Taurus Gaucho .45 ?? anybody have experience ?

[Streetstar]

Got in some range time today and was offered a .45 Colt Taurus for $300 by a co-worker. This one is blacker than a well-diggers rear (not case colors) with hard rubber grips. The grip profile is similar to a Colt, but much smaller than a modern Ruger. The little dude has a 5.5 barrel and is fixed sight. By contrast, a .45 Blackhawk in all blue/black can be easilly had for $405 new with adjustable sights. I know the Gaucho was marketed as a "cowboy gun" though, while the BH is more general purpose, thus the adj sights

I thought the price of $300 was in "hard to go wrong" territory, but i rarely jump without a little research --- Pistol has had maybe a box through it and is in 100% condition.
I have read some good reviews online, but i am just as, if not more interested in any negative reviews before i take out my wallet again this month (BOHICA)


My friends , sadly enough , all work in the private aviation industry which is taking a beating now. I hope for the sake of this country that people stop selling all their toys soon

[dennie]

Streetstar,
The only experience I have had with the Gaucho was not good. I bought a stainless one, used, from a friend of a friend. I could not pass up the great look and feel of the gun and it's slick action. Soon after buying it I was noticing that something was wrong when I loaded rounds into it. Long story short, it had the hole for the cylinder pin drilled off center in the cylinder causing the cylinder to wobble when rotated. Since Taurus has the lifetime warranty I went to the Taurus website and followed their instructions to send a copy of the problem and the gun to them. This cost me $42 and change to send it back. Couple of weeks later I got it back and found that the cylinder wobble was never addressed and now the action would not work at all! I also had a letter saying the gun was fixed and that I should stop using reloads in it.
Being a little upset I called Taurus about the gun not working and the original problem was not addressed. I was told by a young lady that the gun was test fired by a service tech and the gun shot fine! I then shared my displeasure with this service to the young lady well enough that she asked me to calm down, and that FedEx would pick the gun up the next day and send it to them again, on their money. The next day FedEx picked the gun up at my house and about 2 weeks later I got it back again, this time like new. Same SN so same gun.
It worked and shot fine this time. I sold it soon after to my brother, along with all the paperwork from Taurus and myself and him knowing all the problems I had with it. He loves it and wants to find a mate to it! Sorry for the ramble, but this is my experience with the Gaucho and the factory service.
Hope you have great luck with yours!

[Bob A]

I have had a Gaucho .45 for 2 years and have had zero trouble. It has a slick action and very good trigger.
I have never had to deal with Taurus Customer Service but have read other accounts like Dennie's.

Bob A

[Streetstar]

thanks for the feedback fellas. This particular model being somewhat new, it sounds like a roll of the dice whether you get a good one or not. It sure looks like a good trail gun or knock around gun. I'd rather have a case colored version since it has no sights ---but i digress

Given this revolver's track record, i will likely take a pass and instead offer my friend a small loan if he needs some cash. Since i posted this, i have uncovered just as many good reviews as bad online, and I dont think it has enough rounds through it to fully evaluate it, ---- but $300 would turn into $400 pretty quick if i had to pay for 2 trips to the gunsmith to fix a "new" pistol, and $400 is edging awfully close to adjustable sight Blackhawk territory

[airedaleman]

thanks for the feedback fellas. This particular model being somewhat new, it sounds like a roll of the dice whether you get a good one or not. It sure looks like a good trail gun or knock around gun. I'd rather have a case colored version since it has no sights ---but i digress

Given this revolver's track record, i will likely take a pass and instead offer my friend a small loan if he needs some cash. Since i posted this, i have uncovered just as many good reviews as bad online, and I dont think it has enough rounds through it to fully evaluate it, ---- but $300 would turn into $400 pretty quick if i had to pay for 2 trips to the gunsmith to fix a "new" pistol, and $400 is edging awfully close to adjustable sight Blackhawk territory

Good call. I bought a Gaucho in .357 a couple of years ago in a fit of pique when I couldn't get a New Vaquero. The gun was okay, except for a minor amount of lead shaving from one chamber. Somehow, though, the gun wasn't just "right." The grips felt good, but the logo and checkering always put me off. And the hammer is geeky looking when cocked. Mine had the high-polish blue and CCH frame which also didn't do much for me. The finish didn't look right. My overall "enhh" reaction to the gun - coupled with all too many horror stories about Taurus's treatment of customers led me to dump the gun. I haven't regretted doing so.

P>S. Pique can be expensive!

[Nate Kiowa Jones]

My perspective on the various SAA's is from a gunsmiths view. Not what they cost or how well they retain their value. Purely from the mechanical perspective.

If you want tuff out of the box, Ruger is the way to go, but I don`t consider it to be a clone. The ruger lock works were designed in the 1950's. It is nothing like the colt style lock basically unchanged since 1836.

Comparing Rugers to colts is like comparing model T`s to 60`s muscle cars.

