The Taurus Judge: guys, we gotta talk. Seriously. Rant alert!

[9mm]

^ How can someone write articles about something that has not been around to prove reliability..... With all of Taurus problems I doubt it..... I suggest testing a with a bad company rap, to be shot atlest 500~1000 times before you can review it...

I can't stand people who post videos, oh guys I got this new gun and its sweet, its solid and I havn't shot it yet........ Sure it looks good and might be solid, but how well is it going hold up when you start shooting.:barf:
Just IMO

Just like this video> Taurus Judge: "Hollywood Justice" by Nutnfancy , he didn't shoot it. Sure it looks good and maybe feels good. But is it going lock up in the first 100 rounds? is the cylinder going fall apart?

 

[Shadi Khalil]

I think the real problem lies with inexperienced gun buyers who think they are buying a full fledged shotgun in a revolver package. They think that its a super effective weapon to use for self defense or home defense, and that's simply not true. There are far better and much more proven options out there.

Caveat emptor

 

[Old Grump]

The bad guy was also able to high tail it out of there after being shot and police never found a body, so it doesn't sound like the Judge really did that good of a job. If the bad guy were a bit more determined, he very likely could have kept on with the assault and things might have not been so nice for Mr. Chatwood.

He shot once and the bad guy went away, I know some people have to have a body to consider it a good outcome but the shooter only had to shoot one time, had 4 more shots available if needed and everybody lives to go home it is a happy ending. The bad guy might have run off if he had been shot by a 12 gauge with birdshot or he might have run off with no bullet holes at all if he had been shot at with a handgun shooting a bullet instead of shot. We can play 'if' all day.

My buddy keeps his in a glove compartment of his pickup. He is the first to tell you he is no pistol shooter but at car jacking range he doesn't think he needs to be that good of a shot. You can't argue with that unless you just absolutely have to have a body every time you pull a trigger.

 

[Bamashooter]

I dont care too much for the judge but I dont have a problem with taurus in general. From my experience they are good guns.

 

[9mm]

I know people who got them and love them, even videos on the internet Hickok45 does a shoot video.

I think its just spotty QC and if you get a lemon they do have a life time warrenty... I think the whole factor is people do not want to send it back to the factory to get it fixed, sometimes it has to be sent 2~4 times.... The problem I see with them is that they are a revovler and their revolver line has problems. I do not want a gun blowing up in my face. Maybe ill try one.. Most likely to get a lemon, but Ill send it back a few times then it might get fixed They are selling for a reason, if they wern't then they would discontinue them.


I am really thinking about being a sucker and trying a taurus revolver product.... You won't know for sure until you try, you can not always base your opinion on others, I can not recommend you a taurus based on what I heard. Untill I try it then I will, but I have not heard any good reviews from them though lol.... They do offer a life time replacement plan, so that is why I will try a taurus product someday..... Not anytime soon, I have better guns that I would rather buy.


They must be doing something right, they are still in business.


Looks like a fun gun, I am not going put it down for that, I put down their QC is spotty and reliability, I really do not want a gun going KAAAABOOM in my face or someone I am lending it too, also other people in the range lines.

 

[Deja vu]

there is a Judge at my home. It is a fun gun that has no real practical application. I bought it just for fun (it was before Smith made theres).

I don't know why people have such big issues with the Judge. IT is what it is. Its fun to shoot and it gets a lot of attention at the range. I have had more people ask to shoot my Judge than my BFR 45/70 my SBS and my Coonan Classic Combined.

 

[hornetguy]

So it is a good sales technique to take advantage of the "ballistically innumerate"? The ads I recall seeing inferred that this thing was the bee's knees for personal defense: set in a dark parking garage, where a lady in heels pulls a Judge out of her purse... cut to exploding watermellons...

.....or citing car jacking on the rise while showning a shredded Shoot'n'see target.......

Not a dang thing about "novelty".

I thought Taurus was a bull ....... A snake would be a better emblem.
__________________

I don't quite know what the "ballistically innumerate" means. I suppose you mean they don't understand ballistics? If that is what you meant, then, yes, they would have been part of the target audience.
It was a good sales technique because, well, it WORKED. People bought them. Whether it was honest, or accurate, or based on years of shootout data... doesn't matter.
The novelty part was "assumed" since I don't recall seeing very many .410 revolvers before this one. That means it was a "novel" idea.

There you have it.... novelty and good sales technique.

 

[k511]

people are going to buy what they want... if they want to buy a High-Point, let em... if they want to buy a taurus, let em... dont bash them for it... your not going to shoot it... if someone wants a reccomenation, give it.

 

[mavracer]

I don't know why people have such big issues with the Judge.

I beleve most don't have a problem with the Judge per se. For me it's the people who want to perpetuate that birdshot is a good deterant or that "look it's a shotgun you don't even have to aim"

 

[Falcon642]

Other issue is that the .45LC seems to be a bit weak out of the Judge. Does anyone have any chronograph data .45LC velocities out of a Judge? I'd really be interested to see that.

 

[9mm]

Other issue is that the .45LC seems to be a bit weak out of the Judge. Does anyone have any chronograph data .45LC velocities out of a Judge? I'd really be interested to see that.

I hear people saying the same thing, some rounds are 'weak' out of the gun, well my guns are used for SD from evil robbers, not on wild animals. If I want a gun to defend from animals ill look at a 41/44mag.. with that being said, a gun is a gun, and to qoute from what I heard on youtube " oh it's weak? how about you stand in front of it and tell me how it feels, then tell me what you think afterwards"

I read some people say it will 'bounce off you'.
bullets dont bounce off you unless you are super man

 

[hornetguy]

I hope the zombies carry Taurus

Now that's funny right there... I don't care WHO you are...

