# Taurus PT145 Impressions



## oak1971 (Apr 28, 2008)

I have been asked to review my PT145 by a fellow member. When first considering what compact pistol to buy I decided that it had to be .45 ACP and it would have to have more capacity than a 1911. I happen to reload for that caliber and I like to put large hole in things.

That being said, I narrowed down my choices to Glock 30 or Springfield XD 45. I liked the XD but wanted to get down to a 3 inch barrel. So I found a Glock at the gun shop and discovered It was too large for my hands. Fortunately they had a PT145 in the case and it fit just fine.

It is very glock like in concept. Stricker fired, polymer frame, combat style trigger for preventing misfires, loaded chamber indicator, saftey, and a key operated striker dissconnect.

First thing I noticed when I popped it apart was the feed ramp. It is polished to an almost mirror like finnish, ensuring smooth feeding of big nasty hollow points. Field stripping is easy enough for a caveman.

Ok so I picked up a box of 230 federal hydroshock and my large green ammo box full of handloaded 230 grain XTP with 8.3 grains of Accurate #5 and headed for the range.

With a 3 inch barrel I was not expecting much in the way of accuracy, but at seven yards I was able to obiterate the center of the target. Accuracy at 15 yards was hampered by my inexprience with tiny plastic pistols and hot 45 loads. After a while I was able to enure the fatality of the offending paper target. Even did some head shots.

The trigger is sa/da with a second strike capability. If you have a hard primer or one that did not seat well and it does not go bang, just pull the trigger a second time and you are good. It works, I had two primers on my hand loads that were not seated fully. First pull seated it second one made it go boom. SA trigger is pretty nice for a combat gun DA pull is a little long with some stacking but not too bad.

After 500 rounds of hot handloads i am still pleased,no malfunctions other than the two caused by my ammo boo boo. And the gun fixed that too.
Over all a nice pocket rocket for a good price. Hope I have helped.


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## Steve M1911A1 (Feb 6, 2008)

*oak1971*;
Thanks-you've answered almost all of my questions, and I didn't even have to ask them specifically.
One thing you wrote raises a question, though. You said the trigger is "sa/da." Please explain. I thought that the Taurus PT145's trigger is DAO ("double-action" only), and that its trigger pull is always the same. Your statement implies that the trigger pull changes from shot to shot in some way.
Further, could you somehow estimate the trigger-letoff weight? (Descriptively, heavy, medium, or light would be enough information.)
I assume, too, from your description, that you didn't ever experience a misfeed or jam. Is that true (aside from primer issues)?
Thank you for your help!


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## oak1971 (Apr 28, 2008)

http://http://www.taurususa.com/products/product-details.cfm?id=40&category=Pistol

Their site describes it as DA/SA. Having it sitting right next to me I can tell you that without racking the slide the gun can be fired in what appears to be a DA mode. If you rack the slide, and pull the trigger it feels like SA mode. In DA mode, I would describe the trigger pull as medium to heavy as it stacks up and breaks cleanly. SA mode features a generous amount of travel which allows a saftey factor to prevent accidental discharge. After taking up the travel trigger pull is medium and smooth.
I do not have a lot of experience with combat triggers so I can't tell you how it differs from say a glock in trigger quality. I do know that it works well for what I would need it to do. As far as reliability goes, 500 plus rounds- no issuses. The best feature is that if you do have a ammo malfuntion, say a hard primer or a primer that was seated incorrectly, it will revert back to DA mode, allowing you to try to fire again without rackin the slide. Usefull in competion as well as a fire fight.


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## Steve M1911A1 (Feb 6, 2008)

*oak1971*;
Thanks yet again: what you wrote is most helpful, and quite neatly answers my questions. You have very usefully explained the (apparently) strange trigger action I experienced, handling the empty gun in a shop.
The PT145's re-strike capability isn't terribly important, given either factory-made ammunition or good-quality reloads. In my experience, if it doesn't go "bang" immediately, then pulling the trigger again usually isn't going to help and isn't worth trying.
The real reliability issue is in feeding from the magazine, and the extraction-and-ejection cycle. If it shucks empties and loads anew with complete reliability, that's all one could possibly desire.
So the PT145 works reliably in your hands, and it has a useful trigger action.
That's what I needed to know.
Thank you again!


