Taurus Protector Poly .357 has arrived

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MillCreek

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Snohomish County, Washington USA
My Taurus Protector Poly in .357 has arrived. Some quick initial impressions: fit and finish on the polymer is not as good as on my Ruger LCR, it is very lightweight, the cylinder release is going to need to be cycled a bit in order to loosen it up, the fiber optic front sight is quick to acquire, double-action trigger pull is much heavier than the LCR but I have confidence that it will ignite just about any primer, and the shrouded hammer is great for carry while giving a single-action option. It is pouring rain up here right now, but I did get out into the backyard and put 15 rounds of Winchester white box .38 special through it. No problems with function, timing or ejection and I am reserving judgement shooting to point of aim until I can do a more controlled test in better weather. $ 302 from Bud's plus $35 transfer from my FFL. So far, it seems to be a pretty good value for money, as are my other Taurus handguns.
 
I had the terrible idea of buying my wife a 38 Poly Protector. She didn't like it and couldn't shoot it well. Then I thought I would just keep it for myself. Then it quickly got traded off. Good luck with yours.
 
So I am now several months into owning the Poly Protector. I have put around 500 rounds through it, 350 .38 and 150 .357. I have had no problems, it has gone bang every time I pulled the trigger, and it still seems as tight as the day I bought it. I have had it out in all weathers, including an unplanned dunk into Puget Sound, and no corrosion or finish problems. I am using the smaller boot grip and this is one of the best stock grips I have ever used. Although it is still impressive shooting .357 158 grain JSP out of it, it is not acutely painful, as I have experienced with other revolvers. I attribute this to the grips and the 23 ounces loaded weight. I also like the fiber optic sight on the front.

I like this revolver so much that I bought another one from Bud's and it is now my truck gun. It replaces my Taurus 85 concealed hammer stainless. I try to keep only my more relatively-inexpensive handguns in the vehicle. Even though it is locked in one of the car cable safes, if someone is clever enough to bring bolt-cutters, it is gone. I am keeping it loaded with Remington .38+p 125 grain JHP, and I have a couple of ammo wallets in the car loaded with the Remington and the .357 158 grain JSP. The .357 158 grain JSP is what I carry in the woods, so I wanted a reload of that in case I break down out in the backwoods.

So from my perspective, two thumbs up for the Taurus Protector Poly.
 
I frequent the Taurus Armed forum ...
I don't remember hearing any problems with Protector Poly 357 pistols... The polymer frame of my LCR357 seems to absorb the recoil 357 mag ammo ..
 
I've looked at the Poly Protector at Academy several times. Glad it's a good shooter. I keep holding out for a .357 LCR, bit the price on the PP is attractive.
 
The only major issue I have had with my 357 Protector Poly was the mold lines inside the trigger guard. Some 400 wet & dry and a few minutes work smoothed them out both on the inside and outside. The crane still feels "sticky" opening or closing but locks up solid so I just put up with that. That front sight really does work and makes alignment easy.

One thing with the smaller grip, it does allow the use of a speed loader where the larger grip tends to get in the way too much.

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How much cheaper is this revolver than the Ruger polymer .38? I have a hard time believing it is of equal quality.
 
I like 158gr LSWC hard cast out of my rossi 2.5 in snubby. Have you tried those in yours?
 
I’ve shot a poly protector .357 extensively and to me, the trigger is totally unacceptable. I’m pretty sure it would break a trigger pull gauge before you could even get it all the way to fire in DA. Thankfully, the gun is not mine and the owner says he is going to get rid of it as soon as funds build up for something else.
 
roscoe

I did a quick check at Bud's and it shows the Ruger LCR in .357 going for $515 while the Taurus 605 PLYB2 is at $281. An LCR in .38 Special is $453.
 
roscoe said:
How much cheaper is this revolver than the Ruger polymer .38? I have a hard time believing it is of equal quality.
Click to expand...
I see we have the current price difference posted above. I also have a LCR in .38. The Ruger has correspondingly higher quality to go with the higher price, and I would not argue that the Taurus has equivalent fit and finish to the Ruger. Nor does the Taurus have as good a trigger as the LCR, which is quite possibly amongst the best revolver triggers I have ever used in my 37 years of owning revolvers. In terms of functionality, I am of the opinion that the Taurus is the equal of the Ruger, and I prefer the front sight and the boot grip of the Taurus over the Ruger. I own more Ruger revolvers and S&W pistols than any other brand, and I also own Taurus revolvers and pistols since they offer things I cannot find elsewhere. Price is not a major consideration for me since I can pretty much afford to buy whatever I want. I wish that Taurus would bring back the titanium revolvers, since I would like to buy a few more of those. The Protector Polys are going to be in my 'tool guns' group, where functionality and ruggedness are my primary concerns.
 
My Taurus 651SH2 Total Titamium .357 snubby is my "I might get super-sweaty or fall in the water" gun. The bbl, lockwork, and a few other parts are steel. The bulk is titanium.
 
MillCreek said:
So I am now several months into owning the Poly Protector. I have put around 500 rounds through it, 350 .38 and 150 .357. I have had no problems, it has gone bang every time I pulled the trigger, and it still seems as tight as the day I bought it. I have had it out in all weathers, including an unplanned dunk into Puget Sound, and no corrosion or finish problems. I am using the smaller boot grip and this is one of the best stock grips I have ever used. Although it is still impressive shooting .357 158 grain JSP out of it, it is not acutely painful, as I have experienced with other revolvers. I attribute this to the grips and the 23 ounces loaded weight. I also like the fiber optic sight on the front.

I like this revolver so much that I bought another one from Bud's and it is now my truck gun. It replaces my Taurus 85 concealed hammer stainless. I try to keep only my more relatively-inexpensive handguns in the vehicle. Even though it is locked in one of the car cable safes, if someone is clever enough to bring bolt-cutters, it is gone. I am keeping it loaded with Remington .38+p 125 grain JHP, and I have a couple of ammo wallets in the car loaded with the Remington and the .357 158 grain JSP. The .357 158 grain JSP is what I carry in the woods, so I wanted a reload of that in case I break down out in the backwoods.

So from my perspective, two thumbs up for the Taurus Protector Poly.
Click to expand...

Good to hear its working well for you. I saw some reviews that said some screws were shooting loose so hopefully it was specific to those guns.

The Poly looks like an interesting gun. Ill add it to the list of potential handy car guns
 
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