The GP-100 is a much more solid design than revolvers with side plates like Taurus and S&W offerings, having said that, unless you plan on shooting heavy loads out of the gun day in and day out over the course of several years, the 66 is a fine choice as well.
Personally, I would choose whichever one felt better in my hand.
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Well its just my side arm. And theres one by my house for $426 +fees and the GP is $600 everybody I talk to Hates the GPs Drum release "they say you need to take your grip off the gun to do so" I had no problems with my big ass hands.
The 66 is a well made, quality revolver, and unless you shoot heavy +P rated .357 Magnums on a regular basis, it really doesn't give up a whole lot to the Ruger, and in my opinion it is much nicer looking!
On the other hand, the Ruger is built like a tank, and will handle the super hot loads with ease, but it is a bulkier revolver, and I for one don't see the need to shoot the mega loads out of a .357 when there are .44 Mags and such out there.
Overall, if money is a concern, and you don't plan to shoot a whole lot of monster .357 loads, and plan to stick with 38's and standard .357 Mags, then the Taurus is the way to go.
If you plan on shooting hundreds of rounds of hot hot .357 mags a month, and putting the gun through very heavy usage, then the extra strength and bulk of the GP-100 may work for you too.
Either way, you can't really lose
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I love the older handguns. Especially models made before WWII. I tend to focus on Smith & Wesson revolvers. But I also see firearms as being a very useful tool that might just save your life one day. I like to have a few modern example on hand that I know will function if I need them and that I can take to the range on a regular basis and not worry about seventy or ninety year old parts breaking.
Last week I realized that I no longer had a medium sized .357 magnum revolver that hadn't been made before 1980.
I was covered in the auto department by a couple GLOCKS and a Browning Buckmark and I had a couple very solid S&W 5 shot 38 special J frames, but my magnums were all older.
Well I knew right away what to get for my modern .357 magnum. A Ruger GP 100. Went to the nearest store and picked one up. No hesitation and no pressure from the salesman. Walked up to the counter, looked over a blued 6" GP100 and told the salesman I would buy it. The whole transaction took maybe twenty minutes. He seemed a bit flabbergasted, but what can you say about a Ruger revolver except solid.
IF you are only going to shoot it as a "back-up" gun, i.e. carrying it as a sidearm while hunting, hiking or camping, I STRONGLY recommend going with the Ruger GP-100. I would trust my life to the Ruger ANY day.
Not so with the Taurus. I have seen too many of them malfunction on the range when put into live fire during my CCW classes.
I have owned and shot over a dozen different Taurus revolvers. Many of them were EXCELLENT. Some of them were not. Their quality control is not consistent. An emergency situation is a BAD time to find out which kind of gun yours is.
Now, if you are willing to consider the S&W revolver in .357, that would be my first choice for your side arm application. It's lighter than the Ruger GP-100, and is just as reliable. As others have already mentioned, it will work fine for a LONG time if you are not abusing it with full power loads on a daily basis.
If you want to shoot full power loads, or you want to carry HOT loads, then get the Ruger........ THE Sherman Tank of handguns.
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I have a Sec. six and have nothing but good things to say about Ruger. However I think the Sec. six looks nicer but the gp is stronger I guess both are better than the Taurus in my opinion. However the Taurus is a good gun I have one in 44 spec.
I don't have experience with the Taurus revolver but did have a GP-100 in .357 and it was a very solid revolver. It had the 6" barrel and was very accurate. I had no complaints about that gun, it went bang each time I pulled the trigger. One of the many guns I've sold and regretted!!!
I'd reccommend the GP-100 over the Taurus every day. My 6" barrelled GP-100 .357 is a great shooter. I switched the grips to Pachmayers and am thinking about checking out a pair of Hogues on it since the Hogues fit and shoot so well on a couple of other handguns.
Not having a model 66 Taurus I can't say it would have the same problem as my 3" barrelled model 65. The cylinder tends to hang on the firing pin when closing it. It seems to be a "free floating" firing pin and if the gun is pointed in a downward direction when closing the cylinder it seems to be a problem every time.
I would certainly check this out before buying another Taurus. This one is about 20 years old and the company may have corrected the problem if it was a common one.
Re; 1978 Security Six
I have a SS Sec Six with 6"bbl. made in 1978--bought it new. Has about 1,500 357 thru it and 2500 38s too. Did have to send it back to Ruger about 10 yrs ago for a timing / failure to rotate the bbl issue, but Ruger fixed it at NO CHARGE, after 20 yrs
You will be just fine with it. PS--barrel is mirror shiny now too--shoots as good as new and doesn't lead the bbl anymore with lead 357's.
I also did my own trigger work to get it to 3.2lb. and an overtravel stop, plus a spring kit so there is lots you can do to it on your own.
Like others stated,both are good,but,given the choice,I'd buy a good,used Ruger GP100 over a new Taurus Model 66 any day of the week which I just did as a matter of fact, and cheaper too..........
Parts availability,durablility and service of the Ruger won in the end.
Taurus is a fine gun but when it comes to Revolvers Ruger is King. If I had to give up all my handguns but one I'd keep my GP 100. Mine is a 4" barrel in Stainless. It is just a work horse of a gun.
I was considering a Tuarus because I already had a 6 inch barrel GP100. I ended up buying another GP100 with a 4 inch barrel. I can't say enough about them.
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