Pat,
Hello. I just read your info about the problem with Taurus Model 85 and have a quick note about a Judge I bought from a nice dealer. I tried shooting it several times, and it worked well with no failures. I disassembled the firearm safely, then had it color-coated by a finisher. I did the disassembly and apparently lost a small spring, and when I reassembled it I didn’t find it. I then contacted Taurus and sent the firearm to them. I received a call from a service tech that the coating had to be removed, and they returned the gun. So, I had the coating removed and was going to send the firearm back to Taurus, so I called to get a return number and was told the firearm had been modified and it was unsafe to reassemble. The warranty was void. I asked if I just paid for their shop to fix it would that be possible, but the answer was “No”. I asked what I should try and do since this was a spring that Taurus won’t sell to a gunsmith, et cetera. They suggested I sell it to a parts company in New York. I was at the NRA show and spoke with the head of customer service explaining the situation. I called after the show and was told they were unable to replace the spring, so I now have a good boat anchor, but it’s a little small though. I recently purchased several Canik firearms and haven’t had a failure after firing several thousands rounds through them. (One is none; three is better.) – J.
Pat Comments: Well, several things come to mind, and one is that any modifications will void the warranty at all gun companies. This is true of even a simple coating. I’ve been there done that with S&W!! So, that explains that part of it. As to Taurus not sending a spring, that is hard to believe. I would suggest our reader contact Brownell’s. They carry millions of gun parts, thousands of springs, lots of springs, even truck loads of springs!!!
Not too many years ago, Taurus had the best customer service and repair department in the world, bar none. Sadly, this changed, and I don’t know what is going on there. Maybe they are having a hard time getting spare parts from Brazil. With the economy what it is down there, all is not well, even for Taurus. My local gun shop used to carry a lot of Taurus handguns. Unfortunately, Taurus has raised prices on most of their guns to the point where customers can buy a similar gun from S&W or Springfield Armory for about the same money, so people are turning away from a Taurus. As a result, my local gun shop hardly carries anything in the Taurus line up these days.
In the end, I just find it difficult to believe that Taurus won’t sell him a spring. There are certain parts, like barrels and frames, that most gun companies won’t sell, but a spring? Unheard of! I’m not saying it can’t be true; I just find it difficult to believe. Plus, any gunsmith worth his salt can modify a similar spring to make it fit and function. I have been there and done that, when I was doing gunsmithing many years ago. I’m still betting good money that Brownell’s has the spring.
In the end, it still comes down to the fact that the reader had the gun “modified”, even if it was just changing the finish. Gun companies are fussy about this sort of thing for some reason. Plus, we have a society that loves to sue people and companies for anything, and it is a liability concern for Taurus. The gun was modified. I am not taking the side of Taurus, but I know how so many gun companies worry about liability.
Make It Count,
Pat