm gonna buy a wheel gun I'll spend the extra cash on a smith.

 

[GrinderCB]

Taurus revolvers have always been a good value. No idea on the autos but I've fired a few rental beaters at the range and never had trouble. Rural King recently had a ridiculously low price on the Taurus 85 revolver and I didn't dive on it, but have considered one as a solid option for concealed carry. Every review I've ever seen on the 85 has been positive, the only common complaint being the trigger. The Ruger LCR consistently gets reviewed with the best trigger but it also runs $100-$150 more than the Taurus 85. Again, Tauruses are great values and if you practice there's no reason why you couldn't get good with one.

 

[Kernelkrink]

The older Taurus revolvers were good to go. Most of the bad ones were made during the 8 years of panic buying during the last President's administration. Running 24/7 and having months of backorders tends to make QC take a back seat.

I bought my Sister a model 85 bobbed hammer model probably 20 years ago. Never had an issue with it, great trigger, goes bang every time.

A friend bought the Taurus CIA model, the copy of the S&W "centennial" with the internal hammer. This was maybe 6 years ago? The muzzle was not crowned, in fact the burr from where it was parted off was still in the bore! He wanted me to do a trigger job on it, so I was dry firing it to both smooth the action a bit and create wear marks to know where to stone things. About 20 or so pulls and it locked up. Lifetime warranty? Yep, after you pay to overnight it back to them, which was quoted at about $80. So I took the side cover off, found a pin had backed out and there was metal chips from manufacturing still present. Staked the pin in place, cleaned it up, he sold it.

Would I buy a Taurus today? If I could examine the actual gun before purchase, sure would. Order online and hope? Nope.

BTW, just picked up a S&W 642 from Cabelas during their last sale. With discounted gift cards off Ebay ($82 for $100 card) and their rebate it came to just over $200 out the door! Boy, was I disappointed. S&W QC has also fallen, two of the sideplate screws were mangled from the factory. All the internals are MIM now, trigger pull was about 20 lbs and gritty. Hey, it's a Smith .38 for $200, I'm not going to lose money if I ever get rid of it, but folks who paid the anywhere near the full MSRP of $450 should be demanding their money back!

 

[TexasRedneck]

I have an older SS in .22 that I used to introduce the kids to shooting years ago. Hasn't left the safe in 15 years - but Taurus DOES show the rear sight assembly to still be on back order......

We get 'em in for repair from time to time - parts availability is hit-or-miss (usually miss). 6+ months waits aren't unusual. Yeah - I won't be buying another, personally.

 

[Walking Bear]

Believe they are fine but I would not run lots of hot loads through it. They are made on old S&W machinery I believe.

 

[Magnum314]

I think their revolvers are much better than their semi-autos. Like anything, you get what you pay for... BUT, they do offer a lifetime warranty. All that being said, I've got a Taurus revolver and have had no issues with it and trust my life with it.

Have to agree with this! I haven't owned one of the more recent models, but loved my old Mod. 85 and 431.

 

[Microairman1]

You just need to get one, you know you want another revolver lol

 

[Amishman44]

I have an old model 85 revolver that is actually quite nice. It smoothed up easily and has a nice double and single action. I cannot speak to the quality of their newer ones.

I, too, have an older Taurus 85 (from 1990) that is a smooth and accurate shooter...but I doubt I'd own anything from them that's recent. From 2005 and forward, I've owned 3 of their products that weren't worth the parts they were built with...2 x PT-145's (stuff would come loose and fall off while shooting) and a revolver Model 850 that would lock-up after the first round and had to repair it twice...they never did figure out why it would lock-up but wouldn't replace it either! Traded them all...moved forward!

 

[JohnP82]

I really like my 85. Bought it used around 15 years ago, great shooter.

 

[warthog]

Nay

 

[eric001]

I have a little .38 titanium 85 that's so light I barely know it's there when I carry it. Flawless shooter.
2 .357's--one snubby and one 6.5" Tracker. Several thousand rounds downrange from each--flawless shooters.
1 .44--6.5" Raging Bull. Just have to love the porting for control...and--flawless shooter.
1 .454 6.5" Raging Bull. Relatively newer than the other long barrels, so only a couple thousand down this one...and you guessed it--flawless shooter. Oh, one more thing--PORTING!! That makes this more manageable to shoot than an unported .44 mag.

Never a problem from the bunch and about 20 years or so on the .357's.

I'm not in the market for any more revolvers, but if I saw a Taurus priced just right--yep, I'd get another.

 

[spencer5650]

I won't touch a Taurus anymore, too many problems. I had a pt92 ran ok but could not operate the safety/decocker with my left hand, right handed was ok, but the lever on the right since would not budge without help from the off hand, the left side worked fine, weird. Pt 945 worked ok, but couldn't hit the broadside of a barn. Tracker .17 hmr revolver cked up on the first cylinder, had to go back the factory came back worked ok, but cylinder was still very tight. Model 94 22lr revolver, bought used in like new condition, keyholed every shot. Went back to the factory came back with a new barrel that looked like it was dragged down the driveway. Never again will I buy a Taurus.

 

[TexasRedneck]

I have an older SS in .22 that I used to introduce the kids to shooting years ago. Hasn't left the safe in 15 years - but Taurus DOES show the rear sight assembly to still be on back order......

We get 'em in for repair from time to time - parts availability is hit-or-miss (usually miss). 6+ months waits aren't unusual. Yeah - I won't be buying another, personally.

UPDATE: I FINALLY got the missing rear sight in about 3 months ago, installed it - and promptly sold it on GB......apparently, there's some folks out there that REALLY like 'em - got like $360 for it. Just glad it's gone!

 

[J Galt]

No. Just no. While they are capable of making a reliable gun, you're chances of getting one that is not reliable is higher than other brands and you stand a higher chance of having to use that lifetime warranty.

If cost is a concern you may consider Ruger.

If you can wait, save a bit more and get a Smith & Wesson.


You get what you pay for.
You also pay for what you get.

 

[TLHelmer]

I have a Taurus Tracker in .357 Magnum and it is as good as any of my Smith and Wesson's and the trigger is better than my one Colt.