For many of us, buying and collecting guns is as natural and important as breathing air. It’s easy to lose track of the number of consumers who are not active enthusiasts. But they want to buy something basic to get the job done. Some simply don’t have the means to dedicate a significant portion of their income to firearms and accessories. This is where pistols like the Taurus G3C come in.
The Taurus G3C
Most of us have felt the punch from inflating prices during the past couple of years’ supply chain issues. So, it only makes sense to take a look at some carry options that won’t bust the budget. One of those options is the Taurus G3C compact, striker-fired pistol.
The G3C has been around for a couple of years. However, Taurus just introduced a new variant that gives us a good excuse to revisit the lineup. Especially during a time when saving money and looking for value is more important than ever.
Back to Basics
The Taurus G3C is the compact model for the G3 lineup of polymer-framed pistols. It sports a 3.2-inch barrel and a shorter grip frame that natively houses 12-round magazines. For more restrictive jurisdictions, a SKU is offered with 10-round magazines.
When it was first introduced, the G3C shipped with a manual thumb safety. However, Taurus received a lot of feedback on that model. Lots of folks were not particularly enamored with a thumb safety on a striker-fired pistol. The company listened and recently released a variant that does away with the thumb safety for a sleeker and clutter-free profile.
While we’re on the subject, for just the G3C model alone, Taurus offers six different variants. They offer different magazine capacities, optics-ready slides, a stainless finish and certain compliance measures for different states like Massachusetts. That’s in addition to all the variants available for the full-size G3, G3X (a combination of the taller frame with the compact-sized barrel), and the recently released G3XL.
I went for the basic model (no thumb safety) for this review. This kept things simple and kept the price as low as possible. For a pistol this size, and for the distances it would be used with most defensive encounters, I personally just don’t see a need for an optic. For me, red dots are great for longer distances. But I just don’t see an appreciable benefit for close-up work at my current skill level.
I will grant that a red dot may help some folks, particularly inexperienced shooters, with more precise target acquisition. Those folks can always step up to the G3C T.O.R.O. (Taurus Optics Ready Option) for around $110 more.
Features & Benefits
As mentioned earlier, the G3C I received for review was a no-frills model. But that’s not to say it doesn’t have some great features on tap, especially for the low MSRP of $340. The first thing I noticed out of the box was the excellent feel of the double-stack grip. It offers up superb texturing that’s fairly similar to a skateboard tape but even tackier for absolute control.
Additionally, the grip includes deeply scalloped thumb shelves on either side. These provide a resting place for the shooter’s thumb and a bit more leverage for recoil control. Similarly, the G3C’s frame offers memory pads above the triggerguard to which the shooter can index the thumb of their support hand as well. Farther forward on the frame is an accessory rail for the attachment of a light or laser unit.
Up top, the G3C includes front and rear cocking serrations on the slide for easy manipulation. In addition, is a Tenifer finish that provides robust corrosion resistance. The sight arrangement is improved over the G2 series with a white dot up front and a serrated and blacked-out rear sight.
While this arrangement offers fairly good front-sight visibility during daylight, users might want to upgrade to high-visibility or night sights. Taurus made this easy by making the G3C compatible with Glock sights, of which there are multitudes of aftermarket options.
Another similarity to the Glock series of pistols is the takedown procedure. Remove the magazine, retract the slide a bit, and then push down on the two tabs on the side of the frame. From there, you can simply push the slide forward and off of the frame. At that point, you can remove the stainless-steel barrel and the captive, dual-recoil spring guide rod assembly.
Re-Strike Capability of the G3C
The G3 series of pistols also offer something that most other striker-fired pistols don’t have, and that’s re-strike capability. With most striker-fired pistols, if you pull the trigger and there’s no bang, you have to cycle the slide manually to cock the striker and pull the trigger again. But if you encounter this issue with the G3C, you only have to pull the trigger again to see if the primer can be activated.
When the shooter cycles the slide to insert the first round, the trigger breaks with slightly less pressure than if they have to pull the trigger again after a bad primer strike. In what I’ll call double-action mode, the trigger broke at an average of 8.75 pounds. In single-action mode (slide pre-cycled) the trigger broke right at 7.25 pounds.
