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Hook & Barrel’s Brian McCombie reviews the new Taurus GX4 Carry T.O.R.O. Pistol. Hint: it’s accurate and affordable.
Taurus keeps redefining and improving their handgun offerings, and its latest endeavor is the GX4 Carry T.O.R.O. 9MM pistol. Recently, I ran approximately 250 rounds through a GX4 Carry T.O.R.O. and was impressed with the smooth action, the accuracy and the round count.
Handy and compact, the GX4 Cary T.O.R.O. is a solid choice for concealed carry and home defense, at a price $200 to $300 less than many of today’s comparably equipped pistols.
The base GX4 was introduced in 2021, and was met with many positive reviews, both for its functionality and reasonable price point. The GX4 Carry still provides these attributes, plus adds a number of features.
Red Dot Ready: Taurus GX4 Carry T.O.R.O. Review
Prime among those features is the GX4 Carry’s addition of the Taurus T.O.R.O concept. T.O.R.O stands for the “Taurus Optics Ready Option” and this newcomer to the GX4 line allows for the easy installation of a red dot or reflex-type optic. Simply remove the plate at the top rear of the slide, and the GX4 is ready for a red dot featuring the Holosun K-series footprint, a slightly different version of the RMSc footprint.
For my initial shooting evaluation, I ran my GX4 Carry with open sights. The pistol performed really well (see below).
Once that shooting was accomplished, I removed that rear plate and mounted a Samaritan red dot made by Gorilla Optics. The Samaritan is a nice, basic little optic, with a wider lens than most similar red dots. It was a good match for the GX4 and got me on target fast.
Other Features
Unlike previous GX4 models, the GX4 Carry T.O.R.O has an accessory rail under the barrel and built into the frame. The rail makes for easy attachment of a light, a laser or a light-laser combination unit.
The GX4’s trigger is flat-faced and wide. The trigger width is a nice touch. It provided exceptional control during my shooting. Employing a striker-fired system, the trigger averaged 2-pounds, 13 ounces of pull. It had basic striker-fired operation: a take up of approximately .25-inch, then engaging the wall, and, last, broke pretty cleanly and very quickly.
The pistol’s trigger also featured a bladed safety.
The texture on the poly-framed grips, the front strap, and the back strap had a sandpaper-like front strap feel and provided ample control of the pistol while shooting. The front strap sported a single-finger ridge which helped to firmly anchor the middle finger of my shooting hand up and under the trigger guard.
That trigger guard was oversized, too, in front of the trigger where it is actually needed for large and/or gloved fingers.
The ambidextrous magazine release and the slide release both functioned as expected — very well.
Range Time with the Taurus GX4 Carry T.O.R.O.
At my outdoor range, I first ran the GX4 Carry T.O.R.O. with the pistol’s standard open sights. The rear sight sported a wide notch and lined up quickly with the white-dot front post.
I began my shooting from a rest at 10 yards using Remington UMC 9MM firing a 115-grain full-metal jacket (FMJ) bullet. I fired off ten rounds to get a feel for the pistol and the sights, then took on a new target. My first five-round group on this target was tight-.78-inches, it later measured.
Fluke?
My next group came in at .94 inches. No fluke.
Shooting Closer
At five and seven yards and shooting offhand, the GX4 Carry continued to impress.
I made several 1.0 to 1.3-inch groups at five yards with the Remington range ammunition, and similar-sized five shot groups with Winchester’s USA Ready rounds loaded with 115-grain flat-nosed FMJ bullets.
At this point, I mounted the Samaritan optic onto the pistol and tried out self-defense ammunition.
Hornady Critical Defense 9MM placed five groups averaging 1.5-inches at seven yards, offhand. Speer’s Gold Dot Personal Protection, loaded with 124-grain projectiles, did even better, averaging groups of 1.0 inch at five yards and 1.3-inches at seven yards.
Pros, Cons of the Gun
I experienced only one malfunction in all my shooting. What was going to be my very last shot didn’t want to load, got sideways in the chamber and held up the slide. I ejected the round and saw that the ammo feed ramp was completely black with powder residue.
I cleaned off the ramp, loaded five rounds into the magazine, including that last round, and fired off all five fast and without a problem.
The only other problem I had with the pistol was a tendency for the slide to slam forward when I inserted a magazine when the slide was held back by the release. I inserted the mags rather firmly, I will admit, but the slide didn’t go forward on its own all the time. I estimate the slide forward event happened maybe 30-percent of the time.
And I should note, when this occurred the top round of the magazine always loaded into the chamber.
Final Thoughts: Taurus GX4 Carry T.O.R.O.
Overall, the GX4 Carry T.O.R.O. proved itself a solid pistol, compact enough for easy carry and more than accurate enough to be relied upon in a worst-case scenario. One can never truly know how much ammunition one might need in that worst case, but the GX4’s 15+1 capacity should handle most situations.
Optics ready, sold with two 15-round steel magazines, and a suggested retail of just over $500. That wouldn’t be a bad deal. But a quick web search finds the GX4 Carry T.O.R.O. actually selling for $400.
Making the pistol an even better deal.
Specs: Taurus GX4 Carry T.O.R.O.
- CALIBER: 9MM Luger
- CAPACITY: 15+1
- ACTION TYPE: Semi-Auto, Single
- FRAME SIZE: Compact
- FRAME MATERIAL: Stainless Steel
- FRAME FINISH: Matte Stainless
- BARREL LENGTH: 3.70 In.
- BARREL MATERIAL: Stainless Steel
- BARREL FINISH: Satin Black
- TWIST RATE: 1:10, RH
- SLIDE MATERIAL: Alloy Steel
- SLIDE FINISH: Gas Nitride
- FRONT SIGHT: Fixed
- REAR SIGHT: Drift Adjustable
- OPTICS READY? Yes
- SAFETIES: Striker Block and Bladed Trigger Safety
- VISUAL LOADED CHAMBER INDICATOR? Yes
- OVERALL LENGTH: 6.56 In.
- OVERALL HEIGHT: 5.16 In.
- OVERALL WIDTH: 1.08 In.
- WEIGHT: 21.50 Oz. (Unloaded)
- INCLUDES: Two, 15-round magazines, Instruction Manual, Plastic Case, 1 Gun Lock.
- MSRP: Under $525
