Taurus 850 38 Special 2 in. Matte Stainless 5-Shot Hammerless Revolver – Superb Pocket Carry

Description

The Taurus 850 is a five-shot .38 Special with the hammer completely enclosed inside the frame. Nothing protrudes above the top strap, which means nothing catches on a coat lining, a pocket seam or a shirt tail on the draw. That is the entire design brief, and this matte stainless two-inch version executes it about as well as anything in the price bracket.

This Taurus 850 is double action only, all stainless steel, with a black rubber grip and fixed sights. It is a gun built to be carried constantly and shot occasionally, which is honest about how most pocket revolvers actually live.

What the Taurus 850 is built for

• The Taurus 850 has a fully enclosed hammer, so there is nothing on top of the revolver to snag on anything, ever
• Double action only. It cannot be thumb-cocked, which is deliberate in a gun meant to be drawn under stress
• 2-inch matte stainless barrel, cylinder and frame, a finish that shrugs off sweat and pocket lint
• Five rounds of .38 Special, the cartridge that has defined the pocket revolver for over a century
• Black rubber grip covering the backstrap, spreading recoil across the whole palm
• Transfer bar safety: the firing pin cannot touch a primer unless the trigger is all the way back
• Fixed sights machined into the frame, regulated at the factory, with nothing to knock loose

The case for and against a hammerless revolver

• For: it can be fired from inside a coat pocket if the situation ever demands it, which no exposed-hammer gun manages reliably
• For: the draw is completely clean. In a pocket holster that matters more than almost any other feature
• Against: no single-action option, so a careful slow shot at distance is harder than with an exposed hammer
• Against: five rounds and a short sight radius. The Taurus 850 is a close-range answer and should be bought as one
• Steel construction rather than aluminium means recoil stays civil, at the cost of a few ounces on the belt
• Check the manual before running a steady diet of +P through any small revolver, and buy a speedloader while you are at it

Specifications

• Manufacturer part number: 2-850129
• Caliber: .38 Special
• Capacity: 5 rounds
• Barrel: 2 in., matte stainless steel
• Cylinder and frame: matte stainless steel, small frame
• Grip: black rubber
• Action: double action only, fully concealed hammer
• Safety: transfer bar
• Sights: fixed
• UPC: 725327200970

.38 Special has been in continuous production since 1898 and is among the most thoroughly standardised cartridges anywhere, with dimensions and pressure ceilings published by SAAMI. That long record is why a modern defensive load out of a two-inch barrel performs predictably rather than hopefully.

One thing that costs people accuracy with this gun, and it is worth saying plainly. A double-action-only trigger is a long, deliberate press, and the way to shoot it well is to build pressure smoothly rather than staging it and snatching the last part. Ten minutes of dry fire a week with a Taurus 850 transforms what you can do with it at seven yards. Very few owners do it, and it shows on the range.

Why this revolver earns its place

• Nothing to snag, which is the single most important property of a pocket gun
• Stainless steel throughout, so neglect, sweat and damp pockets are simply not an issue
• The Taurus 850 will fire after a year in a drawer with no attention at all
• Simple enough that a new owner can be taught to run it safely in one afternoon
• Small and light enough to be carried on days when a larger gun stays home
• Five rounds of a cartridge with more than a century of documented performance

Pocket carriers, backup-gun buyers, people who want a purse or jacket gun, and anyone who has decided that absolute simplicity beats capacity. The Taurus 850 is a specialist and within its speciality it is very difficult to fault at the price.

If you want six rounds instead of five in a similar package, the Taurus 856 and the stainless 856 fit the same holsters. For a hammerless 856 on an aluminium frame, the 856 Ultra Lite hammerless is several ounces lighter.

If you want magnum capability in the same size, the 605 in .357 has an exposed hammer, and the Taurus 650 is the enclosed-hammer .357 equivalent of this gun.

Every Taurus 850 ships with the factory case, the manual and a lock. Transfers go through your FFL and our end of the paperwork is done the same day.