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Old December 9, 2007, 06:46 PM   #1
clarke
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Second thoughts about Taurus 66

I just put a brand new taurus 66 stainless on lay-a-way. After reading a little more about the taurus products I am thinking about changing brands. The shop I go to usually only carries taurus or ruger. I have about $400.00 to spend. It wil primarily be a car/home gun.

Any advice would be appreciated.
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Old December 9, 2007, 06:53 PM   #2
New_Pollution1086
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what made you rethink Taurus? I'm about to turn 21 and have been looking into a taurus.
T
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Old December 9, 2007, 07:02 PM   #3
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I have read a few post on reliability issues regarding taurus products. Could have been a bad batch. Who Knows.
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Old December 9, 2007, 07:54 PM   #4
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Taurus, oh boy!

If you pay attention to all the bad stuff said on these boards,you would never buy ANY model of firearm!!

Taurus may be a hit or miss proposition....so could be S&W, Ruger, Hi-Point, Para, etc.etc,etc.....
They all make lemons.You have to decide what you want, and then get it.
I have a # of firearms from many different manufacturers, so far, they have all been good ones.
And that includes a couple of Taurus revolvers-one a Tracker .17HMR, and the other a Raging Bull .44mag.
I have guns from most of the other "known" brands too--S&W, Ruger,Marlin, Weatherby, Remington,(obviously, not all handguns mentioned!)...so far, ALL have been excellent!!
So, please pick what you want--if there is a seriously bad gun, or dangerous one being made, they probably would not be in business very long.
Just my two cents-don't believe everything you read online!
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Old December 9, 2007, 09:03 PM   #5
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Granted my experience with Taurus is limited, but, if you get a good one it will be very good. If it isn't so good, then it will be very not so good. I have gathered that lots of other here would make the same claim.

Have a m605 (.357 snubbie) I adore and it is a fabulous piece.

HAD a PT22 (tiny .22 auto) that worked provided it got fed the right ammo. Didn't inspire confidence and I don't usually buy guns I wouldn't carry, so it became part of the payment in a trade for a new 10/22.

I am considering something in a Mil Pro type auto...maybe...mostly depends on price, percieved quality and dimensions of the gun (seeing as how it has to fit into the easily carried mold). I haven't ruled Taurus out and won't unless every gun they start to make is garbage.
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Old December 10, 2007, 01:38 AM   #6
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Thought I made an earlier post on this, but it apparently didn't get through.

I'll be briefer this time.

It sounds like you intend to RELY ON this gun for home and personal defense.

You have to have complete confidence in it. Already you have doubts about your choice, and this likely will continue to bother you. That's not good, and in my experience, you are not worrying for nothing.

While I own, and have owned several, Taurus guns, and have relied on them at times for personal defense, I hesitate to recommend the brand to others, because I have experienced quality control and durability issues with the ones I have owned. Taurus is much better than Kel-tec, but still not first-rate, at least not in my book.

Take a look at a Ruger GP 100. These days Ruger revolvers may have occasional quality control issues (my last one had a badly-fitted part in the action), but they can be made right IF that happens, and then they should last forever.
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Old December 10, 2007, 07:47 AM   #7
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Taurus Crap?

Not in my book!I have a 454 Raging Bull in 454.Over 500 full load rounds and no problem.My neighbor has the 2" titaium snubby 38 with over 500 rounds of +P trough it no problems.Just look very closely at any gun before you buy it.If you don't think you are qualified to check it out yourself take someone with you who is.Every manufacture makes a dud.
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Old December 11, 2007, 06:22 AM   #8
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Taurus no longer a problem

Although I've posted this already, I suppose I'll reiterate it here:

Taurus used to suck (in some peoples' opinions), and now they don't so much. Every gun salesmen I've talked to in the past week or two trying to decide on a snubby has said that Taurus has made leaps and bounds in quality control the past 10 years. (those same salesmen just as easily could have said "that's a beginners' handgun, why don't you go for a Smith for $150 more") My dad has owned a Taurus for quite some time without incident, and I think, through my research, I would trust my life to one.

~Jake.
p.s. every company makes a lemon now and then
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Old December 11, 2007, 08:41 AM   #9
clarke
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Well,

I think I'll stick with the Taurus. They do have a lifetime warranty. Like every other gun I have ever had it will probably get shot only twice a year.
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Old December 11, 2007, 09:18 AM   #10
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I'd go with a Ruger GP100. The Ruger's modular design makes takedown for cleaning as easy as field stripping a pistol. The Ruger one piece frame/triple lock-up action is inherently stronger than the sideplate/double lock-up design of the Taurus. Ruger also has a lifetime warranty.

