# Some fun with the Taurus 1911



## Grenadier (May 15, 2007)

On Sunday, I played around with a Taurus PT1911 pistol, which is Taurus' attempt at cracking into the lucrative 1911 market.  

Here are my findings about this gun: 

It's nothing fancy, but it does work, and works reliably, with hardball, as well as the various hollowpoint loads I fed through it (Remington Golden Saber 230 grain, Speer Gold Dot 230 grain, Winchester SXT 230 grain).  

The finish didn't seem as nice as other entry-level 1911's, but I guess that's not too important.  

Trigger is gritty, especially for a gun that's supposed to have a crisp single action trigger pull.  

Field stripping the gun shows that the machining is OK, but not nearly as nice as the more noticeable brands.  


Overall?  I don't dislike the gun.  After all, it's a 1911, and has decent accuracy and reliability, but it could certainly use a good bit of fluff and buff to get it where I'd want it.  It's not a bad gun at all, and if I had to rely on one to save my life, then I'd feel comfortable at that.  

However, when I looked at the price, I saw that the gun stores were charging in the mid to upper 500's for it.  This is where I have to draw the line, since I could get a Springfield 1911 Mil-Spec for that price, and end up with a superior base product (much better trigger, better finish, better accuracy).  Forget about paying what Taurus recommends as their MSRP (700+)...  If anything, even Norinco's 1911's seem to be nicer than the Taurus ones (don't laugh; they're actually quite good).  

The Taurus is a better competitor to the less expensive 1911's, such as the Charles Daly and the Rock Island offerings.  I view this much in the same way that I view their revolvers, that they're not quite as good of a quality as Ruger, and certainly not as good as Smith and Wesson.  

Maybe this is an attempt at Taurus trying to break the stereotype of their being the cheaper alternative to Beretta or Smith and Wesson, but the way I see it, if they're going to do this, then they'd better at least try to match the quality.


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## tellner (May 15, 2007)

Thanks *very much* for this. I've been wondering whether it's worth getting a Taurus or sticking with my Norinco Commie 1911. Sounds like there's no reason to switch yet.


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