Are Taurus revolvers *that* bad?

[caz223]

I have exactly 1 Taurus, and will make my own decisions on first hand experience.
My Taurus is a Tracker 425, .41 magnum 5 shot.
If S&W made this gun (A ported L- frame 5 shot 4" SA/DA .41 magnum) this would have been a great seller for them (I think.), and it would have been almost too awesome to shoot. The closest S&W came to making one of these is the night guard (N frame scandium), and that got discontinued rather quickly. The tracker was available in Titanium, also.
The Tracker has been 100%, and never had a problem.
I don't shoot it that well compared to my bigger magnums, but there is a price to pay for size and weight constraints.
It's limited to 210 grain bullets at 1300 fps and lower in the manual, and I have done my best to keep it in 1 piece.

The trigger is OK, but not anything like a S&W revolver.

Moral of the story, mine stays in the safe, and I've sold it and bought it back again. And then just keep it in the safe.
It's not a bad gun, by any means.
Taurus makes some stuff that is very innovative, and that nobody else makes. If it were just a little better, it would be perfect. But it's not quite right. If I knew what it needed, I would do it, but I just don't know what it needs to be perfect. Maybe it needs me to be better. Dunno.
They are in the value market segment, and they innovate. I'm glad they are out there innovating and keeping the big guys honest.

This is my opinion, and it's worth exactly what you paid for it.

 

[Glenn E. Meyer]

My two Taurus guns were not good.

However, I've had trouble with new SW and Glock guns.

Nothing is perfection.

 

[Stargater53]

JWise » I would stay away from Taurus autos (other than a rare few models I won't get into now), but their revolvers seem to work as advertised. They aren't smooth, or well- finished, but they work.

Hmmm...I'm of the opposite persuasion. I've owned a number of Taurus revolvers and autos over the years and found the revolvers to be beautiful, but flawed. The Model 66 was gorgeous, but I could not get any groupings. Turns out that the chambers really didn't have any throats, so that was a bummer. Had an 85 .38 snub, also beautiful, but the Rossi .38 snub was far better and the action of the 85 was sloppy.

The PT-92/99s were every bit as reliable as the Beretta 92s, but accuracy with the Beretta was better by about an inch at 20 yards. I owned several back in the 80s and also, the bluing was better on the Berettas.

A few years ago I got this Taurus stainless PT92 in a trade. The finish, as you can see, is astounding. The accuracy was dead on and reliability flawless. The safety also was superior and more resilient than the Beretta's. I would buy a Taurus PT-92 over a Beretta any day. It is, in my view, a great 9mm auto and I haven't heard any negative reports about it.

 

[stormyone]

I have a Taurus 669 (357 magnum 6" barrel) that I bought back in 1989. It is my only experience with Taurus. It has never given me any problems.

 

[franco45]

I just got back from shooting my 1997 vintage M605. It is a nice little 357. Having said that it is a gun that I shoot a little and carry a lot. I had a M617 a few years ago that I really miss. I've also owned a 4" M94 in 22lr and a Poly protector in 38 special. I didn't have any problems with any of them. I hope the M82 that I'm picking up Monday is as good as the other Taurii revolvers I've owned.

 

[Jeff H]

The 38 spl I inherited from Dad is early 80's vintage and I can't say a bad thing about it. Works as advertised and it is accurate.

 

[jfruser]

Taurus revolvers are not THAT bad, but bad enough that I would not suggest them to a newbie or someone who does not want to tinker a bit to get it rolling.

FTR, I own one Taurus revolver, a 651SH2 2" titanium snubby in .357mag. It started out a drama queen, but it has ended up a good revolver. I had to do the de-drama-ing myself as no gunsmith would touch it and Taurus customer service is notorious. Like I wrote, it is now a good revolver.

Were I to do it again, I would buy a Smith & Wesson and avoid the drama. Or avail myself of S&W customer service and drop the drama in their lap.

 

[KEYBEAR]

Taurus has had quality problems Kind of like the new Rugers are any better ?
I hope Ruger does make over two million guns this year but also make some that work out of the box .
Taurus had and still has a bad rap .

 

[saleen322]

You may get a Taurus that works well. I have had numerous models and the ones I had were not as accurate as Smith, Ruger, Dan Wesson, etc, and they have had more problems as a group.

