TAKE CHARGE CARRY WITH CONFIDENCE
Taurus GX4 vs Hellcat
We compare the Taurus GX4 vs Hellcat.
With the massive success of the SIG P365 and the Springfield Armory Hellcat, Taurus was getting left behind. So Taurus introduced the Taurus GX4 to compete with these high-capacity micro-9mms. Today, we’re going to compare the Taurus GX4 vs Hellcat. All of these guns may look similar from afar, but there are a ton of differences when we look at them up close. Let’s dive into the details of the Springfield Hellcat vs Taurus GX4.
Size
While these guns appear to be very close in size and weight, guns this small, just the slightest amount can make a huge difference.
But, again, we’ll cover more on that below.
| Metrics | Springfield Armory Hellcat | Taurus GX4 |
| Weight w/ no mag (Oz) | 16.1 | 16.6 |
| Weight w/ empty mag (Oz) | 18.2/18.6 | 18.6 |
| Weight w/ full mag (Oz) | 23.0/24.2 | 23.4 |
| Height (top of slide to bottom of magazine baseplate) (Inches) | 4.03 | 4.2 |
| Length (Inches) | 6.03 | 5.8 |
| Width of grip (Inches) | 1.02 | 0.99 |
| Width of slide (Inches) | 0.87 | .95 |
| Width across controls (Inches) | 1.07 | 1.06 |
Taurus GX4 vs Hellcat Concealed Carry
Both of these guns are designed for concealed carry.
They’re small enough that some people can carry these in the pocket, but most will likely carry these in some form of IWB (inside the waistband) carry.
As you can see on the size chart, these are both reasonably small in size. Their weights are nearly identical and there isn’t much difference in their widths.
If you’re looking for the most concealable firearm, the Springfield Armory Hellcat will probably have a slight advantage.
The height of the gun, which is the most crucial dimension for concealment, is around three-sixteenths of an inch shorter than the Taurus GX4.
Taurus GX4
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Comparing the GX4 vs Hellcat may not seem like a lot, but it can make a massive difference for specific body types with guns this small. If this gun is already well under what your body can reasonably conceal, it won’t make a difference.
However, if you’re a small enough person or dressed in a manner that these guns are on the upper end of what you can conceal, then less than an inch will still make a big difference.
If you’re looking for incresed capacity we’ve reviewed the Hellcat Pro which you can read here.
The weight of these two firearms is identical, so there’s no real difference there.
When it comes to capacity, both of these guns hold 11 rounds flush to that magazine. Again, I guess you could give a little bit of an advantage to the Springfield Armory Hellcat. The Hellcat offers 11 rounds with a height that is just slightly shorter than the Taurus GX4. But, of course, that has its downsides as well, which we’ll mention later on.
IWB
If you plan to carry this gun inside the waistband or at the appendix position, then there isn’t going to be a difference between these two guns for most users.
However, as I mentioned earlier, if you’re in a situation where your clothing affects the size of the gun that you carry, then maybe there will be an advantage for the Hellcat. That said, 99 percent of the time that is not going to be the case.
Pocket Carry
If you plan to pocket carry these guns, every small dimension does matter for most people.
If you’re wearing very baggy pants with large pockets, you can probably get away with carrying the Taurus GX4. But if you aren’t, then the Hellcat will be an advantage as that shorter grip will make the gun easier to get out of the pocket.
The Hellcat will also have a much smaller profile in the pocket vs. the Taurus GX4. I should mention that the width of the grip is just slightly more prominent on the Springfield Armory Hellcat, but it’s not enough of a difference to notice. The width of the slide is more prominent on the GX4.
Despite the extra width on the slide, the slide width isn’t enough to make a difference in concealment. For concealment, the most important dimensions are usually the width of the grip and the height of the firearm.
When you average out the extra length of the Taurus GX4 compared to the extra width on the Springfield Armory Hellcat, they seem to come up about equal for inside the waistband carry.
Springfield Armory Hellcat
Springfield Armory Hellcat
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Ergonomics overall
Ergonomics are essential when considering a firearm, but what you have to look for is the correct ergonomics. Not only should a gun feel good in the hand, but it should also allow you the proper leverage to take control of that firearm.
Having adequate control and force of the firearm is much more important than feeling good in the hand. Sometimes feeling good aligns with proper leverage on guns like the CZ P-10 C, but other times, you can get more leverage on a firearm like a Glock 19, which doesn’t feel good in the hand but offers leverage in the correct places on the grip.
Frame
The frames of these firearms appear identical when you look at them initially, but right off the bat, you’re probably going to notice the backstraps on the Taurus GX4. The GX4 is the first gun of its kind to offer this feature.
While removable backstraps have been popular on much larger firearms, this is the first micro to provide them from the factory. As a result, you get both a small and a large backstrap when you order the gun from Taurus.
I have just kept the small backstrap on the firearm as I don’t see a need for the large.
Despite having removable backstraps, what the backstraps do not do is change trigger reach. You’re stuck with the same trigger reach as with any other firearm. That said, we’re comparing this with the Hellcat that has no modularity built into the grip. It’s an advantage.
Grip Length
When it comes to the feel of the grip, I prefer the Taurus GX4 vs Hellcat.
The issue with the Hellcat is that it has a much rounder grip and is smaller in circumference than the GX4. On the other hand, the GX4 has a larger grip on distance from the front to the back strap. This gives me more control over the firearm.
