Thunder Ranch 325

[Dave T]

These things are almost as ugly as a Glock and I wonder if they are as utilitarian and functional? They seem to buck the trend of S&W to put titanium cylinders in their new alloy frames so does the steel cylinder make it heavy? Does it help control in rapid fire? And, how does that little stainless tab that protects against flame cutting hold up? Not that I would expect much flame cutting from the mildly pressured 45 ACP cartridge.

Dave

 

[Dave T]

Guess I offended owners by calling it ugly...my apologies. Seriously, I would like to hear answers to my questions from anyone has some experience with this particular model.

Dave

 

[mc5aw]

I purchased one of the first ones to become available in my area a while back. It is very comfortable to shoot and carry weight-wise ... it has some bark when rapid firing, but not a bad bite. The semi-open backstrap rubber grip could be replaced for a bit more comfort. The pistol is well balanced, and shoots true (SA or DA) with a crisp trigger and gold bead front site. The flame cut tab has held up well thus far, with no marking or discoloration. The pistol can be slightly picky re: what it likes to eat in terms of easily ejecting spent casing & moon clips, but overall I have found my 325 to a be solid & durable firearm on the range or in the woods. And yes, it does have the IL which has not been problematic for me.

 

[Dave T]

mc5aw,

Could you go into a little more detail about your guns taste in ammo? What does it like and not like...and why?

Dave

 

[mc5aw]

Dave ... My TR 325 seems to like Remington 230 gr the best. I've tried several types of major mfg ball ammo, steel & brass case, and the Rem cycles the most efficiently. I recall a box of Winchester ball empties that was tough to extract, but the one I had the most trouble with, to no one's surprise who owns an AR-15, was the Wolf 230 gr. The fired cases got a bit sticky in the 325 chambers, requiring some additional effort to remove the spent casings. Speaking only from personal experience, the Rem factory loads consistently fired clean and extracted without any problem. The Rem is relatively cost effective in today's market as I do not reload. Also worth noting is that I don't cycle anything exotic or extremely high end. My 325 is utilitarian, nothing more, nothing less. I hope this is helpful.

 

[turbo38gn]

First things first, I think my TRD 325 is hot and sexy, but not like my wife... Actually, it's a mean looking gun, I think that was my initial attraction.. Price was right and I bought it. Got about 100 rounds through it, love it, very accurate, the trigger is incredible.. I think the nicest single action I have ever fired. The PC did a great job on this one. I've only fired WWB, so guess what... that explains it... have to really push hard to eject the empty shells.....

 

[J.P.60]

I have the Model 22-4 Thunder Ranch .45acp with a 4" barrel and when I compare it to a 325 I am dismayed that both guns carry the Thunder Ranch brand. No comparison.

Mine is a retro style gun and the 325 is more a mix-and-match Star Wars gun, IMO.

 

[turbo38gn]

I have the Model 22-4 Thunder Ranch .45acp with a 4" barrel and when I compare it to a 325 I am dismayed that both guns carry the Thunder Ranch brand. No comparison.

Mine is a retro style gun and the 325 is more a mix-and-match Star Wars gun, IMO.

Hey Thanks for sharing, thats good to know... I guess us star wars era guys like the idea of having a weapon with lots of options. I liked the 22-4 carrying the Thunder Ranch brand, it was ok for a retro gun, but I guess Clint saw the light when he upgraded the 22-4 to the 325.. The 325 is actually pretty light and seems much more suited for the 21st century. The design and production of this new gun were based on direct input from Clint with Tony Mieli of S&W. Quite an interesting article I came across about it. Makes for good reading do a Google search on Thunder Ranch 325..

 

[GDubya]

As with the M&P340, the SS cylinder is a durable improvement over Ti unit for cleaning/maintenance. Balance and PC-trigger on my 325-TR is awesome. Only wish it was as conveniently smaller as my recent 396NG with the same great XS/C&S sights!