[powerkicker]

Hear me out before you laugh. I own a few darn nice guns by S&W. I have a Classic Hunter .44, a 6" 29 and a pretty nice .44 Mountain gun. They are all great guns. They are all better fitted and finished than my Taurus 44 magnum Tracker. My Tracker has a case of bad polishing on the cylinder and it's timing was a bit iffy when gotten new. The timing is now servicable.

The S&W's all have one disadvantage here...Not one of them is a medium frame 5-shot .41, .44 magnum, 45 Colt or .45 acp. The Tracker is the same basic size as an L-frame S&W 586 but it packs 44 magnum power in an accurate,4" barreled package that thanks to the porting, doesn't kick enough to speak of for someone already accustomed to 44 magnum recoil.

In the woods, there are no biker gangs to shoot it out with so 5 rounds is fine. My Tracker will shoot 3" at 25 yards off-hand in my hands on a good day. That's plenty good. I really think this gun is a winner and indeed, I'd take it over my S&W's for hiking where there may be a bear or human predator. It's light and hard-hitting along with it's compact size. My S&W's are my pride and joy, but the Tracker is just a darn good gun that S&W makes no equal to.Besides, the Taurus lock is nowhere near as horrendous as the S&W design.

That is my honest evaluation.Others may disagree and I'll lose no sleep.

 

[NativeTexan]

Well, that is what it was designed for, ya know. I'm pretty happy with .357 mag and my M66 was more affordable. Of course, I got it used at a gun show. BUT, I'd love to add a .41 tracker to my collection. In stainless, it'd be the near perfect trail gun I reckon.

 

[Tracker Backer C45]

On a good day, and I'm setting at a shooting bench I can get a few one inch groups with a flyer...Taurus Tracker Colt .45 caliber.

TB C45

 

[Robby]

I can see, I am gonna have to look for one of those in the used market. I kind of love the 45 colt, and the round it fires. So far with my JUDGE, I can do a similar group, but I have only done it out to about 12 yards, and I do not have a bench. The target was shot with JUDGE, and a 22 Mag cowboy gun. I did not think it was too bad. About 15 rounds of 45, and 18 22M and the target is only a 5" one.

 

[NYPD]

I agree 100% with your statements powerkicker. My Tracker in .44 Mag fills that niche for myself also.

 

[FrankG]

This may be old news, but I have found the HKS CA44 speed loader will work in the Taurus Tracker .44Mag. It is the one made for the Charter Arms Bulldog .44 Special. Frank

 

[powerkicker]

This may be old news, but I have found the HKS CA44 speed loader will work in the Taurus Tracker .44Mag. It is the one made for the Charter Arms Bulldog .44 Special. Frank

I use that one for my reload too.

 

[Robby]

This may be old news, but I have found the HKS CA44 speed loader will work in the Taurus Tracker .44Mag. It is the one made for the Charter Arms Bulldog .44 Special. Frank

Heck it also works for the 5 rd 45, even the JUDGE!!

 

[FrankG]

Isn't it neat when something works for more than it was designed for? Glad to hear this guys, thanks. Frank

 

[Dreaded]

I wonder if it will work in my Raging Bull in .454 :???:

 

[dbsoundguy]

hiking where there may be a bear or human predator. It's light and hard-hitting along with it's compact size.

+ 1
I have the .357 Tracker
The biggest reason i wanted a .357 was for all the outdoor stuff i do..
I think i saw somewhere online that the Tracker series was marketed for a hiking and trail gun.. correct me if i am wrong...
It sure is nice to carry and easy to shoot( and it carries 7 rounds )

 

[Robby]

I wonder if it will work in my Raging Bull in .454 :???:

If it will carry the 44, 45, it should carry the 454 if you got 5 rounds there.

 

[Steelheart]

IF the cylinders are similar in diameter it should work. I suspect that the RB is bigger though.