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## AdamSean (Mar 16, 2008)

I have owned one of these in the past too. It was my first .45 and I loved it. I got rid of it foolishly, but will soon either buy a PT-145 or a PT-745 single stack for easier concealability.


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## benzuncle (Aug 29, 2007)

When looking for another carry gun, I looked at most of the forums about most all of the firearms I considered a possibility. It had to be a 45ACP; that's my round. I looked at all the models on the gun company sites also, comparing dimensions, mag capacity, etc. Here's the skinny: I've learned that every brand and every model of firearm has seen a "bad seed" come out of the factory. And when that happens, the "wronged" party puts forth the hue and cry. I've seen this with each of the other firearms I own without having had those problems. So, after doing my due diligence, lurking and listening on several forums and after actually putting my hands on one recently, I threw down dead presidents for a Taurus PT-145 in stainless steel. I didn't want to speak until I got a chance to put some rounds through it. I gotter dunn today. I fed 200 rounds of my 230gr round nose handloads through it with zero, zero problems; no FTF's & no FTE's. As I own a Sig P220 Compact and am a zealot about how well it shoots, I had something to compare the Taurus to. Taurus used to get pretty beat-up about their firearms; the harsh statements were often warranted. Times have changed folks. After shooting it today, I can say that I'm glad my mind hasn't closed up on me. In a nutshell, the Taurus PT-145 is the best firearm for the money that I have ever purchased. Not the best. That still belongs to my Sig, but at a much higher price. But I am way impressed with the PT-145. I wish I had brought another 200 rounds with me. It was a real hoot to shoot. Being used to the 3-dot night sites on the Sig, the Heinie sights take some getting used to but that happened about 3 mags into the shoot. The PT-145 is as accurate as other owners have reported. The hard texture on the front of the grip threw me; I expected it to punish my hand. Not so. Even though I have relatively small hands, the grip with a 10-round magazine fits easily in my hand while allowing me to reach the safety and mag release with no problem. Man. A firearm this small and comfortable with 10+1 rounds of 45ACP. Whooda Thunkit? And it shoots straight as piss too! The single action squeeze was very, very good. I shot all but the first magazine one-handed. I quit shooting 2-handed months ago. The Taurus PT-145 was easily one-handed. It and that second 10-round mag fits nicely in my Smart Carry. The PT-145 is pretty gunked up when purchased new. Clean'er up good before taking it out for your first Sunday drive. To those of you on the fence or just wondering: my 2 cents.
One last thing: Thanks a pile to all of you that have shared your experiences, both good and bad about your Taurus PT-145's. You helped me decide.


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## oak1971 (Apr 28, 2008)

Excelent another convert. 800 rounds plus and still happy as can be for mine.


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## jpruett79 (Sep 23, 2006)

l like mine but i cant use reloaded ammo with it. for some reason it wont pop the primers. I havent had one problem with factory ammo though. but i have tried several different primers in my reloads with no luck.


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## benzuncle (Aug 29, 2007)

jpruett79 said:


> l like mine but i cant use reloaded ammo with it. for some reason it wont pop the primers. I havent had one problem with factory ammo though. but i have tried several different primers in my reloads with no luck.


Hmmm. That's weird. All I shoot is my own reloads with *CCI* primers. After one mag of factory loads to make sure everything was copasetic, I ran 200 rounds of my 230gr handloads through it w/o a hitch. BTW: this is the same ammo that I've shoved through my Sig P220 Compact. That has fired 1300 rounds through it, also with no problems. Having said all that, have you tried CCI's also? Please let us know.


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## jpruett79 (Sep 23, 2006)

thanks for the suggestion I will try CCI next. I have a good friend who has done most of my reloading for years and he uses federal primers. Until now i have never had a problem with them and i have shot many thousand rounds of his ammo. I also have a friend from another forum and he is having the same problem. We have been going back and fourth for about a month now trying different things. Hopefully this will work.

I will be ordering my own reloading equipment within the next couple weeks so i will also pick up the CCI primers and start with them.

thank you for the advice


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## oak1971 (Apr 28, 2008)

Somewhere around 2k rounds, mostly 230g hand loads. All Good. Use CCI primers and make sure the primers are fully seated. Also watch finished length. Mine does not like them on the long side of tolerance. What dimension do you guys use?


