New to handguns. Is Taurus really that bad?

Do you disbelieve everything you read on this forum? If so, why bother to participate at all? Or maybe, everybody should believe only you and no one else.:rolleyes:
 
We all read/hear about more problems with Taurus firearms than any other type.

There's a reason for that.
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Yep. There is a reason. Most of what you read/hear is bashing from gun snobs and other people who have never owned a Taurus. I heard similar things about Hi-Point guns and Kia cars. I took a chance and bought a Hi-Point and found out what I had read/heard was wrong. I took another chance and bought a Kia Optima that has been the best car I have owned. I then bought a Taurus and found out you can't believe most of the garbage you read/hear online or anywhere else.
 
Make sure you keep that Taurus in your car. This way, if anything goes wrong with the car you can shoot it. If it works, that is.:(
 
OP - over the last 50 years, I have owned a lot of different makes/brands of handguns, rifles, shotguns, etc.

This is your "first" hand gun. I have never owned a Taurus - and all I she to go on is what is said on forums such as this. BUT . . . anyone with a lick of common sense knows enough to not believe everything that is on "the net".

Some people like Taurus . . some don't. It's more of a "personal thing" than anything else IMHO. I love Smith & Wessons - my Smith wheel guns are all "vintage:. Would I buy a "new" Smith? Certainly . . . in spite of the fat that the next guy wouldn't due to the "infamous lock".

My point is . . . give the Taurus some time. Shoot it and "learn it".NO hand gun - revolver or semi-auto is "perfect". That's because we are all "different". When I purchase a revolver - and I have many - I do it because I "like" it - maybe the feel, maybe the balance, maybe the caliber, etc. But I purchase it based on "my" criteria . . . not what others say about it. Let's face it . . . some like Fords . . other's prefer Chevy.

Use your Taurus and THEN decide if the things that "bug" you are enough for you to go to a different brand . . . just be aware that there will probably be things on those other brands that bug you as well. In the end, YOU are the one who will be shooting whatever hand gun you end up with . . . not those who have had a problem with THEIR particular hand gun so choose to bash that brand every time they turn around.

I have a number of Ruger hand guns - never had a problem with any of them. In fact, I'm getting ready to buy another used one in a caliber I just started to re-load. I posted on another four about the particular model and asked a few questions. I got many who praised theirs . . and some who hated them. Who should I believe? I much prefer to make up my own mind and i"I" am not happy . . it will be traded on something else. If not . . it will get good use.

Good luck to you but don't "let the wine spoil before you have a chance to taste it". :)
 
Well, you have to set your expectations accordingly. You bought an economical gun. It may have minor imperfections. But as long as it fires and works, I wouldn't worry about the trivial stuff. By the time you invest in fixing it, you could have bought a higher-end Ruger or SW.

Far from junk. They just don't have the quality control or finer process as more expensive producers. But they are overall just fine, entry level affordable guns.

My first revolver was a Taurus 357. I loved it then and it still has a place in my heart. I have since picked up some other Taurus revolver(s). But the fit and finish is nowhere near that of Ruger and SW. You just have to keep your expectations in check.

It's a good economical handgun to learn on. When the time is right you'll know what to upgrade to.

Have fun and stay safe and learn, train, and learn and train.
 
I own a Taurus tracker. If it was my only gun it wouldn't be bad. But when I compare it to my other guns, well you start seeing it's short comings. First the trigger pull is a bear on this thing. I put in a spring reduction kit and ended up get several F2F's which isn't cool. Beyond that it's not smooth in the action like my Rugers, it almost feels gritty when cocking the hammer back. But again, if I didn't have anything to compare to it would be just fine.
 
i have had 3 taurus revolvers. my first ever handgun was a stainless steel model 85 5 shot 38spec bought gently used 30 years ago. it is a very reliable, straight, pleasant shooter, made better by replacing the stock wooden grips with pachmyr rubber grips. i will never part with it. the second was a model ? 6 shot 357mag snubbie, that i got very cheap because the prior owner said it shot way left. i paid to return it to taurus under the lifetime warranty and got back a decent shooter about 2 months later. i dont enjoy shooting a magnum round out of a snubbie, and i already have a nice model 85 38 snubbie, so its a safe queen. the last was a model 94 22lr, with the absolute worst trigger pull ever. i traded it away fast (morale of this tale: if you want a 22lr double action revolver get a gently used nef/h&r, or wait until ruger comes to its senses and makes a lcr-x 22lr kit gun with exposed hammer and 3" barrel, or like single actions).
 
Taurus 65 & 66

I have owned 2 taurus revolvers in 357 mag, one 6 shot and one 7 shot.
The Taurus 65 (6 shot) i bought brand new from my local dealer and it ran great never a problem with anything, one of the most accurate revolvers i ever shot. Still kicking myself because i traded it off.

The Taurus 66 (7 shot) I picked up used for but i believe the gun had been subjected to some abuse by the previous owner, the cylinder was misaligned and the head spacing was wrong on only one half of the cylinder probably bent from shooting very hot/high pressure loads.

I am of the opinion that Taurus would be out of business if their products were really as bad as they seem on these gun forums. If the gun works well for you then keep it and it should keep running if you take care of it.
 
I've had three Taurus handguns and now I have one.

The PT1911 had extractor problems. It seems people at the factory know how to replace parts, but have no idea how to tune a 1911 extractor. A few trips back to the factory and still not working right. I sold it.

My PT111 made a few clicks when there should have been a boom. Sold it.

Now I have only a Model 450 in .45 Colt. There's nothing else like it on the market so it's a keeper. It's been reliable so far.

This is my own experience and may not reflect that of others, but it is the truth.
 
