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I just wanted to get some opinions on a revolver that my wife would be able to carry and shoot for fun. I have a chance to get a used Taurus model 85 for fairly cheap. does anyone shoot one or know someone who does, and whether they would recommend it? Any opinions would be great as this deal probably wont last long.

does she really want a revolver? Has she shot one? a snubby in any form, even .38 can be hard on more dainty hands. I have a grandmother who is an excellent shot with a 20 gauge shotgun, but cant handle my granddads .38 revolver...its just hard on her hands. Just something to think about.

Before we upgraded my wife carried a Taurus .357 snub. She's a really good shot with it too!

Why does your wife want a revolver instead of a semi? Not that there's anything wrong with that...

You are not under armed w/ a revolver. I carry one some myself.
One of my Rs is the 85. I like it fine. W/ proper training & regular practice she can become quit proficent w/ it even w/ the short barrel. It will take practice.

High caps are great. I have never heard anyone say right after a 4 shot gunfight that they had plenty of ammo so wished they had not been carrying around the extra mags all this time. BUT a 5 shot wheel gun is an excellent personal defense weapon.

I remember what one of the Instructors in Austin told us. LEO, Glock Armorer, & he said, I am a great fan of the 5 shot snubbie for PD.

Excellent Ladies defense weapon.
LT

She actually made a good point, to her the point of cc is to have it there if she needs it. If the time ever does arise that she does need it, she said to me that shes not trying to fight a war, just use the weapon to retreat to a safe place or until the threat is gone....plus she likes how shiny it is.

txrenegade wrote:I just wanted to get some opinions on a revolver that my wife would be able to carry and shoot for fun. I have a chance to get a used Taurus model 85 for fairly cheap. does anyone shoot one or know someone who does, and whether they would recommend it? Any opinions would be great as this deal probably wont last long.

I would first find a range that rents firearms. Your wife can look at the selection and pick one that she thinks might fit her needs and hand. She can then rent it before you buy something that she ends up not liking.

Check out the Ruger LCR's, they have a very good trigger and the recoil is less than the S&W J Frames. They are our most popular revolvers these days...

03Lightningrocks, nice new look!

To the OP, I don't know very much generally about Taurus revolvers, except what I've heard others say. And going by that, they are good weapons. As to revolver carry, like longtooth, I sometimes carry one myself - a scandium framed S&W .357 - and I don't feel underarmed with it at all.

But looking at Taurus 85s on a Google image search, they all appear to have an exposed hammer. This is OK, but it does raise questions about how your wife might carry it. A revolver with a shrouded or hidden hammer is a better choice if she is going to carry in her purse or in a pocket. If she's going to carry in some kind of holster, then an exposed hammer is not so critical. But if she is going to purse or pocket carry, perhaps the Taurus 850 or the 8512 might be better choices.

The Annoyed Man wrote:03Lightningrocks, nice new look!

To the OP, I don't know very much generally about Taurus revolvers, except what I've heard others say. And going by that, they are good weapons. As to revolver carry, like longtooth, I sometimes carry one myself - a scandium framed S&W .357 - and I don't feel underarmed with it at all.

But looking at Taurus 85s on a Google image search, they all appear to have an exposed hammer. This is OK, but it does raise questions about how your wife might carry it. A revolver with a shrouded or hidden hammer is a better choice if she is going to carry in her purse or in a pocket. If she's going to carry in some kind of holster, then an exposed hammer is not so critical. But if she is going to purse or pocket carry, perhaps the Taurus 850 or the 8512 might be better choices.

Search for 85CH.

I like my S&W 442 and would recommend one. No hammer to snag on anything. Light enough to carry and use. With any snubby she will need range time in my opinion. It takes some practice to be effective with a short barrel gun. Nothing to hard to do, but it will take some practice.

A revolver is a good choice for her. My wife simply doesn't like the "complexity" of a semi-auto, and she's really fearful of "one in the chamber." Rather than just try and convince her that it's nothing to worry about, I set her up with a revolver. The utter simplicity in loading, checking if it's loaded, and usage greatly appealed to her.

What I did with her was get her trained on a big fat full size revolver, like a 686. .38 special wadcutters from a big heavy steel gun like that has very little recoil and is practically like plinking with .22s. That got her comfortable shooting. She was a little put off by the recoil you get from a snub-nose J-frame (plus they are very hard to shoot accurately), but having trained on the bigger gun, she feels confident that she can use the smaller gun in close range if need be.

I think you cannot overlook the simplicity of the revolver and it's appeal for many women. When they see how simple it is and how safe that gun is to handle, they are more likely to carry it. If they are afraid that the gun is loaded, or feel the system is too complicated, they are less likely to carry it. And if she's going to get her CHL and then leave the gun at home because she's intimidated by it, it does no good. And because she's more likely to carry it in her purse than strapped to her side, you can usually deal with a bigger form factor.

Mrs. Oldgringo's carry is a S&W 638 which she just points and pulls the trigger. No hammer, no jammer and no fun to shoot BUT it will do the job.

I agree about with others that a small revolver is a great carry weapon for the ladies. My Mom carries a Ruger Speed Six most of the time in an IWB, but she recently borrowed a S&W637 from me as a back up when she sent her Ruger off to get a custom holster made. Now I don't own the S&W 637 anymore. After she borrowed it she could not live without it. She still loves her Ruger but its not nearly as easy to carry.

Not a fan of the Taurii family. Had another student last week with one straight out of the box that would not run a full cylinder thru it without binding up. I'd say forget buying one because it's cheap. Save a little longer and get something that has a better reputation for going bang every time. +1 on at least renting a Ruger LCR to see if she likes it. Many ladies do.

I carry a Taurus 85 Ultra Lite as a back up/pocket gun. I've shot it a good bit at 17 oz it's light and handy but it also bites on both ends. Buy the gun if it's what she wants. If it doesn't fit the bill you can always sell it or use it yourself. The biggest gun mistake a man can make is to try to buy a gun for his wife that she doesn't approve of.