Chistian Gun Owner updates

Taurus Handgun Reviews

UPDATE 2020: The links to your left (or below on a landscaped phone) now represent the full stable of Taurus handguns I own/have owned. All but one have been excellent, dependable shooters.

Taurus Pistol Articles:

Taurus Revolver Articles

Taurus handguns, both pistols and revolvers, used to be the scourge of the gun world. But not now. That means a place for reviews on this web site is in order. There was a time when the company was known to make some of the poorest quality firearms to be found. Reports of failures of all kinds were rampant and the mention of the name “Taurus” brought sneers to the face of gun enthusiasts.

Some gun enthusiasts still sneer today. The difference is it's from ignorance, not from legitimate experience with the guns as they are now.

From its beginnings, over seven decades ago in Brazil, until now, the company has undergone many transitions, trades, acquisitions and changes in technology. In 1980 the company purchased Beretta's Sao Paulo manufacturing plant along with the tooling, technical drawings, and work force necessary to produce several different pistol designs.

The Taurus Flagship Pistol

In 1984, to effectively take advantage of the U.S. market, the company created a subsidiary. Taurus International Manufacturing Incorporated, also known as Taurus USA was born.

Thus began a real turning point in the history of the company when one of their most popular semi auto pistols was developed; the PT92. 

The gun was and is a Beretta clone with some minor improvements over the original design. The gun quickly became a favorite and today remains one of Taurus’s most popular pistols.

As a bonus it accepts most accessories of its popular Beretta cousin.

As anybody who surfs the web knows, there is a multitude of mindless criticism distributors without experience of any kind. Gun forums are no exception.

I belong to a couple of gun forums and throughout the threads there is a constant criticism and cursing of these pistols and revolvers by people who have never owned or shot them. At this writing I have owned three of their pistols in the last 12 months.

Of the 13 handguns I have bought, tested and sold over that year, Taurus guns have performed flawlessly in their operation. Of the 3 that I owned, from 800 to over 1000 rounds were fired through each.

None ever failed to do anything they were supposed to do. That is in contrast to some highly touted pistols I owned such as a Springfield XD (failure to eject), and Ruger P345 (multiple failures to feed).Hmm…..experience means something when it comes to guns…..or anything else for that matter.

My first Taurus was that PT92, 9mm, the famous Beretta clone which was a joy to shoot. Because of that, it soon became the property of my daughter. Well over a thousand rounds of ammo with no failures.

Next was the PT 1911 .45 ACP, the firearm manufacturer's reach into the 1911 pistol market. Man, the jeers on the forums by people who have never shot one are remarkable. Hundreds of rounds later, no failures. (Update: 10/2011 - still going strong with about 3000 rounds through it).

[Update again: July 2012 still going strong. As good as a production 1911 gets.]

The third over the course of that year was the 24/7 PRO stainless 9mm. Over 1000 rounds, no failures. It was my daily carry for a few months.

[NOTE: Update - As of July 2012, I have now owned eight Taurus handguns; 6 semi auto pistols and 2 revolvers. All have been exceptional except for the PT738 .380.]

That’s the reality of these handguns regardless of what you read on the forums by criticism parrots who have never shot one.

Now, does the manufacturer ever put out a dog? Sure. But so has Smith and Wesson, Beretta, Springfield, and Kimber. Even my most trusted GLOCK, has had pistols, particularly in early development, with significant problems.

All of them, including Taurus, get those things worked out and produce quality guns. What’s interesting is, that gun enthusiasts seem willing to forgive the other manufacturers, but hold it against Taurus forever.

BOTTOM LINE: Taurus Arms is one of the largest firearms manufacturers in the world, using cutting edge technology and smart manufacturing (holding prices to reasonable levels). They continue to turn out excellent revolvers and pistols.

Read my reviews of the pistols I’ve owned and then go try one out. You’ll be glad you did.

NOTE: Don’t read anything into me not owning some of the guns reviewed on this site. I buy and sell guns based only on whether I need or want them, not even on necessarily how good they are. But sadly, I can only own so many, and there are so many out there waiting for me to shoot……….

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