Taurus 650 Black 357 Magnum 2in 5-Shot — Superb Pocket Snub

Description

The Taurus 650 Black is a five-shot .357 Magnum snub with the hammer sealed inside the frame and a matte black finish over steel. There is no spur to catch on a pocket, a coat lining or a seat belt, which is the whole reason this shape exists.

What you trade for that is single action. The Taurus 650 Black is double-action-only: every shot is one long, identical press. You cannot thumb the hammer back for a careful shot at distance — and for a revolver designed to come out of a pocket fast at very short range, most owners consider that a fair bargain.

What the enclosed hammer changes

• Nothing protrudes on the Taurus 650 Black, so the draw from a coat pocket or a handbag is clean every single time.
• It can be fired from inside a pocket if it has to be, because there is no hammer to snag on fabric as it falls.
• Lint, dirt and pocket debris stay out of the action.
• Every trigger press on the Taurus 650 Black is the same, so there is one thing to learn rather than two.
• The cost is a longer, heavier press than a single-action break, and no practical way to shoot the gun deliberately at distance.

Honest expectations for a two-inch Magnum

• A full-power .357 load out of two inches loses a great deal of velocity and gives most of it back as flash and blast. Indoors at night that flash is genuinely disorienting.
• A good .38 Special +P load costs far less performance than the price difference suggests, and is much easier to shoot quickly and accurately.
• The value of the .357 chambering in a gun this size is having the option, not being obliged to use it.
• Five rounds and a slow reload. Carry a speed strip and accept that the Taurus 650 Black is a gun you shoot well rather than a gun you shoot a lot.
• Matte black is a finish, not stainless steel. Wipe it down and oil it after a humid day in a holster.

Specifications

• Manufacturer part number: 2-650121
• UPC: 725327943006
• Calibre: .357 Magnum / .38 Special +P
• Capacity: 5 rounds
• Barrel: 2 in, matte black alloy steel
• Frame: small, matte black alloy steel
• Cylinder: matte black alloy steel
• Action: double action only, fully enclosed hammer
• Sights: fixed
• Safety: transfer bar
• Grip: black rubber

.357 Magnum and .38 Special are both standardised by SAAMI; the Magnum case is a tenth of an inch longer, which is why a .38 chambers here and a .357 will not fit a .38-only revolver. If you shoot mostly .38 through it, scrub the front of the chambers before switching back to Magnum brass — the carbon ring the shorter case leaves behind is what makes the longer one stick.

The same revolver in matte stainless is stocked as the Taurus 650 stainless. If you want a hammer spur, the Taurus 605 and the hardwood-gripped 605 are the same size with an exposed hammer, and the 905 in 9mm shares ammunition with a carry pistol.

Why the Taurus 650 Black earns its place

• The Taurus 650 Black gives a snag-free draw, which is the single most useful feature a pocket revolver can have.
• One consistent trigger press to learn, with nothing to switch off or forget.
• Steel construction, so recoil with .38 Special is genuinely mild for a gun this small.
• Chambered for .357 but perfectly happy on .38 for practice.
• A matte black finish that does not catch light on the draw.

This is a backup gun, a pocket gun and a glovebox gun — the revolver somebody carries when carrying anything larger would mean not carrying at all. It suits a shooter who will practise on .38 Special and keep a defensive load in it, and anyone who values a clean draw over a refined trigger. The Taurus 650 Black is not a range gun and not a first choice for a new shooter; the double-action-only trigger is a skill that takes real work.

In stock now at MAG5 Firearms in Collegeville, Pennsylvania. Handgun sales ship to a licensed dealer in your state, where you will complete a Form 4473 and the background check before taking delivery.