 

[Drew78]

Judge/Govenor = "Bubba guns"

BTW-I was watching Shooting USA or something like that last week where they were covering SHOT 2011 and they had a segment on all the media shooting S&W's new Govenor revo. ALL the praise! You would have thought we reached the zenith of personal protection firearms. What a joke, since when did a .410 shot shell that is barely adquate for birds all of a sudden become the Hammer of Thor???

Kind of reminded me of the liberal media...:barf:

-Drew

 

[Tom Servo]

Does anyone have any chronograph data .45LC velocities out of a Judge?

No, but I can tell you that accuracy is dismal. Could be something to do with having 1/2" of freebore before the bullet hits rifling.

 

[hardworker]

410 out of a shotgun is nothing to sneeze at. I've seen deer killed by a 410 loaded with 3 inch buckshot.

 

[KyJim]

The "Taurus Judge ® " is so named because of the number of judges who carry it into the courtroom for their protection.

A blatant lie by Taurus. They named it the "Judge" before it was ever commercially available and, believe me, there aren't many judges toting this under their robes.

Now comes the "Public Defender" which is a pint-sized Judge. Are public defenders packing heat in the courtroom? Not in any courtroom I know.

S&W's Governor? Well, I guess that out ranks a judge. I hear Ruger is coming out with the "President." Compared to the others, it's supposed to be very sleek and nice looking but it fires blanks.

 

[foochacho]

Some videos for all you who think the judge lacks penetration.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BgxuAUajH8w

No that wasn't a judge but I couldn't find a water test video of the Judge. The judge has a longer barrel and gets more penetration with the same load. Going completely through the 4th jug and into the fifth.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WmgeUMMA-Y8

Yea, that was a treated 4x4 penetrated by 000 buck.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQdA5Rn9sbg&feature=related

Destroying a 2x12.

These videos have been posted many times before yet a bunch of you bashers still make rediculous threads like this whining about lack of penetration. Tell me how is this lacking penetration? The federal 000 buck Meets the 12" fbi standards and sends 4 .36 caliber (larger than 9mm .355) in one trigger pull. 20 9mm's size holes fired in under 3 seconds when fully loaded with federal 000 buck.

You guys crying about lack of penetration just make yourselves look stupid. Any judge owner who has tried out the federal handgun loads knows what they have and if you bashers can't see it than you need to wake up. I know what my judge is capable of. Quit linking to tests done with regular 410 buckshot those loads are irrelevant they are made for longer barrlels so yes they lack power out of a judge. But If you plan on using for HD than federal buckshot is easy to find and works great holds a really tight group as well.

I feel more comfortable with the judge for HD than any other pistol 4 9mm sized balls will do more damage than 1 45. More damage and 4 times more likely to hit vitals. The spread at seven yards is only about 3 inches so I am not worried about flyers. That 3 inch spread may be the difference between hitting vitals or not.

 

[9mm]

Judge/Govenor = "Bubba guns

Ok please explain how is it a bubba gun? it's a firearm, if you get shot by it, chances are you need to go to the hospital or you could be killed on spot.


No gun is a bubba gun in my book. A 22lr can kill so can a 410.... If it goes BANG its a gun.

If a gun can kill a snake/small animal it can humans, treat all firearms if they are loaded and pointed in a safe way.

 

[Jim March]

OK. First off, if you KNOW you're buying it purely as a "fun gun", cool. At least you know what you're buying.

My problem is that people think they're buying a defense gun when they're basically not - or at least, not anywhere near as efficient as they think.

Let's take a closer look at what foochacho posted:

Some videos for all you who think the judge lacks penetration.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BgxuAUajH8w

No that wasn't a judge but I couldn't find a water test video of the Judge. The judge has a longer barrel and gets more penetration with the same load. Going completely through the 4th jug and into the fifth.

This was actually interesting, and shows more penetration than any other video I've seen involving 2.5" .410s from a short-barrel handgun.

A few things though: the Bond Arms derringer lacks a cylinder gap and may be flinging them faster as a result. It will also have a shorter area of rifling and that may be to the good, in this case, actually improving accuracy. I'd like to see more tests but it's quite possible this is a better option as a "snake charmer" than a Judge and it can be worn in addition to a real gun instead of as a primary.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WmgeUMMA-Y8

Yea, that was a treated 4x4 penetrated by 000 buck.

"Penetrated", yeah, but not all the way through with most of the pellets. At least some can still be seen from the front, buried in the wood.

They also didn't show what that chunk of wood looked like front and rear before they started. Since it's obvious some didn't even make it past 1" or so, I have a hard time believing any made it past 4". Also note that this was the 3" version, which is slightly more useful than the 2.5" flavor.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQdA5Rn9sbg

Destroying a 2x12.

Penetration of 2" of wood is nothing spectacular, esp. from point-blank range where the pellets are all basically landing as one lump.

Here's a more realistic test from 15ft out, and a total failure to punch through 2" worth of pine:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnrDMJvlL4M

He makes it through the pine only by getting close enough to dump them as a single lump.

(He also does something I had no idea you can even do: shoot .410 2.5" shotshells in a 45-70 levergun!)

Anyways. Yeah...there's a lot of marketing going on here.

 

[MLeake]

Foochaco, you have made your bogus claim before about 000 pellets being bigger than 9mm rounds. Back then, you did acknowledge that being round balls, those pellets only had about 2/3 the mass and sectional density of 9mm bullets - after being challenged on it. One would think you would stop making the same claim...

And +1 to Jim's comments above.