Taurus 856 Review: Best Budget Revolver?
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- čas přidán 9. 10. 2023
- Taurus 856 series offers revolvers with six rounds of .38 caliber, providing one extra round compared to many small-frame revolvers.
These revolvers are versatile, fitting in various holsters designed for Taurus 856, 905, and 605 models, allowing users flexibility in carrying.
Maintenance is straightforward, involving cleaning the cylinders, bore, ejector rod, and applying lubrication.
The revolvers are comfortable to carry, with steel-framed versions preferred for everyday carry, while ultra-lightweight models can be less enjoyable to shoot.
Grip options vary, with some drawbacks such as uncomfortable grips and excessive recoil transfer, but aftermarket options like Uncle Mike's combat grips can improve the shooting experience.
www.HarrysHolsters.com
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Just purchased Taurus 856 ultra light. They forgot to install a firing pin retaining drive pin. Firing pin fell out on first dry fire. Returned to mfg. fixed it ……. No Charge .Only took 10 days to get it back.After that no problems. I installed Wolff spring kit no light primer strikes with reduced power springs runs smooth. I will purchase another 856 lite to keep in truck. Thanks enjoyed the video.
Over the years, I have had very good luck with Taurus Revolvers. Cool video and good info Thanks.
I have a Taurus Model 942 that would not eject spent rounds without me hammering the ejector arm with a rubber hammer. I sent it in and they fixed the problem. I am satisfied with their service. I have had no problems with my 2" 856. It is my carry gun.
I bought a 2" DAO stainless 856 a couple of years ago and carry it daily. I chose it over the J frame S&W's mostly on the trigger pull and the extra round. After around 400 rounds I replaced the springs with a Galloway 20% kit and it made a huge difference over the stock trigger pull but some light strikes with reloads so I went back to the stock hammer spring. Other than light strikes (my fault) I haven't had a single issue with it now at around 1K rounds. I carry in a OWB leather holster with Pachmeyer wood grips and would recommend it to anyone wanting a good carry snubby.
I did the Galloway spring kit too. The gun is now a pleasure to shoot. However it feels like they overreached a bit and the hammer spring is a bit too light. I would like to add back a bit of tension for a carry gun.
Just put the stock hammer spring back and polish everything EXCEPT the sear on trigger and hammer. The bigger grips help a bunch too. @@keithcharles2113
Taurus is not a budget revolver manufacturer. These are top-notch pistols, the additional weight is perfect with the steel versions.
I've had to send a high rate of those top-notch pistols back to the factory.
Indeed they are the greatest guns ever
They are better than The Rossi RP 63 for sure.
@@HarrysHolsterspistol or revolver? There revolvers are fantastic, I don’t trust there auto loaders
@@tysonvslewis12 all revolvers
I have 4 of these with one being the 856 Executive and they've all been great. Like you, I tried as many grips as I could find, and my favorite is the older oem wood grips that have the coarse checkering. They're wide so they spread the recoil, the checkering is effective, and the size conceals nicely for appendix carry.
A Taurus 856 Defender w/ VZ grips in an Icon holster is my summer carry and I absolutely love it. Carries great and is very accurate.
My 856 DEFENDER 3" came with ALTAMONT WOOD GRIPS .. they work well.. for using a speed loader I had to grind a little bit off the wood on the left grip near the cylinder.. I did this on the grinder put a little oil and you can't even tell it was grinded.. I now have the ability to use speed loaders with no hang ups
I'm definitely getting one of these in a couple months. Been searching for something similar to my dads old taurus from when I was a kid and these are either the same gun or very similar to what he had. Granted that revolver was from the 80's or 90's. My brother still has it to this day.
My defender every day and i love the wood grips, i got lucky mine runs great 400 rounds in
I really want to love taurus, and i did until one blew up in my hand. Brand new at the range with less than 100 rounds through it. One in a million defect and taurus made right by it with no pushing from me but that doesnt make the scars on my hand and face go away. Like i said it was a one in a million defect but in my opinion one that shoudve been caught before being sold.
What model and what was the defect?
@@theccwdad It was a 605. Again to be fair I don't think they're bad. The quality and their customer service is great. However I feel quality control was the issue at hand.
