Are Taurus revolvers *that* bad?

[Ricklin]

I have a model 94 in .22 LR, it's accurate and well made overall. I'm not a big revolver guy but the little 94 is a very decent gun.

My dislike? The double action trigger pull is atrocious but thumbing the hammer back gives a reasonably crisp single action trigger pull.

Word around the campfire is it's all about the frame size with regard to the double action trigger pull. Putting in lighter springs is an option, but reliability will suffer. It will never be in a designated self defense role so putting in lighter springs may be an option.

Not rough, not gritty, just heavy with regard to the trigger. Would rather have an S+W but for the price........I'm a happy Taurus camper. My 94 was made in 2012. Good value @ 250 bucks.

[Kreyzhorse]

I had a M85 and to be honest, it shot well till it seized up sold at 250 rounds.

Any money you think you can save up front, in a case like mine, you will spend attempting to send it back to Taurus on your dime.

That isn't to say you can't get a good Taurus, but out of my 5 revolvers, Taurus was the only one I've had issues with.

I say look for a used Smith or Ruger and you'll be much happier.

[TimSr]

I can comprehend the opinions of some, that a new Smith or Ruger might be more reliable than a new Taurus, even if I may not necessarily agree.

What I can't get my arms around is the suggestion that a USED Smith or Ruger will be more reliable than a NEW Taurus, if we are not the one who USED it.

Yes, new guns fail out of the box, and mfgs stand behind their products in varying degrees, but to suggest that the stranger at a gun show who hands you a "used" gun of unknown "use" in exchange for your money is less of a risk, just because it has "Ruger" stamped on it is insane to me. I would highly recommend against anybody who is not very knowledgeable about guns buying a used one unless it's from somebody they know and trust. At least if you have problems with your new Taurus, you have somewhere to go.

[AirForceShooter]

I had a mod. 689 , 6" SS .357

I'd stack it up against a S&W and day of the week.

Stupidly I sold it

AFS

[tallball]

This is my favorite Taurus. It's a Model 689, the fancy version of their Model 66. The DA trigger is almost as good as my LCR. The DA and SA are so much better than my SP101 that comparing them is a mockery. I got it something like 15 years ago, used, for $200. It has never malfunctioned since I have owned it. The grips are some of those hardwood grips from Thailand that they sell on eBay.

[Glenn E. Meyer]

Not really relevant but Taurus executives were busted for gun running to Yemen. Stock prices were falling in Brazil.

[tallball]

Just to keep blabbing... I once mentioned that my Taurus 689 had a better trigger and sights than either of my S&W revolvers.

I enjoyed the anger and disbelief. No one knew that both of my S&W revolvers are over 100 years old. They are fun to shoot, but their triggers are a bit stiff and the sights are tiny.

The best DA trigger I have ever felt is the one on my friend's well-worn S&W Model 66. He got it from his dad. That trigger is smoooooth!

[wild cat mccane]

Just bought a M66 4" stainless. Polishing with Mother's to give it a shine. I don't care for the Taurus luster stainless.

That said, the finish is nicer than the GP100 I sold and the trigger is at least 2x's lighter on the Taurus. Trigger reach is significantly longer than on the Taurus, which is the opposite of what you hear on the internet from people who haven't owned both together. Plus one extra round.

I did have to send an M66 6" back to Taurus from the very beginning because of timing. Came back perfectly fine, free of charge.

At 400 vs 600 + for a GP100 or 686? That's a lot of dough for I am not sure what improvements. Certainly none with the GP100.

[adamBomb]

When a glock fails...everyone on forums blames the user

When a taurus fails...everyone on forums blames taurus

I would love to see tests where users fire and use these guns but have no idea what brand they are...

Here is a test of single stack 9s. The taurus and glock did not fail when all of the others (SW, Ruger, Sig, etc) did. http://www.gunsandammo.com/handguns/...-9mm-shootout/

My point here is that all companies products have a failure rate. That usually average 1%-5% depending on the industry. If it were more than that they go out of business or report major losses that quarter/year. ALL GUN MANUFACTURES PRODUCE LEMONS. But people like to give their favorite companies a pass. One guy who is a so called expert will tell you that taurus is terrible and the next guy who is also an expert will tell you he has never seen a problem with any of the ones he has sold...People don't want to believe that a gun that was in some cases half what they paid for theirs could possibly be just as good or better.

[wild cat mccane]

Right.

I admit Taurus may be a larger risk to perfect at the start, but with a warranty, I don't see the competition justifying "better" at 250+

[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. 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