Taurus PT92

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Taurus PT92
Taurus PT92 in stainless steel
Type	Semi-automatic pistol
Place of origin	Brazil
Production history
Designed	1983
Specifications
Weight	960 g (34oz)
Length	216 mm (8.5in)
Barrel length	127 mm (5in)

Caliber	9x19mm
Action	Recoil-operated
Feed system	17 rounds (Detachable box standard-capacity magazine) Magazine

The Taurus PT92 is a double action/single action, 9x19mm Parabellum, double column magazine, semi-automatic, short recoil action pistol manufactured by Taurus in the former Beretta factory in São Paulo, Brazil.

This pistol is a licensed reproduction of the Beretta 92, and comes in a variety of finishes with a variety of grip styles. Like the Beretta, the Taurus PT92 utilizes the open-slide design where the upper portion of the slide is cut away exposing much of the barrel itself. The original PT92 was exactly like the original Beretta 92, though it was also unusual for the time in that it featured a squared trigger guard for supporting the index finger of the opposite hand while firing, a feature which was subsequently introduced to the Beretta 92 with the 92SB-F (92F) model in 1985. The Taurus PT92 is less expensive than the Beretta 92 in most cases.

Other versions of the PT92 include the PT99, which has an adjustable rear sight and a taller front sight, the compact PT92C version, and the PT100 and PT101, which are .40 S&W versions of the PT92 and PT99, respectively.

The Taurus PT92 has undergone many revisions in design since it was originally produced in the mid-1980s. Early PT92s and PT99s did not feature the third safety position decocker that is now standard; this feature was added to the second-generation models in the early-1990s, which also included the three-dot sights found on the Beretta 92F. A third revision in the late-90s changed the grip and slide design (which now has fewer grooves in the rear). More recently (as of 2005), Taurus has begun manufacturing the PT92 with built-in accessory rails on the frame, a feature found on the Heckler & Koch USP and third generation Glock pistols. While 15-round magazines were standard for the PT92 for many years, Taurus now manufactures 17-round magazines for the gun in order to give it comparable firepower to the Glock 17.

[edit] Variants

PT92, with fixed sights, with 10-, 15- or 17-round factory magazines available;
PT99, with an adjustable rear sight, compatible with PT92 magazines;
PT92C, a compact version with fixed sights, with 10- or 12-round factory magazines available, though it will accept standard PT92 magazines, which will protrude from the butt;
PT100, a .40 S&W version with fixed sights, with 10- or 11-round factory magazines available;
PT101, a .40 S&W version with an adjustable rear sight, compatible with PT100 magazines.