You mentioned the Beretta Stampedes and Taurus gaucho's. Those guns have had some problems mostly related to timing issue and some have had small parts related to the transfer bar failures. Both the Beretta and the Taurus are based on the colt style lock work but have had the add-on transfer parts added. The colt style lock work is a robust design but does not lend itself well to these small delicate add on parts. Over the long haul these small parts don't hold up.



The colt style clones like the Beretta stampede and the Taurus Gaucho and the EAA bounty hunter have fatal flaws. These company's have gone in and added small delicate liability parts that will not stand the test of time. Small delicate parts is the reason the old DA colt thunderer and lightnings were drop from the line. Same with the old top break smiths. Over time they just don't hold up. There have been other clones that had these small add on part that have gone by the wayside. The Hammerli with the flip safety on the hammer. The most recent to to be drop were the Uberti "D" cam guns. They just didn't fair well. There are some SAA smiths that refused to even work on them.
Comparing the Beretta Stampedes and Taurus gaucho's to the Ruger would be like adding a catalytic converter and a smog pump to that Model "T".

With a little effort these add-on parts can be removed.
This is what I do to rid the Beretta Stampede of the transfer parts.




The same fix can be done for the EAA's and the Gauchos, too.
BTW, Taurus has dropped these from their line. They still show up on their website but none of the distributors list them except CDNN but CDNN usually does liquidation stock.

[Andrew]

The same fix can be done for the EAA's and the Gauchos, too.
BTW, Taurus has dropped these from their line. They still show up on their website but none of the distributors list them except CDNN but CDNN usually does liquidation stock.

Dropped the Gauchos altogether?

[Streetstar]

[quote="Nate Kiowa Jones"]My perspective on the various SAA's is from a gunsmiths view. Not what they cost or how well they retain their value. Purely from the mechanical perspective.

If you want tuff out of the box, Ruger is the way to go, but I don`t consider it to be a clone. The ruger lock works were designed in the 1950's. It is nothing like the colt style lock basically unchanged since 1836.

Comparing Rugers to colts is like comparing model T`s to 60`s muscle cars.

You mentioned the Beretta Stampedes and Taurus gaucho's. Those guns have had some problems mostly related to timing issue and some have had small parts related to the transfer bar failures. Both the Beretta and the Taurus are based on the colt style lock work but have had the add-on transfer parts added. The colt style lock work is a robust design but does not lend itself well to these small delicate add on parts. Over the long haul these small parts don't hold up.



The colt style clones like the Beretta stampede and the Taurus Gaucho and the EAA bounty hunter have fatal flaws. --------------The most recent to to be drop were the Uberti "D" cam guns. They just didn't fair well. There are some SAA smiths that refused to even work on them.
Comparing the Beretta Stampedes and Taurus gaucho's to the Ruger would be like adding a catalytic converter and a smog pump to that Model "T".

With a little effort these add-on parts can be removed.
This is what I do to rid the Beretta Stampede of the transfer parts.
The same fix can be done for the EAA's and the Gauchos, too.
quote]


Mr Jones, are the newest generation custom shop Colts dealing with this mess? I had actually been wanting to relieve a dealer of a Beretta with Birdshead grips in a 3.5" configuration .45. The Beretta has a wider trigger than the more traditional Uberti version and the case colors look better. I will refrain until i see if it really fits my needs or not

I think for a knockaround trail gun, i will still do a .45 Blackhawk -- i have a 7.5" version, but it is just too big sometimes --- i am really lusting after a short barrel case colored fixed sight model for CCW.

[Pete44ru]

[i am really lusting after a short barrel case colored fixed sight model for CCW.]

I would compare the $$$$ spent on unsatisfactory clones, and buy a CCH Vaquero or New Vaquero.

For the difference, a good smith can transmorgify it into a Sheriff's Model (google-foo) - and it'll be robust.

.

[Buck Elliott]

The Taurus "Gaucho" was "discontinued, due to popularity..." per Taurus literature.

Go figger...

[airedaleman]

The Taurus "Gaucho" was "discontinued, due to popularity..." per Taurus literature.

Go figger...

Hunh?

Just checked the Taurus website (1637 hrs my time) and the Gaucho's listed as "available," with MSRP listed for each model.
The .22 rifles are all listed as discontinued. As Buck said, "Go figger!"

[Fairshake]

I have a Taurus Gaucho that has been shooting Cas matches since August 08. I shoot a lot of matches. I'm on my 7th straight weekend at this time. The gun is shooting beside my Colt in the other holster. The Gaucho is doing as well as can be expected with 0 problems. I can't say the same for the Thunderbolt that I purchased though. It has never worked and has been at the factory since October 08. I read that both guns were a toss up in luck. So I'm 1 for 2 I have a new Longhunter USFA Premium on order and will use the Gaucho for a spare gun status. Later David

[Travis Morgan]

.... but $300 would turn into $400 pretty quick if i had to pay for 2 trips to the gunsmith to fix a "new" pistol, and $400 is edging awfully close to adjustable sight Blackhawk territory

.....which would buy an Old model Vaquero, which is a far better gun.