Thinking about buying the judge public defender??

ZakAri · Apr 10, 2012

Want to buy the judge but waiting to sell my kimber. Has anyone fired this fire arm and if so i am wondering how it handles? .410 and .45 lc....

Edgewalker · Apr 10, 2012

What do you plan to use it for? I bought one for my dad a year or two ago. He loves it as his gopher gun/woods gun/home defense pistol. It's not something I'd recommend for daily carry for many reasons that I won't get into now. The .410 pattern spreads fast so you obviously have to be close and you can't drive tacks with the .45 lc but the recoil is manageable. There have been several threads started on this pistol here at NWFA so do a quick search and you can see what's come up so far.

The B · Apr 10, 2012

ZakAri said:
Want to buy the judge but waiting to sell my kimber. Has anyone fired this fire arm and if so i am wondering how it handles? .410 and .45 lc....

We absolutely need to know what you intend for it to be able to answer this

ZakAri · Apr 10, 2012

Home protection. I was thinking 000 buck? Thanks

The B · Apr 10, 2012

Well... let's break it down. The .410 is the .22lr of shotguns. Pretty much the ONLY place it's ever found is in youth model rifle/shotgun combos from Walmart. It's useless for everything except rodent/snake control, and even for those, you pretty much need to be within powderburn range to guarantee an ethical kill.

Yet Taurus has somehow convinced people that coming out of a 2" barrel, the .410 becomes Thor's Hammer...

No, my friend, you should not get a Judge for home protection.

MarkAd · Apr 10, 2012

The 410 is a good round, great for small game. My old one had a real tight pattern, but out of a long barrel.
While his evaluation of it as a home defense round is correct. BKb's judgement of the overall performance is incorrect.

SFC Skip · Apr 11, 2012

If you decide to get one, I would suggest on getting it chambered for 3" 410.

Member 5605 · Apr 11, 2012

A while back I had considered picking one up... until I held one in my hand. Fitment wasn't quite how I liked.

I assume you have test fitted already?

ZakAri · Apr 11, 2012

Im going to think on it a bit, thanks for the input

Artilleryman · Apr 12, 2012

I wouldn't mind having one, strictly for plinking. Especially the similar model that's capable of handling the .454 Casull. It wouldn't be my choice for cc or home defense, but looks like it would be a helluva lot of fun otherwise....and hasn't S&W produced their own knock off version recently?

rockstardrnkr · Apr 12, 2012

S&W has the governor which also shoots 45 auto. I had a Taurus judge, chambered in 2 1/2, 3 ' barrel, disliked it quite a bit, figured I have it for home security, took it out shooting a couple times. Needless to say they are not *plinking* guns, very uncomfortable to shoot, cant hit squat with it, all around unimpressed... Sold it!

ZakAri · Apr 12, 2012

When i held it, it felt pretty comfortable- but, a .45 lc wasnt blowing out of the barrel either! Thanks for the input guys! I have a Pro Crimson Carry 2 that i am selling by Kimber, got to sell that first before i can make any moves....

MilesTeg · Apr 12, 2012

I would stay away from the polymer version of the Judge. I've seen more than a few with a tweaked crane that prevented the cylinder from easily coming out. Basically you had to put your finger on the bore end of the cylinder to flip it out. If you placed you finger towards the rear the cylinder/crane would flex and jam. Never noticed any problems on the all metal Judge's but I would pass on the poly.

BTW: I like Taurus and have had or still own quite a few of their wheel guns and auto's.

Yamahamottox · Apr 12, 2012

A person who has never fired a .410 may think it is low powered but it is a great shotgun for game birds and trap. That is if your a good enough shot to hit your target. I have a full size .410 shotgun.

ZakAri · Apr 12, 2012

Ya, i had a lil 1 shot .410 and it was damn fun, i loved how it just shot out the spent shell upon breaking the barrel- fun gun! I want another!

Misterbill · Apr 12, 2012

If your thing is a novelty gun because it's "cool," then go ahead. As a self defense weapon it sucks in every possible category except the .45 LC round.

Low Capacity (Even when compared to single-stack semis) -check

Double Action heavy trigger -Check

Hard to reload -Check

Not very concealable -Check.

Heavier than a large rock? -Check

This gun fails in every possible aspect for self defense I can think of. You'd be 1000 times better off with a S&W 686 with a six-inch barrel. This is a gimmick gun. that's all it is. If that's what you want, go for it. If you want a serious self defense gun try a Glock, or a wheeelgun, or for that matter a LCP. -The LCP shoots better than the judge and yes, I've tried them both.

ZakAri · Apr 12, 2012

I agree but i was thinking for home but i have an S&W .357 airlte and kimber ultra for carry, and sleep with the .357. The Judge truly is the Rodger Rabbit gun that shoots indians out of it!!!

i most likely am going to pass it up but work has been slow.... If i get a job catching rattlesnakes with the swamp people then i might change my mind! I doubt it-