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.
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