Taurus Model 44 .44 Mag Revolver Review: For the Big Cartridge Lovers and Handgun Hunters

The first time I ever went handgun hunting, it was with a Taurus 44. At the end of the day, I didn’t feel 100% comfortable taking the one shot that I had a chance at, because it was right at the outside edge of my range. However, after a little bit of time at the range with this pistol, I wish I had that shot back!

This is a good pistol that is fun to shoot. It is accurate, and packs one heck of a punch. While I haven’t gotten to take a large animal with it yet, my best friend has been using one for the last couple seasons and has great luck with it. It’s a decent pistol, but if you’d like to learn more, continue reading.

What is the Taurus Model 44 for?

This pistol has two primary purposes in my eyes. On one hand, it’s absolutely excellent for handgun hunting. It shoots the extremely lethal .44 Magnum cartridge, and is available with barrels up to 8 3/8 inches long. With a pistol like that, you’re a bipod and a scope away from some serious hunting.

However, due to the lethality of this cartridge, it is also a perfectly viable option for home defense. While the full size one might be a bit cumbersome on your nightstand, there are smaller versions available.

However, it should be well known that .44 Magnum is a lot to shoot. This is essentially the largest cartridge that most people feel comfortable shooting. Make sure you have an excellent grip and practice your fundamentals before firing this pistol. The recoil is no joke. For this reason alone, this isn’t a great pistol for a new shooter.

If you’re a new shooter looking for a home defense revolver, look at Taurus options that shoot .357 Magnum. That round is quite deadly, but isn’t nearly as much to shoot.

Taurus Model 44 Review: Breakdown

The Taurus 44 is a large frame revolver that shoots .44 Magnum cartridges. It is available with a 4 inch barrel, a 6.5 inch barrel, or an 8.325 inch barrel. The revolvers all have external hammers and are silver in color. Their cylinder capacity is 6 rounds.

The revolvers weigh in at 45, 52, and 57 ounces, in size order. As you can see, these are pretty heavy pistols, due to the fact that they are made out of stainless steel. Keep in mind that these are full sized revolvers shooting .44 Magnum, so the weight shouldn’t exactly be a surprise. This isn’t a carry pistol at the end of the day.

The pros of this pistol will be covered in depth throughout each section, but the revolvers are very reliable, have a good grip, and are very durable. The durability comes mostly from the fact that they are made of stainless steel, but the rubber grips are also resistant to the elements.

The cons of this pistol are limited to mostly the weight. They are heavy, but they are decent quality and are available at a great price, for the most part.

Safety and Reliability

Another huge pro of these pistols is how safe they are. They have a transfer bar and Taurus Security System, which goes on top of the revolver safeties. In case you’re not familiar, revolvers are notoriously safe to begin with.

In my opinion, revolvers are safer than semiautomatic pistols for a couple different reasons. For starters, the shooter is able to see the exact position of the hammer, so you know whether the pistol will fire for sure. You’re also able to see the cylinder, so you know if the pistol is loaded or not. Lastly, the trigger pull tends to be a little bit longer, so the chance of it accidentally being pulled is slim.

However, the Taurus 44 adds on the Taurus Security System, which allows for safe storage. The system is essentially a lock internal to the pistol. When the lock is engaged, it’s impossible for the pistol to fire, but it will take some time to unlock, so its certainly not meant for carrying.

The transfer bar is a pretty basic mechanism that adds a positive block into the firing system of the pistol. It basically guarantees the pistol can’t fire unless the trigger is pulled all the way.

Another pro of these revolvers is that they are very reliable. Because there are so few internal parts, it’s nearly impossible for them to jam. Due to the fact that this revolver is extremely durable, there are no internal or external reliability concerns. The pistol will fire, no matter what.

Comfort and Shootability

Most Taurus revolvers are well known for having molded, comfortable rubber grips. The Taurus 44 seems to be even more grippy. While this may just be a result of naturally gripping the pistol harder while firing such a high powered cartridge, the pistol does feel like the grip is really strong.

The rubber is molded to fit your hands, and the height of the revolver also gives you plenty of surface area on the grip itself. The texture of the rubber is sufficient, and you are able to handle shooting the pistol, assuming your fundamentals are good.

Shooting the pistol itself can be a little difficult, due to the amount of power associated with the cartridge. The porting of the pistol reduces the recoil, and the weight helps to take care some of it as well. The grip will also help. All of these factors put together makes the recoil somewhat manageable, if you’ve had experience shooting larger cartridges.

The action of the pistol is relatively smooth. The trigger isn’t great, and has a long pull, but it does break in over time. However, the pistol does function relatively smoothly and extremely reliably over time.

As far as accuracy, this pistol does shoot very accurately. If you’ve never shot .44 Magnum, you will have to learn a little and take some time, because it will take some time to compensate for the recoil. Once you’ve got the technique down, the pistol does shoot accurately, and with the longer barrel you can definitely kick it out to a pretty decent range for handgun hunting.

The sights are adjustable, so you’ll be able to accurately shoot over a pretty good distance.

Taurus Model 44: Specifications

Action Type: SA/DA

Barrel Length: 4"

Capacity: 6-Round

Cartridge: 44 Magnum

Finish: Stainless

Front Sight: Fixed

Length: 9.75"

Magazine Included: Cylinder

Magazine Type: Fixed

Muzzle: Plain

Rear Sight: Adjustable

Stock Material: Rubber

Weight: 2.82 lbs

Accessories and Upgrades

If you’re hoping to do some handgun hunting with this pistol, there’s a good chance that you’ll want to shoot at longer distances. If this is the case, you may look to add a handgun scope, like this one from Leupold.

While it’s definitely not a requirement, you may also look to add a bip​​od. This will give you some stabilization, and allow you to shoot at even longer distances.

You’ll also want a holst​​er of some sort, but you may want something more custom made for the Taurus 44 specifically.

If you’re using the pistol for home defense, add in a fiber optic fro​​nt sight. It’ll greatly improve your target acquisition speed.

Lastly, you should definitely get a spe​​edloader to save you some time.

Checkout another review from Buffaque 32 on youtube:

Conclusion

This large frame revolver shoots an extremely deadly round and is able to be used for a few different things. It’ll definitely get some use for handgun hunting, but would also be great for home defense or shooting at the range if you like a big boom. The pistol is reliable, fun to shoot, and shoots pretty accurately for a reasonable price.

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