The Taurus Millennium series is a

product line Product may refer to: Business * Product (business), an item that serves as a solution to a specific consumer problem. * Product (project management), a deliverable or set of deliverables that contribute to a business solution Mathematics * Produ ...

of double-action only (DAO) and single-action/double-action

hammer A hammer is a tool, most often a hand tool, consisting of a weighted "head" fixed to a long handle that is swung to deliver an impact to a small area of an object. This can be, for example, to drive nails into wood, to shape metal (as w ...

less, striker-fired, short recoil operated, semi-automatic

pistols A pistol is a handgun, more specifically one with the chamber integral to its gun barrel, though in common usage the two terms are often used interchangeably. The English word was introduced in , when early handguns were produced in Europe, an ...

manufactured by Forjas Taurus S/A (Taurus Forge) in

Porto Alegre Porto Alegre (, , Brazilian ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul. Its population of 1,488,252 inhabitants (2020) makes it the List of largest cities in Brazil, twelfth most populous city in the country ...

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

. The Millennium line was designed to contend in the civilian

concealed carry Concealed carry, or carrying a concealed weapon (CCW), is the practice of carrying a weapon (usually a sidearm such as a handgun), either in proximity to or on one's person or in public places in a manner that hides or conceals the weapon's pre ...

firearm A firearm is any type of gun designed to be readily carried and used by an individual. The term is legally defined further in different countries (see Legal definitions). The first firearms originated in 10th-century China, when bamboo tubes ...

market Market is a term used to describe concepts such as: *Market (economics), system in which parties engage in transactions according to supply and demand *Market economy *Marketplace, a physical marketplace or public market Geography *Märket, an ...

, and to be sold as backup weapons for

law enforcement officer A law enforcement officer (LEO), or peace officer in North American English, is a Public sector, public-sector employee whose duties primarily involve the Law enforcement, enforcement of laws. The phrase can include campaign disclosure specialist ...

s.Cutshaw, Charlie
"New Taurus 9mm Millennium Pro”
Taurus USA Web site – news reviews section. Accessed June 12, 2008.

Recall

In 2015 the PT-111 Millennium, PT-132 Millennium, PT-138-Millennium, PT-140 Millennium, PT-145 Millennium, and PT-745 Millennium were included in the settlement of a lawsuit which alleged that they, and certain other Taurus handguns, could fire accidentally if dropped and that Taurus covered up the safety defects. Without admitting guilt, the company paid $39 million, extended the warranties, and recalled the pistols for repair.

Design features

Taurus Millennium series pistols are

manufactured Manufacturing is the creation or production of goods with the help of equipment, labor, machines, tools, and chemical or biological processing or formulation. It is the essence of secondary sector of the economy. The term may refer to a rang ...

with

injection molded Injection moulding (U.S. spelling: injection molding) is a manufacturing process for producing parts by injecting molten material into a mould, or mold. Injection moulding can be performed with a host of materials mainly including metals (for ...

polymer A polymer (; Greek '' poly-'', "many" + ''-mer'', "part") is a substance or material consisting of very large molecules called macromolecules, composed of many repeating subunits. Due to their broad spectrum of properties, both synthetic a ...

frames, and blued

carbon steel Carbon steel is a steel with carbon content from about 0.05 up to 2.1 percent by weight. The definition of carbon steel from the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) states: * no minimum content is specified or required for chromium, cobalt ...

stainless steel Stainless steel is an alloy of iron that is resistant to rusting and corrosion. It contains at least 11% chromium and may contain elements such as carbon, other nonmetals and metals to obtain other desired properties. Stainless steel's corros ...

, or

titanium Titanium is a chemical element with the symbol Ti and atomic number 22. Found in nature only as an oxide, it can be reduced to produce a lustrous transition metal with a silver color, low density, and high strength, resistant to corrosion in ...

slides.Quinn, Jeff
"Taurus Titanium 9mm Millennium"
Gunblast Web site. Accessed June 11, 2008. Available cartridge chamberings include

.32 ACP .32 ACP ( Automatic Colt Pistol, also known as .32 Automatic) is a centerfire pistol cartridge. It is a semi-rimmed, straight-walled cartridge developed by firearms designer John Browning, initially for use in the FN M1900 semi-automatic pi ...

.380 ACP The .380 ACP (9×17mm) ( Automatic Colt Pistol) is a rimless, straight-walled pistol cartridge developed by firearms designer John Moses Browning. The cartridge headspaces on the mouth of the case.Wilson, R. K. ''Textbook of Automatic Pisto ...

, 9mm Parabellum, .40 Smith & Wesson, and

.45 ACP The .45 ACP ( Automatic Colt Pistol) or .45 Auto (11.43×23mm) is a rimless straight-walled handgun cartridge designed by John Moses Browning in 1904, for use in his prototype Colt semi-automatic pistol. After successful military trials, it ...

Magazine A magazine is a periodical publication, generally published on a regular schedule (often weekly or monthly), containing a variety of content. They are generally financed by advertising, purchase price, prepaid subscriptions, or by a combinatio ...

capacities vary between 6, 10, and 12 rounds depending on model and caliber. The Millennium line includes several innovative safety features including a positive

firing pin block Close-up shot of a safety of an M16A2 rifle In firearms, a safety or safety catch is a mechanism used to help prevent the accidental discharge of a firearm, helping to ensure safer handling. Safeties can generally be divided into subtypes suc ...

as well as the "Taurus Safety Latch", a

transfer bar Close-up shot of a safety of an M16A2 rifle In firearms, a safety or safety catch is a mechanism used to help prevent the accidental discharge of a firearm, helping to ensure safer handling. Safeties can generally be divided into subtypes su ...

safety which prevents firing of the pistol unless the trigger is pulled. Together these safeties are intended to assure that the pistol will not fire if it is accidentally dropped. All Millennium models also include a frame-mounted safety lever. This safety feature was found to fail under some circumstances, leading to a recall.

