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Bang for your buck: Best handguns under $500

See the best handguns for less than $500.

The Taurus PT92 is a double action/single action, 9x19mm Parabellum, double-stack magazine, semi-automatic, short recoil action pistol manufactured by Taurus in the former Beretta factory in Sao Paulo, Brazil. A large contract for the Beretta 92 was with the Brazilian army, for which Beretta set up a factory in Brazil. This factory was later sold to the Brazilian gunmaker Taurus. Taurus makes these pistols (called the PT92) without the need for a license from Beretta since their design is based on the original Beretta 92, whose patents have since expired. 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 can be had for around $450.
The Taurus PT92 is a double action/single action, 9x19mm Parabellum, double-stack magazine, semi-automatic, short recoil action pistol manufactured by Taurus in the former Beretta factory in Sao Paulo, Brazil. A large contract for the Beretta 92 was with the Brazilian army, for which Beretta set up a factory in Brazil. This factory was later sold to the Brazilian gunmaker Taurus. Taurus makes these pistols (called the PT92) without the need for a license from Beretta since their design is based on the original Beretta 92, whose patents have since expired. 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 can be had for around $450.

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