Brian Williams
New member
Sorry for mis-leading but the Taurus tracker in 45 Colt and 45ACP are built on "K" size frame and they are 5 shooters. Great gun(my 45 Colt tracker), shoots like a 357.
Taurus vs S&W
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Prodigalshooter
New member
I have a Taurus Tracker 627 that is a very good revolver. I don't think I gave anything up by buying it, EXCEPT, that it's not the massive chunk that a Ruger is. It's a "compact" size, something in between a full size Smith or Ruger and a J frame. My only real gripe is that no-one makes aftermarket wood grips for it
I also have a Taurus Tracker 627 in 357. Great gun IMO. Shoots just as well as a S&W and looks twice as nice, again IMO. Trigger needed a little work to be just how I like it but what gun doesn't right from the box. I dislike wood grips on revos. Don't like the look and don't like the feel. Shooting full load 357's can really hurt after a box with wood grips. The rubber grips that come with the gun do a GREAT job taking most of the energy. The finish is very nice and like said before "like art". The curves and lines scream out "I'm not the old gun your father had." I like the newer look of firearms these days. Glock's look great to me where most think they look like something your dog crapped out.
richhelton84
New member
I've got a Taurus 415 (.41 Mag), and it's a pretty reliable gun. I use it cor concealed carry, but it also is a pretty good shooter at the range, considering it only has a 2.5" barrell. I've never had any quality problems with it.
I'm hoping to either add a Model 608 (.357 Mag) or a Model 44 (.44 Mag) to my collection soon. I've heard some good things about both of them.
Rich
I'm hoping to either add a Model 608 (.357 Mag) or a Model 44 (.44 Mag) to my collection soon. I've heard some good things about both of them.
Rich
Big Bad .45 Wolf
New member
Taurus= You have a 50/50 chance of getting one that will actually be reliable enough for you to bet your life on. You either get one that will give you no troubles, or you get one that you'll need to ship back to Taurus every few months.
S&W= The new Smiths are of better quality than Taurus, however comparing a new Smith to itself made 10-20 years ago you'll see quality was much better years ago. S&W may be more expensive than Taurus but your odds of getting a trouble free gun are much better with Smith.
As far as the warranties, both S&W and Taurus offer lifetime warranties on their products. The only difference is with S&W you do not have to pay for shipping to have it repaired. Speaking of repairs, S&W has a far better repair department than Taurus. With Smith should you have a problem and need repairs you can count on your gun being fixed right the first time, with Taurus there have been numerous reports here on TFL about 2, 3 and even 4 times of having to ship the gun (at the owners expense) back to Taurus for them to finally get it right.
Bottom line, Taurus has the worst customer service, repair department, and half assed quality of the two brands named. If you feel that saving a $100 bucks is worth the roullete wheel bet you will be playing should you decide on Taurus then good luck.
S&W= The new Smiths are of better quality than Taurus, however comparing a new Smith to itself made 10-20 years ago you'll see quality was much better years ago. S&W may be more expensive than Taurus but your odds of getting a trouble free gun are much better with Smith.
As far as the warranties, both S&W and Taurus offer lifetime warranties on their products. The only difference is with S&W you do not have to pay for shipping to have it repaired. Speaking of repairs, S&W has a far better repair department than Taurus. With Smith should you have a problem and need repairs you can count on your gun being fixed right the first time, with Taurus there have been numerous reports here on TFL about 2, 3 and even 4 times of having to ship the gun (at the owners expense) back to Taurus for them to finally get it right.
Bottom line, Taurus has the worst customer service, repair department, and half assed quality of the two brands named. If you feel that saving a $100 bucks is worth the roullete wheel bet you will be playing should you decide on Taurus then good luck.
part swede
New member
My Taurus required a timing fix right out of the box, and it came back in 11 days, and I haven't had that problem again after a few hundred rounds. The pin holding their lock into the hammer was not flush on the right side, dragging on the sideplate, so I had to file it down.
My used old S&W is much smoother, but the latest S&W I tried at a store was unacceptably stiff.
My used old S&W is much smoother, but the latest S&W I tried at a store was unacceptably stiff.
I got to shoot a friend's Taurus .454 Raging Bull.
Recoil was not bad at all. Not as bad as a Ruger .44 magnum SA we were shooting. Mostly I think this was due to the grips Taurus put on the gun. They really fit my hand well. Also the gun is ported.
Fit and finish on the gun looked great.
But this was ONE gun and just ONE shooter.
I'm seriously thinking about the Taurus Tracker in .45 ACP. I'm getting to the point where I hate chasing my brass around the range.
Also, although I'm against chambering rifles in pistol calibers, (seems like a waste of rifle potential) I still think a Raging Bull and the Rossi Puma both in .454 would be a verrry interesting combination.
As always YMMV.
Recoil was not bad at all. Not as bad as a Ruger .44 magnum SA we were shooting. Mostly I think this was due to the grips Taurus put on the gun. They really fit my hand well. Also the gun is ported.
Fit and finish on the gun looked great.
But this was ONE gun and just ONE shooter.
I'm seriously thinking about the Taurus Tracker in .45 ACP. I'm getting to the point where I hate chasing my brass around the range.
Also, although I'm against chambering rifles in pistol calibers, (seems like a waste of rifle potential) I still think a Raging Bull and the Rossi Puma both in .454 would be a verrry interesting combination.
As always YMMV.
Perhaps I'm missing the real question here, but is it...
Are current production revolvers from S&W or Taurus more reliable on average?
Given the well-documented problems with new-production S&W wheelguns, my educated guess would be with Taurus.
Taurus revolvers are both innovative and state-of-the-art given the company's conversion to CNC machining years ago; in fact, the Rossi products [now under the aegis of Taurus] are very close in overall quality.
Older S&W products are without doubt better buys...but if you're buying a new-production machine on which you're willing to bet your life, think twice or thrice about buying from a company which of late has had significant QC problems.
I'd like to make the opposite recommendation but the last 18 mos. have made me very wary of new Smith products...even their best-of-the-best products from the Performance Center have had a very checkered reputation recently.
Good luck on your choice and be sure to let us know why you chose what you did...
Are current production revolvers from S&W or Taurus more reliable on average?
Given the well-documented problems with new-production S&W wheelguns, my educated guess would be with Taurus.
Taurus revolvers are both innovative and state-of-the-art given the company's conversion to CNC machining years ago; in fact, the Rossi products [now under the aegis of Taurus] are very close in overall quality.
Older S&W products are without doubt better buys...but if you're buying a new-production machine on which you're willing to bet your life, think twice or thrice about buying from a company which of late has had significant QC problems.
I'd like to make the opposite recommendation but the last 18 mos. have made me very wary of new Smith products...even their best-of-the-best products from the Performance Center have had a very checkered reputation recently.
Good luck on your choice and be sure to let us know why you chose what you did...