Series

Three distinct series or generations of Millennium pistols have been produced. The 1st series featured double-action only triggers and a 10-round

magazine A magazine is a periodical publication, generally published on a regular schedule (often weekly or monthly), containing a variety of content. They are generally financed by advertising, purchase price, prepaid subscriptions, or by a combinatio ...

capacity. The 2nd series resulted from a complete redesign of the 1st, but retaining the double-action only trigger system. The 2nd series also introduced the 'Taurus Security System' (TSS), the Taurus version of an Integrated firearm locking safety system, as well as the enhancements Taurus categorizes as the Millennium ‘Pro’ package. The 3rd series added single/double-action triggers on several models in lieu of the double-action only of the first two series. Additionally, the grips of 3rd generation pistols are available in various different colors and the grip stippling is altered; tactical or

Picatinny rail The Picatinny rail ( or ), or Pic rail for short, also known as a MIL-STD-1913 rail, 1913 rail or STANAG 2324 rail (cancelled), is a military standard rail interface system that provides a mounting platform for firearm accessories. It was o ...

accessory mounts are also an option.

Millennium Pro line

The Millennium Pro pistols offer many improvements over the standard models, but were introduced as enhancements to the originals, not to supplement them. Pro counterparts have now been released for nearly all of the original models. Some features of the Pro line include optional increased magazine capacities, larger and easier to operate controls, a single-action/double-action trigger mechanism on some models with reduced trigger travel and an improved smoother and lighter trigger pull, an enhanced frame, and an improved more ergonometric grip design. Key to the grip upgrade are recesses which Taurus call 'Memory pads', intended to promote a consistent shooting grip from shot to shot. Other Pro improvements include the contrast enhanced Heinie ‘Straight-8’ sighting system, as well as optional night sights, a loaded

chamber Chamber or the chamber may refer to: In government and organizations * Chamber of commerce, an organization of business owners to promote commercial interests *Legislative chamber, in politics * Debate chamber, the space or room that houses delib ...

indicator which can be felt as well as seen, and a feature labeled 'posi-traction' which consists of an alteration to the number and layout of the slide serrations resulting in an improved gripping surface."Millennium Pro 111 9mm Pistol in Blue Steel"
Taurus USA Web site – product details section. Accessed June 12, 2008.

Millennium G2

In early 2013, Taurus introduced a new G2 model to the Millennium pistol series. The G2 features stippled texturing on the grips, replaces the slide retainer pin with Glock-style pulldown tabs to disassemble the firearm. The Millennium G2 retains the same loaded

indicator as the prior Pro models, but replaces the Heinie ‘Straight-8’ sighting system with adjustable 3-dot sights. The Millennium G2 comes in two models, the PT111 chambered in 9mm, and the PT140 chambered in .40 caliber. The G2 models are rated for +P loads."Millennium G2 9mm Polymer Grip Sub Compact"
Taurus USA Web site – product details section. Accessed June 16, 2013. Since then, Taurus has introduced their G3C model, the same size as the G2, and their new G3 full size model.

Model designations

Taurus Millennium line model designations consist of 3 digits followed by 1 to 3 characters, which in turn may be followed by an optional third sequence of a dash and 2 digits. The leading three numerals indicate the model's cartridge chambering, for example, number 132 represents .32 ACP chambering, 138 corresponds to .380 ACP, 111 signifies 9 mm Parabellum models, 140 denotes the .40 S & W offering, and 145 indicates .45 ACP chambering. An optional 'P' character trailing the chambering digits indicates whether the pistol is a ‘Pro’ model, and the next 1 or 2 characters denote the slide composition. A ‘B’ indicates blued steel, the characters ’SS’ indicate stainless, and a 'Ti' signifies titanium. The optional final hyphenated number at the end of the model designation (either a -10 or -12) indicates an extended magazine capacity. Thus the model number 111BP-12 would indicate a 9 mm Millennium Pro pistol in blued steel with a 12-round magazine capacity, while model 138SSP-12 designates a .380 stainless steel Millennium Pro with a 12-round capacity.

.45 ACP caliber.

Pro

Models 745BP (blued slide), 745SSP (stainless slide). Double-action only (DAO) and a DA/SA version, compact frame, Heinie sights with 'Straight-8' rear. Weight: 20.8 ounces, length: 6.00 inches, width: 1.125 inches, height: 5.2 inches, 6-groove 3.25-inch barrel with 1:16-inch rate of twist, 6-round magazine."Millennium Pro 745 .45 ACP Compact Pistol in Stainless Steel"
Taurus USA Web site – product details section. Accessed June 30, 2008.

References

External links

* (Brazil) * (USA) {{Taurus Semi-automatic pistols of Brazil .32 ACP semi-automatic pistols .380 ACP semi-automatic pistols 9mm Parabellum semi-automatic pistols .40 S&W semi-automatic pistols .45 ACP semi-automatic pistols