Continued from Part 4
My Critiques And The Takeaway
Dear reader, even if I hadn’t serialized this review over five different articles, there would have still been much to read. So, thank you for patience with this long-form review.
This final installment covers my critiques and takeaways about the Taurus 692 Executive Grade revolver.
Taurus 692 Executive Grade Accolades
I’ve been fortunate to evaluate several Taurus firearms since 2022, when I first started writing about firearms. Until I got my hands on the 692 Executive Grade, the majority of my experience had been with smaller Taurus 856 compact-frame revolvers. So, I was excited to get my hands on the larger 692 Executive Grade.
Naturally, the first thing I did was to compare and contrast it to my pair of classic pre-lock Smith & Wesson 686s—two revolvers that I not only dearly love but are also very similar in form and function to the Taurus 692 Executive Grade revolver. My overall experiences with the sole 692 Executive Grade model that I’ve been shooting all summer (I can’t speak for any of the other revolvers in the Taurus Tracker family) suggests that this gun can run and hang with my Smiths just fine.
In other words, the 692 Executive Grade feels like it belongs in the same zip code as those Smiths—I think the build quality is there. By this point in time, the action in this Taurus large frame revolver has nicely worn in and its double-action trigger pull is just peachy. It’s neither too gritty or heavy. Suffice to say, the gun doesn’t feel like a budget discount item.
As part of Taurus’ Executive Grade product line, it certainly gets more pampering than a standard revolver. But one should manage their expectations as well—this isn’t a fully blown “true” custom piece either. Those types of wheelguns are extremely expensive and the men who can do that work are now far and few between.
Multi Cartridge Capability
Taurus deserves high praise for their execution of a revolver that can handle three of the most popular handgun cartridges, .357 Magnum, .38 Special and 9mm Luger. When I first started the review, I wasn’t holding my breath vis-a-vis the 9mm cylinder due to the fact that the nominal diameter between most 9mm bullets and most .38/.357 bullets is about 0.003”.
I discuss this with more detail in Part 4 of my review, and I was pleasantly surprised that the 692 Executive Grade could hold its own as a full-time 9mm revolver in its own right. This revolver’s ability to handle three different cartridges is not simply some afterthought. Especially as the 692 Executive Grade comes with a 1:10 twist barrel and a fully adjustable rear sight.
Furthermore, its quick-change and cylinder retention system, which I called the cherry-on-top in Part 2 makes it so easy. It’s truly my favorite feature about this revolver.
Attractiveness
For generations, revolver connoisseurs have rallied around three-inch barrels as the solution that posits the best balance between ballistic performance and portability. Naturally, the Taurus team outfitted the 692 Executive Grade with such a barrel.
When I first saw this revolver at the Taurus booth at NRAAM, I also couldn’t help but notice how aesthetic and well proportion this gun is. The combination of its larger frame and three-inch barrel gives it nice proportions.
Visually, the cylinders add another brutalist, fierce and aggressive dimension to the gun’s overall aesthetic appearance. Not to mention, since unfluted revolver cylinders are the exception and not the rule, they do make the 692 Executive Grade look more distinguished.
Even though the included hardwood stocks aren’t my favorite for practical shooting, they do look good and their profile graces the revolver with classic, Colt Python-esque lines.
Porting
Porting any handgun barrel in 2024 is certainly de stijl. However, considering how many rounds of full-house Fiocchi cartridges I fired for this review, the porting on the Taurus 692 Executive Grade’s barrel is helpful and improves its user experience. Especially considering that revolvers have no recoil springs or reciprocating mass to help absorb recoil during shooting.
Taurus 692 Executive Grade Critiques
Even though I have a positive opinion about the Taurus 692 Executive Grade in general, I do have some personal criticisms to share, too.
The Sights
It could be my own proclivity in favoring rear sights with wide notches, but during shooting this revolver I found myself wishing for more width to the rear sight notch. As configured the width of the rear feels constricting and therefore slower.
I would have liked more width in the 692 Executive Grade’s rear sight notch that would let more light pass on either side of the front sight. This certainly helps with speed in shooting without affecting precision either.
While the 692 Executive Grade’s front sight width is fine, I really wish that the brass rod inserts were actually proper fiber-optic rods. These would boost the revolver’s shootability and utility.
My educated guess is that Taurus was trying to emulate that classic brass/gold bead found on old-school custom handguns. But that only works in favorable lighting conditions. The front sight already cradles a rod, so why not put one that can gather light and make the front sight glow to better catch the shooter’s eye?
9mm Moon Clips
Part 4 of the review covers shooting 9mm Luger through the 692 Executive Grade. To do so, I used the supplied factory moon clips found buried underneath the gun’s Nanuk hard-sided case. Even though I understand that revolver moonclips are semi-disposable accessories by their very nature, I found these clips to be somewhat delicate.
The petal of one of the clips I used during that sole 9mm-only range trip broke, which meant that I couldn’t use it to its full capacity. I’ve heard other accounts from other shooters having trouble with the factory clips on the first outings. I fear it’s only a matter of time until another one breaks in a similar fashion.
That leads me to my next, and more important, point about the clips. Why only include five clips in the packaging? That number is too few. The worst part of shooting for Part 4 was the tedious nature of having to peel off empty 9mm casing by hand to then reload the clips. I know they make tools for this, but 5 is still too few. Including 15 or 20 of these inexpensive steel moonclips would have been more sensible.
Stocks
I won’t rip on the stocks too much, as I’ve already made my point about them. Besides tweaking the sights, I do think the most important upgrade in terms of shootability that the 692 Executive Grade can take is swapping out the factory stocks for something with a more ergonomic shape and aggressive texturing to prevent the gun from moving in the hands during recoil.
My Taurus 692 Executive Grade currently wears very utilitarian grips from LOK Grips that changes the gun’s character completely.
Taurus 692 Executive Grade Epilogue
To date, this review about the Taurus 692 Executive Grade .357 Magnum / 9mm revolver has been one of the longest gun reviews I’ve written. As it pertains specifically to revolvers, this has also been my most extensive work I’ve done about wheelguns, too. In the case of this Taurus, it’s not just the time on the range or the round counts, but it’s also because the Taurus 692 Executive Grade provides so many things to discuss.
