Taurus "The Judge" or??

[two_bit_score]

Taurus International Manufacturing Inc - Taurus Judge 3" Video

I know a lot of you have probably seen the commercial, but I thought the video was pretty neat. My local gun dealer has a couple of Judges in and a couple more coming. I am really thinking about getting one for a carry gun(in vehicle). The .410 in 000 buck really shoots (in my Contender anyway), not to mention the power of the .45 long colt.
I also have found a good buy on a very slightly used(8 rounds) Glock 30 in 45 ACP. I really like shooting my 1911 style pistol, but have never really been a Glock fan and have never owned one. This little gun does really, for some reason, interest me quite a bit.
Anybody out there shot the Judge or the Glock 30 and have any feedback in them.

Haven't shot anybody with it yet so I can't say for sure how it REALLY does, but I like mine.

I did finish off a ferel hog with the .45 LC a few weeks ago - did a good job at a fair distance.

Got some new shells yesterday that have copper plated shot. I'll check the box for manuf.
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It's Federal's 'premium personal defense' #4 shot. Box is labled for 'personal defense' and says muzzle vel of 1200 fps.

The Judge may not be the absolutely best gun ever made for personal defense but it's probably worth having.

 

[Dargo]

It's Federal's 'premium personal defense' #4 shot. Box is labled for 'personal defense' and says muzzle vel of 1200 fps.

The Judge may not be the absolutely best gun ever made for personal defense but it's probably worth having.

You do know that the muzzle velocity won't be but maybe half that coming out of a 3" barrel, don't you? You'll create a nasty flesh wound with that load, but that's about it. As I said, I bought one and shot one; in 3" magnum. To confuse this pistol with a man-killer hand cannon could be a fatal mistake.

 

[Soundguy]

seems like with .45lc it should do the job as any other.. but if you want hand cannon.. 500 or 460n certaintly qualify.

and to think when i upgraded from my 44mag anaconda.. I thought about a 454 casul.. glad something bigger came along before my money went down.

soundguy

 

[LostInTheWoods]

I like the idea of the Judge, but haven't fired one to be able to gauge its effectiveness. From what I've seen of it, I doubt it would be my first choice for home defense.

Sounds like it would be a great weapon to carry in the car with alternately firing 410 buck and 45. I can see where, say, during an attempted carjacking, you might hastily grab and fire off a facefull of buck and follow with a round (or two, or three....) of 45. Also, should be a good snake gun for hunting/fishing/hiking.

 

[sunspot]

Sorry for being OT, but every time this thread bubbles to the surface I always think it's about some Ford Tarus SHO replacement. On the plus side, there is a replacement slated for 2010 for those interested, perhaps you could name one "The Judge"?

OT but I have a broke 97' SHO. The most fun car I have ever owned.

On subject, I am eying the Judge as a car gun. I'll stick with my 590 Mossy for inside the house.

 

[Soundguy]

Sounds like it would be a great weapon to carry in the car with alternately firing 410 buck and 45.

If i owned one.. it would be loaded like that. some 45lc, some shotshells.. IMHO.. it would be a good 'fishing' sidearm.

The idea of the long cyl pistol in that chambering is not new... nearly 20ys ago I say one like that from a cheap gun manufacturer in a pawn shap.. it was one of the lower tier makers.. like bryco, haskel, jennings.. lorsen.. etc... pawn shop ~200$ gun.. etc... never caught on... fast forwrd 15-20ys and it's sliced bread ... go figure. Back then i was thinking hte same thing... shotshell for snakes.. 45lc for larger 4 legged critters that might cause problems.. ferrel dog.. mangy looking fox or cyote.. etc.. raccoon. etc.

soundguy

 

[NewToy]

I have well over a hundred pistols, including a dozen or so 1911 style. I'd have to say that they are my least favorite. The 1911 style is okay but, in my opinion, many companies have made advances in the last hundred years. When grabbing a pistol for personal protection, it's never a 1911 style.

Firearms are a matter of preference. They can advance and trick them out but I still prefer a 1911 style pistol for concealed carry, one that has been slightly modified for reliability. I prefer the "cocked & locked" method of carry and that is what I am most comfortable with. I have been shooting 1911 style pistols for 30 some years and wouldn't consider anything else since I have that "comfort level" only achieved by thousands and thousands of rounds fired. I am open minded and have shot many gun's but yet to find one that I have that "feeling" of complete confidence that I do with a 1911 style pistol. I have an AMT auto in 30 cal carbine that we pop off at night for the muzzle flash. It's fixing to come out in a few days, a real crowd pleaser.
BTW Dargo, what is your preferred pistol that you have the level of confidence required for a life or death situation? I have been carrying concealed legally for the past 15yrs and wouldn't even consider a 9mm. NATO or not.

John

 

[Dargo]

BTW Dargo, what is your preferred pistol that you have the level of confidence required for a life or death situation? I have been carrying concealed legally for the past 15yrs and wouldn't even consider a 9mm. NATO or not.