@@theccwdad As for the defect, something went wrong with the timing. The gun literally blew up so it hard to say exactly. I will say though that I sent them back what was left and they replaced it free of charge.
And you didn't sue them for the scars on your hand and face?
That 905 Talo/Defender looks amazing w those grips though...I didn't realize it was a special black cerakote on top of their normal black, that looks really good in this video. . Curious if you have tried an Rp63 the Cerakote version a few places have looks like maybe nice, and I'm often debating if I should roll the dice on a Charter Arms or not like their Boxer or versions of their 6-shots w 2.2"
excellent video, great details, honest, subscribed. i don’t enjoy recoil. i put hogue monogrips on my taurus 856, then a bicycle tire over it to cover the backstrap, perfect.
Please do the laser grip comparison video. Thanks.
Please do a review/range review of the crimson trace grips on a 3 inch 605!! There isn't any videos featuring CT grips, only Taurus collaboration Veridian grips. Appreciated
I just watched all of your videos on small frame revolvers (LCR, 856, J-Frame) and really appreciate the info. I’ve been trying to decide which to pick up and still feel torn. My local range doesn’t have any for rent either. I know you’re a busy man but I would love to see a direct comparison between all 3 to know which you would say comes out on top. I’m leaning LCR in 327 right now but really love the style behind the S&W 642.
Coming soon. We filmed it this summer. Waiting for the thumbnail.
@@HarrysHolsters I’m looking forward to it!
I own both a S&W 642 and the Taurus 856 with a 3" barrel. The only time I CCW the 642 is during the summer if I'm in mesh shorts and a T shirt then it's in my pocket, any other time the 856 gets the nod. There just to many advantages to the 3" Taurus. First is it's a 6 shooter with a 3" barrel roughly the same size as a J Frame, it comes with night sights, it comes with 2 sets of grips both full size and a set of boot grips just like the 642 and with the 3" barrel that extra inch really steps up the velocity of your rounds and there is no concealment penalty in my opinion. I have the steel version and I don't notice any weight difference when holstered but it's much more controllable under fire than the 642 especially with +P rounds. It's a quality build with a great trigger and not to mention it's $150 cheaper than the Smith. Win/win in my book.
Having owned all three I’ll say this…
I’ve had one Taurus, an older 856 with the fixed/milled front sight. Revolver was the steel one in a chalky matte black finish. It was super hard to shoot accurately, even after trying to add some paint to the front sight to pick it up better. I didn’t care for the factory grip.
S&W J-Frame…I’ve had several, both concealed and exposed hammer. I also had a super lightweight 360PD, which was an 11oz or so 357 mag…miserable to shoot defense rounds, but a dream to carry. Most of the factory grips are pretty miserable. Most of the front sights are just milled, although you’ll come across the occasional model that has a fiber optic or night sight.
Ruger LCR…I’ve had a 38 spl in the regular concealed hammer LCR and I had a 38 spl in the LCRx. The triggers are nice but what I found is they’re just kind of a weird size and didn’t carry the same for me as the Taurus or S&W. It’s not like they’re that much larger, they’re just shaped differently and they just don’t carry the same for me. Could’ve been a holster difference/issue, but that was my experience. My original one had the all black ramp front sight, which was miserable to aim with…my second one, the LCRx had the red ramp front sight. This made it better but still not ideal. I put a green fiber optic on the first one and didn’t keep the second one long enough to change the sight.
I know they’re a good bit more money, but I’d highly recommend anyone looking for a carry revolver that actually carries well, has a nice trigger and real sights, look at the Kimber K6 series. The sides of the cylinder are also shaped in such a way that it carries slimmer. I just have nothing but good things to say about that revolver. I saw that they’re making a less expensive 38 spl version now that’s also a little smaller.
Just when I was getting warmed up to Taurus revolvers, and it took me a long time to get to that point. The 2020 pandemic has resulted in a lot of gun manufacturers apparently rushing out their guns to meet enormous amounts of demand. A lot of quality control problems have resulted among even long-time reputable brands, but the budget brands like Taurus seem to have suffered the most. I'm hearing of more and more quality control problems with post-2020 Taurus revolvers like the 856 I wanted. This has convinced me to give up on Taurus, at least for now, and consider less budget-oriented options instead.
