S&W vs Ruger vs Taurus

I'm all about smith and wesson revolvers. In my opinion they are they make the best revolver around. Plus since they are a good ol U.S.A. made firearm, it is easy to get them worked on if ever needed.

The ruger is also very good and will live longer than you will. But I will still recommend the s&w. I just bought my fiance the 637 airweight .38 special, and I absolutely love how it feels, and it shoots great.

I dont have an opinion on the Taurus but most will recommend the S&W over Taurus anyday.
 
Ruger

I'm into what works. I rank them #1 Ruger-SP101, in .357 it is the most durable design out there. #2 Taurus-better or equal reliability to SMith and a much better price. #3 Colt-Detective special still the smoothest of all actions and 6 shots #4 Smith & Wesson-nice scandium lightweights, but taurus titanium design even stronger and lighter.#5 Rossi-A little rough but OK #6 Charter Arms-a little rough but OK also
 
I assume you are talking about 5 shot 38 / 357 revolvers??

If you want the lightest gun out there S+W airwight is the way to go, if you want a relitivly trim steel gun S+W is again the way to go. The quality of the S+W guns is good and they are widley used and carried by many, however the new ones do have the internal lock if that matters to you.

If you want the most rugged and one that you can shoot 180 hard cast out of with out extream punishment (i.e. you could carry it in the back woods with medium sized hunting loads for protection) get the Ruger SP101, I have done this and while the kick is stout it's not crazy or impossible to manage and the gun is on the chunky side in the weight department so that helps. Rugers have no lock and tend to run cheaper than equivilent S+W products.

If you are going to move up to a 6 shot S+W has a mutitude of offerings with either fixed or adjustable sights, again all with the internal lock and all quite good in general, Ruger has the GP100 that comes in 3 inch with fixed sights and 4 inch with adjustable, neither with a lock and at a somewhat lower price than the Smith. If you plan to carry more than a 357, it is possible as many folks cary a 45 acp revolver or 44 mag --- both N frame guns however it's not something everyone is comfortable with.

So far as Tarus when we are talking about defensive revolvers none of the commonly carried rugers or S+W guns are so expensive that I personally think it's worth looking at Tarus, you will find devoted Tarus shooters here who will push the brand hard, however you will also find many stories of failure, problems, broken guns, long waits for warranty service, poor customer service and so forth. In addition I have personally seen a tarus with 1/3 of it's top strap eaten away due to some kind of defect in the metal. While any brand can put out a problem gun, Tarus seems to do this much more frequently and for that reason I stay away from them.
 
All 3 are good and I don't think you can go wrong with any of them.

For what it's worth, the Taurus M85's are like bread and butter to Taurus. Definately one of their most highly regarded revolvers. They's been around for a while and are absolutely solid performers.

I would have any qualms buying another.
 
Both Smith and Ruger are excellent, I own both. The Taurus is the wildcard, they look great and have a large assortment to choose from. For example the model 817 Ultra-Lite .38 +P CAPACITY 7. Gotta say I'm tempted......
 
Got all three, would trust any of them as a CCW. Personally, I like S&W the best, functionally I've found my Taurus 85 as reliable as the others and much cheaper priced, and I think the Rugers are probably the best made (durabilaty and strength). MHO
 
I like S&W, I like Ruger & I like Taurus.

On my end it would boil down to which model (and condition) vs what price.
 
I own all three as well...and my preferred carry is the Taurus. I've never had any problem with it functionally, it hits where I point it, and I'm not afraid to ding it up with daily carry.
 
Personally, I like the Ruger SP101. I have the double action only model and couldn't be happier. In my opinion, S&W's are overpriced and overated!! I have shot several Rugers and Smiths side by side and have yet to notice a substantial difference overall. Some occasions I felt the Ruger was slightly better, others perhaps the Smith had a slight advantage. But they certainly aren't the far superior revolver that people here make them out to be in my opinion. Taurus....well it seems that you either get a very good one, or a very bad one. Here is the SP101 that I currently own and conceal:

http://ruger.com/Firearms/FAProdView?model=5720&return=Y

Hope that helps!
 
I'm not heavily into revolvers yet, but I've shot the heck out of my Taurus Raging Bull .454, just under 500 rounds, and about 250 rounds of 45LC. She just keeps asking for more. I've also just aquired a Taurus 4410 revolver which I've only fired about 100 rounds out of. But i've gotta tell you that loading the 45LC, .410 shot shell, and .410 slug all at one time and in one cylinder is both weird and Intriguing. You get one different feeling bang each time for 5 shots one after the other. What I really want to look into is the S&W 460. I would be able to do the same thing with .454, .460, and the 45LC calibers with that beast. looks feirce too. i just want to know how the recoil is compared to Raging Bull. Any input or suggestions are welcome.
 
Have a Taurus model 85 stainless that I've had for about 9 years. Carried it on and off (never used it ouside of range practice or fooling around in the woods) but it's held up great and I've had it inspected a few times but smiths say it's holding up great and should be serviceable for a long time.

Recently got a newer S&W 649. Shot a good bit out of it and no noticeable problems. Lock does worry me but it may just be in my head. It functions very smooth and I haven't noticed it other than when I actually look at it. After reading all these posts on here about what might happen with S&W locks I sewed one of the keys into my canvas speedloader case with a few loops of thread so IF IT LOCKS UP (which due to the weight of this gun I can only imagine that would happen if many 357's were fired in rapid succession or it were dropped) I can reset the lock.

Anyone care to comment on my fear of the lock? I realize that the chances are very small and if it were built poorly it should have failed within 100 rounds or so. There are many things on any firearm that can fail. This is an extra part that is not REQUIRED to make the tool function so in my oppinion it's uncessary risk. I've searched with no luck for any type of article on failure rates of the locks. I've never heard of a 649 failing but that doesn't mean it hasn't. I've only read of isolated incidents no percentage studies.

Who knows maybe that gangbanger that attacks me while I'm loading up my groceries will have his piece of crap gun that hasn't been maintaind properly fail on him and it won't matter!
 
Concealed carry revolvers which do you prefer and why?
Click to expand...

Back on topic...

I carry a sp101 by Ruger. 3" in .357.

My reasoning is that I deliberately want a 357. What is the lightest, smallest platform that I can reliably shoot a 357 from with reasonable accuracy and rapidity?

Now, I recreationally shoot a 44magnum, so I am not afraid of or unaccustomed to recoil.

I decided that the 2" Smith ultralites were definitely out. Too light for that much cartridge. Also too much $$. So was the 2" sp101. I wanted more sight radius. My biggest concern in a carry weapon was the width of the cylinder I was carrying, so full sized revolvers were out.

Taurus makes a good product for those who want a concealable .38 in an ultralite package, but I have to give the nod for .357 chamberings to Ruger. Smith is just not cost efficient.
 
Colt. I like Colt because it has more character (so does S&W but Colt to me has always been one step ahead of them...until the past 5-10 years when both of them started going downhill). Their old revolvers, service or backup, have a nice plane jane look to them. They are a work of art. They will do the job just as well, better in some cases, than Taurus, Ruger or even S&W.
 
Porkskin -- in your opinion sir, I personally pocket carry the SP101 and I am sure I am not the only one. Others chose the steel Smiths for their perhaps greater durability, but then I can carry a glock 26 in my pocket as well, I would not suggest everyone consider this but many can so it's an option worth considering. Please lay off the declarative statments that have no basis in reality.
 
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