Nice!!! I was considering either a Taurus 605 Defender or the new Rossi RP63 myself until I came across a Ruger Speed Six a few days ago. I'm glad I held out but still wouldn't mind a Taurus revolver at some point.
I reload so the price of 38/357 isn't too bad for me but if you're buying factory range ammo 9mm is definitely where it's at. Would make a nice back up with Federal HSTs too.
I've always been intrigued by 9mm revolvers but the moon clip thing always kind of felt off to me. I know you can still use then without moon clips but I'm not sure I'd trust them to eject if needed in a defense scenario. I'm surprised Taurus and other companies haven't tried to do like the Charter Arms pit bulls and ditch the moon clips.

 

Nice!!! I was considering either a Taurus 605 Defender or the new Rossi RP63 myself until I came across a Ruger Speed Six a few days ago. I'm glad I held out but still wouldn't mind a Taurus revolver at some point.
I reload so the price of 38/357 isn't too bad for me but if you're buying factory range ammo 9mm is definitely where it's at. Would make a nice back up with Federal HSTs too.
I've always been intrigued by 9mm revolvers but the moon clip thing always kind of felt off to me. I know you can still use then without moon clips but I'm not sure I'd trust them to eject if needed in a defense scenario. I'm surprised Taurus and other companies haven't tried to do like the Charter Arms pit bulls and ditch the moon clips.

The Speed Six was the best choice, you can't go wrong with that

I had a .40 Charter, I probably should have kept it. The rounds kind of "snap" into the chambers, which is neat for range shooting and you can use a Glock or other magazine to reload them for carry, I just used the mag lip to push the rounds into the chambers

Usually , when I load loose 9mm into my SP or this Taurus, I am able to turn the gun up and dump most of the spent cases out. Any stubborn ones can be pulled out with fingernails. Not ideal for defense but workable if all you had was a magazine or loose rounds.

9mm +p or +p+ would be more than adequate for defense, like the old 147 gr +P Gold Dot that's been a go to since forever

The whole concept of the modern use of moonclips fascinates me. An emergency expedient for WWI to use .45 ACP in revolvers , because there weren't enough 1911s in the supply pipeline.......takes us to now, 100+ years later still using Moonclips to shoot pistol calibers in revolvers and they are heavily used in competition shooting.

I like moonclipped revolvers , I have 6 revolvers now that use auto calibers, they're starting to multiply😃

It's honestly just lots of fun to fill your coat pocket with loaded clips or a speedloader pouch, and just have fun popping away , dropping in fresh clips as fast as shoving a mag in an auto

The general reviews are that the clips Taurus includes are junk , no big deal , there are other options

 

I love my Taurus kit gun. Shoots straight. Appears to be timed well. It has been with me a long time now.

I also own a new stainless G3c that I’m very fond of.

 

I have a G3C that's been great! Eats everything I feed it. Taurus has really stepped up their game in the last few years.
Last time I went to the range I told the owner "it's a sad day when my Taurus is running great but my Ruger is giving me problems" 🤣.

 

Nice review, Army11B.

 

This is good, real world information , most people don't have actual shooting experience as extensive as that with a Taurus.

People often ask , what is the lifespan of a Taurus and I tell them, if you get a good one, expect it to last as long as a S&W, which are usually rated at 30,000 rounds before they need a new ratchet and hand. And endshake will need attention. This number comes from PDs who used S&W 64s that kept round counts on guns.

Taurus uses good, forged steel in their revolvers , and the actions now, are basically a simplified version of the newer S&W action. The yoke tubes are actually beefier than a S&W

Not so much that Taurus ACTUALLY made cheap rent a cop 38s and snubbies that break after 100 rounds, but this was a lot of gun guys' opinions of them over the last 30+ years I've been an avid shooter. And Taurus revamped their facilities to try to keep up in the market which it formerly had a bad rap in

I bought a used trade in Taurus 82 , about 10 years ago , which I still have. When I showed my coworker gun buddies on our range trips "oh yeah the Taurus knock off S&W they're pieces of 💩" or everyone has an Uncle, Friend, etc who had one and "they're trash "

I've had 2 Taurus 85s, from the early 2000s back when they were still blued and not matte. They were perfectly fine, I got an SP101 and traded them off. I should have kept them. I had a few clunkers, some 1990s production 82s and 80s that weren't good, at all. But I got them for almost nothing so I wasn't too mad . They were well used so I try not to count them as "bad Taurus'" that I've owned

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The 82 on top was part of a big batch of security trade ins that Castle Arms was selling for $200, I impulse bought one. The lockup is sloppier than any other revolver I own or have owned, and that's many, but it shoots like a laser and the timing and endshake are perfect. You never know. According to experienced Taurus fans this lockup is within Spec and the bullet enters the forcing cone, and centers the chamber anyway. I've put a few 100 rounds through it so far, no problems. I bought it at an indoor range gun shop, took it right to a lane and was stacking bullets at 15 yards in Single Action. Maybe they allow a little more slop in the service revolvers like the 82 now, to allow for lax cleaning and dirty range ammo

The 82 below it , is from the early 2000s back when they still made them in a real blue finish. This gun is a S&W in disguise. It's mechanically perfect, tight and has a nice action. I dropped in a Wolff hammer spring and left the rebound spring stock and the DA pull is very good .

