Taurus is trying to get us to think out of the box with its new six-shot .380 ACP Curve pistol. The gun gets its name from the pronounced bend in its frame, making the little semi-automatic somewhat offset in the hand. The intent was to shape the gun like the human hip area, meaning curved. The curve only goes one way so lefties are out of luck.
Another departure is the lack of conventional sights, not even tiny useless ones. There is a cross inscribed on the back of the slide, but the primary sight is a laser module, made by LaserLyte in a housing built integrally into the frame ahead of the trigger. It breaks the guns shape up, although it make the Curve look more like a pepper blaster or Taser than a handgun. The laser is joined in the housing by two LED lights (all three are activated by a switch ahead of the trigger guard), and batteries can the changed without taking the gun down to pins and springs.
The trigger is a long, heavy double-action, and the hammer is inside the slide—there is no second strike capability. The gun is recoil-operated, and there is a slide lock, but it cannot be manually operated. It locks the slide open on an empty magazines, but it has no thumb lever; the Curve is nothing if not smooth and slick.
The Curve comes with a 2.5” long barrel, and its muzzle has material relieved at its top front to make its lines smoother at the front. There are no sharp edges anywhere on the gun, and a pocket clip is on the frame’s right. A trigger cover is provided if one chooses to carry the gun that way, although I would likely opt for a Sneaky Pete belt holster or a leather pocket holster.
While the frame is curved, its six-round-capacity magazine is straight, and the magazine release is in the center of the grip’s left side, not the conventional behind-the-trigger-guard location. There is no manual safety, but there a passive firing pin safety, a magazine disconnect safety and the gun has Taurus’ key lock system.
At 3.7” high, 5.2” long, 1.18” wide and weighing 10. 2 ozs., this is a little gun designed for concealed carry. It is an innovative approach to a carry gun; consumer demand will tell us just how far outside the box CCW holders want to go. To see the gun on the range, watch the video above or visit our YouTube channel.
