Taurus Tracker in 45ACP-good / bad?

[Shooter6br]

Can buy a used one, $449 ( bit high i think) Is it a good gun ? Do you need "Moon clips" ? Can you use 45 Rim cases/ Thanks guys Rick Shooter6br @aol.com:groner:

[Kuato]

Hey Shooter, You're right, the price is a bit high for a used tracker. The gun was o.k.. like most Taurus guns, you can get a really good one or a really bad one.. You DO need moon clips. Taurus calls em " Stellar clips" & they sell for about $9 per 5 pack from Taurus.. Not sure if 45 auto rim would headspace in a Taurus But I don't see why not..

[NSP64]

6" ported ACP on GB for $300.00 now or a 4" ported 45 Colt for $450.00:coffee:

[Shooter6br]

Thanks guys. This site is great . This site and the NRA is worth a donation!

[frankenfab]

I had one, and loved it. They are hard to find now. The Auto Rim brass won't fit unless you have your cylinder faced off.

[Ilwil]

I have one, and being an old revolver guy, I think it is the perfect such carry gun. The stellar clips, are very light and fragile. Anyone carrying one would be well advised to have plenty of spares. Taurus stopped making this one about 4-5 years ago, and clips may have been the factor that did it in. Mine works very well I'd love it see it made in .44 special.

[tek4260]

Taurus=Bad

Some will disagree, but those are the people who won't admit junk is junk, because they own one. :smile:

I have owned more than my fair share and worked on tons of them that were brought back to my dealer by customers. There is a reason Smiths are higher priced, and that reason is because they are worth it.

Taurus is a piss poor designed rip off. Sometimes they don't break right away and people like them. Other times, people like them because they have never looked inside one. And I guess, some poor souls don't know that there is a difference. ;)

[Trapshooter]

I own one that I bought used a couple years ago. I've had occasional problems with the cylinder bolt getting stuck down inside the frame. As mentioned above, they won't accept 45 AR brass. If you machine off the back of the cylinder, I suspect there would be a problem with the chamber not being deep enough after the modification. The cylinder throats in my revolver are very tight. It is hard to chamber any cast boolit that has full diameter lead in front of the case mouth. For moon clips, Ranch Products is your friend, he makes them of substantial stuff, and is pretty competitive.

Its a handy size, and shoots pretty well, but it does have some peculiarities.

Trapshooter

[leftiye]

Tek......

Oh, Come on now, don't hold back. Tell us how you really feel!

Raging bull .454 - most accurate revolter I've ever shot. I have numerous S&Ws and Rugers.[smilie=w:

[tek4260]

I traded a H&R Handi Rifle for a Raging Bull 454 in '07 and decided that I would try out handgun hunting. I shot it a bit and it was accurate, but kind of cumbersome. I tried out my old Bisley Vaquero that I had had a few years without shooting, and was able to match the 454 groups at 25 and 100 yards. The 454 went away and I shot my first deer with that 44. Then I read Linebaugh's writings on the 45 Colt, joined rugerforum.com, and the rest is history :)


Trapshooter, the reason the bolt gets stuck is because it has a tiny little toy spring that works it along with poor machining. Usually I saw the reverse trouble of that. The pin in the cylinder usually gets deformed due to the fact that the revolver is out of time and it takes a beating every time it is fired. The Judges were the worst culprits. I have had to open a few by hitting the thumb latch with a hammer after a cylinder full of 45 Colt cowboy loads.

[Dale53]

I bought a Taurus Tracker as it looked like Taffin's "Perfect Packer". However, shortly I discovered some serious design problems. The full moon clips are extremely thin (Ranch Products or any other standard full moon clip won't fit).

The cylinder is so short that you cannot seat any bullet a "normal" length. Mine wouldn't accept any front band extending past the case mouth - NONE.

They would NOT accept Auto Rim cases (not enough headspace). However, I did learn that .45 Cowboy Special cases worked fine for headspace. However, there was still that problem of NO full diameter section of the bullet ahead of the case. Tha meant you couldn't use the Keith 452415 nor the 454424 bullets without deep seating them to the point that it encroached too much on powder space.

The Tracker looked like a very neat idea. However, it became nothing but a disappointment. It went on down the pike...

Dale53

[Kuato]

I have owned more than my fair share and worked on tons of them that were brought back to my dealer by customers. There is a reason Smiths are higher priced, and that reason is because they are worth it.


In case you didn't know, Taurus makes all the parts for Smith... Smiths are cost more due to a name & marketing... just FYI

[frankenfab]

I traded a H&R Handi Rifle for a Raging Bull 454 in '07 and decided that I would try out handgun hunting. I shot it a bit and it was accurate, but kind of cumbersome. I tried out my old Bisley Vaquero that I had had a few years without shooting, and was able to match the 454 groups at 25 and 100 yards. The 454 went away and I shot my first deer with that 44. Then I read Linebaugh's writings on the 45 Colt, joined rugerforum.com, and the rest is history :)


Trapshooter, the reason the bolt gets stuck is because it has a tiny little toy spring that works it along with poor machining. Usually I saw the reverse trouble of that. The pin in the cylinder usually gets deformed due to the fact that the revolver is out of time and it takes a beating every time it is fired. The Judges were the worst culprits. I have had to open a few by hitting the thumb latch with a hammer after a cylinder full of 45 Colt cowboy loads.

I defintely repsect your opinion. But I think I paid 350 for mine from CDNN. It was a 6". the only thing I ever shot out of it was ball ammo (in response to Dale 53). But it just pointed so well, no recoil, and to me it was truly a very fun gun. I loved the grips, too. Killed an Opossum and an Armadillo with it, with quick point and shoot.

[Combat Diver]

In case you didn't know, Taurus makes all the parts for Smith... Smiths are cost more due to a name & marketing... just FYI

Care to state your source on that comment? Smiths been making their own parts since the late 1850s.

CD

[unclebill]

Care to state your source on that comment? Smiths been making their own parts since the late 1850s.

CD

i found this.
it was written by taurus but i dont think they could get away with a bareassed lie.

http://www.taurususa.com/history.cfm

[unclebill]

BTW
i have a raging bull
a S&W 27-2
some rugers

for the money i would buy a ruger everytime.
the fact that all my loading manuals have a seperate section just for rugers/contenders tells me something.

[Kuato]

Care to state your source on that comment? Smiths been making their own parts since the late 1850s.


i used to work for Taurus... i seen the parts.. nuff said..

[Phillip]

The price seems to be high for that Tracker, since I just bought a PT845 new for 360$.

As others have stated, it will not take 45AR brass and you are stuck using there moon clips, since there is very little spacing between the cylinder and frame.

TBH...most new 45APC firearms will not take 45AR brass due to the same issue as the Taurus.

I think for the money, I would look for a 1917 pistol, I have seen some nice ones (S&W) up on Gun Broker for as little as 450$.

[tek4260]

What parts does Taurus make for Smith? The plastic boxes?

[ItZaLLgooD]

I saw no mention of Taurus making S+W parts in that article. I will not knock Taurus though. I had one of their 24/7's in .40 and currently own a PT1911, both function flawlessly.