199.00 plus a $40 rebate from Taurus . Thinking of this for the wife to train/use. Looks like a decent gun, decently made for the $.  Aluminum frame, stainless cylinder and barrel.
Anyone have this gun and can comment, give a review? Pros. Cons?

My wife hated the steel frame 85 with All but my softball reloads.

In contrast she loves her 3” SP101 with anything but 357.

Recoil would be pretty stout in an aluminum snub.  It could be mastered with a lot of practice.   I’ve shot the LW Smith version of the 85 and it wasn’t for me.

Was looking on Aim and, they have the same model with the description being stainless not aluminum frame.
Was thinking of using it with 125 grain semi jacketed HPs or maybe some HSTs if I can find some. Maybe some 158 grains would be better?
She did a pistol class with a 4" 357 with full loads. She was top of the class, both men and women. So I would think she would do ok
with it. Standard then try some plus P. Was the 85 reliable, accurate to say 15 yards?

Pros
It's cheap

Cons
It's cheap
Tolerances on Taurus are so bad overall it's scary
Timing issues
Shit sights
Shit reload speed
Heavy trigger

I would NEVER recommend a 5 shot snub to a new shooter especially a Taurus, especially for someone I care about?

My wife liked my 4” 357 too, and shoots it well. S&W 686.

The Taurus snub is a very tough gun to shoot well and like enough to shoot regularly.

My 85 is reliable, fair accuracy.  Crappy trigger helps nothing, but if you work with it dryfiring a lot, it works.   I think Taurus quality is hit or miss and I got a hit.  

Mine was 125 used, and it really never even gets range time anymore.  We prolly only put 300 rds thru it and then got a SP101 which she shoots regularly.

I would really recommend a smith or ruger , but for the price you can buy the 85 and see if you like the platform, then upgrade.

Your wife may be really good with a snub.  Just keep the targets close at first.  Last time I helped RO a group of new CCW students,
Men and women who showed up with 2” snubs All needed the targets at 10 to 15’ at first.

I picked up one of the Ultra lite and steel frame.  The deals were to good to pass up
The timing was perfect.  Cylinder locked up tight and the trigger was good

I've had six Taurus guns and have liked them all. Go for it. Worst case it's a solid CCW for you.

I have had one for years but have not put many rounds through it. I have put maybe 300-400 rounds through it and I use it for a night stand gun. Accuracy is not bad for what it is and there are a few manufacturers that sell different grips for it if you want to change them out. Taurus made 2 different grips for it- a one piece(which is an excellent fit/feel) and a 2 piece grip (which with the ones I have seen and the one I had, do not fit together right and kind of overlap each other). I wound up getting a Hogue grip for it which gives it the feel of a full size revolver. Finding a holster for it, is another thing. I have tried a few J frame holsters for it but they did not fit it correctly. I wound up getting a leather one from Amazon or Ebay, made by Cardini, which fits it perfectly yet it doesn't fit the S&W J frame revolvers I have had properly. Overall, I am happy with it and for the price you can't beat them.

To be fair I have not shot many Taurus revolvers but the ones I did generally had some difficult triggers. YMMV
Aftermarket grips for the Taurus are mostly non existent , all the grip companies cover S&W guns pretty well. This can be critical if the shooter has smaller hands

Light small revolvers are really not for shooting, they are to encourage carry.
Even small steel revolvers are pretty difficult to shoot decently.

As a S&W fanboy I generally recommend the 642 if someone requires a pocket gun. As a house or car gun go steel like a K frame or even a 686 L frame.

Another decent choice for a lighter smaller revolver is the Ruger LCR which has a very S&W feeling trigger, many judge the LCR to have a better trigger than the
642 and other J frame guns.

If it comes down to cost a used scraped up S&W or Ruger is generally my choice over a Taurus (and will hold resale way better than the Taurus).

Like I said I am a S&W guy,not trying to offend any one on the Taurus bandwagon , I just feel the triggers are a problem.

I have seen plenty of guys grabbing up a gun with a mediocre trigger and deciding it isn't too bad but when someone with less experience and/or less hand strength or size gives it a try they have a very hard time hitting anything with it.

The other thing that I feel is very important is to do whatever it takes to have the intended shooter shoot that model gun before the sale. Rental ranges , gunshops with used guns , gun clubs or friends that might have that model and caliber . Going to the shop or show and having the shooter bounce the gun in their hand or dry fire it (with permission of the salesman) gives a few hints but there is no replacement for live fire

I dont currently have an 85 but I do owne a 605. I enjoy shooting my 605 it has a smooth consistent trigger, a little heavier than my 638 trigger but it shoots good. I dont have that many rounds through my 605, after this past week about 600 rounds, but it is still tight and perfectly timed. I did owne a model 80 and a 66  many years ago and liked both of those guns. The 66 I bought used and shot a lot of 357 mag ammo through it with no issues. It ate a steady diet of fed 125 ge JHP.  If the price is right I would get a Taurus 85.

An LCR can be had used for $300.00 or less and are pretty nice. They are making newer grips for them now as well.

The problem with a Taurus is if you have a problem.  I have had very nice Taurus revolvers, and I have had fixable Taurus revolvers.

A S&W 642 without the "Hillary hole" is the gold standard in snubby .38spl lightweight carry gun.  If one was to have a problem, S&W is fast to fix, although I have only had problem with their Performance Center revolvers.  I would prefer a used 642 in good condition over a new Taurus, and if you call S&W some them started being +P rated before +P marked.