Say what you want about charter arms guns... I have never had a bad one.. in 1991i purchased a used mint off-duty 38 special snub I purchased which was manufactured in the 1980s when charter had their Stratford CT plant . One of my favorite revolvers.. about 6 years ago I purchased a charter arms mag pug 357 2-1/4 in factory ported barrel.. I put at least a thousand rounds through it including 200 full Magnum loads.. still tight as a drum .. shoots flawlessly.... Lucky for me charter arms factory has only 20 minutes away here in Connecticut so if I had a problem I could actually drop the gun off.. but not one problem with the charter in my friend had three of them no problems
I've had to send an LCR back to Ruger because its transfer bar broke. Now replacing a transfer bar isn't actually all that difficult to do, but this one was in .22WMR and uses a different transfer bar than the centerfire transfer bars generally available as a spare part, so I had to send it back for replacement. Granted, I own 4 LCRs and this was the only problem I've had with one, whereas I've had to send both my GP-100 and my SP-101 back for work (for a cracked forcing cone and cylinder not unlocking, respectively).
I'm having issues with a GP100 right now. And a low round count gun that only has a clyinder or two of standard pressure 357 through it plus 1-200 rounds of 38.
Hate to hear that on the LCR.
@@HarrysHolsters I don't stress about it all that much. Guns are mechanical things subjected to far greater stresses on them than most other systems we regularly use and revolvers especially have many failure points. Ruger has great warranty service in my experience and I have enough other pistols that having one out for service is not an issue for me
@@grahamohea2424agree,as I have many tools in the shed,sometimes to rotate keeps them from feeling left out,lol,GODBLESS, sorry,this to Harry's H.
I had to send my 905 back 4 times for light primer strikes, I sent my 942 back twice after over 4,000 rounds for light primer strikes. I sent my TX22 back for failure to feed after over 10,000 rounds. My 856 has not given any problems.
Why don’t you guys accommodate for weapon mounted lights? Love my singleton for my g48, now looking for a holster for my g26, let me know which one will work for appendix carry since I don’t see a g26 option.
The tooling cost for our holsters is very high. WMLs add a lot of variation. We're working on some but it'll only be the most popular models.
Clint Smith is legend in the firemarms training industry, but he is not engineer. Dry firing without snap cap is not doing any good to any weapon. Even Glock is not immune to this (broken slide breaches). The only difference between companies is how long their gun will withstand dry firing but it is bad for all of them.
Ok so I kinda have had the same experience I guess with Taurus I have 3 of them g3c no issues with that one I think it’s a really good 9mm for the budget minded. I have a 2 inch 856 and it’s great it locks up nice and the trigger is surprisingly good on it the finish isn’t great but trust that one for carry not daily but sometimes anyways I have a 3 inch 605 came with vz grips hated them put the other grip it came with on which I like actually maybe not the best for shooting but good for carry I won’t shoot it till I have a gun smith check it out I have dry fired it a bunch with snap caps but the trigger is nothing like the 856’s gritty in double and still very heavy in single. The timing is what concerns me a lot more play in it then the 856s so I want to have that looked at first. And that’s the moral of the story I guess with Taurus it’s just who was on qc that day. Your likelihood of getting a lemon is just higher. I don’t think that about the g series I think they seemed to have worked out the kinks a little better but maybe that’s cause one is a striker fired 9 the other is a revolver different animal? I don’t know 🤷♂️
Please show us the laser grips.
I want them to make a 956 toro in 3 inch. That would be a nice carry and 9mm ammo is cheaper
I really don’t know what the problem is the last couple of years. I had to send a S&W 43c revolver back and they said they had to repair the yoke, cut the forcing cone, and replace the main spring. That’s a lot of work for a brand new revolver that was just shy of $800.
I don’t own a Taurus revolver but considering your experience and mine, I am wondering if there’s a problem with revolver production in general. They don’t seem to be having problems with their semiauto’s at Taurus or Smith, so perhaps they are letting QC go by the wayside for revolvers.
