thunderbolt

[Bookworm]

checked with taurus yesterday, they said the .357 thunderbolt had been scrapped.  will not be made.. does anyone know if you can slam fire the gold rush??

According to the Taurus USA site the 357 is available and another version is scheduled for later this year.

[Deadeye Don]

Taurus may need to do a big media campaign to convince people the 357 mag will be any more reliable than prior caliber models.

[L.G.]

Ah Oh, I broke my Thunderbolt yesterday.  The welds (look like spot welds) that held the hand slide to the machined flat that goes into the rifle and makes eveything work when you pump it broke.  I'm hoping to be able to just disassemble the rifle and have the slide shell tig welded back on.  I'm thinking that drilling holes where the spot welds were and tig welding each hole in plus adding a weld at each end will make it stronger than before.  I didn't realize I was pumping it that hard.

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[Deadeye Don]

Ah Oh, I broke my Thunderbolt yesterday.  The welds (look like spot welds) that held the hand slide to the machined flat that goes into the rifle and makes eveything work when you pump it broke.  I'm hoping to be able to just disassemble the rifle and have the slide shell tig welded back on.  I'm thinking that drilling holes where the spot welds were and tig welding each hole in plus adding a weld at each end will make it stronger than before.  I didn't realize I was pumping it that hard.

 


The problem is   that if you dont pump it hard,  you have practically no chance of getting through a stage  (note: I did say stage and not match) without it jamming.  Thats the first time on here that I heard of THAT particular problem occuring with the Thunderbolt.

[L.G.]

Took it apart last night, the spot welds weren't anything to write home about, the tig welds should do the trick!  the Thunderbolt has been my main match rifle for 3 years now, it's worst hic-ups seem to occur right after I give it a really good scrubbing.  I use 250 grn. bullits on a fairly stout load.

[L.G.]

Got the welding done, did a little fitting work and reassembled the rifle.  That's the fun part on a Lightning style rifle, everything has to be in the right place at the right time in order to get the bolt mechanism and the slide mechanism to work in harmony.  It took me a few trys and a good dose of paitence to get it, but she feels ready to run again!

[Fairshake]

Well I've got to tell anyone who reads this and wants to buy one; "BE CAREFUL". I 've been a fan of pump action firearms for alot of my 61 years on this here terra firma. I read everything I could on the Thunderbolt before buying mine in July of 08. It was a crap shoot as the yea and nay were about 50/50. She was a very nice looking rifle in all her stainless glory but she would not function even one ten round magazine without a jamb.I brought it home on a Friday and sent it back to the factory on Tuesday. About 4 weeks later the rifle came back and the problem was not fixed. I sent the rifle back for the second time. This time, I took pics of every jamb and how the round ended up, a total of ten and sent them with it. Received the rifle back and guess what; the damn thing was still doing the same thing after two trips back. I called and told the factory of my problem. The poor guy got an ear full. I told them that if they would just pay me what I had in the rifle they could keep it and it would be better for us all. I also told them that I was in a terrible fix as I could not sell the rifle myself with it jamming. I would not do that to anyone. I'm on a fixed income and not able to keep buying guns. He told me that the rifle would now go to an expert panel because of the times it had been back. I said that was a crazy answer as a gun company should fix a gun on it's first trip and not wait till the third. It's now been 5 weeks. I've only had the gun in my hands for about 8 days since July.   

[Deadeye Don]

Fairshake,   Your story sounds much like alot of others I have heard here and on the SASS wire.   

Unfortunately,  they keeps selling the darn things to people who are not informed.   I have yet to see a Thunderbolt get through a single stage without jamming.  It is aggrevating to the shooter and to the rest of the posse who have to deal with the malfunction.  They are not good guns as sold by Taurus.   I wish you luck because you are going to need it.   I do applaud your honesty in not pawning the gun off to someone else.  You sound like an upstanding fellow.

[L.G.]

Well you hear good and bad about just about every firearm.  In our sport we treat our firearms in ways that they were not designed.  I've used the  Thunderbolt for 3 years as my main match rifle, it had a few hicc-ups when I first got it, mainly me learning what it wants as far as how to work it.  I've taken speed rifle with it a few times, and not just at dump targets.  I could just be one of the lucky ones, or it could be that I shoot factory type loads and 250 grn. bullits.