S&W Governor

[Iceberg]

Does anyone else want one of the new S&W Governors coming out in April? I have never been able to buy a Taurus, even though they make fine weapons, but this new revolver looks like a needful thing for me. I really like the fact that it takes 45 ACP, in addition to .410 & 45 LC. It looks like they will retail for less than $600.
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[Taurus 617 CCW]

It certainly looks interesting. When Taurus came out with their Judge I was intrigued by it but I was not interested in buying from them. Now that S&W has their version of it I can recommend it to folks.

 

[19 Adam]

When Taurus came out with their Judge I was intrigued by it but I was not interested in buying from them.

Just wondered why you would not want to buy a Taurus? With a user name of Taurus you must have a good reason. I have been keeping an eye out for a used Judge and would like your opinion.

 

[jordanvraptor]

The .45 acp with moon clips is a cool idea. They should do that with a 625 or 325 in .45 Colt / .45 acp. The name is silly to me. Judge, Governor, el Presidente next? Want to really intimidate someone with a gun with a powerful name? Call it the "Box Jellyfish" and people will flee in terror.

 

[Iceberg]

The .45 acp with moon clips is a cool idea. They should do that with a 625 or 325 in .45 Colt / .45 acp. The name is silly to me. Judge, Governor, el Presidente next? Want to really intimidate someone with a gun with a powerful name? Call it the "Box Jellyfish" and people will flee in terror.

The name is pretty stupid, however they could have just used the traditional number soup naming system that we have all come to expect from S&W (325-410, 325 G, etc.)...lol.

 

[Blitzkrieg]

Just wondered why you would not want to buy a Taurus? With a user name of Taurus you must have a good reason. I have been keeping an eye out for a used Judge and would like your opinion.

I'll bite. My experience with Taurus in the late 1980s was terrible.. bought 3 of them, one M65 .357 and two .38 J frame types. All repeatedly broke firing pins and the .357 broke it's cylinder stop, locking the gun up so bad it took a smith some time to get it cleared of live ammo so I could return it for repair. That revolver never even got close to 1,000 total rounds, many of them mild .38 Specials. The cost, even back then for shipping was getting expensive. A lifetime warranty does you little good if the gun breaks down the moment you need it for self defense. I sold them all off and will never buy a Taurus again. I only bought them as target guns for my wife, who carries S & Ws and loves them. The S & Ws have never failed her

Finally, the entire concept of the Judge seems silly to me unless you need a snake gun. 2.5 inch .410 will never be a good self defense load, and so it's just an oversized .45 IMO. The Box O Truth tested the Judge and .410 and it was with, shall we say less than spectacular results

The Box O' Truth #41 - The Taurus Judge Vs. The Box O' Truth - Page 1

 

[MilesTeg]

The Judge can easily be converted to also shoot .45ACP/410/45C just as the Guv.

 

[skud_dusty]

Why not just buy a .45ACP or .45LC revolver if that's what you want to shoot? I think the Judge and Governor are both gimmick guns that pray on the ignorance of people. "A shotgun revolver that would be AWESOME for home defense!" The fact of the matter is .410 is a terrible defense caliber unless you're fighting small game and snakes.

 

[FreakyStylie]

I wouldn't want to get hit with this.

 

[Blitzkrieg]

The point is it's unlikely to stop a determined attacker. I would not at all like to be shot with a .25 auto, but would it stop me if I was "on a mission"?.. very doubtful

An EMT once told me a story of a big guy who had a beef with a little guy. Little guy pulls a .25 auto and empties the 8 rounds into big guy's torso, center mass. Big guy takes the gun away, gets really angry and nearly beats little guy to death

Big guy gets some paper towels, makes tiny plugs, packs his wound holes and waits for the ambulance. He survives

 

[Taurus 617 CCW]

Just wondered why you would not want to buy a Taurus? With a user name of Taurus you must have a good reason.

Yeah, that's sort of a catch-22 (no pun intended). The Taurus 617 was my first handgun that I owned and my handle was created at that time. I have since then changed guns many times but the name stayed due to the number of posts. I am a gunsmith and have repaired a handful of Tauri that had problems the factory should not have let out the doors. I am not here to bash Taurus in any way I am just saying that I personally do not choose to own one anymore and won't recommend them to others.

