Taurus Public Defender

[Sarge]

Now, I’ve never been a big Taurus guy… but I’m on a “What the hell, try it!” kick & I swapped into a stainless Public Defender a few days ago. The shotgun aspect is interesting but of limited value to me... the oddball chamber dimensions presented some challenges in finding a usefully-accurate load. I eventually loaded a swaged .454" bullet and to cut down the distance the bullet had to jump, I loaded these out to 1.720”. You have to admit that the 45 Colt, loaded to this length, has a certain 19th century charm about it.



Be advised that loaded to this length, my Ruger Vaquero wouldn’t chamber them. But they dropped right into the Public Defender and that what I was after. Shoots well enough for a general-use 45 Colt load, at least from shotgun/snubnose. Now to perfect the at 25 yard zero.




More here:

www.thesixgunjournal.net/the-taurus-public-defender-45-colt410-snubnose-revolver/

[shorty500]

the pd makes a great toting gun. have shot enough small thru medium vermin to really appreciate the winchester pdx loads performance on soft tissue. Rio brand #12 shotshells are ultimate snake paralizers! read your link and althougH heavy oversize .459 range hollow bases weighing around 300grains make accurate stompers using trailboss and a taller front sight

[shorty500]

the pd makes a great toting gun. have shot enough small thru medium vermin to really appreciate the winchester pdx loads performance on soft tissue. Rio brand #12 shotshells are ultimate snake paralizers! read your link and althougH heavy oversize .459 range hollow bases weighing around 300grains make accurate stompers using trailboss and a taller front sight

[Sarge]

I'd read that some of these revolvers will accept 45 ACP in Taurus's little 5-shot 'Stellar' clip intended for their Model 455 snubnose. Some won't; the difference being about 0.008" as near as I could tell. Anyhow I ordered a 5 pack of moon clips and determined to make them work. One of the glorious things about an off-brand revolver is that you're not afraid to go hammer & tongs on it.

I removed about 0.007" from the recoil plate before the clips would drop in and turn freely with ACP cartridges in place. The firing pin still sits below flush and headspace has not changed significantly, so there should be no negatives with this modification for standard-pressure 45 Colt of 410 shot-shells. It did require a complete tear-down and I slicked things up a little, while I was in there.

I've got half a three-pound coffee can of lead-bullet 45 ACP loads left, so we'll soon know how well the gun shoots with them. I don't expect it'll be a tack driver but I'm tickled to have added a layer of versatility to an already versatile fivegun.

[Sarge]

May 29, 2013 11:24:04 GMT -5 shorty500 said:

the pd makes a great toting gun. have shot enough small thru medium vermin to really appreciate the winchester pdx loads performance on soft tissue. Rio brand #12 shotshells are ultimate snake paralizers! read your link and althougH heavy oversize .459 range hollow bases weighing around 300grains make accurate stompers using trailboss and a taller front sight

Thanks for the info on the 459's, Shorty. May have to give those a whirl!

[Sarge]

I ran a few ‘clips’ through the gun this morning and there were no problems to report. The target represents 20 rounds fired DA at 15 yards and I flubbed a few out of the bull until I figured out I needed to hold just under the red dot on the target. There was some key-holing but I didn’t bother cleaning the bore and it was already leaded up from yesterday's shooting. The same hold yielded consistent hits on 6” falling plates.



Man, this gun is dirty. The chambers look like old sewer pipe.

[Sarge]

OK guys, final installment.

Satisfied that the Long 45 Colt Load was going to shoot about as well as anything from this gun, I set about zeroing the fixed sights for 25 yards. It was shooting a good six inches high and there are essentially no aftermarket front sights available for this revolver. So the answer was to remove metal from the top of the frame at the rear sight notch. I just needed to determine ‘how much’. I turned to Brownells Sight Correction Calculator for the answer. With the PD’s 4.25” sight radius, the Math Wizard said 0.019” would get me there. I covered the topstrap with electrical tape and grabbed my freshest Nicholson 06601N and set to work- very slowly and taking measurements every third stroke. I stopped at 0.017” and eyeballed the sight notch, which was now a little shallow. I was able to deepen the notch an equal amount using a Brownell’s Pillar File, which has two safe edges and is perfect for these jobs.

When the rain stopped, I hung a target and fired five rounds standing unsupported at 25 yards. The Long Load group was 3” including the high shot (which I think I pulled) and 2” excluding it. Aside from a possible slight windage correction, I am satisfied. This ridiculous little 45 ACP/LC/410 combo revolver is now shooting better than the PT145 it replaced.

[depcon3]

Good trade.

;D