[agentmel]

So, I've been bugging my wife to get her permit and a pistol and, to her credit, she is. She had conditions on what and how she was willing to carry, so I set about finding a pistol that met her criteria.

Here were her conditions:
- small
- lightweight
- cute
- thumb safety
- relatively inexpensive

My only condition was that it had to be 9mm to match my Glock, so that we don't have to have another caliber around. Plus, I personally consider 9mm to be the minimum acceptable round for self-defense.

First Impressions
We ended up with the brushed steel slide. I would have preferred the black slide but this is what the gun store had, and they had a good price. The gun feels solid and there are no obvious nicks or burrs anywhere I could see. Its a nice-looking gun too, if that's important to you.

Features
This is a striker-fired semi-auto 9mm pistol with a polymer frame. It has a Glock-type trigger safety, as well as a thumb safety. The "Slim" feeds from a single-stack 7-round magazine and there is a 9-round mag available. The trigger is best described as Light Double Action/Single Action. That is, when cocked, it fires with a short SA pull, but also fires with a relatively light DA when it is not. This pistol comes with a fully adjustable rear sight, which was perfectly adjusted out-of-the-box. There is a also a loaded-chamber indicator at the top of the slide at the rear of the ejection port, which eliminates the need to press-check and is obvious by feel alone.

Range Impressions
This is a very shootable gun. It points naturally and even the smallest hands will have no trouble with it. I could tell the difference in grip between it and my Glock 19, with only maybe a minor difference in perceived recoil or in follow-on shot time. I put about 50 rounds of standard 115-gr FMJ American Eagle with no hiccups. I'll keep you posted as we put more rounds through it.

Summary
I really like this gun. It is small, supremely concealable, but in a useful caliber. It is easy to shoot, with no noticeable increase in recoil and is plenty accurate at self-defense distances. The thumb safety is an additional layer of safety for those who are concerned (as is my wife). At $370, it was also around $200 less than our second choice, the Walther PPS.

So far, I have to say that I heartily recommend this pistol.

Mel

 

[TX-JB]

Thanks for the range report...I saw one this weekend, they are very nice...Almost identical to my CW9... Seems like it will be a good alternative to the Kahr line at a lot lower price...

 

[REVMAN]

Good report. I'm very pleased with mine.

 

[TN_Mike]

Thanks for the report. I was interested in this gun at first but after actually handling one in a gun shop I lost all interest right away. The gun is just too slim in my opinion. Plus, it's a Taurus and I have been singularly unimpressed in all of their products for the last 6 or 7 years.

I hope it works for you/your wife and turns out to be a great gun that is 100% reliable. I just wouldn't trust it from my experience with the latest generation of Tauri out there.

 

[av8er]

Mrs. av8er and myself both love our 709s. Very reliable weapons.

Our serial numbers are 1 digit apart (bought them from the same shop within about a week of one another), and we're getting good use out of them.

Her's will eat pretty much any ammo that we feed it with NO problems at all, really. Mine started out eating everything, but then it started getting finicky with Hornady's Critical Defense ammo. I can't figure out if it's some bad ammo, or if the pistol just stopped liking it after it was broken in really well.

So, we've abandoned that round. However, we've both got >600 rounds through each of our pistols, and a couple hundred rounds of Federal HST 124gr, we've discovered incredible reliability. Feeds like butter, shoots like fire. It's a great round, anyway, so I'm totally cool with that!

I do think that Mrs. agent will love it!

 

[10thmtn]

av8er - What issues did you have with Hornady's Critical Defense round?

 

[BugDude]

My report on my Taurus PT7090 Slim is almost word for word with that given above by agentmel. I was advised to break in semi-autos the first couple of hundred rounds with FMJ round points before running hollow-points through it. I've been running american eagle FMJ rounds through it at the range with no problem. I'll let you know as I run other types of ammo.

 

[av8er]

av8er - What issues did you have with Hornady's Critical Defense round?

Well, I started having failures to feed. Sometimes it wouldn't even chamber the first round correctly. if it did, I wouldn't be able to get through a magazine without having the issue.

I was concerned that maybe it was an issue with the firearm, even though I didn't have the problem with any other ammo. I sent it to Taurus, they gave me an extremely fast turnaround and said that they inspected it and adjusted the feed ramp.

Got it back, and the exact same problem. Oddest thing in the world, because Mrs. av8er's 709 ate them like candy.

So, I'm just convinced that my 709 is allergic to the CD . . . :blink:

 

[nativenyerintexas]

I shot a friend's 709 and from the first time I held it I thought "this feels like a Kel-Tec". WHen I shot it, I said the same thing.... my hand was stinging after the first (and only) magazine. I won't buy one. Instead, I just bought a Millennium Pro.

 

[10thmtn]

Well, I started having failures to feed. Sometimes it wouldn't even chamber the first round correctly. if it did, I wouldn't be able to get through a magazine without having the issue.

I was concerned that maybe it was an issue with the firearm, even though I didn't have the problem with any other ammo. I sent it to Taurus, they gave me an extremely fast turnaround and said that they inspected it and adjusted the feed ramp.

Got it back, and the exact same problem. Oddest thing in the world, because Mrs. av8er's 709 ate them like candy.