Back when you could get Tulammo steel case .38 Special for $150 per 1000, I used this as a training gun and a range banger. Some other of my revolvers had sticky extraction with the steel including a few GP100s, this 82 ate that stuff right up. I probably put a good 10,000 rounds of Tulammo through it over one summer, because Ammoman always had it in stock and it was cheap, and he ships quick. One particular blue GP100 .38 ate up a lot too,very few of my revolvers liked that steel case .38. I remember some GPs that I tried it in, and I had to tap on the rod with a piece of wood to break the cases free. Nope. Not breaking a ratchet leg on a GP100 , through the 82 it went. For some reason this 82 just popped the steel cases out with 0 issues .

This gun always came along to the range, no matter what else I brought, I basically used it as a loud .22 to plink around with at steel swingers or paper targets to end a range day. I moved on to other stuff and it lives in the safe now, I haven't fired it in several years. I'll have to get it back out
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Older 70s and 80s Taurus' can be sleepers, I won this 70s era Model 80 on GunBroker by accident, I bid about $150 and forgot about it, assuming I'd be outbid, and I got the email that I won the auction. After I picked it up from my dealer, 200 bucks OTD for an old Model 80 that looked like it had a box ran through it and was carried a little, I'll take them all day. It shoots great. Someone buggered the sideplate screws probably removing the sideplate to poke around, but otherwise it looks like its been in a Holster a little bit and probably a sock drawer the rest of the time

I was actually just looking at the 856 TORO because it's a neat little optics ready 3" .357 for $350, I'm hoping the thought passes because I don't need another .357 but I'll probably end up getting one

Their revolvers were never "cheap rent a cop .38s that break after 100 rounds." I bought a Model 85 in 1985. I shot it a lot, I mean a lot. Over at least five summers, I would reload at night and shoot every day, putting at least 600 round through it a week, with loads that were hotter than I like to shoot now. I bought the Taurus then because it had a shrouded ejector rod, and was rated for +P ammo, and the S&W at the time wasn't. I continued to shoot it a lot for over 30 years. It was my only non-blackpowder handgun for over 25 years. It had tens of thousands of rounds through it. In the mid-2000s my brother and I compared it to some of his J-frames, which happen to be one of my favorite platforms so I am not a S&W basher, I love them, and own their stock. My mush used Taurus still locked up tighter than his Smiths, and there was nothing wrong with how his Smiths locked up. The Model 85 just happend to lock up a bit tighter.

A few years ago I decided to see if Taurus would freshen up the gun under their lifetime warranty. There was nothing noticeably wrong with it, but I wanted it checked over, and maybe get new springs, the trigger pull was pretty light after all the use. Taurus looked at the gun, and said it was in good working order, but they wanted to replace the cylinder, since they had updated that particular cylinder, and there was a little wear. The stated again that it was completely safe and serviceable, but they did not have a cylinder for it. They said they could ship it back to me the was it was, or they would give me a new Model 856, and pay for shipping and any FFL fees for transferring it.

I loved the Model 85, and its bluing was very nice, but, it was an over 30 year old gun with a lot of rounds through it. I opted for the new gun. Taurus was true to their word, and replaced my well used, over 30 year old Model 85. I love the 856 as well, though I miss the pretty bluing that was on the Model 85.

See this is the kind of info I was looking for but couldn't seem to find. I knew it obviously wouldn't break after 100 rounds but I was wondering how a Taurus revolver would hold up after a high round count. Definitely good to know!

 

Nice review..
I had a 605 revolver I bought used and put many rounds down range without issue.. MANY

I too recently impulse bought a 905, because why not

 

I'd also rather have a 5-shot 357 vs a 6 shot 38 if I'm packing it, even if I'm loading up with light bullet 125gr 357 like Hornady Critical Defense , I figure 5 rounds of 357 is a better fight stopper than an extra round of 38 +P

The 856 is still neat. It's like a mini version of their 82

Taurus' are easy impulse buys because you can pick up most of their snubbies for below $400 😃 out of all the Taurus guns, their snubs were always the ones I usually look at

Taurus has come out with some cool stuff that no one else has, like the 380 snub they used to make. I actually had one 10 years ago, it was cool but at the time thought I had no need for it. I wish I kept it . They also had a 40 S&W large frame snub, they may have been the first to do a 40 snub , it was aimed at the LE BUG market

 

I'd also rather have a 5-shot 357 vs a 6 shot 38 if I'm packing it, even if I'm loading up with light bullet 125gr 357 like Hornady Critical Defense , I figure 5 rounds of 357 is a better fight stopper than an extra round of 38 +P

The 856 is still neat. It's like a mini version of their 82

Taurus' are easy impulse buys because you can pick up most of their snubbies for below $400 😃 out of all the Taurus guns, their snubs were always the ones I usually look at

