Taurus 24/7 OSS Longslide

With XD's, M&P's, and of course Glocks flying off the shelves, I felt compelled to see what all the hype was about. However, I wanted to try something new. I had read earlier about Taurus's OSS pistol that had been designed as a true GI pistol. A real workhorse. My dealings with Taurus in the past had been good, though I had never owned any of their products. I knew they stood behind their warranty and offered a quality product at a good price.

So, I ordered one, and when I got the call I went and picked it up. I took it home and immediately broke it down. As everyone should, I read up on the disassembly procedures, this just avoids any hassles. I inspected the workmanship and thoroughly cleaned the pistol. Its always a good idea to clean a gun before you shoot it. This will remove any metallic material that may have been left behind during the machining process, allow you to put your preferred lubricant on the weapon, and will also give you a further familiarity with the weapon.

Inital impressions of the pistol were good. It had pretty good weight to it, maybe a little top heavy, but it felt like a gun in the hand and not a toy. The barrel is a real work of art. It looks like you could fire countless rounds out of it with no worries. Machining on the inside of the slide was all very clean, there were no rough spots or circles anywhere. My only complaint is that take-down is a bit slower than say, a Beretta 92.

After applying some TW25b, my preferred lubricant, I headed to the range with 100 rounds. I loaded 2 rounds in to the magazine and fired from 15 yards. To my surprise no hits on the paper. I quickly figured out that the trigger pull on this pistol was unlike any I was used to. It has a long smooth light pull, as in almost no resistance, and then about an 1/8 of an inch from the end of its travle it has a nice clean break. Because of this I had a tendency to jerk the trigger and cause the pistol to shoot low. Once I realized this the shots started going to point of aim and I was able to produce an excellent grouping. While I have yet to need to use it, I do like the idea of the double strike capability. The double action pull is also relatively light which means it doesn't take much getting used to.

The Heinie sights on the pistol are standard 3-dot sights and are easy to use. They are adjustable for windage in the rear and the front can be drifted as well. The 51/4" barrel means a nice long sight radius, which definitely helped to improve my accuracy. The gun grips easily with 3 finger grooves and is quite comfortable. Its slimmer than expected and would likely work well for those with smaller hands, but fits nicely in my larger hands as well. The decocker is easy to reach, as is the slide release and magazine release. Both the front of the grip and backstrap are neatly checkered to provide a sure hold on the weapon but they aren't uncomfortable like other pistols I have tried.

The pistol was 100% reliable in the first 100 rounds at my first range visit. Subsequently it continued this streak at my next 2 trips now having 200 rounds through it. I also have yet to clean it after firing. To my surprise it has very little carbon fowling on the inside. I'd like to see how long it can go without being cleaned but I'm not going to since it is my personal weapon. I have a feeling that due to the long dustcover and the fact that all of the unburnt powder seems to leave the gun, it can probably go for many rounds reliably.

I did have 2 instances where I pushed up the slide release with my non firing hand causing the slide to catch prior to being empty. This occured in the first 100 rounds and has not happened since but is worth noting. I have also noticed that after 200 rounds the end of the barrel which has a raised portion is losing its finish from contacting the slide. I see this as mainly a cosmetic issue but I will keep an eye on it.

Overall, the gun seems to be well made, reliable, and when used correctly, extremely accurate. Taurus has provided us with a nice alternative to the current options. If you have been hesitant to buy a Taurus in the past, this may be the time to quit hesitating and buy. I have little doubt that the next 200 rounds will go just like the last and the next 10,000 will probably be just as good. I intend to find out as soon as possible, I'll keep you posted.

Cobra Patriot .45

My Kel-Tec P-11 has been my primary CCW for the past year and has done everything I have needed it to. It hides nicely in its Don Hume IWB holster, is comfortable, and to date has been 100% reliable with everything I have fed it. It does have its shortcomings though, namely in the accuracy department. I can keep it on the paper at 15 yards but I would hardly call the shotgun pattern displayed a grouping. However, this has not kept me from feeling very confident with it since most altercations occur at short distances where aiming isn't always possible. However, I am always on the market for something new and "better".

In comes the Cobra Patriot .45. The Cobra is similarly priced to the P-11 yet boasts the more powerful .45acp cartridge. It holds six flush with the grip though any 1911 magazine will work, and Cobra advertises 10 round factory mags for sale. First impressions of the gun are good. It appears to be well built, feels solid, and looks good as well. When shook the slide moves minimally side to side implying a tight fit between the slide and rails, once measure of "quality". The first thing I noticed was just how rounded off the slide was. This is an excellent feature for a carry gun, it also has an integral front site which should also aid in making it snag-free.

I read the manual for disassembly as I have very few striker-fired weapons but they all seem to have something different about them. It is very straight forward: remove magazine, pull bag slide enough to push out the take-down pin, remove pin, pull back slide, release forward, pull and hold trigger, pull slide off frame while releasing trigger.

Once I got it apard I marveled at the polymer rails and then wondered how long they would really last. Earlier in the year at the 2008 shot show I had spoken with Cobra's president Wilford Gentry who said they had one with 30,000 rounds through it that was still kicking. If only I had enough rounds to see if that would hold true.