Just thinking out loud. 😀
The guns they don't have issues with are designed to be assembled. Most of these revolvers are designed to be fit, and they then try to adapt the specs for assembly. Minus some machining issues I've heard about the LCR seems to have a lower failure rate. Hoping the same holds true for the K6s. Both of these should in theory be designed around modern manufacturing.
My barrel little tight to open....will it loosen up after use
Crimson Trace is the best grip I've tried (and I have a pile of them). Uncle Mike's Combat second. (I have the Viridian, and don't think it's as nice as the CT. Laser isn't as bright either. I would be interested in your thought on that.
Safarilands work for me, and clear the Crimson Trace grip.
I have heard about the ejector rod issue. Interim fix is to install the shorter rod (for 2" guns).
The ejector sticking has to be a tolerance issue in the cylinder, sometimes mass produced stuff is made with off casts or machining from out of spec cnc bits and all that. QC and machining issues are so common these days with all the big manufacturers. Ruger, S&W, Taurus, Sig. They do want to make money in the end more than anything, just like all big corporations in America.
I think the reason why Taurus seems to have more recoil than J-frame S&W is because they are 6 shots. You cannot cheat physics - 6 shot cylinder is bigger diameter than 5 shot -> higher bore axis.
Gripping lower on the gun actually leads to less felt recoil. A Sig P320 compact is going to have more muzzle flip, but it is softer shooting than a Glock 19. With a revolver, it's really difficult to pull the trigger fast enough for the muzzle flip to affect your shooting.
Do you remember the model number for those Uncle Mike’s grips? I might’ve found a few for sale
I do not. That set didn't come with a box I don't think.
@@HarrysHolsters Oh well… thanks anyway
I sincerely don't understand what you guys are waiting to release the ICON for the LCR 3"
Unfortunately, the gun is so large from the bottom of the trigger guard to the topstrap it won't work with our current production methods.
Don’t you think two hands would help with recoil ?
I've seen "Failure to Fire" too many times with Taurus's.
When they work they generally work really well. But the odds of that seem to be 50%.
These are 400 near me, I can make myself 8 more blunderbusses for that much, and a face destroyed with 20 nails is much scarier than a small hole so I’ll stick to my blunderbuss bucket by my bed, might add 2 new blunderbusses soon tho cuz 7 nail loads beats 5 nail loads
I know you are selling your plastic holsters but I prefer leather. Its more comfortable, flexible, less bulky, and quieter than plastic. I use an Andicen leather thumb break IWB/OWB holster for my 856 Defender +P three inch Hogue grip matte black all stainless. Made in India but a really nice well made dual purpose holster. For .38Spl. +P I am not as concerned about recoil transfer of the back strap on my Hogue grips but I do get your point and it would be worse for the .357 Magnum revolvers without good grips. I like the Ameriglo tritium front day/night sight just fine. I use Bianchi speed strips because they lay flat in the pocket but folks really have to practice and train hard on reloading revolvers under live fire stress to be proficient even with speed loaders. Yes all gun companies since the plandemic have had quality control problems Glock, SIG, Smith, Ruger, Taurus, Rossi, and so on so if buying any gun the prospective buyer must at least inspect the gun at the FFL dealer new or used no matter what brand before buying. Even then the gun may still need to be fixed under warranty. I passed on one 856 at another dealer that had timing problems before buying the one I inspected over two days at another dealer before buying. Mine brand new had been factory shot and tested a lot because it was filthy. I really do like my 856 a lot.
Most leather holsters are bulkier than ours and less comfortable. But leather is quieter if that's a requirement.
@@HarrysHolsters Plastic is not flexible enough and its rigidity pokes so its not comfortable and it is bulkier than my leather. Yes leather is also quieter. I stand by what I said.
@@rbm6184 Leather is thicker and requires stitching that increases the bulk, making the holsters much larger than properly designed Kydex holsters. Just facts.
If Kydex is properly designed without pointing edges and the excess material, they're more comfortable than a well-designed leather holster. Also much more secure.
@@HarrysHolsters I guess you have not seen Kusiak holsters that use thin leather that is treated and form fitted. So you are wrong. Even the other leather holsters I have are thinner and less bulky than plastic holsters. Just facts.