If you want a Taurus and happen to get a good one and plan to keep it, go for it. The odds are greater that it will not be as accurate and problems are more likely. Also, it is worth less if you want to sell or trade it later. All that being said, guns have no idea what name is on the outside you may get one that works flawlessly and is a tack driver. You just don't know.

 

[Ifishsum]

I've purchased four new Taurus revolvers over about a 20 year span (plus a couple of bottom feeders); one of them (a Gaucho in .45 Colt) had to go back home soon after purchase to fit a new transfer bar as it would not always fire... each of the others was just fine from the beginning. When I called them about the Gaucho, their customer service did not give me a lot of confidence but the dealer shipped it back for me and I got it back in less than 3 weeks, fixed up and GTG. They aren't very good at communication, but they did fix it right and in a reasonable time frame. I wouldn't be at all averse to buying another one (after inspection of course). My experience only, FWIW

 

[Alter-ego]

Yes Taurus are that bad, all of them. Two of my buddies had issues one after another with them, one a revolver the other S auto. Sent in for repairs several times with no fix, finally sold them, full disclosure of course.

With that said, I have a Titanium 617 357 that I like very much, cylinder looked up once, but thats about it. But I got it at a nice price and they no longer make them so I'll keep it hoping the value will continue to go up. Would I buy another Taurus? NO?

 

[evidrine]

I have two. A auto and revolver. Have always worked flawlessly.

Sent from my HTC One using Tapatalk

 

[Radny97]

Just bought my first Taurus today. A used raging bull 5 inch in 454 casull. Shot it and I like it. Grouped well at 15 yards (haven't shot it enough to really tell that much obviously). DA pull stacks but isn't too bad. SA is excellent. For what I paid I can't complain so far. I'm cautiously optimistic.

 

[Soclosenotnear]

No real issues with Taurus from me. I've had quite a few: a 65, a hammerless .38, a judge public defender currently, maybe others. No reliability issues out of any. I did/do have a half broken screw that holds the cylinder release on the judge I bought new, but it still functions. The rest I bought used.

I did have a gen 1 pt111 once and it was atrocious, but still never reliability issues. At work, however, I'm sending a pt-22 to them right now that is locked up, so to speak.

I won't hesitate on their revolvers, so much as (most of) their pistols.

 

[Prof Young]

I've owned two and . . .

I've owned two. The Raging Bull in 44 mag had a spring break. Taurus gave me a free replacement. The Public Defender ran like a champ and is the only gun I've ever sold off that I wish I hadn't.

Live well, be safe
Prof Young

 

[nyhkolasfrost13]

I have experience with 2 Taurus revolvers. My father has a .38 protector poly that he mainly uses as a snake gun with cci shells. He has had no problems with hos other than the cylinder not turning because of a couple of the cci shells being screwy.

My Taurus 85 I had an issue where the screw that holds the cylinder assembly fell completely out with the assembly and I lost the plunger that keeps the cylinder stop up. I recently had my lgs send it back to Taurus and I got it back in 2 weeks. O have since put 55 rounds back through the gun and it has performed flawlessly with no evidence of the screw backing out again. It is currently my carry till I find a 3 inch .357 I can afford to buy and carry.

Sent from my XT1080 using Tapatalk

 

[BoogieMan]

So at best Taurus is not quite as nice as Ruger or S&W. At worst they are highly flawed. Guns are cheap to begin with. Why not spend a few extra $$$ and get a decent one. 686 S&W is like $700 and will likely be handed down to your grandchildren. Maybe I think this way because I live in the PR of NJ and have to jump through hoops to buy any handgun.

 

[osbornk]

So at best Taurus is not quite as nice as Ruger or S&W. At worst they are highly flawed. Guns are cheap to begin with. Why not spend a few extra $$$ and get a decent one. 686 S&W is like $700 and will likely be handed down to your grandchildren. Maybe I think this way because I live in the PR of NJ and have to jump through hoops to buy any handgun.

If you're paying $700, it is more than a "few extra $$$". My old Taurus revolver is approaching 50 years old and it still feels and shoots like new. I like functional more than pretty. If I didn't already have my old Taurus 38 Special revolver, I would probably buy a RIA M200 for just over $200.

 

[Master Blaster]

I own a bunch of Smith and Wesson revolvers, Ruger single actions, and two Taurus revolvers.