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## benzuncle (Aug 29, 2007)

oak1971 said:


> Somewhere around 2k rounds, mostly 230g hand loads. All Good. Use CCI primers and make sure the primers are fully seated. Also watch finished length. Mine does not like them on the long side of tolerance. What dimension do you guys use?


At the recommendation of a fellow member on this site (and others), I use a Dillon Case Gage to check the length of every round I "build". I do this for the 45ACP's and the 380ACP's I load. *Thanks Baldy! * :smt023 Never a long round with the case gage. I don't load for speed cuz loadin' and emptyin' ammo boxes is my hobby. Even so, I can load 50 rounds every 20 minutes without rushing about.


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## Dsig1 (Dec 23, 2007)

oak1971 said:


> http://http://www.taurususa.com/products/product-details.cfm?id=40&category=Pistol
> 
> Their site describes it as DA/SA. Having it sitting right next to me I can tell you that without racking the slide the gun can be fired in what appears to be a DA mode. If you rack the slide, and pull the trigger it feels like SA mode. In DA mode, I would describe the trigger pull as medium to heavy as it stacks up and breaks cleanly. SA mode features a generous amount of travel which allows a saftey factor to prevent accidental discharge. After taking up the travel trigger pull is medium and smooth.


So, to make sure I understand, if want a consistent SA type trigger pull, I would load and insert the magazine. Next I rack the slide to chamber a round and my first shot will be SA. If I insert a mag with the slide back and release it, the first round will fire in DA and the subsequent rounds in SA?


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## oak1971 (Apr 28, 2008)

I think so. I can check.


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## benzuncle (Aug 29, 2007)

I went to the range Tuesday after reviewing once more the questions/comments about DA/SA on this thread. Here's my take on it:
When you shove a fresh magazine in the grip and engage the slide release, shoving the slide forward and chambering a round, the PT-145 will fire in single action. If it fails to fire, for whatever reason, the next pull on the same round will be double action. Once that round fires, or when you pull the slide back and chamber another round, it reverts back to single action. My Sig Sauer Mosquito (22lr) works much the same way (although it will fire in DA after engaging the decocking lever). With rimfire ammo, duds are a little more commonplace and hitting the round with that second DA strike fired both of my FTF's in the Sig.


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## RevDerb (Jun 4, 2008)

As I continue to follow threads like this, my prejudice against Taurus is diminishing tremendously. If this keeps up, I think that there is a PT145 in my future. Thanks for making my day(s) and changing my thoughts. Rethinking prejudices is a good thing!


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## Nimble1 (Jan 6, 2007)

*2nd Gen DAO Pt145*

Took my new (to me) Taurus to the range yesterday for the first time. I was a bit apprehensive as it was a used gun and I had been reading about some people having issues with them. I put 100 rnds of WWB through it with absolutely no problems. I found the DAO trigger to be very smooth and easy to use. I also put another 20 rnds of Remington JHP through it without a snag. Overall very pleased with it.

Tom


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## hemmigremmie (Jan 23, 2008)

I had not owned a handgun since owning my old state trooper 44 mag years ago and I decided on the pt-145.
Never a complaint yet. Shot around 4-5 hundred rounds thru it and the only issue was me not being used to a semi and getting my thumb to hi around the slide.:smt076 A mistake of my own that I wont make again anytime soon.
Breaks dwn easy, cleans easy, has nice easy to use safety feature and will stop about anything up to a charging rhino.
I love it so far. HG:smt023


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## Quiyst (Feb 24, 2007)

I've had my PT-145 for about two years now, and in that time, I've put through maybe 1,000 rounds. (I know, not enough.) That said, in those 1,000 rounds, I've not had one issue. Not one FTF, not one FTE, nothing. I've shot about every kind of ammo I can find with it (nearly every box was different), and it didn't complain once.

It's not the most polished or refined pistol that I own (that title goes to my Kahr PM45 which has let me down a few times now), but it's been the most reliable without a doubt. Occasionally I think of selling it to get something "more prestigous," but I think better of myself a few minutes later. It's not my carry piece day to day (it's super light for what it is, but loaded with 11 rounds, it's still kind of heavy), but if I knew I was heading for troubled waters, it would be the one I'd grab from my collection.


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