John

Believe it or not, I mostly carry a Glock 30 or a Glock 29. In warmer months I carry a Kahr PM40. I'd tell you how many rounds of ammo I have stocked up now but some here would likely consider me nuts. Oh...wait...most probably already do.

I have a lifetime CC permit as well as a few Class III stamped firearms. One of my better friends has been the firearm instructor for our local police department as well as our Sheriff department. He has moved from preferring Para Ordnance and Kimber to a Sig 220.

 

[Soundguy]

Like Dargo, I also have too many rounds stored away for future use.. plus a few 'fast ones' myself.

I don't see why a 9mm is a horrible choice for a carry gun.

In a self defense situation.. any reliable gun you have, is better than no gun at all. Givent hat 9mm choices generally give you the option of carrying alot of ammo per magazine.. I'd think they make a decent choice, especially if you factor in high perfromance ammo. In the end.. I'd rather be carrying a gun I'm comfortable with, familair with, and used to shooting, and know like the back of my hand.. even if it is an inferior caliber. A well placed shot even with an anemic round is better than a miss with a heavy round from an umfamilair gun.

I carry a sig p230 in .380.. I use hydrashocks as my defense round. i realize that .380 is not a screaming behemoth of a round.. but with 7 rounds to play with, and given that human soft spot 1-shot kill regions are readilly available.. likt dotting the 'eyes'.. I'd rather have that than something cumbersome or one I'm not used to. in my climate.. concealed carry becomes very difficult. i usually also carry a 'backup' gun , a keltec in 32acp.. an even more anemic round... It has the benefit of ez carry.. thus I am more apt to carry it vs being unarmed... I use the best hollow point I could find, based on specs.... again.. a brain shot should take care of most problems pretty quick.... got 7 chances for that as well.

In the end... statistics show that the average criminal usually doesn't voulenteer to be shot once it comes down to him vs an armed defender.. even when the atacker is also armed.

Using tactics like a shooting stance and cover will also help the defender.. and heck.. if you have to shoot then flee.. then I'll bet on the defender vs the wounded attacker in the flee/chase scenerio any time... even if they are flesh wounds.. 7 rounds of anything has to have -some- effect.. and no matter what the effect.. they will be better than nothing at all.

if stopping power was the only concern... I'm sure my 44 mag anaconda, 50action experess.. or 500sw would fit the bill.. of course.. hand cannons aren't to easilly concealed!

soundguy

Firearms are a matter of preference. They can advance and trick them out but I still prefer a 1911 style pistol for concealed carry, one that has been slightly modified for reliability. I prefer the "cocked & locked" method of carry and that is what I am most comfortable with. I have been shooting 1911 style pistols for 30 some years and wouldn't consider anything else since I have that "comfort level" only achieved by thousands and thousands of rounds fired. I am open minded and have shot many gun's but yet to find one that I have that "feeling" of complete confidence that I do with a 1911 style pistol. I have an AMT auto in 30 cal carbine that we pop off at night for the muzzle flash. It's fixing to come out in a few days, a real crowd pleaser.
BTW Dargo, what is your preferred pistol that you have the level of confidence required for a life or death situation? I have been carrying concealed legally for the past 15yrs and wouldn't even consider a 9mm. NATO or not.

John

 

[chh]

Well after putting a 100 rounds or different types of ammo thru the 6" Judge I thought I would post on it again. With 45's it is a comfortable gun to shoot, the grips are good and it is reasonably accurate given the stlye of sights on it. As a .410 the buckshot is the only round I would consider to be a self defense round. One of the older videos shows the gen being fired simulating firing it out of a car window using what appears to be birdshot. It is a pretty accurate portrayal of how the gun performs with birdshot. At 8' to 10' from the muzzle you have a 12" to 14" pattern that expands rapidly and IMO looses energy very quickly. The promo materials say the rifling is specifically designed to open the wad and free the shot column. I would say that it does that very well. My Contender with the same .410 load is still in the wad and a solid mass at that range. Buckshot does quite a bit better. The shot stays close together showing good penatration until it passes the 20 yard or so mark, looking much like 3 hits from a 22 at that distance. Much past 25 yards and it would be doubtful it you could get all the shot in a body target. Part of the appeal of a .410 round for self defense (to me) is the fact that the shot has a lot of impact at close range and still be difficult to penetrate 2 layers of sheetrock, minimizing the risk of unitended consequences. Taurus pretty well removes some of that advantage by getting the wad open so quickly. The shot gun that Mossberg produced several years ago with the flashlight in the foregrip would do a much better job in the home in that sense than the Judge, IMO.
I will probably keep the Judge until I get the chance to trade it for another more interesting toy.

I never did get the Glock, but did come up with a FN in .40 cal. It is a little more compact than my Ruger P89 9mm and has a better trigger in it. The 9mm is ok with good loads in it, but I would not want to carry it with ball ammo, IMO. My 1911 pistol is a blast to shoot, but to me the .45 has a lot of kick to control in an "up close and personal" situation and mine does not feed anything but ball ammo reliably enough to even think about carrying it for defense. But it is a gun with sentimental value so I guess it will be a range toy and a "gun safe queen".