When I received the new Taurus PT 809 C (aka the Model 809BC), my first impression was that it is a good-looking, even sleek pistol. (I thought also that I had handled and shot a similar Taurus pistol before.) The PT 809 C’s grip angle feels right, and the sights are easy to pick up. However, I had difficulty removing the magazine, which has a strong spring, and the catch is well-protected by a molded rail in the body of its frame. Fortunately, the catch is ambidextrous. Using my trigger finger, the catch was easy to operate. All things considered, it’s better to have a strong spring rather than a weak spring as there’s little to no chance of accidently dumping the magazine.
Both the PT 809 C’s single- and double-action trigger pulls are a little on the heavy side, with my Chatillon trigger-pull gauge showing the SA pull at 7.5 pounds and the DA pull at 12 pounds, which is right within the factory’s specifications. And, of course, for defensive use, too light a trigger is reckless. Later, I discovered the reason for the familiarity I felt with the PT 809 C: It is derived from the successful Taurus OSS pistol, but adds an external (and spurred) hammer. Interestingly, the PT 809 C features an unusual DA/SA trigger system, offering the option of being able to use the thumb safety, which is also a decocker, to lower the cocked hammer. The Taurus manual states that this system “automatically goes to a double-action condition when the trigger is released and a cartridge doesn’t fire or the chamber is empty,” which “either allows you to fire again by pulling the trigger double-action or alerts you to the lack of a chambered round.”
Construction
The Taurus PT 809 C is a combination of steel, polymer and aluminum. The steel slide assembly rides on an aluminum insert, which is contained in a polymer shell. The PT 809 C is offered in 9mm and ships with two magazines, a 13-round, flush-fit mag and an extended, 17-round mag. The baseplates are removable, as is the friction-fit, polymer collar spacer on the 17-round magazine, which has molded, horizontal checkering duplicating the checkering used on the frontstrap, the backstrap and parts of the grip’s sides. The steel slide’s body is stepped, with a small lower portion of it larger than the vertical body above. This portion then meets another flat segment that in turn meets the flat area between the three-dot sights. The front sight is slightly angled and dovetailed into the slide, as is the Novak rear sight, which is additionally secured with an Allen screw. Both sights are windage-adjustable…
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