Taurus quality - mixed reviews

B

BritGirl

Inactive
As mentioned in my previous thread, I just invested in my first ever handgun -- A Taurus 850 CIA .38 SPL 2"

I arrived at this decision after an LE friend kindly spent the day with me at the range with a variety of revolvers and autoloaders for me to try. By the end of the practice, I was referring to the "trusty revolver." I just felt more comfortable with the simplicity of a DAO revolver vs. the Beretta, Glock, etc. not to mention the strength needed to rack the slide and load the magazines. However, I was most accurate with the Beretta!

Anyway, I ordered the CIA model as they only had the exposed hammer type in inventory, and I waited a week for it to come in. Meanwhile, I start reading threads on TFL -- yikes!!!! Taurus seems to have a terrible reputation, especially if it is somebody's only weapon that they have to rely on. However, my LE friend indicates I have no worries, and I even called the store and asked for their honest opinion. I said I'd be happy to order a S&W instead, but they echoed the same sentiment...."don't worry, you're not going to have a lick of trouble..."

I haven't fired it enough to determine the outcome, but I'm already nervous. Any advice? I guess one other thing I've learned from this forum is you NEVER get rid of a gun, you just acquire additional guns. :) So.....I may just go ahead and get an S&W also. That way, we could possibly have 2 guns in the house, one upstairs, one downstairs. Not quite ready to have loaded guns in the house yet -- see next thread.
 
From what I've read, some people get good a Taurus and never have a problem with it. That's great. But, if you do get a bad one, their customer service is horrible. I'll never buy another one.

Yes, you should buy a S&W. I sell and trade guns all the time, and only regret one of them, out of over 100. It's fun, a way to build your collection without spending a fortune, and you get to try out a wide variety. I've bought or traded for guns that I knew I wouldn't hold on to for very long. But, I just shoot them a little and trade them when a good deal comes up. I never overpay for any of them though. If it's not a great deal, I just pass on it and wait for another.

I'll bet you wouldn't regret trading the Taurus, but that's just my opinion.
 
Taurus revolvers are a mixed bag. I have had two, and had to send one back several times until I finally got them to replace it. I then sold it new in box. It was a M85 CH SS. It handled great, shot well, the trigger was excellent for an OTB gun. However, it misfired often and neither the factory nor a custom gunsmith could ever get it to work. Misfires were with both factory and handloads.

I have a friend who has three, and all had to be sent back. He finally got them running OK.

If you get a good one, it is a very good gun. But some are not so good.

On balance, I would not buy another, but try it out. It may be great, and if not start the process. Today, the shipping expense soon equals the cost of the gun unless the dealer or the factory will pick up the tab.

Good luck.

Jerry
 
Shoot the gun and find out if it is a good one. Unless you put at least a few hundred rounds through it you will not know if you can rely on it. I know my wife would never let me get rid of her 85 CH because she knows it will go bang. I'd be careful about the "downstairs gun". Are you arming the intruder?
 
I have not come across a bad Taurus revolver. My own experiences have been positive. I have bet my life on a Taurus 66 357 Magnum. The S&Ws are what I have been less than trusting of lately. The last 5 S&W revolvers I have bought, everyone had to go back for warranty repairs.
 
Taurus

Please, keep in mind that persons who have had an unsatisfactory experience (whether it's their fault or the gun's fault) tend to be very vocal and usually preface their remarks with such exclamatory statements as "I'll Never Buy Taurus Again" or "Tauruses Suck". The fact that they are in the (very small) minority doesn't seem to sink in. I have personally owned several Taurus (or Taurii?) and experienced only a cylinder lock up problem on a Raging Bull in .44 Magnum (which was fixed quickly).

On the other hand, I have received no less than 3 recall notices on my 2002 GMC Envoy.
 
I wouldn't have any concerns about it. Taurus is pretty decent. People have bad experiences with all makes and models of guns. It's just when something bad happens everybody gets told about it. The good often gets overlooked.

Just enjoy it.....
 
I sent my new 85 back to Taurus last week for cylinder lock up, and some clerance issues. Matter of fact I'm waiting on a status call any minute now. It makes me a bit nervous that my revolver doesn't show up in their system yet even though it was recieved and signed for on the 1st :confused:

I got the gun and it was gorgeous. Took it out to the range a day later and fired a couple shots, then it'd lock up on me. My first thoughts were "geez, my shooting hand is really out of shape". But that couldn't be, since I've been shooting my Beretta pretty frequently. Unfortunately, it was a problem with the gun :( So, off it went to Taurus.

I'm hoping that I'll get it back pretty quick and it'll perform like I thought it would. If your gun is firing properly and the bullets go where you want them to, you're on the right track. Just keep shooting it and becoming familiar and comfortable with it. The more you shoot, the more confident you'll be using it. And that's what counts :)
 
Taurus

I was issued a taurus .38 spl for security work. I guess its better than no gun, eh? anyhow it's enough to convince me not to buy one, as the cyllender is not anywhere as tight as any smith ive seen, it has an unusual rattle in it (need to go shoot it to make sure it works) and overall I am just not impressed. Now I must admit that I am spoiled, as i have a kimber and a hk, so maybe my standards are too high
 
Shorts, that is the exact problem I was having when I bought mine. It locked up on the first shot. When I got it back from them, it locked up on the second shot. Maybe if I kept sending it back, they could get it to shoot a full cylinder full with a few tries!

Yes, critics are very vocal, especially in my case. When I'm told that I have to keep paying for overnight shipping at $30-35 each time because they can't seem to fix a handgun properly that they built, I'm going to make sure everyone knows about it. And, they said they wouldn't consider replacement until they have attempted to repair it 3 times!

