Taurus GX4 Micro 9mm
Shooting is Believing
The Taurus GX4, shown here in the T.O.R.O. optics-ready variation. Imagine a
solid self-defense Micro 9mm costing a couple of C-notes under the competition?
You just found it!
Wanna draw horrified looks from your friends, co-workers, shooting buddies and even passing elderly women with no possible clue about firearms in general or handguns specifically? Show up with a Taurus GX4.
I know, because I did.
I’m beginning to enjoy the sensation of being the weird(est) guy at the range, showing around my brand-newish Taurus GX4 to the various onlookers and watching their reactions. Trust me, it’s great fun if you have a slightly warped personality. I do, and it is!
Not surprisingly, the looks begin to change if you can convince the various doubting Thomases and Thomasinas to shoot the darn thing. Slowly, their scowl starts to thaw, they begin to look doubtful, first at the gun, then at you, then back at the gun. They fire a few more shots and suddenly, you’ll see a few teeth framed in a partial grin. It ends up being the kind of grin a raccoon gets when it discovers a dumpster full of fish guts.
I’m gonna go even farther into Crazy Land and hereby publicly state this: By the power vested in me by the owners of GUNS Magazine, I hereby declare and affirm under penalty of perjury that I’m a big fan of the Taurus GX4 T.O.R.O. (optic-ready version). In fact, it’s my everyday carry gun.
“Wuuuaaaaaa?” as the kids are fond of saying.
Yep, me, a bonified and certified gun magazine editor, somebody who has access to nearly any pistol made, is carrying a baby bull with optic in my holster. What’s next? Hillary Clinton buys an AR-15? Hear me out.
Brent’s gun is the T.O.R.O. (Taurus Optic Ready Option) version and wears a
green 6MOA Holosun HE407-K-GR X2 optic. It, like the gun, has been
bulletproof during months of carry.
Making The Case
Even the fine folks at Taurus understand their “old” reputation is lurking out there like a machete slasher stalking coeds in a B-movie forest. However, I can assure you things have changed dramatically for the South American-owned company over the last couple of years. With a new manufacturing plant near the Georgia-Florida border, a greater emphasis on engineering and quality control, better customer service and a whole new corporate attitude on producing “price-conscious” but quality guns has turned the bull badge into something worthy of consideration aside from just price point.
At this point, I’ve carried this gun for one year and I’m fairly certain any warts or moles would have been clearly evident by now. It’s been to several media events, including Gunsite academy, countless range sessions and I even performed my LEOSA (retired-cop stuff) qualification with it — if I may humble-brag, the GX4 and I shot a perfect score. My GX4 T.O.R.O is wearing a green Holosun optic and these tired old eyes are now shooting better than they have in years.
Not only does this thing run like a champ and shoot like a house on fire, it packs 10-11-13 rounds of 9mm in a package I can almost hide behind my right meathook. Best of all, the trigger is arguably one of the best on the market for a micro 9mm. In fact an instructor friend, after he finished spouting the standard-issue load of Taurus derision, dry-fired my GX4 and said with a conflicted smirk, “Well, um, I can’t hate that trigger. At all …”
The GX4 series features a flat-face trigger, which some would argue is the
“crispiest” of Micro nines. The gun also features finger index pads and the
unique takedown lock.
New and Improved
I’m as a happy as a pig wallowing in yesterday’s buffet with my current GX4, but I’m really looking forward to the new longer-slide variant in the GX4XL.
While tiny nines are great for carry, they can be challenging to shoot well. This is one reason many makers, including the big German conglomerate that rhymes with “Spock,” are offering longer slides on some models.
The advantages are many: a longer sight radius enhances accuracy, there is slightly increased velocity and overall weapons manipulation is easier. Counter-intuitively, a longer barrel isn’t difficult to conceal as the majority of “printing” occurs from the butt rather than muzzle. Thus, you gain all the advantages listed with virtually no penalty — a rare state of affairs in life.
The GX4XL is about a half-inch longer than the standard GX4 and offers a 3.7″ versus 3″ barrel. It sports all the bells and whistles of the class — drift-adjustable rear sight, flat-face trigger, loaded-chamber indicator, reversible mag release, 11-round capacity in the standard magazine, black nitride slide finish above the polymer frame — along with two removable backstrap options and a DLC-coated stainless barrel.
Even at an already wallet-friendly price, the Taurus GX4 includes
two Mec-Gar mags as standard equipment.
Some may wince at carrying the Taurus Bull logo, but “that is so 10-years-ago.”
Today, their striker-nines offer good quality at a workingman’s price.
Nice Price
All of these goodies come at a base MSRP of $392 for the standard version, $468 for the T.O.R.O. optic-ready version and $429 for the base GX4XL. If you’re keeping score, this is $100–$200 below the price of comparable guns. Notice I said “comparable,” in other words, guns of corresponding quality and value. Almost hard to believe, eh? But it’s true.
In the end, the GX4 is a pistol offering the comparable features and quality of its cohorts in the product category, but at a price allowing you to buy a considerable amount of practice ammunition. In fact, after a year of ownership, I’ve only found one major drawback with the Taurus GX4 — you always get “the look” from other folks who spent a lot more money for a micro-9 pistol, which isn’t notably better.
Trust me — it’s okay. You can grin pragmatically all the way to the range!
RELATED ARTICLES
Smith & Wesson...
First-Generation...
