The Taurus 66 Combat is a solid foundation for a fighting revolver. XS Sights helps move the punch above the gun’s weight class.
by Rob Reaser
In September of 2025, Taurus announced an expansion of its popular 66-series revolver lineup.
Why so popular?
Revolver fans who appreciate the attributes of a heavy-hitting, medium-frame handgun recognize the advantages of a revolver that finds the perfect balance of size, weight, and 357 Magnum horsepower. Add in a 7-round cylinder capacity along with the chambering’s load diversity and it’s easy to see why the Taurus 66 makes the cut.
That being the case, though, the 66 series, with its available four- or 6-inch barrel lengths, make a difficult case as a concealed carry firearm…at least for most folks.
The Taurus 66 Combat
The new Taurus 66 Combat changes all that, and I looked forward to getting my hands on one.
What arrived at my FFL, though, was a pre-production model, lacking the Hogue grip and fiber-optic front sight that come as part of the Combat package. Everything else is straight-up 66 Combat.
For this gun, Taurus brought the barrel length down to 3 inches to enhance concealment while delivering useful velocity. But barrel length isn’t everything in a concealable-size handgun. There are nuances to making a revolver more EDC-friendly.
Taurus engineers, for example, simplified the operation, evolving the 66 Combat into double-action-only. That makes perfect sense for a gun intended for close-quarter defensive engagement. This, of course, negated the need for a hammer spur to cock the revolver. The spurless hammer design thus eliminates a significant snag potential when drawing the gun from concealment.
In a similar vein, Taurus removed the adjustable rear sight found on other 66-series models. No need for it, and another snag-waiting-to-happen removed. The rear sight’s square notch and groove design presents no compromise in sight picture acquisition. Its fixed nature, though, does require load testing to ensure point-of-aim, point-of-impact performance.
To accommodate the lowered rear sight, Taurus eliminated the tall, ramped front sight, opting for a lower-profile unit. The front sight has a dual nature in that it presents as a square post in the sight picture but also includes a dot element for enhanced visibility.
As mentioned, the 66 Combat includes a fiber-optic element in the front sight. My test model, being a pre-production unit, came with what looks like a brass rod in the fiber-optic’s place.
Whatever the case, I’m not a big fan of this front sight arrangement. The black sight housing offers a good silhouette inside the rear sight notch under certain lighting conditions; but when the dominant light is behind you, glare from the matte stainless finish can muddle the sight picture. In short, this is not, from my testing, a good front/rear sight combination.
But we’ll show you how to fix that in a moment.
As with all Taurus 66 models, the new 66 Combat holds seven rounds and is chambered for 357 Magnum — meaning it can also run 38 Special +P loads. Some folks find the 357 Magnum to be a bit much for comfortable shooting, but I didn’t experience any unpleasantness in this regard. The weight of the gun’s stainless steel construction combined with the rubber grip helped tame the 357 Magnum recoil quite admirably. (The 66 Combat comes with a Hogue grip…my pre-production model hosted the standard Taurus rubber grip.) If, though, you find these loads to be a bit much for target practice and training, just switch to lighter 38 Special ammo and enjoy your day at the range.
Another hallmark of the 66 Combat is that it is compatible with the Taurus Optic Ready Option (T.O.R.O.). Two holes drilled and tapped along the top strap are intended to accept a T.O.R.O. optic plate. Taurus provided the plate (RMSc footprint) and screw set with my test gun. Unfortunately, Houston, we had a problem…
Although the plate took an RMSc optic, the plate did not fit the 66 Combat. As you can see in the above photo, the plate edges sit atop the radiused portions of the top strap, preventing the bottom of the plate from mating with the flat of the top strap.
That dog ain’t hunting.
The good news is that we also had a fix for that.
Standby…
The big question smart people like our Shoot ON readers will ask about a double-action-only revolver is, “How’s the trigger?”
Well, since you asked (or were about to), I’ll tell you.
Not too bad!
I’ve shot a lot of Taurus revolvers, and I really do like them.
Early in my testing of the 66 Combat, I did notice a couple of hesitations during the trigger pull. Nothing obnoxious, but it wasn’t the silky smooth pull I was hoping for. As the testing continued, though, the first hiccup eventually went away, and the second mellowed out almost to the point of non-existence. These were only evident during slow-fire and accuracy testing. When shooting at fighting speed, the trigger felt smooth from the start to the break.
As for the pull weight, I registered just under seven pounds (6 lbs., 13.5 oz.) across a ten-pull average. Given the relative smoothness of the trigger once it has worn in a bit, I feel that this is an optimal pull weight for the kind of short-range defensive work for which this gun is made to perform.
As for performance — stellar.
I paired up with my cousin — a Marine more at home with an M16A2 than a revolver — and had a fun go with the 66 Combat on paper and steel, on the bench and off. Utilizing Steiner’s new MPS 2.0, the gun proved its accuracy to be limited only by the shooters’ capabilities. Steel rang with every pull of the trigger.
For the accuracy proofing, I leaned on Black Hills 357 Magnum 158-gr. JHP. With the MPS 2.0 zeroed at 15 yards, the 66 Combat delivered a first-string, 7-round group of 1.079 inches.