Warning!! Anti-Taurus Rant
I would dispute the claim that Taurus is better than Kel-tec. I have both. The Taurus I have cost 2 1/2 times as much as the Kel-tec. Both had problems, Kel-tec wouldn't feed hollow points and the Taurus flame cut the front of the cylinder, but Kel-tec fixed it in one trip back. Taurus took 3 and the same thing is happening again. The customer service people at Kel-tec were friendly and I had my gun back within two weeks of the day I shipped it out. The customer service people at Taurus were snippy and rude. Each trip back took over 12 weeks. If someone gave me a Taurus I'd sell it to go buy a Kel-tec or Ruger. Taurus has some cool designs but I would say the improvements in quality they made in the last 10 years moved them from a third rate product to second. The revolver I had problems with and they have had three chances to fix was one of their top of the line Titanium models that was more than $600.

Last edited by Wuchak; December 11, 2007 at 10:21 AM.
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Old December 11, 2007, 09:44 AM   #11
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"They do have a lifetime warranty."

All predominant manufacturers have lifetime warranties. Some are more user friendly than others. Taurus seems to be on the low end of this totem pole. For another 75 bucks I'd opt for the Ruger.
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Old December 11, 2007, 10:42 AM   #12
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hmmm... I think you just need to look your choice over well, & hope you get a good one with no internal flaws that can't be viewed easily...

I have "several" guns, & continue to purchase as often as the wallet allows... in my 20 years or so of fairly active gun purchases, I really only got one lemon...

my lemon was an AMT 380 Back up, that could not be made to fire a full magazine of ammo, no matter what ammo was tried, & I even ried buying 2 different magazines... it was frustrating enough, that I now question the reliability of any pocket auto ( so I can see where the Taurus bashers come from, especially if their customer service people are not "overly freindly" )

... I own 2 Taurus revolvers, & one is our bedroom defense gun ( we have several aquariums in the master bedroom, so our choice for the wife & the room conditions, is a 4" Stainless tracker in 8 shot 22 Magnum ) the gun is not a buttery smooth $1,000.00 high end revolver, but (we) trust our lives on it's function... several people have had issues with the S&W locks, but 2 of my carry guns are newer S&W's, & I've not had any issue with the locks ( so far )

... unfortunately, if the truth be told, we'd all probably be better off buying 20 year old like new, hand built Rugers, S&W & Colts... but there just isn't enough of those to go around, & then there are still those odd AMT Back Up's, that didn't function right 15 years ago either

more than likely you be fine with what ever gun you choose...um maybe
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Old December 11, 2007, 11:02 AM   #13
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Which???

Mosin44az, could you please state the brand in which you have "complete confidence"
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Old December 11, 2007, 11:03 AM   #14
defjon
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Did you use the revolver checklist stickied on this forum? How is the cylinder play?


95+% likely, your 66 is gonna serve you well and you'll love it.

My taurus experience has been steller. Wouldn't trade my snubby for the world! Much better than anything else at its price point 199.00 when I got it, and WORLDS better than the new crop of S and W's I've scoped out!

Don't be so quick to discount taurus revolvers. They don't hold their resale value well though. So be sure you want to keep it, at least for a couple years. I could likely at LEAST make back my 2 hundred, prolly a little extra. Take care of it, whatever ya get! Good luck.
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Old December 11, 2007, 11:07 AM   #15
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I have two Taurus revolvers and am very pleased. One an M85 snubby is a great CCW. My latest is a 7 shot 66. It is a pleasure to shoot and has caused me to reevaluate my preference for semi's. I am very pleased with it and want to do accuracy work to be able to hunt with it. I like it so much, that I believe the wife is getting me a Marlin 1894-C to complement my 38/357 battery.
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Old December 11, 2007, 11:12 AM   #16
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I have a Taurus Titanium in 44 spl. 5 shot, 2" barrel. It has functioned flawlessly so far. I have had it for two years and have probably fired 400 rounds through it. It is my primary carry piece. I like it because it is so light weight.
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Old December 11, 2007, 01:25 PM   #17
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My absolute most accurate revolver is my 20 some year old Taurus Model 66. I have literally shot probably at least 200000 rounds through this pistol, everything from powder puff DEWC 38 special loads to full power warp 9 .357 mag reloads. The gun is still able to create one ragged hole groups after all that. In year 19, the crane screw came loose. A little lok-tite, problem solved. In year twenty I had a spring go bad. It cost me more to have the part shipped than the part cost. I absolutely would trust my life to this gun.
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Old December 11, 2007, 03:00 PM   #18
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I've posted this before, and perhaps this may help you some. I had only a little money to spend about six months ago, and ended up buying a Taurus 627 (.357 Tracker). I was also looking at the Ruger GP100, SP101 and others that are almost in the same price range (but more expensive than the Taurus).