@@rbm6184 Most leather is going to run close to 1/8th of an inch or 0.125. Kydex is 0.08-0.093 for holsters. The holsters you mentioned use thinner leather that is the same thickness as Kydex. So not sure how that reduces the bulk while being the same size?
Leather that thin is going to let every sharp edge, like the front of the cylinder, poke through, causing discomfort. If it was more rigid like Kydex, it would hold the shape of the mold, preventing the discomfort. And it wouldn't be as difficult to re-holster. Like you said just facts.
I've tried a variety of leather holster as well as Kydex. Leather has its place but it's not function first IWB carry where comfort and concealment are the primary concerns.
I had the Taurus 856 ultra light. This was 3 years ago and at the time it was my only gun and I put over 1200 rounds without issue. Over that time I bought more guns semi-autos and I sold the 856. Then I missed having a revolver so I bought the Smith and Wesson m&P bodyguard 38 special from the very beginning that I had a lot of problems with light primer strikes. I sent it back to Smith and Wesson took about two and a half months and I got it back and it seemed to issue was fixed and then I sold that gun to my brother just recently I missed again having a revolver so I bought the Taurus 605 poly Defender last week I made one trip to the range. I put 150 rounds and so far I really like it I have three Smith and Wesson semi-autos which have no issue but that one. Smith and Wesson revolver gave me issues right from the beginning and took forever to get it back and although mind you I am kind of a Smith& Wesson fanboy lol
Nice shot placement. Right in the heart and lung hah!
It ejects better because full length eje tor
Not just that but the rounds will fall out with very minimal cooling and not using the rod. The other guns they still stick.
The middle Target looked a little unhappy
Charter arms has by far the best warranty.
I bought one new, had a barrel that was visibly off. Took over 3 months(and a lot of calls) to get a replacement. Trigger is lousy and no aftermarket spring kits that I could find. Stick with Taurus.
Wow, this guy just downgraded everything besides the holster he is selling..
Feels like half the video was you complaining about different grips and the recoil of a 38 revolver?
Well it’s one of the downsides of this gun. For some reason the much lighter airweight J frames has similar to less recoil than these all steel 856 guns even with a 3 inch barrel.
@@HarrysHolsters thank you for the comparison I appreciate it. How does it feel compared to like a shield 40? I'm usually pretty burnt after about a hundred rounds through the shield 40. It's a tiring gun to shoot a lot and it has a pretty heavy trigger.
@@theccwdad it’ll probably make the shield 40 seem like a cake walk.
What about metal detectors for polymer frames ?
The main parts of the gun, specifically the revolver, the cylinder, and the barrel, are still steel and will set off detectors.
The ugly is that Review is spelled incorrectly in thumbnail
Dyslexia is a bitch!
Please check out my first Meat & Simulated Bone Ballistics Test with Federal .38+P Hydrashok Deep vs Green & White Box UMC & how close my Results are to OFFICIAL ORGANIC GEL NUMBERS I got from Federal. I have 9mm Short Micro barrel HST & Punch vs WWB 115, and 3 different .357 tests w 7 different loads including NEW HST coming up. I also have vids with OFFICIAL FBI TEST DATA from 89-98 in EACH CALIBER I've compiled, as well as POI Accuracy Testing & Q&A w Federal/Speer Actual Ballistics Expertse check out my first Meat & Simulate Bone Ballistics Test with Federal .38+P Hydrashok Deep vs Green & White Box UMC & how close my Results are to OFFICIAL ORGANIC GEL NUMBERS I got from Federal. I have 9mm Short Micro barrel HST & Punch vs WWB 115, and 3 different .357 tests w 7 different loads including NEW HST coming up. I also have vids with OFFICIAL FBI TEST DATA from 89-98 in EACH CALIBER I've compiled, as well as POI Accuracy Testing & Q&A w Federal/Speer Actual Ballistics Expert Chris Laack
Why do you brag about not cleaning your guns?
This is not a rail gun,nor is it a comp gun so wtf
you spend way to much time plugging stuff and not enough on the weapon.
Either way both would have been deaded.
Who fires in excess of 300 rounds at once,,, in a revolver. B.S.