Taurus Reliability - Actual Numbers

[TG70]

I have owned 7 Taurus handguns, 5 bought new and two were used before I bought them. Two of the new ones had problems out of the box. The used ones ran well.

One new revolver had problems with the trigger not returning. The bought new rimfire revolver requires two men and a small boy to sucessfully fire double action - alot more effort than I think reasonable even to ignite rimfire cartridges. Cylinder on the rimfire binds often. PT22 worked well for several hundred rounds but then broke a plastic buffer; TAurus replaced the buffer for free.

So, I am wary of buying any more Taurus firearms.

Tom

[John Cockburn]

A few years ago I bought a 1911 Taurus. Second time to the range the safety fell out. 8 weeks later, I got it back. Off to the range again. This time the front sight walked right and if I had been using the thing to control an intruder, I would have been shooting the victim he might have had in his right arm! I tried to sight the gun in and lock the front sight better. No luck! Back to Taurus and another eight weeks later (and after a lot of arguing about the night sights they said could not be replaced), I finally got it back. They simply slapped another slide on it. Fortunately, it had night sights, but no serial number. The slide was not fitted and was sloppy. In spite of this, the gun is reasonably accurate. And I find it to be an economical "range toy"! I do NOT keep it at bedside. And I do NOT carry the damned thing. The next time it fails, I will fix it myself. I have MINIMAL gunsmithing experience. But I can do better than the jokers they've got in Miami throwing these things together. And I can probably buy QUALITY replacement parts for what the shipping might cost to return it. Another Taurus for me??? NEVER !!!! Especially after seeing the 13% reject stats here.....WOW!

[Eghad]

I have an older Taurus .22 Revolver I have had for quite a few years. I purchased on of their semi-auto Compact pistols a few years go. Thing put a blister on my trigger finger. I traded it off a few weeks after buying it.

[Yung.gunr]

Someone earlier had posted that a majority of Taurus buyers were "part of the lower economic class". I really don't think that is the case. For instance, agreed I am usually strapped for cash, that is absolutely not the reason I bought my Taurus. I had tried all the .380 pocket guns by the different makers and the TCP was the one I liked the most for multiple various reasons. When I finally decided to purchase it I actually traded in a Beretta that I hated. This gave me enough store credit that I could have got any of the other pocket guns I wanted (except the Sig). For many people I feel they buy a Taurus because it is the one that truly offers everything that they want.

Now this is not to say that I am a member of the Taurus fanclub. I knew that I was taking a bit of a gamble on it. I feel that if I were ever to want to buy another Taurus I would go into it with the same mindset.

But, after being a member of this forum for a while and reading other members issues, buying any gun is a gamble.

[spaniel]

Two different 85s and a titanium Tracker in 41Mag. All accurate and flawless. The trigger pull on one of the 85s was a bit heavy, a spring set cured that.

I used to be concerned that I was lucky, then I frequented a Smith forum and found the level of complaints surprisingly high (a cylinder fluted for 6 cylinders bored for 7 and making it out of the factory? Really?). I own two Smiths as well, honestly the quality appears a little better in finish but in function they have as many small flaws as the Taurus.

[Boatme98]

I don't think I've ever "bashed" them, but I've always said I'd never buy one.
I first looked at them in about '03, and didn't like the feel or finish. Since then I have seen way too many posts everywhere about various failures and cost of shipping (I guess there's a reason they don't pay the shipping, eh?) to even consider one.

Just like cars - with over 40 different vehicles in my past, I never had to own a Rambler/American Motors car to know that it would be a mistake.

[Carry_24/7]

I have a 740 Slim, bought it as an intro to .40S&W toy. It was cheap, its never failed...but I can't shoot it straight no matter what I do.

I won't buy a Taurus as a serious/carry gun. When this one breaks, i'm gonna break it into pieces and dispose. Why tinker with the warranty on something that costs less than what me and the wife spend in one night on the town on vacation...you get what you pay for.

[johnbt]

"I never had to own a Rambler/American Motors car to know that it would be a mistake. "

I knew a guy in the mid-70s who bought a green '63 Rambler station wagon with 4 snow tires on it. It got him back and forth from Richmond to Harvard for 4 years. His scholarship didn't provide for transportation.

[Boatme98]

I knew a guy in the mid-70s who bought a green '63 Rambler station wagon with 4 snow tires on it. It got him back and forth from Richmond to Harvard for 4 years. His scholarship didn't provide for transportation.

Yeah, but it was no Ford Falcon. A true style icon.

[Cheapshooter]

I did my first run through with my Taurus PT22 Poly today. Probably 300 trouble free, accurate rounds. CCI, Winchester Wildcat, Winchester "333" bulk, Federal 325 bulk. All 100% reliable, and accurate. Remington RGB bulk was accurate, but about 5% duds, No fault of the gun. Federal Champion was a complete failure, but similar in two other guns of different manufacture.
So with good ammo my little baby bull is a great little gun.

[PT-92]

Cheapshooter,

About the same performance as the original PT22 model would you say?

[Cheapshooter]

I've never shot the metal PT22, but I think it's about identical in performance. Great little guns. especially for the +/-$200 price.