So, I'm just convinced that my 709 is allergic to the CD . . . :blink:

Did the CD round jam nose-down into the feed ramp? Or would it not go all the way into battery? Very odd, as the CD round is so pointy, you would think it would feed well?

Just curious because I had issues with a PM9, and if I ever wanted a single-stack 9mm (for my wife), the 709 was the first I would consider (there seem to be possible issues out there with the PPS, and PF9).

I've been spoiled by Glock, and I have no patience for finicky little pistols anymore.

Thanks for the info!

 

[av8er]

Did the CD round jam nose-down into the feed ramp? Or would it not go all the way into battery? Very odd, as the CD round is so pointy, you would think it would feed well?

Just curious because I had issues with a PM9, and if I ever wanted a single-stack 9mm (for my wife), the 709 was the first I would consider (there seem to be possible issues out there with the PPS, and PF9).

I've been spoiled by Glock, and I have no patience for finicky little pistols anymore.

Thanks for the info!

Even more weird - the round start to be fed into the chamber, but would hang up on the feel ramp, parallel to the direction of fire. Then, the slide would go forward, and there's the jam.

I thought the same thing that you did about the pointy end, but that didn't seem to be the case in mine. However, both Magtech Guardian Gold and Federal HSTs were no problem at all, with their big, fat, open mouths! No problems whatsoever!

Crazy, huh?

And, I agree that it's frustrating at times. I have a P95 that I bought in 1996, and I had my first failure to feed about 2 weeks ago. I almost didn't know what to do with myself!!:gah:

 

[BugDude]

How often do you clean your PT709 and what are you using to clean and oil it? Taurus recommends this firearm to be cleaned after each shooting session or every 200 rounds (if more than 200 rounds in a session). I just took mine apart last night and cleaned it after just 100 rounds and was very surprised by the buildup, pocket fuzz, etc. I admit that I've neglected cleaning my Ruger P95 over the years and it has been rugged and reliable. These small pistols have much less tolerance and it seems to make a huge difference. Shooting a lot of hollow points (depending on shape and length) can gouge the feed ramp over time. It could also be the magazine follower being worn or the top of the mag metal being bent. Try a different magazine first. I would recommend taking the gun apart following the instruction manual (easy to do, very glocklike) thoroughly cleaning and lubing and inspecting all of the parts for excessive wear. Since you have 2 of them, you can disassemble both and compare parts. You could even exchange barrels/slides to see if it is the feed ramp or the slide itself.

 

[av8er]

BugDude,

I clean it after every single session on the range, which is at least once per week. I use Hoppe's 9 and my AP brush to clean the weapon, followed by q-tips and a dental pick to detail the tight spots. After ensuring it's dry, I lube it (giggity) with Break Free CLP.

I've given thought to the magazines, and considered replacing both of them. However, it's odd to me that BOTH of the magazines might be faulty. Possible, though - no doubt.

I'm not sure that exchanging slides would be a good idea . . . any gunsmiths onboard?

 

[10thmtn]

Quote:

"Taurus recommends this firearm to be cleaned after each shooting session or every 200 rounds (if more than 200 rounds in a session). "

It actually says this in the manual? *sigh*:frown:

Based on my own personal experience with small 9mm pistols, and the feedback of others both here and on other forums, I've come to the following opinion:

For pistols chambered in 9mm or above, the absolute floor for flawless reliability is something the size and weight of a Glock 26. Any smaller and/or lighter than that, and your risk of experiencing functional issues and finicky operation goes up dramatically - the tolerances just get too tight, resulting in little margin for error. If you want smaller and/or lighter than that, get a revolver.

Of course, you will not fire 200 rounds in a defensive encounter - that is not the point. The pistol needs to fire while dirty, in case it gets dropped in the dirt, or you don't get to clean the lint out as often as you should. It should feed any SAAMI-spec factory new ammo without fail.

No flames please - I wish those of you who choose small, light pistols in 9mm and above all the best of luck - I can certainly understand the appeal of these guns. But, for me, reliability under all conditions is an absolute must, and I am more than willing to tote a larger pistol to get that reliability.

 

[bladenbullet]

the fact that taurus recommends the pistol be cleaned after every 200 rounds has nothing to do with whether it will or will not fire dirty...there have been numerous tests done with glocks, taurus, xd's, you name it guns that have been buried in mud and dirt and still fire even after 100s and thousands of rounds...

the company has an interest in their guns being well cared for as it increases reliability, function and lessens the chance that theyll get sued for something that could have been prevented...

cars dont blow up if the owner goes over the recommended maintenance intervals (please dont get into an argument with me over this...i'm an automotive service manager and well aware of the risks) but they last longer and operate better when they are well cared for...

theres enough misinformation floating around about taurus handguns...lets not add to it becuase the company put something harmless in the owners manual....

and please tell me you dont think the lint in the gun came from the gun...

 

[10thmtn]

Well, if it's just there to cover Taurus' posterior, then OK.

I hope you're right!

I guess we'll have to see reports from owners who shoot more than that without a cleaning to be certain. I easily do 300+ rounds in a range session without a cleaning until the session is over.

All the best!

 

[BugDude]

Taurus has a lifetime warranty. Call the number, talk to them, and send it back and let them figure it out. That's what I would do.