Taurus is giving the people what they want. Taking cues from its hardcore revolver fans, the firearms company is expanding its 605 line of .357 Mag. revolvers to include three-inch barrels and adding the .327 Federal Magnum cartridge to its 856 series.
We caught up with Taurus CEO Bret Vorhees at SHOT Show 2022 so he could walk us through these great new offerings.
The new 605’s three-inch barrel still allows for great concealability but improves accuracy via a longer sight radius and increases projectile velocity.
The 605 is chambered in .357 Magnum/.38 Special, holds five rounds in its steel cylinder, and uses a double-action/single-action firing mechanism. It weighs 23.5 ounces and measures 7.5 inches in length and 4.8 inches in height.
The trigger is excellent even in double-action mode, and the front fiber optic sight is easy to pick up.
The 605 is available in these configurations:
- Altamont wood grip with Tungsten Cerakote finish (MSRP $517.33)
- Hogue rubber grip with matte black finish on a stainless-steel frame (MSRP $472.63)
- VZ black/gray grip with matte stainless steel and matte black cylinder finish (MSRP $540.68)
- Hogue rubber grip with matte stainless-steel finish (MSRP $472.63)
Customers have also been asking Taurus to add the .327 Federal Magnum cartridge to its 856 series of revolvers, and Taurus delivered. We gave the 856 Defender high marks in our full review, and the addition of the .327 cartridge is sure to appeal to concealed carry practitioners.
The .327 is based on a lengthened .32 H&R Magnum cartridge case and exceeds the performance of its parent cartridge. It pushes an 85-grain bullet 1,500 fps and a 100-grain bullet about 1,450 fps, the latter of which produces 467 ft.-lbs. of energy. This allows the .327 to rival the .357 Magnum while maintaining much softer felt recoil.
Plus, users can also fire the .32 H&R Magnum and .32 S&W Long cartridges from the .327’s six-round cylinder.
The Taurus .327 is a double-action/single-action and is available with a 2-inch or 3-inch barrel. The revolver is also available with a black carbon steel or stainless-steel barrel, cylinder, and frame.
- MSRP – $371.05 Matte Black Model
- MSRP – $388.32 Stainless Model
Click HERE to learn more about the three-inch 605 and the .327 856.
Been looking for a long time.327 3inch
Were can I buy a lower for taurus g3
Wear d o I find a 3″ m327 from Taurus?
I have an 856 in matte stainless steel with a 2 inch barrel. The trigger pull in double action is superb. I have on order a 3″ 942 I told the store I’m buying it from I’d prefer the matte stainless steel but if the matte black is available I will take that one if it’s available first. Now with the 327 Federal I want that in a 3 inch and hopefully it’s available.
Just try finding a holster for Taurus TX22 or TX22 Competition! Pretty much non-existent! Taurus does not get much support from handgun product community!
More than likely Taurus keeps on discontinuing and introducing new guns is why there’s not much aftermarket support. Unlike if you bought a Glock in the 1980s the holsters magazines and a whole plethora of aftermarket support for what pretty much the same gun in 2022. Now before you Glock haters attack, I know internally there’s some differences, but like I said you can take a gen 5 magazine, holster and use it for a gen 1 and vice versa.
Senior shooters having issues with racking a slide will find that DA/SA revolvers are much easier to use. The push for ultralight revolvers with 2″ or shorter barrels does defeat the usefulness of revolvers for senior shooters. Likewise, the difference between carrying a sub 2″ versus a 3″ revolver doesn’t exist, (except for finding a holster). In short, a 3″ all steel revolver would be a much better choice for senior shooters than the majority of autoloaders. Nice to see that TAURUS realized there is a market for these revolvers. Just hope that they will actually be showing up in gun shops.
I’ve had a Taurus .327 6 shot stainless snubby for ten years. This article makes it sound like it was just designed and manufactured. I’d like to see the 617 brought back. A nice. 357 snubby with 7 rounds.
I noticed that there was no reference to how hard the trigger pull is. My past experience with Taurus revolvers is that their double action triggers put up a lot of resistance. So, how much effort must be used to pull the trigger in double action mode? I do like the .327 caliber and it’s flexibility to be able to use either the 32 H&R magnum or the 32 Long.
I am amazed how Taurus just keeps intoducing new types of revolvers that are never available for sale. Many of my friends in Florida have searched far and wide for new offerings like the 942m and the 942 22lr version revolvers for a year and a half to no avail. Same with the newer released Taurus 856 Defender series. They are just not available for sale in Florida. Many of my friends have moved on to other manufacturers that have items in stock. Sorry Taurus and CEO Brett Voorhies, Covid or no covid, We will not be waiting a year or more for these new releases to be available. Hello Smith and Wesson….
Listen, Brian… Hear that?
It’s the sound of how small and ignorant you sound…
The 856 in .327 fed is not on the web site as of yet. It is interesting if for no other reason that there are so few .327s on the market. The Ruger LCR is five shot, has a snubby barrel that really does no favors for the cartridge, and the msrp is north of $600. The SP101 is a very sweet six shot revolver, but clocks in north of $700 (if you can find one). This 3″ Taurus shaves about 100 fps off the velocity (compared to a 6″ barrel) which is an acceptable de minimis loss. All in all, a solid entry in the concealed carry market, assuming it is reliable.
I would prefer, however, something bigger than those puny 2 1/2 finger grips (I assume they can be changed out since other 856s have the larger grip) and the high viz front sight. If this gets added to the California roster, it may make my “I want one of those” list.
The LCR .327 is a six-shooter. Mine is, anyway.