[akguy1985]

I've owned 2 Tauri in my shooting hobby.
First one was a PT-92 stainless i bought on my 21st birthday. It ran flawlessly and ate whatever you fed it. I even killed a rabbit with it.

second one, back in april i picked up a TCP .380 and i took it to the range. There was this weird occurrence about 5 or 6 times where I would pull the trigger about halfway and the gun go off without the hammer coming back, this is a DAO pistol and it shouldnt have did that. I have no clue what the problem was but i got rid of it was it was a no go for SD.

[Madball6]

I own 2 taurus, a pt 92 and a tcp 738. both have functioned flawlessly. have over 10k rounds through the pt 92, and I prefer it to the beretta (own both). the TCP had an issue when i bought it, it would sling brass back into the face of the shooter. sent it back for a new extractor and its been flawless since.

-Madball6

[PT-92]

Cheapshooter

I've never shot the metal PT22, but I think it's about identical in performance. Great little guns. especially for the +/-$200 price.

Just curious as I have yet to shoot the newly designed poly PT22.

Agreed on the bang for the buck value/performance. If you shop around you can find them NIB for $190 here and there which is a steal. I have the Beretta 21A and they both run the same with good ammo.

Hard not to like the little guys (I started collecting mouse-guns a year or so back and man do they multiply fast!).

-Cheers

[salvadore]

I have the 1911 and the 145 and have never had a problem. filed down the front sight on the 145 to change poi. I have a lightweight commander, a newish Remington and the Taurus that I purchased shortly after reading The Rifleman's article (same day). I did replace the mainspring on it, the trigger was scary light and put a (fiber optic?) front on it because my eyesight sucks, and the finish does wear faster than anyother shooter I own. I have no issues with the 145, but don't shoot it often. Have not be carried the 1911s much after I got a Colt Cobra, just for convenience sake. Will probably retire the Cobra since I bought the S&W shield. Wow, looks like I have diahria of the keyboard.

[rem44m]

Owned two Taurus revolvers. They were both perfect! I miss them actually. They seem to fit my hand very well and I could shoot them very well. So my experience with Taurus has been good. I will never buy one of their semi's though. To many horror stories.

[CDR_Glock]

I have a 605 SS Custom Snubby. 1994. No issues.

[cltinseattle]

In my experience there is a very real difference between Taurus semi-auto pistols and Taurus revolvers. I have had a couple of bad experiences with Taurus semi-auto pistols and would not carry one to trust my life with it. On the other hand, I have a Taurus 941 snubby that holds 8 rounds of .22 Magnum and I have fallen in love with it. It is a fantastic little .22 Mag snubby at half the price of the S&W 351's.

Also, I only have range rental experience with the Taurus Judge and it was an impressive gun. They sure seem to be popular revolvers. For me, I just don't know what I would use a Judge for. Too big for concealed carry and I have a safe full of guns I would use for home protection before I would use a Judge. I guess if I still lived and hunted in snake country it would make a nice sidearm for that purpose.

[PT-92]

The Judge (or S&W Governor) to me are just a 'because' gun. If you have a liking for 45LC and just want a 'fun' gun it can't be beat. Shot my Uncle's Judge and it's a real hoot ! I prefer the Governor becuase it will chamber .45ACP (I have little .410 or LC on hand). Rumor has it Taurus is to announce that it will follow suit and begin offering .45acp chambering.

[pete2]

I've owned 1 Taurus, a PT100. It was just as accurate as my Beretta 92. The problem was that it would jam, for no reason. It would run great for 60 or 70 and then it would stop. One gun is no reason to say don't buy Taurus. I also sold firearms for one of the big box stores(BPS). We got a boatload of them back and had to return them on warranty, even some of the revolvers wouldn't work. I won't buy another Taurus.

[Scott429]

If you are looking for a serious self defence handgun 0% failure rate is the way to go. Its hard for me to put a pricetag on my life or the lives of my loved ones

[bikerbill]

I have owned three Taurus revolvers, still have two ... the first gun I ever bought, which currently resides in my glovebox, is a steel 85 ... I've had it for about 20 years, have never had a problem ... also had a .22mag which was faultless, sold it a while back, wish I still had it ... my problem child was a 617 7-rd .357 snubbie ... the trigger was very gritty and it locked up after shooting two-three cylinders full ... rather than waste time shipping it back, I took it to a 'smith; the trigger is now glass-smooth ... he also opened up the cylinder-barrel gap, which was so tight that the heat from firing expanded the metal enough to lock the cylinder until it cooled ... for $85, I got an excellent gun which is accurate, smooth shooting and (now) problem-free ... I wish the gun had come to me from the factory in perfect condition, but for me the extra cost was worth it ... I wouldn't hesitate to buy another Taurus revolver; in fact, I'm looking to replace the .22 mag ... not sure I'd try one of their semi's; their quality control is for me just too iffy.

Oops, forgot my PT-25, also sold and missed ... it never had a problem ... just got tired of stocking yet another caliber, so let it go ... if they made one in .22 mag, I'd be first in line ...

[PT-92]

I have seen more cylinder issues with spent shells sticking, binding etc. of late with various different vendors than ever. I am no revolver expert by any means but they seem to be shipping many of the revolvers nowadays absent thorough QC. Then again, I had a brand new Remington 1187 shipped from the factory where the extractor could not eject a spent hull due to the chamber needing polishing so maybe it's a general 'sign of the times' we live in .

[Quizcat]

More Photos 5 through 8









And, last but not least #9 (Added Later)