Taurus has come out with some cool stuff that no one else has, like the 380 snub they used to make. I actually had one 10 years ago, it was cool but at the time thought I had no need for it. I wish I kept it . They also had a 40 S&W large frame snub, they may have been the first to do a 40 snub , it was aimed at the LE BUG market

I agree completely, not saying I don't have faith in the 38 but I'd rather have even a 357 golden saber to get me into 9mm territory. It's funny you mentioned impulse buys, my ffl just emailed me yesterday and told me he has a charter arms mag pug for $299. If I wasn't paying off my speed six I would have jumped on that one like no tomorrow.
I could make a trade it but it's just not worth it right now, I still owe $250 on the Ruger so I would have to trade in my 206 and my EC9s to get it. If I'm trading in both I'm getting something better not something on the same level. I might see how much he'll give me for the 206 on trade, if I can get the mag pug for $100 cash with the trade in I might get it anyway.
I really wanted one of the 380 revolvers for a while but they're pretty much unobtainable now. The Taurus 380 revolver I think would have made the perfect pocket carry revolver. Bigger than a NAA Mini but smaller than pretty much any 38 on the market.

 

Taurus revolvers have been a thing for a long time, so they might make more .380s. There was a very long period recently when no .32 revolvers were available, but then Taurus and S&W made additional batches.

 

That M380 would sell well for them now if they cranked out more of them

Davidson's still lists the Taurus 82 for 330 bucks, I had thought they dropped them after most States dropped the laws requiring private security companies to use 38 revolvers and there wasn't much of a market for a 4" 38 Service Revolver , Taurus is the last holdout of the fixed sight 4" 38 duty gun apparently not counting S&W occasionally making a batch of "Classic Series " Model 10s

The Taurus 65 has been around for about 50 years now, I think it also is the last 4" fixed sight 357 still produced. Ruger still makes the 3" fixed sight, standard 357 GP100 that's pretty much unchanged but the 4" fixed sighters have been out of production for probably over 10 years , maybe 20

 

I would never claim that the 9mm is equal to the .357, but I still like 9mm revolvers. Chronographing 9mm in the little 2" and 3" revolvers, of whatever make, indicates the 9mm is pretty efficient in those guns. At 3" or longer barrel length, the .357 starts pulling away. Until recently, I'd never tested any .38+P ammo that equaled even standard pressure 9mm ballistics. That changed when I chronographed a couple Underwood .38+P loads..

 

I have hoping for Taurus to come out with a 7 shot 9mm built on the Tracker frame ( with no ports )
The build a 692 .. a Tracker sized frame with a replaceable 9mm & 357 cly
But they have ported barrels

 

I have hoping for Taurus to come out with a 7 shot 9mm built on the Tracker frame ( with no ports )
The build a 692 .. a Tracker sized frame with a replaceable 9mm & 357 cly
But they have ported barrels

The President of my gun club brought one of those Taurus Tracker 9mms to a Turkey shoot this year, it seemed pretty solid . I kinda forgot about them , if the price was ok I'd buy one and use it as a 9mm and probably shove the 357 cylinder into the back of my safe next to the other unused "convertible " cylinders

 

I found out that Galloway Precision sells a spring kit made by ISMI so I had to get a set. I have ISMI springs in a few of my GP100s and I love them.

The TK Custom extended firing pin for the Taurus snubs didn't fit. I contacted TK and they said Taurus uses 6 different pins for their snubbies and they're randomly just all different. They offered a return but I'll just keep it. They are working on pins to fit the rest of the Taurus guns but I just reinstalled the stock pin and hoped for the best. If they make one that fits I'll put one in down the road

With notoriously spotty Freedom Munitions 9mm , my groups at 20 yards were decent in SA. I tried some one handed shooting and the POI rose a few inches.....snubbies can be sensitive to grip and hold. The action felt great, no dreaded "cap gun trigger " but they didn't expose roughness in fitting either like light springs in other guns can.

Single Action was awesome, it felt like I touched the hammer and it was cocked , and the trigger pull was light and crisp

Double Action pull is nice, trigger return is snappy. My groups shrank in half

I had a few FTFs in DA, but Freedom Munitions isn't as good at consistent primer seating so I'm going to try other brands of 9mm. I don't want to go back to the stock springs now, these feel too nice

Maybe it will like Magtech or Federal Red Box

25 yard shooting is definitely possible now

 

Army11B, Back in the day our Dept. issued either Winchester or Remington 125 JHP to those of us who carried .357s. The rangemaster asked me to chronograph our issue ammo, to include the Remington .38 Spcl. 125 JHP and .357 125 JHP we happened to be using at the time. Checking some very old notes, I see the Remington .38+P 125 JHP averaged 912 FPS, the .357 125 JHP 1442 FPS in a 4" S&W. The Remington .357 really was as you describe. Each shot fired felt kinda like a slap in the face. Some of our officers, used to carrying the .38 Spcl. +P we were issued for years, just could not qualify to carry the .357 due to the muzzle blast, flash and recoil..

The 9 is definitely no .357, but I do like the 9mm revolvers. I haven't tried the Taurus, but had S&W 547, Ruger Blackhawk convertibles, and some others..