Hi and welcome to the forum.....JJ

Originally Posted by Brink

...I picked up the Taurus Judge Poly to replace the Colt Mustang as my CCW gun. Any drawbacks to this gem, besides recoil?...

Oh, man—you have opened a huge can of worms!

Many people, myself included, think that the .410 shotgun cartridge is inadequate for personal protection, no matter what load it carries.
For further reference, look here: The Box O' Truth - The Box O' Truth

The .45 "Long" Colt cartridge is very practical for self-defense, but the Judge is not set up to get the best performance from it.
Besides, if you want to use the .45 Colt cartridge, why not buy a pistol chambered properly for it?

As I said: A can of worms.

D Dupleks 410 gauge Dupo 7 expanding slug 4-layer jeans denim gelatin test - YouTube

...Very interesting!

Does this still beat .45 "Long" Colt?

Originally Posted by Steve M1911A1

...Very interesting!

Does this still beat .45 "Long" Colt?

Best load to best load, I don't think so.

A while back I was calmly shooting my .22 target pistol on an indoor range when a guy stepped into the next booth, put a man target at 6 feet and went boom. It picked me up and set me back 1/2 inch. Holes appeared over most of the center of the target covering maybe 15 inches in diameter, most were small, some were big holes. He was checking out a judge with 410 shells loaded with a mix of shot. If your bad guy was 6 feet away, he'd be hurting pretty bad and scared way to death! Moved the target back to 20 feet and just about everything missed!! I'll take my M&P .40. One of the guns I traded in to get my new M&P and some other modern guns was a real .45 LC from about 1896. It was fun to shoot if you didn't need a quick followup shot. The .40S&W puts more energy into the target.

I personally think everyone misses the point wen it comes to using the judge as a ccw gun. I think if yer attacker is anywere within 15 feet or under he (or she) is gonna hate life after that first burst of.410 ammo. Anything past 15 feet or more as far as a ccw gun really dont mean a lot. I mean if yer shootin someone at 20-30 feet away yer gonna have a hard time in court explainin why you were shootin at that distance.
i like the judge. HG

Oh, I dunno...
Our living room is waaaay bigger than 20 feet in one dimension, and a little larger in the other.
If some home invader were to appear unexpectedly at our bedroom door, he'd be about 20 feet from our heads as we lie in bed.
If I stand at the entrance to our kitchen, its outside door is about 24 feet away.
If I lie on the floor at the door of our bedroom, to shoot at an intruder coming at me from the kitchen, our hallway is more than 25 feet long.

In any self-defense scenario, I don't want to consciously permit anyone to get as close to me as "Judge range."
I can't always control that, of course, but still I don't want to be as limited as using a Judge would leave me.

I am already limited by arthritis, and am not able to make consistently accurate center hits past about 60 feet, especially with my tiny .45 ACP carry gun.
Why would I want to limit myself even further?

I have noticed with the popularity of the Judge and S&W Governor that .410 self defense cartridges have been developed and marketed, that may or may not change the dynamics of these in self defense use.......JJ

I understand that. Im saying using the judge as a carry gun. Yer not gonna be shootin to many attackers at wal mart parking lots at 60 feet. Im talkin up n close were most attacks occur. RR

Well Brink, whether or not your new Judge is the perfect self defense tool, its still a nice looking wheel gun you got there! Besides, it would sure beat the hell outta having to use your fist to defend yourself. Right?

Originally Posted by hemmigremmie

...Im saying using the judge as a carry gun. Yer not gonna be shootin to many attackers at wal mart parking lots at 60 feet...

I quote myself:

Originally Posted by Steve M1911A1

...In any self-defense scenario, I don't want to consciously permit anyone to get as close to me as "Judge range."
I can't always control that, of course, but still I don't want to be as limited as using a Judge would leave me...

Chacun à son gôut.

My first gun was the Judge and it was fun to shoot not very acurate after 10 feet but if you like it thats all that matters .

I'd agree that the 410 isn't ideal for SD. Anything CAN work, the big question is will it work all the time. A .22 will work IF shot placement is perfect so I subscribe to the theory that you carry the biggest caliber that you can accurately shoot well in a stressful situation. As for distance, the old saw about 21 feet being a safe zone is bunk. I've seen too many shooters completely klutz at that distance. I'm referring to the distance an attacker can rush you from before you can get off a shot, so if you let someone get to within 7 yards of you, you could very well be toast.