I read hundreds of forum rants on the pro- and anti-Taurus sides. What I discovered is this:

(1) Don't listen to people who sound overly bitter -- they're rounding farther down than they ought to

(2) If you post "which is better, S&W or Taurus?", you'll get a hundred S&W bigots telling you how crappy they heard a Taurus was one time

(3) If you post "what do you think of the Taurus 66?", you'll get a hundred people who own/owned one and thought it was great

(4) Don't listen to people who tell you Taurus is the best since sliced bread... they're rounding up farther than they ought to.

As has been said, you can buy it... test it out a lot... have it serviced (albeit slowly, so I hear) if it's broken, and accumulate confidence. On the confidence issue, would you want to be implicitly confident in a S&W that you didn't practice with, vet carefully, and service when problems were discovered? Didn't think so.

No firearm, no matter what the reputation, is worth trusting it only because of the name. If you're going to be vetting a firearm heavily, then brand-confidence won't matter, because you'll be following that up with empirical evidence.

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Old December 11, 2007, 03:13 PM   #19
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My vote goes with Ruger. Good luck, either way you choose.
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Old December 11, 2007, 03:16 PM   #20
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Taurus was my first revolver....

I had very good experiance with Taurus, so I'd say get it, don't listed to nay sayers....
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Old December 11, 2007, 04:07 PM   #22
Qwiks draw
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As far as Taurus revolvers and their kin go:
http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/index.php?topic=13.0
http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/index.php?topic=671.0
http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/in...p?topic=1680.0
http://www.taurusaremd.net/forums/in...p?topic=1109.0
http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/in...p?topic=2822.0
http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/in...p?topic=1321.0
http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/in...p?topic=2138.0
http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/in...p?topic=1423.0
http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/in...p?topic=1565.0
http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/in...p?topic=1960.0
http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/in...p?topic=2805.0
http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/index.php?topic=945.0
http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/in...p?topic=1243.0
http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/in...p?topic=1814.0
http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/in...p?topic=3330.0
http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/in...p?topic=3362.0
http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/in...p?topic=3592.0
http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/in...p?topic=2485.0
http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/index.php?topic=557.0
http://www.taurusarmed.net/forusm/in...p?topic=1544.0
http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/index.php?topic=123.0
http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/index.php?topic=351.0
http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/in...p?topic=2258.0
http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/in...p?topic=2349.0
http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/in...p?topic=1574.0

Anything I was going to say are in the links somewhere.
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Old December 11, 2007, 04:19 PM   #23
Qwiks draw
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Here's others from our sister gun forum.
http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=313359
http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=314764
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Old December 11, 2007, 09:44 PM   #24
clarke
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I totaly forgot how far a vs. thread can go.

I will definitely buy the taurus 66. Whos to say I won't pick up a ruger later.
I'll give a full report after my first visit to the range.

This reminds me of the acoustic guitar forum (formerly the taylor guitar forum). Acoustic guitar players can be the worst when it comes to tone woods and certain manufacturers. The absolute worst is when you get into the american made vs. foreign guitar, ex. the made in mexico stratocasters vs. the american stratocasters. Or for some its the chinese guitars vs. korean vs. american.

I have owned a bit of all and all are great.
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Old December 11, 2007, 11:07 PM   #25
Qwiks draw
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There are staff and members at the Taurus forum love and use Taurus and Ruger revolvers. Many have both and find no reason to do it any other way.

Not leaving S&W out by any means as there are those who have them ,too.

My signature has the Ruger forums links to get there.
Brought the A game along for good measure. Those are only a small portion of what was brought over as far as links go. Could have gone with THR links as well, but the point's been made.

Had a Ruger SP101 in .38 Special +P. Thought this state was going to get CCW.It didn't. Sold the SP101 and got the Ruger P95 to take it's place.
The Ruger revolver was a great one and ran well.
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