No need to kill another target after that.
Taurus 66 Combat Specifications
- Caliber: 357 Mag / 38 Spl +P
- Front Sight: fiber-optic
- Cylinders Included: 1
- Capacity: 7 rounds
- Rear Sight: fixed
- Action Type: DAO
- Frame Size: medium
- Overall Length: 8.40 in.
- Overall Width: 1.52 in.
- Grooves: 6
- Barrel Length: 3.00 in.
- Overall Height: 5.67 in.
- Overall Weight: 36.5 oz. (unloaded)
- Twist Rate: 1:16.5-in. RH twist
- Frame Material: stainless steel
- Cylinder Material: stainless steel
- Barrel Finish: matte stainless
- Frame Finish: matte stainless
- Cylinder Finish: matte stainless
- Barrel Material: stainless steel
- Safety: transfer bar
- MSRP: $1084.99
Upgrading the Combat 66
As you just read, the only issues I had with the Combat 66 revolved around the sights. I did not favor the front/rear sight arrangement and I’m certainly not keen on an open-element fiber-optic sight on a defensive handgun. Further, the included optic plate did not fit the gun.
For the solution to both, I turned to our friends at XS Sights. I’ve used XS products on handguns, rifles, and shotguns, and have always found the components built duty-tough and tight to tolerances. Fortunately, XS Sights recently came out with several products to fit the Taurus 66 Combat, allowing you to stick with open sights or make use of the gun’s T.O.R.O. compatibility to mount an optic.
As I mentioned, I’m not a fan of open fiber-optic sights on a gun whose purpose is defensive use for one simple reason: I don’t want to run the risk of impact breakage. Sure, the front sight fiber-optic housing itself is a front sight that doesn’t require a fiber-optic element to be functional. Nevertheless, my thinking on this setup is, “Why go there when there are better options?”
That said, maybe open-element fiber-optics are your thing. If so, and you wish to make the upgrade, the Taurus Fiber-Optic Revolver Sight from XS Sights will get the job done. This sight simply replaces the factory front sight assembly, is easy to install, and includes both an orange and green fiber-optic elements.
What I am a big fan of for upgrade sights — be it a defensive revolver or pistol — is the XS Sights Standard Dot Revolver Front Sight.
The Standard Dot sight features a high-visibility glow ring (green, orange, and brass colors are offered) surrounding a tritium vial. The glow ring absorbs ambient light, so it stands out in everything from full sunlight to low-light conditions. If it is dark and the glow ring is not charged, the tritium element (not offered with the brass option) steps in to provide the essential aiming solution. It is a true 24/7 day/night sight.
What’s more, the sight elements are secured in a CNC-machined steel housing, making it perfect for rough-duty use on an EDC gun.
As you can see, the Standard Dot sight is much more protected and resistant to the abuses of everyday carry than is an open-element fiber-optic sight like the 66 Combat factory sight at left. To my mind, this is the setup that makes the most sense for a fighting revolver.
Whether you go with the XS fiber-optic sight or the Standard Dot sight, swapping out the factory unit with the upgrade of your choice is simple. Support the revolver on a bench block (here, Real Avid’s Smart Bench Block) and use a 1/16-inch roll pin punch to drive out the factory front sight pin from left to right.
The new sight assembly fits smartly into the OE slot. XS Sights recommends degreasing the slot and applying the supplied red thread locker into the slot prior to the sight installation. Next, use the original factory roll pin (the new sight’s supplied roll pin is too short for my liking) and, tapping the pin in from right to left, secure the sight onto the barrel.
I run this same sight on my Taurus 605 revolver and absolutely love it. It is visible in all light conditions and is super-fast into action. It is ideal for obtaining a close-quarters flash sight picture: center the dot on the target and pull the trigger.
Of course, with optics being the new here-to-stay trend in handguns and given that the Taurus 66 Combat is drilled to accept an optic mounting system, I wanted to run the gun with an optic for testing.
I mentioned earlier that the T.O.R.O. mounting plate that came with the gun did not fit the revolver, but XS Sights’ Taurus Optic Plate most certainly does. The kit comes with an ACRO adapter plate made of CNC-machined steel and surface-treated with black Nitride, two mounting screws, a Torx bit, and medium-strength thread adhesive.
The Steiner MPS 2.0 is a big chunk of optic for a medium-frame revolver, but the XS optic plate set it aright atop the 66 Combat. Installation was, again, simple. Two screws with thread locker and done.
Rounding it Up
The Taurus 66 Combat is a heckuva revolver for EDC applications — especially with its seven-round cylinder. It has beefy bones and a comfortable grip (whether the pre-production Taurus grip seen here or the included Hogue grip on standard production models) that goes a long way toward mitigating the sting of 357 Magnum loads, yet it wears comfortably enough on the hip and conceals fairly well under fall and winter garments (I wore it with a Mernickle AlphaMag holster I had gotten for my 605). Just address the sight issue — open or optic — with the XS Sights offerings mentioned here, and you’ve got a fighting revolver that will serve you well.
