Keefe Report: Shooting the Taurus Curve

by
posted on May 6, 2015
** When you buy products through the links on our site, we may earn a commission that supports NRA's mission to protect, preserve and defend the Second Amendment. **

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.

Latest

Hopkins & Allen Gunmaker
Hopkins & Allen Gunmaker

Hopkins & Allen: The Armsmaking Giant That Didn't Survive

Founded in 1868 in the northeast U.S., Hopkins & Allen grew from a friendly business venture into a prolific maker of affordable guns for brand names such as Merwin & Hulbert and Forehand & Wadsworth.

Burris Optics Celebrates 50 Years Of Fullfield Riflescopes

Firearms and ammunition ballistics have changed greatly over the last half-century, but one of the biggest leaps in performance hit the scene five decades ago, when Burris Optics introduced its Fullfield line of riflesopes.

I Have This Old Gun: Heckler & Koch P7

In the mid-1970s, the German federal police sought a replacement for its existing World War II-era sidearms and put out stringent guidelines for what it wanted in a handgun. The result was the Heckler & Koch P7.

New For 2025: Smith & Wesson Shield X

Smith & Wesson's new Shield X micro-compact handgun combines elements from the company's M&P Shield Plus with some cues from its smaller Bodyguard 2.0 design.

Review: Tisas PX-5.7 FO

The idea that a faster-moving, lightweight projectile can do the same work as a heavier, slower-moving slug has been around for ages, and the math clearly supports it, even if some in the general public don’t.

NRA Awards Grand Scholarships To 2024 Y.E.S. Students

The Y.E.S. program—which launched in 1996—is held each summer in Washington, D.C., and brings together high-achieving high school students from across the country for a week of immersive learning focused on the U.S. Constitution, Bill of Rights and American government.

Interests



Get the best of American Rifleman delivered to your inbox.