Steelheart

 

[Alden]

All;
I have been interested in a .44 Mag Tracker for a trip to Alaska coming up a few months down the road. But this thread started out confirming my fears -- quality is off! Timing was poor and after (the time, trouble and expense of) fixing was just serviceable! Not good. I've been warned by my gunshop buddy that "friends don't let friends buy Taurus" anymore and a reknowned national gunsmith said they are "poor at best." I had to talk the latter into doing any work on it and he wouldn't touch mine if anyone else touched it. Dammit!

The product is a pretty perfect concept but a correction -- they are NOT L-rame equivalents, they are a heavy-barreled K-frame more like a Model 10 S&W. They are smaller in every dimension and weight than an L-frame even with the underlug. Maybe if they were titanium, had a triple lock-up (which I was gonna have customized anyway), and an unfluted cylinder I'd like 'em even better but I am basically being put off of these. Our life might depend on it and I might just end up relying on Bear Spray and my Rossi comped 2 1/2" with the right rounds to stop a Griz over buying a .44 Tracker! How sad is THAT?

Look forward to others' comments...

Alden

 

[Tracker Backer C45]

A lot of us have had good luck with our Taurus Trackers, mine is a .45 Colt caliber.

Now if you are indeed going into harms way being near Grizzly and brown bears, I would forget the 5 shot Tracker and go for a 5-inch barrel six shot Raging Bull in .44 magnum or .454 caliber.

John Taffin in his Gun Digest on .44's says they are extremely accurate firearms for their low cost. Sure the six shot weight penalty isn't going to kill you carry it, but Mr. Bear might. They also have two crane locks to secure the cylinder in the guns frame...a good sturdy revolver.

That's what I'd take to Alaska. Why don't you ask some people who live in Alaska, we have members on this board who are up there.

TB C45

 

[50/50]

i've got the model 460 tracker 6" good shootin 45 colt. recently i acquired the model 44 taurus 4" 44 mag. this is a 6 shot ,and i was pleased with the results of my first outing. i was thinking of getting a 6" model 44 ,and i still may ,it will just be delayued for awhile.

someone mentioned the model425 tracker 41 mag. budsgunshop has them in stock with free delivery ,you'd still have to pay your local ffl to handle the transfer. i was going to get one but i got sidetracked by a 657.dan

 

[Colorado Mike]

I've seen Alaskan brown bears. I think over the .44 mag, I would just carry my Taurus PT-145. much lighter, and plenty up to the task of offing myself if one of those bad boys fails to induce cardiac arrest right off the bat. There's a reason the guides carry a 12 guage with slugs. Some have even told me they prefer the AK-47 with cheap chinese steel rounds for their high penetration.

 

[Alden]

The bullet is of considerable importance. I will only use Federal Premium Vital-Shok ammo w/Core-Cast bullets for dangerous big game. These are simple, very hard, solid lead bullets designed not to mushroom, keep all their weight, and cut thru thick skin, drive through muscle, crush bone, and penetrate deep into vital internal organs.

That said, I personally need concealability and extreme carryability. 50/50 chance I will buy the Taurus "K" frame 5 shot .44 Mag before I go to Alaska and have it customized for an additional crane lock-up I won't go into here in detail IF I don't just have to return the arm right out of the box -- Taurus' customer service is apparently the worst on the market these days and if I have to wait months I'm SOL. Otherwise I will be depending on bear-spray, praying, and a 2 1/2" .357. Yeah, not my first choice either...

Alden

 

[SgtKnuckles]

Seems to me, what you really need is one of these Bad Boys...!!! Take your Pick... 2 1/4 through 10"


Taurus MODEL 500 RAGING BULL 500 Mag Stainless Steel
http://www.google.com/products?q=Ta...+500+Mag+Stainless+Steel&btnG=Search+Products

 

[Alden]

Sarge;
The Raging Bull frame adds almost an inch to the overall length, is 3/4's of an inch tall, 1/4" wider, and weighs 1/3rd more than the Tracker series -- NOT what a discreet backpacker is looking for.
Alden