I reviewed a full-size G3 previously and didn’t remember the trigger being that heavy. So, I went back and took a look at my notes from the earlier article. That pistol’s SA pull broke at 3.5 pounds while the DA pull was only around 5.5 pounds.
I’m not sure why the G3C’s trigger pull is so much heavier. Whether it’s a change made for the compact model or just a QC issue with this one specific model, the difference is quite noticeable.
To top it all off, Taurus ships the G3C with three magazines. That’s a nice touch since even most higher-end pistols only ship with two. And despite the $340 MSRP, I’ve already seen G3C variants selling for between $250 and $275 on the street.
If the G3C did well at the range, snagging one up would be a no-brainer for those shopping around in this market tier.
Shooting Impressions
A couple of shooting buddies and I took the G3C for a test drive out on the range. It didn’t take long to see that the little G3C swung well above its weight class—or at least its price point.
First, the reliability was rock solid with no feed issues of any sort, even with six different types of ammo, from range loads to various hollow-point designs. This was the same performance I experienced with an earlier G3 that I reviewed.
The G3C had a little snap to it during recoil. But the grip’s fantastic texturing let us lock down tightly to really control the flip. With a lot of pistols, once you get a grip, you don’t even feel the texturing. You do with the G3C. You can feel the edges sink into your hand, though it never got uncomfortable.
The placement of the thumb scallops was perfect for me as well. The ridges were prominent enough for me to cinch down on the pistol even more for an extra degree of control. Also, the pinky extensions on the three supplied magazines made all the difference for a full and comfortable grip on the pistol. They supplied just enough additional real estate for all four fingers and provided extra leverage for recoil control as well.
Solid Performance For its Price Point
With regard to accuracy, the G3C did quite nicely, especially for its price point. Both Hornady’s 115-grain Critical Defense and Federal’s 135-grain Hydra Shok Deep loads had the same best group size of 0.81 inches. Likewise, they had an average group size of just a little more than an inch. Both loads have proven very accurate over the course of several pistol reviews this past year.
The Hydra Shok Deep load is the newer of the two. I really like it for the extra momentum in addition to the accuracy. At my recorded velocities, it offers 314 pounds of energy at the muzzle versus 290 for the Critical Defense load. However, the recoil is a touch stiffer with the Federal offering. I’m willing to trade off still-controllable recoil for a little extra energy.
Overall, the controls, like the slide release and magazine release, were easy to access and worked very well. In fact, the mags literally jumped out of the grip when the release was engaged. I even turned the pistol upside down, and the magazine still popped up a couple of inches when I hit the mag release.
The only real complaint that I had with the G3C was the trigger. If I’d gone into the review blind, knowing its price point, well, I probably wouldn’t be so critical. But having tried a G3 before that offered a much cleaner and lighter pull in both modes, it kind of nagged at me.
I don’t know if this was just a one-off issue with this pistol or if that much variance commonly occurs between individual pistols. If you’re picking one up, it’s definitely worth checking out the trigger at the gun shop. Especially if they have multiple copies for sale.
Wrap Up
For the budget-oriented consumer that has to watch every dollar, the Taurus G3C offers up solid value for the price. It’s very reliable and more than accurate enough to get the job done.
With its excellent grip design, easily-engaged controls, and three supplied magazines, the end-user has everything they need for a value-packed carry piece. If the sub-$300 mark is your price point, I’d highly recommend giving the Taurus G3C a very close look.
For more information, please visit TaurusUSA.com.
Taurus G3C Specs
Caliber: 9mm
Barrel: 3.2 inches
Overall Length: 6.3 inches
Weight: 22 ounces (empty)
Grips: Polymer
Sights: Front white dot, rear blacked-out serrated
Action: Striker fired
Finish: Tenifer
Capacity: 12+1
MSRP: $340
Performance
| Load | VELOCITY | ACCURACY |
| Federal 124 HST | 1,058 | 1.34 |
| Federal 135 Hydra Shok Deep | 1,023 | 0.81 |
| Hornady 115 Critical Defense | 1,066 | 0.81 |
Bullet weight measured in grains, velocity in feet per second (fps) and accuracy in inches for best five-shot groups at 7 yards.
This article was originally published in the Personal Defense World June/July 2022 issue. Subscription is available in print and digital editions at OutdoorGroupStore.com. Or call 1-800-284-5668, or email subscriptions@athlonmediagroup.com.
