Hi all,

Just wanted to toss out a warning to anyone that may have a Talon Industries, Inc. T200, 9mm laying around.

Just a little backround on this gun, I bought mine about 6 years ago. They were jumpibng on the polymer wagon, with a Cheap ~$150.00 9mm. Striker fired, with no safety, and did have a loaded chamber indicator. It was marketed, by them as one of the safest handguns ever made. About two years after my purchase they were gone. Out of business. They were owned by Davis Inc., and later services for a year or two by Cobra Industries.

Now on to my story.

I took my wife and son to the local indoor range this past Friday evening. Firgured we had nothing going on, and I had to be at work early Sat. it seemed like a good idea to kill an hour instead of watching tv, or going out to a movie. Hech shooting is always better than a movie right? Well I took this inexpensive 9mm along. I really didn't plan on shooting much, as this was to be my son's first time at the indoor range, and I wanted to spend most of my time with him.

So I'm 34 rounds into shooting this T200 9mm, and wham it comes apart. I seen it coming, but at first I had thought it was just a piece of brass. I tried to duck, but it hit me in the eye area of my face. I jumped back, and grabbed my face to find lots of blood. I then seen half of the slide laying on the floor.

The slide broke right in half. I was shooting handloads. Win. brass, Win. small pistol primers, 4.7 gr. of Bullseye, and 115 gr. RN lead bullets. At first I had thought that maybe I doubled charaged a case, but upon further investagation, I found that 9.4gr. of bullseye, wont fit in a 9mm case, without being very tightly compacted, and even then I'm not sure that there would be enough room to seat the bullet. The only thing that I can come up with is just a purely bad metal. If you look at the broken ends you can clearly see that it was a forged part, with many air pockets. Almost to many in my opinion.

But anyhow, this got way longer than I expected or intended. I just wanted everyone to know about my experience, and to warn others that if you or someone you know has one of these laying around, think twice before shooting it.

Tom

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Ouch! I'm glad it wasn't worse. Anyone who has one should feed it to the cutting torch.

Bye
Jack

I couldn't agree more.

If it was not for having and using the propper PPE (personal protective equipment) I can assure you it would have been a much different outcome. I doubt I would be here telling you all about it right now.

It really was a GREAT learning lesson for my son who thinks PPE is for sissy's. I doubt I will ever have to remind him to grab his shooting glasses again.

Tom
I'm glad you are all right!! your experiance is an excellent reminder to everybody to wear their saftey equipment.

Good reason to not trust your life to cheaply made handguns.....

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MikeG

I've talked many people out of the Hi-Point pistols. If you want a cheap (cost wise) gun, get a Ruger, at least you know that it won't ever come apart.

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Buy American, it may be your own job you are saving.
IBEW Local 44

CAN YOU EMAIL ASAP..MISSYJEAN729@MSN.COM
I HAD WENT TO A GUN RANGE 2 DAYS AGO AND USED A 9MM TALON. AND IT EXPLODED IN MY FACE CUTTING MY LIP IN HALF. I HAVE OVER 50 STITCHES. PLEASE EMAIL ME ASAP. THANK YOU

We're sorry to hear that. As this is an old thread, you may wish to contact the poster directly, through the email or PM function of the forum.

Let us know if you can't figure it out.

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MikeG

how do i do that..

Go to Mr. Vito's post and click on his name in the upper left corner of his post. That will open a menu with the options of sending him a personal message and email. I noticed that he hasn't logged in since April.

Bye
Jack

it wont let me send him a email.

OK, he has that turned off. Try the PM system.

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MikeG

I am glad you did not get more injured than you did.
Never shoot LRN or un-jacketed bullets out of those types of handguns.
If the lead builds up even a little it will raise the pressure above what the gun can safely handle. Just a thought Good luck.

I'm sorry to hear of the problems with the Talon T200, but I'm glad you (both) weren't more seriously hurt. I knew very little about this particular handgun until seeing an internet video report this afternoon of another slide failure. (I suspect the individual reported on in that report is an earlier poster in this thread.) I did a cursory internet search and read all kinds of reports of similar incidents--slides coming apart--with that model. The manufacturer (and that model in particular) does not seem to have many fans. Although I understand that manufacturer is now defunct, that particular handgun did not gain a fan in me today!