I shoot 357 mag handloads in all my 38 specials.

But in my 357 mag Taurus I shoot 38 special level handloads, so the cases will not get stuck in the rough and out of round chambers.

Taurus357rough2.jpg


This was sold to me by a tech that worked for me that says I could take it to the store where he bought it for some lifetime warranty deal.

But I never take things back, send things back or etc. I just complain.
 
Ive owned two Taurus' in my day, one was a pt145 pro. The other was an older Millennium. They both shot fine.

I think where Taurus really lacks is in fit and finish. I was disappointed in how poor some of the finish maching was on the slide of my PT.

Shoit it. Enjoy it. You'll trade up eventually.
 
love all of mine, you cant beat the value. i own four Tauri' of totally different platform and they have all been 100% reliable for several years and thousands of rounds. yes, the may lack the polish of a gun twice it's cost, but it doesn't get in the way of doing what it needs to do. my revolver cylinders are also rough in my poly protector, but nice and smooth in my 85. the 85 costed signifigantly more than the poly protector, so i didn't expect the same level of polish. my pt111 g2 is my favorite carry gun by far, and i have several to chooe from, from smith and wesson to CZ, and the pt111 has the size/capacity/features and reliability that i needed for a carry gun, so it is my first choice and the best choice for ME and MY carry situation. I have owned, in short order, a couple dozen firearms in the last 4-5 years, only two had to go back to the factory, a smith and wesson once and a sccy(many many many times). i think any company can put out a bad gun sometimes, even the apparently infalliable ones like Glock, S&W, Ruger etc. stay on this forum long enough and you'll see that pretty quickly. Taurus doesn't seem to have any more actual evidence of defects any more than any other. now i wasnt around in the 80's when they were having big time problems, i can only speak from them as a company of the last 5 years and they have been great for me.
 
I would take a used Ruger or Smith over a Taurus , I have owned a few back in the 90's , I was talked into a Taurus over a ruger back in the day when I first got into guns and did not know any better . It was between a Taurus and a Ruger , and that Taurus was long gone and took more than a few years to track down that ruger .
Just my 2$
 
Taurus

i HAVE A PT 92 AF THAT i LIKE QUITE WELL. How ever I own two Rossi lever guns also Taurus. One in 38/357 a real joy to shoot. The other one I bought was a 44 mag. with a hexagon 24 inch barrel brand new. I fired it twice with Federal 240 grain factory ammo, case's were both bugled when ejected. return rifle to Taurus in may19th on May 22nd Taurus informed me the barrel was faulty and they were ordering a new barrel which was back ordered at that time. this is September 15th and barrel is still on back order, as are the rifles.
Why and how did they manage to get a rifle out the door with a head space problem in the first place. Taurus Warranty is okay, BUT IT SEEMS THEY NEVER HAVE THE PARTS IN STOCK TO REPAIR THEIR FAULTY PRODUCTS. i WONDER WHY THIS IS? sEVERAL MEMBERS OF MY GUN CLUB WHO HAVE HAD TO RETURN THERE TAURUS MANUFACTURED WEAPONS HAVE HAD THE SAME EXPERIENCE OF A SIX MONTH OR LONGER WAIT TIME. i KNOW I WON'T BUY ANOTHER TAURUS.
 
I would take a used Ruger or Smith over a Taurus , I have owned a few back in the 90's , I was talked into a Taurus over a ruger back in the day when I first got into guns and did not know any better . It was between a Taurus and a Ruger , and that Taurus was long gone and took more than a few years to track down that ruger .
Just my 2$
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I bought a new Smith, Taurus and Ruger semi-auto. They all function well and I don't notice a lot of difference unless I look closely. I buy guns go shoot and not to look at. I don't sell guns so I will probably keep them until I die. I see no reason to spend more for a gun just because it is prettier or has more snob appeal. They don't perform any better or any worse than the used Hi-Point C9 I traded off for an old Taurus revolver.
 
Taurus gets a bad rap- and some of it is justly deserved. A friend has a revolver in 22 that leads up and spits constantly, despite several trips back. Taurus has now opted to give him full credit on the original purchase price for whatever firearm he wants from them. However, I have a pt92 that outshoots my friends beretta any day of the week, and another I know has a couple of the 1911's, one of which he has permanently mounted his Marvell conversion too.

Overall I think taurus revolver fit and finish probably isn't up to par with a smith revolver, or their 1911's aren't on par with some of the others either.

but then again - a taurua 1911 isn't a $700+ 1911, and a taurus revolver isn't a $700+ revolver either.

Taurus triggers can be worked on to bring them up very well.

In short, beginner, or on a budget. There is no issue with a taurus. There is perhaps a greater chance of an off one than one of the other makers, but they have a good warranty, so it's up to the customer to use it if necessary. They will make it right. I wouldn't snub one at all. If you want to spend more - there are always alternatives.
 
Thats exactly why I said I would take a used Smith or Ruger over a Taurus , I have run thousands of rounds threw used Smiths and Rugers and never had a problem . Taurus revolvers seems to loosen up in the cylinder / Crane area , both my Taurus revolvers did , I purchased both new and had nothing but problems ...
On a Positive Note ...
They did look good when I traded them ... LOL :)
 
My take: guns aren't matinee movies or fast food meals. You can't just grimace your way through a bad one. They're lifesaving tools. There's no reason to take the chance. Taurus has a wishy-washy reputation for good reason. The good ones can be pretty good but the bad ones can be a nightmare.

In the future, were I you, I'd save another hundred or so and buy something from a brand without a reputation that will leave you with a hint of doubt every time you carry.

That said, you already bought it and it works. I wouldn't fret about the fact that it's unrefined if it goes bang.
 
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