A Taurus being better than no gun at all? I guess so. In the case of mine, I would have fired once before it locked up. Most of the time that's all you need.
 
All of the taurus posts (and i have thought about buying one) have lead me to one conclusion, save the extra $250 and buy a smith. Why not save the dough and buy the gun I actually want, when Im gunna spend it on shipping anyways?
 
I had a Taurus 669 that still is a fabulous target revolver, just in someone elses hands now. I took that money and put it tward a Taurus 455 Ti from CDNN.

It has some of the tightest tolerances of any gun I've ever handled but still seems to function OK. I've had a couple issues with the trigger not reseting after a DA trigger pull. But it could have been stuff gumming up the works. There was some sand in the gun when I got it and I don't think I got it all cleaned out. The next range session should settle the issue.

Make sure you clean and inspect any gun, especially a new gun, before taking it to the range for the 1st time. You can save yourself a lot of grief or spot potential problems before they become serious.

Taurus makes good revolvers. I don't have any experiance with their autos so I won't comment there. Every gun has it's weak and strong points, proponents and detractors. The important thing is that you know and trust YOUR gun, whatever it happens to be.
 
I see significantly more Taurus guns come in for repair at the shop I work at than I do S&W and Ruger combined. Add to that that we well very few Taurus guns when compared to the other brands and I can only guess that they have a poor track record. S&W has a reputation for building solid wheelguns with good fit and finish and fair nice triggers. Ruger has a reputation for building revolvers that are built like tanks -- super strong and reliable.

That being said, if you get a Taurus that works out of the box and you keep it clean and cared for, you should be fine. Just put it through its paces before betting your life on it and you should be okay.
 
Another reason you see Taurus problems posted is because of some of their goofier stuff, like the all titanium pistols that bind when they heat up.

The 85 has been their bread and butter for a long time and it will likely be just fine for you. Enjoy.
 
I've owned a bunch of Taurus revolvers over the years and have only had one really bad one!!
It was a M605 that lost a pin while shooting 357mags through it. the pin was lost, so, I had to send it off!! Taurus promised me a 21 day turn around and, by golly, on the 21st day, my gun was back in my hot little hand!! While it was there, I had the Taurus custom shop put red inserts in the front sight and port the barrel!! I'm sorry I sold it!! So sorry that I recently bought another one!! It, however, had a loose screw and the gun came apart while shooting. But, a screw driver and some Loc-Tite solved that little problem!! I have not had a problem with it since!!

Point is. Taurus revolvers are a good deal if you are able to do minor maintainence and repairs yourself!! Kinda like working on your own Ford.
 
I have a new Taurus Tracker .357 and tomorrow I'm picking up a new Taurus Millineum Pro SS, 9MM :p (possible carry gun). I am anxious to see how it stacks up against my Glock26. I'm an old wheelman and not an expert on any handgun, but if you would like to see a really good review on Taurus quality and performance (the Taurus Mag 44, and the Taurus Millenium Pro .40 go here). http://www.gunblast.com/Taurus-Tracker44.htm & http://www.gunblast.com/Taurus-PT145.htm. I recently found this site on Google.

I also have a SW66. Much more expensive and not as smooth as the Tracker.
 
I own eight Taurus revolvers. I have been happy with them for the most part. They have all been reliable with my reloads. The only real problems I have had is that two fixed sight guns 450 in 45 colt and the 731 in 32 H&R do not shoot as close to point of aim as I would like. The 445 shoots perfectly to point of aim with 200 grain bullets. I also have two Raging Bulls in 454 that are very accurate as well as my Model 44 in 44 Mag. However I think that if your looking for a 38 or 357, I would look very hard at a good used S&W K frame like a 10, 64,19 or 66. There are many good used ones on the market and I believe that my Model 64 round butt with 3 inch heavy barrel is the perfect 38 revolver :)
 
I have a Tarus Model 66. Have put a few hundred rounds of full boat 357 through it with out a burp!

A few years ago Tarus had poor quality control, I believe that they have addressed that issue and are now a little more concerned with quality!

The gun should give you years of worry free service. Now, I would like to suggest that you purchase a nice little .22.

The ammo is cheaper, ($10.00 per 500 rds) so you can spend more time practicing. The key to defense, foraging, survival with a handgun is time spent just plinking!

I might even suggest you get a top quality pellet gun. This would allow you to practice in the living room. Also if you live near a remote area where you can get out an take nature walks, its a lot of fun to pick leaves off trees, snap twigs, hit small rocks, all cheap, and all helping to develop your shooting skills!

The neighbor kids would always come and get me when the apples were ripe on the trees. They would have me "pick" the apples at the top of the tree with the pellet gun!
 
I have owned numerous guns & have never had a problem with any of them. Guess I have been lucky; so far. I am particularly fond of & own more than one S&W revolver; and have never owned a Tarus. However, I would suggest giving your Tarus a fair chance, & judge it on how it performs for you.
It has been my understanding that the quality of Tarus handguns has increased over the years, & they are now considered a very respectible gun.
:D
 
I have a taurus 817 2" 7 shot .38 and I am real happy with it. Granted I only have put about 300 rounds through it so far but it seems pretty nice. For what the sights are it's decently accurate, the grip is real comfortable, and I really like having that 7th shot.

A couple things that I don't liek though. There is a rattle but I checked it with a gunsmith and he said it was nothing to worry about. One ejection the cartridges have a tendancy to stick a little but i'm not sure if thats a taurus issue or one for all snubbies.

Overall I really like mine and it has given me no reason to be worried about it's relaibility.
 
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