Taurus G2c/G3c/G3x: Unsung Heroes Among Carry Guns

Chances are you already know the names of America’s most popular concealment guns, the Springfield Armory Hellcat and Sig Sauer P365. But did you know another company has been making a robust-capacity micro-compact since, well, maybe even before Sig Sauer rolled out the game-changing P365. That company is the quiet Argentine one called Taurus.

The G2C micro-compact from Taurus started the company on the path of the new normal in concealed carry guns: a tiny, striker-fired system that packs lots of ammo. The G2c was the first from Taurus to stuff 12 rounds of 9mm into a tiny magazine, and like the others mentioned above, that magazine is intelligently shaped to maximize pinky support while minimizing the pinch-and-bruise factor associated with slamming the mag into the well on some micro guns. Ten-round options are available in this model, in both 9mm and 40 S&W.

A major difference between Taurus and other brands like Springfield and Sig Sauer is price. Any Taurus is a budget gun. And until the emergence of the G2C, they felt and performed like a budget gun. But I have seen the G2C, and its successors the G3C and G3X, run with great reliability and, at least in the case of the G2C, serve their owners well year after year.

The G2C is only available with a manual safety. Its successor, the G3C, has that as an option, as does its longer-magazine variant, the G3X. The guns are nearly identical in dimensions. Taurus did change to Tenifer, a hardening finish, on the slide starting with the G3C.

If these guns are so similar to the wildly popular ones that cost at least 25% more, where is Taurus saving that money? Well, in a few places, at least as I see it. Forget stock tritium sights. In fact, sloppy machining of factory sights is no surprise in the Taurus line, though I’ve not seen any that were so unlevel as to interfere with good shooting. Optics-ready slides? They finally exist, called the TORO option, only available in the G3C and G3X. And trigger operation is fair, but not with the modest take-up and crisp, comparatively short reset the market has become accustomed to in other carry guns. The good news? These guns have gained enough popularity that good aftermarket parts can be found to upgrade as desired. Holsters are widely available too, including model-specific fits (G2c, G3c, G3X) from Bravo Concealment.

What Taurus did make comparable in a good way is the easy, field-expedient disassembly process all these guns have. As someone who regularly shoots on very windy days, I appreciate any gun that doesn’t force me to keep track of tiny pins or tools that blow right off the table.

YouTuber and former Army armorer Graham Baates, on his GB Guns channel, has observed a little-known but potentially hazardous trait among some Taurus striker guns. The GX4, not covered in this article, is the most egregious offender but a slight version of the same problem was noted in a GB Guns brand comparison video that included the G3C. The issue is this: when a complete cartridge is manually inserted into the chamber, the chamber lacks depth to completely envelop the case. There is not much exposed case wall. But, if an over-pressured case were to explode, the shock and possible shrapnel lacks the natural bunker that complete chamber coverage would normally provide—and the operator’s hands and face could be injured. I have not heard of this happening in “real life,” and it’s unlikely that a factory load would be “hot” enough to cause such an incident, but this apparent inattention to or saving of materials is probably not a great idea.

These 3.5-inch barrel guns are offered in a number of finishes, and the newest models can be purchased optic-ready. I haven’t gone into specs here because you can check them for yourself at the Taurus USA website.

All that said, everyone I know who has one of these guns enjoys it and has no complaints about its function. Starting at MSFP $299, a Taurus G2C, G3C, or G3X is accessible to more people and offers the functionality of a much more costly carry gun at a budget price.