The .410 as a defense cartridge has limited applications but I do believe it has its place. It is very effective at close ranges to point blank, however I believe that the weight/size of the gun offsets the portability and will therefore is more likely to be left at home.

 

[skud_dusty]

I wouldn't want to get shot with a pellet gun, that doesn't mean I'd be willing to carry one for SD. The fact of the matter is .410 as a self defense round isn't a good idea. The majority of .410 slugs I've seen (IIRC all .410 slugs, but I admittedly haven't seen them all) won't even penetrate the minimum FBI 12 inches. I'm sure the PDX1 and other .410 rounds will leave a nasty wound... but nasty wounds don't stop bad guys, hitting vital organs stops bad guys.

 

[dolooper]

The .45 acp with moon clips is a cool idea. They should do that with a 625 or 325 in .45 Colt / .45 acp. The name is silly to me. Judge, Governor, el Presidente next?

Well, it's not double action, but maybe I'll get a Blackhawk convertible and some .38 shot shells. It'll handle .38, .357, .38 shot, and 9 mm. I'll call it the "County Commissioner."

 

[jlbob]

I was able to handle one with the crimson trace grips at a show in January and I really liked the feel of the gun. It had nice balance and seemed like it would handle the recoil well. After seeing it and handling the governor it makes me want to get one for me and one for my mom.

 

[Carbohydrates]

Cute range toy. Multiple caliber options is always fun to play with, but that's about it. As a self defense gun, it'll work in the way that just about any possible firearm will work, but there are much better options. If I had to shoot someone with a Judge / Governor / whatever, I'd be using .45LC or .45 ACP, not .410. Also, with .45 ACP through that thing, that's an awful lot of unrifled chamber that bullet's going down before it hits the forcing cone.

 

[twoclones]

I was interested in the Judge until I handled one at a gun show. Then I changed gears and bought a Bond Arms derringer in 45LC / 3" .410. They call it the ultimate car jack defense gun and I would be very confident using it for defense in any 15' or closer situation. Farther than that I might wish I had my revolver....

 

[deen_ad]

I was interested in the Judge until I handled one at a gun show. Then I changed gears and bought a Bond Arms derringer in 45LC / 3" .410. They call it the ultimate car jack defense gun and I would be very confident using it for defense in any 15' or closer situation. Farther than that I might wish I had my revolver....

Lets see, 2 rds of 45LC/.410 vs 5 rds of 45LC/.410. I'll take the 5 rds of .410 (PDX1) please. 15 of the 32 cal (approx) pellets at 1250 fps would slow most down. I keep a Judge Public Defender in a hidden compartment of my car since it's far easier to get to than the .45 IWB. If I have to empty the Judge then I've still got the .45 to fall back on.

8 former US Presidents have been NRA Members
80 MILLION gun owners didn't shoot anyone today, a few criminals did!

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The "Feedback Score" is low by 4, not everyone posts it I guess.

Deen
NRA Benefactor/Recruiter
Washington Arms Collector member
South West Washington Arms Collector member

 

[Iceberg]

I decided to just by a .45 ACP S&W 325 Night Guard from Nick at Brightwaters. I really don't need to shoot .410, so I just stepped up and bought the 45.

 

[pioneer461]

Just wondered why you would not want to buy a Taurus? With a user name of Taurus you must have a good reason. I have been keeping an eye out for a used Judge and would like your opinion.

I wonder if Adam has ever owned a Taurus, or is he passing along second hand bashing? I own two of them, both revolvers, one a 617, which are state of the art. Sure, once upon a time Taurus made crap, so did Smith & Wesson, Colt, Sig Arms, Kimber, Ruger, etc., etc.

Getting back on topic, I'd like to own either a Governor or a Judge, but don't believe I'd make it a carry gun. With any new model, I'd give it a while for the bugs to be worked out. New models are commonly cranked out at the factory to meet anticipated sales, and sometimes QC suffers.

I bought a brand new Sig Mosquito a few years back when they were first introduced, based mainly because of Sig's reputation and I was in the market for a .22 semi-auto. It was crap. I communicated with Sig's customer service crew, and they didn't fix the gun, they replaced it.

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[Blitzkrieg]

I decided to just by a .45 ACP S&W 325 Night Guard from Nick at Brightwaters. I really don't need to shot .410, so I just stepped up and bought the 45.

Good move. I predict you are going to love that gun