I took the Patriot and a couple boxes of ammo and headed for the range. I set up at 7 yards to begin with and loaded a mag with 2 rounds. Both fired and ejected....definitely had more recoil than expected. I then began loading magazines to capacity. I had both the stock 6 rounder and a 7 round Chip McCormick. The CM protruded from the grip about 1/2" but locked up nicely and fell free from the gun, which the stock mag would not fall free. Both magazines fed reliably throughout the duration of the first range visit.

All in all I fired 50 rounds that day, about the most I'd want to shoot without a shooting glove. My right hand was red and had a nice print of the checkering from the rear of the grip, which may be just a bit too sharp for the amount of recoil the weapon provides.

Accuracy was better than expected. I fired from 7,10, and 15 yards and was able to keep it on a standard 25 yrd slowfire target. The trigger pull is heavy but was constant and smooth. Personally I feel safer with a heavy trigger pull on a carry gun, it does however require more practice to become accurate with the firearm.

The only problems I had with the weapon were:
1. Takedown pin fit loosely and appeared as if it could fall out(Cobra did send a tighter fitting pin after my range visit which fit nicely, has not been tested yet though)
2. Checkering is too sharp, hurts palm
3. OEM mag does not drop free

So far with 50 rounds through the weapon, I think it is a keeper. It has yet to earn a place in my waistband, but is likely to at least lighten the load the P-11 has by coming into the carry rotation. Only further range time will tell whether the weapon continues to prove reliable and accurate, but I'm pulling for the Cobra. Its exactly what a carry gun should be: compact, snag-free, reliable, and hard-hitting.

*Update*

As stated above, I had an issue with the takedown pin rotating and coming loose. I contacted Cobra and was given two options: Send the gun back, get a new takedown pin. I chose to receive a new pin, they said they had some that were slightly larger and should clear up my issue. Upon receiving it, I found that it did in fact clear up the problem. I headed to the range with a box of Winchester 185 grn flatpoints. My range has fixed targets and the entire line must move forward if a distance of less than 25 yards is to be used. I was stuck at 25 yards due to other shooters which ended up being a good test for the Patriot. I fired 3 shots and to my surprise, all three hit the target, an 8x11 sheet of paper. I was able to keep a relatively good grouping at this distance.

On top of the unexpected accuracy was continued reliability. I had 3 failures to fire on the first pul of the trigger but the rounds were all fired with a subsequent pull of the trigger. I did not have any during my previous visit so it is possible that the ammunition had a harder primer. Either way the gun is still being broken in, so I am satisfied with these results, I also have yet to clean it. I did not have any jams and used 3 different brands of 1911 magazines, including some very inexpensive mags from Sarco bought for $6. I wore a glove this time and the gun was much more controllable and even enjoyable to shoot. For practice, this seems like a good idea.

I plan to keep on shooting this Cobra at the range, but it is likely to end up on my holster soon. Once I work out the FTF issue, which could be operator error.

The past week and a half on my bike

So I got home on August 7th and the first thing I wanted to do was ride. Where I was I had gotten to shoot enough rifles to satiate that desire, but I was desperate to get my fix of "speed". I got in late or early depending on how you look at it but the bottom line is that I was tired. I slept late and once I was awake I suited up and started the bike. Even though she hadn't been run for over a month, she warmed up quickly. I hopped on the saddle and headed toward my alma mater. I had a little bit of paper work to do to finish my ties with ROTC so I made way on the 47 mile trek. It felt good to hear the engine purring nicely at a steady 6000 rpms equating to an indicated speed of 70mph. However, I may or may not have ajourned slightly faster than this at several points throughout the trip. When this was done I made my way to my favorite gun store and picked up the two pistols I had ordered several months prior (Taurus 24/7 OSS in 9mm and a Cobra Patriot in .45). On the way I got caught in a nice downpour that left both me and my undergarments soaked. Nothing could wash the smile from my face, I drove on towards the clear skies and the storm was over.

A week later and over 700 miles more have accumulated on the odometer. This has included several group rides and several solo rides. In between was a valve clearance check, an oil change, a subsequent leaky valve cover fix, and a lot of good times. More of this to come, its too late to keep typing. Did I forget to mention that I ordered Nelson Rigg silverstreak saddlebags, a National F-16 sport touring windshield, and progressive springs? And on the bidding is a wider(katana) rear wheel, katana rear suspension....and I will be needing some new tires shortly.

Until tomorrow....

First entry

I'll use my first entry to give you guys an idea of what is in store for the future of this blog. I've got a lot of great guns that I plan to share my experiences with. You can expect reviews of these pistols: Taurus' new 24/7 OSS, Kel-Tec's P-11, Cobra's Patriot .45, Hi-Point's JCP40, Masterpiece Arms' MPA930TA, and many more. And you can expect reviews of several rifles including Kel-Tec's Sub-2000, Feather's Rav-9, DPMS' Lo-Pro Classic, and Hi-Points 995 carbine. My reviews will be informal accounts of my experiences with these firearms, no sugarcoating, just the truth. You can use this information however you like, but I hope to help you to choose the right firearm.

Aside from the firearm/shooting accessories reviews, I will be keeping an account of my experiences on my bike. This will include anything from sharing good roads to tips and tricks for keeping the bike running. Basically whatever is happening at that moment in my life.