Taurus M25 .25 ACP NK PNKLAM/GLD - Stainless/Silver, 2.75" Barrel, 9 Rounds, Polymer Grips, 3-Dot Sights

Alright, I'm back for my third review. This is reliable and handy if you're not going to need to reload it quickly. Frankly, the tip-up barrel is a bad idea. You need to carry loose rounds if you want to reload. I say that's pretty lame. It shoots straight, and feeds okay, even though I've only put 100 rounds or so through it. Every time, you need to put a live round in the chamber, manually. I think that is pretty stupid. Beyond that, the gun is pretty sweet. Three stars is my final rating. Personal defense......... Okay, I guess it will be alright if I hit them in the eyeball, and don't need to reload.

Taurus tells me that this design can't be cocked manually, and that the tip up barrel must be used. I should retract my previous review. However, I can't say that I like that as a feature of the weapon. I'm thinking about a situation where loading fast might be important. Am I supposed to keep a couple loose rounds in my pocket if I need to reload? I'm not liking that too much. I'll rate again based on just that "feature", and rate again after I take and and shoot it like they say to. That makes me wonder why there are finger grooves on the slide..... Hmmmm

Well, I hate to leave a negative review of a Taurus firearm because I like Taurus guns. However this particular piece is a POS. When received, the slide would not rack at all. Thinking this might be some kind of feature, I read all the paperwork that came with it. Seems like the slide should open, even unloaded? Well, to answer this question, we ordered a couple boxes of .25 ammo just to be sure. The single magazine that came with the pistol (I thought Taurus Handguns came with an extra mag, but this one didn't) was SUPER difficult to load due to a majorly stiff spring. After loading the pistol, the slide still refused to budge. Finally, I used a hard piece of plastic to gain purchase on the front end of the slide to attempt forcing it rearward. The slide did then go back with much effort. When the slide closed, it did strip a round from the magazine, but again the action refused to cycle. Using the hard piece of plastic to shove the slide rearward again, I noticed that the round that chambered was still firmly seated in the chamber. Guess the extractor didn't catch the case, either? I even used some light oil to free the slide some, but it made no difference. In an attempt to cycle the action correctly, I tried many things but it just wouldn't work properly. Needless to say, I never attempted to fire the pistol. I've never seen such a bound-up, stiff, impossible to work action on any pistol, ever. Any attempt to work the slide without a tool is futile. My six-foot-six roommate couldn't work the slide at all with all his strength. I'm thinking this isn't a good weapon for a woman to use. This thing is going back. It's a paperweight.