My Taurus revolvers are a model 94 .22lr 4" which was bought new in 1999, and a Taurus 455 tracker in .45 acp. The 94 is one of my most fired revolvers. I use it whenever I teach anyone new to shoot a handgun. My two children learned about revolvers and fired thousands of rounds out of it starting when they were both 8 years old. My daughter was able to fire it single action and double action at age 8, the same for my son. I find the DA trigger on the 94 to be about the same as on my j frame smiths, and really no heavier than my k frame Smith .22lr revolvers. The 94 has been accurate and reliable and fun to shoot. Never an issue as long as the cylinder is cleaned every 200 or so rounds with a brush. Cylinder cleaning is no different on any of my Smith rim fires build up can cause sticky extraction and sometimes misfires. The 94 is more tolerant of build up than some of my rim fire Smiths.

I also own a 455 tracker in .45 acp, also very accurate and reliable I bought the gun new in 2004. The trigger is very good in DA and it fires in spec .45 acp in DA with no issues with or without a stellar clip.

I have owned a Ruger Redhawk and a Ruger SP 101 but no longer have them as the triggers were terrible despite spring changes and polishing. The Redhawk had serious reliability issues with any spring lighter than factory in DA. The 8lb SA pull and the 15 lb DA (measured on a Lyman Gauge) made it unshootable.

I only own two Taurus revolvers but both have been very good.

Folks may not realize it but the main spring tension on a Taurus is adjustable by removing the grips and turning the spring guide rod bushing ON SOME Models. Trigger pull weight and reliability issues (light strikes) can be taken care of by simple adjustment.

 

[badge851]

Here is a parts list for Taurus® revolvers...

REVOLVERS PARTS LIST
1 EXTRACTOR
2 CYLINDER RETAINING BUSHING
3 CENTER PIN
4 CENTER PIN SPRING
5 EXTRACTOR SPRING
6 EXTRACTOR ROD COLLAR
7 EXTRACTOR ROD SPRING
8 CYLINDER
9 YOKE
10 FRONT LATCH
11 FRONT LATCH SPRING
12 CYLINDER STOP PLUNGER WITH SPRING
13 FRONT LATCH PIN
14 EXTRACTOR ROD
15 BARREL
16 FRAME
17 THUMB PIECE
18 THUMB PIECE SCREW
19 FIRING PIN
20 FIRING PIN SPRING
21 FIRING PIN RETAINING PIN
22 BOLT
23 BOLT SPRING
24 HAMMER ASSEMBLY
25 KEYLOCK
26 KEYLOCK SPRING
27 KEYLOCK BALL
28 KEYLOCK PIN
29 SEAR
30 SEAR SPRING
31 SEAR PIN
32 TRANSFER BAR
33 HAND SPRING
34 HAND PIN
35 TRIGGER ASSEMBLY
36 TRIGGER SPRING ASSY
37 TRIGGER SPRING CENTER PIN
38 TRIGGER SPRING
39 TRIGGER SPRING SWIVEL
40 MAIN SPRING ASSEMBLY
41 MAIN SPRING CENTER PIN
42 MAIN SPRING
43 MAIN SPRING PLATE
44 CYLINDER STOP
45 HAND
46 SIDE PLATE
47 YOKE SCREW
48 YOKE RETAINING PIN SPRING
49 YOKE RETAINING PIN
50 SIDE PLATE SCREW
51 RUBBER GRIP
52 GRIP SCREW
53 REAR SIGHT ASSEMBLY
54 REAR SIGHT SPRING
55 REAR SIGHT PIN
56 FRONT SIGHT
57 FRONT SIGHT PIN
58 STOCK PIN
60 FIRING PIN BUSHING
61 CENTER PIN BUSHING
63 REAR SIGHT SCREW
69 CYLINDER DISTANCE BUSHING
70 STELLAR CLIP
71 BARREL RETAINING PIN
72 YOKE BLOCKING PIN
73 CYLINDER ASS’Y CATCH LOCK
74 CYLINDER ASS’Y CATCH SPRING
75 CYLINDER ASS’Y CATCH
76 CYLINDER STOP SPRING
77 CYLINDER STOP SPRING
78 CYLINDER STOP SPRING PIN
79 SIDE PLATE SCREW FRONT
80 CYLINDER STOP SPRING BUSHING PIN

Nowhere does it list a Spring guide rod.