You purchase a handgun for sport/hunting, competition, "recreational" target shooting, and possibly self defense. You shouldn't have to be concerned that the thing will blow up in your hands or face. Still, it happens. Handguns fail just as other products fail. Those handgun failures should remind all of us of some basic safety points:

1. Do your homework before purchasing a handgun. Make sure the handgun is appropriate for your needs--that it's right for its intended purpose. Try it before you buy to make sure the handgun feels good in your hands (before, during, and after shooting), and that you can control it comfortably. Do research on the manufacturer and on the particular model you're looking at to see what other shooters have to say about both.
2. Take a training course in handgun safety and use offered by a certified handgun trainer.
3. Follow the manufacturer's policy regarding ammunition (reloads, high power, etc), use, and maintenance.
4. Keep your handgun clean and properly lubricated, and have it frequently and regularly checked by a certified armorer.
5. Practice shooting in appropriate environments, always following rules of firearm safety--including the use of ear and eye protection. Get to know your handgun, and become skilled in using it. Develop good, safe habits while using (or around) any type of gun, and insist upon the same from everyone who is with you at the range.

Handguns (and guns in general) are inherently dangerous. But using them can be enjoyable, safe, and rewarding as long as we use our heads at the same time.

As I read through my thought before posting, I became concerned that others would read into it things which I did not intend to communicate. Please don't. I also saw some degree of "lecture" in my thoughts. That is only half-intended. Handgun failures don't necessarily indicate shooter error, and we have no reason to believe shooter error was part of the two failures mentioned in this thread. But handgun enthusiasts have a huge responsibility towards personal and public safety as well as to the way firearms are viewed by the public in general. Let's take this (and every) opportunity to educate each other and to examine our own habits and thinking.

I wanted to get my story out there for people researching Talon T200 9mm's. I experienced catastrophic failure of the slide when I fired the 40th round through this handgun. Let me lay out the story for everyone reading. I experienced something simliar to the original poster on this forum but here is my story. On October 28th 2008 I borrowed my neighbors handgun, a Talon T200, with the intentions of using it for a CCW class being held that weekend. I decided that I would fire a few rounds through it to get a better feel for it that evening. A month before my neighbor and I had went out into the woods and fired about 30 rounds through it. My neighbor had owned the handgun for a couple of years but had never fired it till we took it out into the woods. I went to my local conservation league where there is a shooting range and loaded five rounds into the clip, I hung the targets and stepped back about 30 feet from the target. I fired the first five rounds with no incident and reloaded five more rounds into the clip. I fired four more rounds without incident, but on the final 10th round that day I was stunned!!!! It took me a second or two to realize what had happened. The slide on top of the gun had blown into two pieces and the largest piece flew back and hit me in the mouth. The broken slide tore my upper lip nearly into two pieces, knocked out one of my teeth, knocked another backwards and it was hanging. I was bleeding all over the place. I quickly grabbed my things and placed a glove over my mouth while I headed to the car. I was light headed and in shock. There was no one around and I ended up having to drive myself to the hospital. The night had just begun for me. My local hospital was unable to treat my facial trauma and they took my by ambulance to a larger city hospital. An E.N.T. specialist performed the sutures and did an amazing job reconstructing my upper lip. I had a horrible emergency room dental experience!!!! The night ended up being full of a lot of pain and irritation. I have had a root canal and crown put onto the tooth that was knocked out at the gum line. I have one more tooth that needs a root canal and a crown placed on it. The bills that I have seen so far, and they are not all in have already topped $6000. I have not recieved the bill for the 90 mile ambulance ride yet but Im sure that will be another $6000 - $8000, Thank god for insurance. I am currently around $1000 out of pocket. I am just trying to get the word out about this handgun. If you own a Talon T200 or a variation of it then get rid of it. The doctors told me that I am lucky to be alive! If the broken slide had hit me a few inches higher it would have killed me! If anyone has any information on the company that now owns this handgun please email me that information. If you have had a similar experience, it only takes three people to start a class action law suit against someone. Being an engineer I am angry that a company would put a product out there without doing the correct amount of calculations and destructive testing to their product. I feel the manufacturer should be held liable in this case and I am looking for information to pursue this issue!
If you want to see a picture of want the gun looked like after the incident then just check the pics from the original poster, they are identical. Anyone wishing to contact please feel free to contact me at andyfannin@gmail.com
Just wanted to put it out there that the ammunition I was shooting was NOT HAND LOADED. The ammunition was factory loaded green dot ammunition approved for this handgun

Before accident


Accident Damage


Photo taken from original poster but modified for effect showing what caused my facial trauma