Another thing to mention is grip length: with the flush-fit magazine installed, I can get half of my pinky on the Taurus GX4. With the Hellcat, I can only get the very top portion of my pinky on the Hellcat, and even then, it’s barely there so it’s not providing much leverage. The pinky is the strongest finger in your hand when it comes to gripping a firearm. You’re losing a lot of leverage on the Hellcat vs. the Taurus GX4.
Taurus GX4
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The grip on the Taurus is similar to the CZ P-10 C and I really enjoy that the way the grip is designed forces your hand high into the firearm, which means that even a novice shooter is not going to have a problem getting an excellent high hold on the gun.
Taurus did a fantastic job in designing that portion of the GX4. The only other gun that’s come close is the CZ P-10 C, and obviously, that is in a much larger size format than this Taurus GX4.
Springfield Armory Hellcat
Springfield Armory Hellcat
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Texture
The texturing on these guns is both a sandpaper-like texture that wraps 360 degrees around the grip. I really can’t give an advantage to one gun over the other when it comes to texture. The Hellcat does have some texture between the magazine release and the slide stop, which the GX4 does not.
This is an advantage for the Hellcat vs. the GX4. That said, it’s not an advantage that I can take advantage of. I can’t utilize this feature because the gun is just so small that the palm of my hand can’t make contact with that portion of the firearm.
Slide
When it comes to the slides on these guns, both offer forward- and rear-cocking serrations. I drastically prefer the Taurus GX4 vs Hellcat when it comes to the falls. Both of these guns have ahead serrations, but the serrations on the Hellcat are rather slick and aren’t the easiest to use if your hands get sweaty.
However, the Taurus GX4 serrations are not incredibly aggressive either. I would like to see more aggressive serrations on both of these slides, but where the key advantage for the Taurus GX4 comes in is the finish on the slide has a little more texture to it. That texture makes it just slightly easier to pull the slide back.
Another advantage of the slide is it’s somewhat more comprehensive, so my hand more naturally grabs the slide on the Taurus GX4.
When it comes to racking the slides on these guns, the spring weight feels almost identical. This is not a make-or-break situation when comparing the Taurus GX4 vs. the Hellcat, but I have to say there is a slight advantage to the Taurus in this situation.
Taurus GX4
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Sights
Both of these guns come with a decent set of sights. The sights on the Springfield Armory Hellcat are better. The Hellcat has a very bright yellow luminescent sight and a rear unit sight with a white ring around it. These are some of the best sights offered on a micro-9mm pistol, and just might be the best sights out of any out-of-the-box.
The Taurus GX4, on the other hand, has metal sights and the rear sight itself is blocked out with small serrations on a square notch, while the front has a single white dot painted in the front. The front sight on the Taurus is fine, but it’s not as good as the one on the Hellcat. But there’s a significant difference from a price perspective on these two firearms, which we’ll cover later on.
If you like using your sight as a ledged rack off a belt or other object, then the sight on the Springfield Armory Hellcat will be a little better for that. You can do that with the sights on both of these firearms, but the rear sight on the Springfield Armory Hellcat has a more aggressive ledge at the front of the sight.
I can’t say anything negative about the sights on the Taurus when you account for the price.
Aftermarket
There are tons of aftermarket options for both of these guns. The Hellcat uses a standard SIG cut and the Taurus GX4 uses a standard Glock. By utilizing a Glock cut, it opens many aftermarket sighting options up to the Taurus GX4. This was smart on Taurus’s part.
If I were to carry the Taurus GX4, I would probably just end up replacing the front sight with a white night or blacked-out sight. The rear sight I find to be entirely sufficient on this gun.
Red-Dot Optics
Currently, the Springfield Armory Hellcat has the OSP variant, which comes with a red-dot optic. This gun will accept any Shield RMSc mounting system. This includes the SIG Romeo Zero and the Holosun 407K and 507K among others.
Shoot Better With Mini Red Dots
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The Taurus GX4 has the Taurus GX4 TORO version, which will also accept red-dot sights. Unfortunately, that is not on the market yet, so we don’t have any idea what the optic offerings for that system will be.
Controls
Good access to those controls is necessary to use the firearm safely.
Springfield Armory Hellcat
Springfield Armory Hellcat
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Safety
There is no external safety on the Taurus GX4. On the other hand, the Springfield Armory Hellcat does offer a thumb-mounted safety that is ambidextrous and very low-pressing.
While I don’t have one on my gun, I have handled these in stores and found the design very good. It’s a well-designed safety that you can ride with the top of your thumb like a 1911 safety when shooting.
If having external safety on your firearm is a must, then the Hellcat is going to be your only option.
Trigger
Objectively, I can’t say one trigger is better than the other, but these triggers are different to describe them in detail.
Springfield Armory Hellcat Trigger
The trigger on the Springfield Armory Hellcat has a light take-up and then you’re going to feel just one level of creep before you immediately go into a rolling break. The trigger on this has an initial hard wall before you hit that creep.
This trigger is good, but it’s definitely on the heavier side. The reset on the Hellcat is reasonably short and resets right at the initial point of the wall we were talking about earlier.
Taurus GX4 Trigger
The Trigger on the GX4, like the Hellcat, has a very short amount of light take-up. This take-up is a little bit shorter than the take-up on the Hellcat.
Taurus GX4
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You’re then going to reach a wall, and then you’ll feel a somewhat light, plasticky-feeling break. This one feels much lighter to me than the trigger on the Hellcat. It’s not a rolling break by any means, but it doesn’t feel like a stiff hard break either.
Somehow Taurus has accomplished what I would say is the best of both worlds. I personally really like what Taurus has done on this trigger. The reset on this trigger feels slightly shorter than the Hellcat as well. This trigger resets right at the initial hard wall.
Something I forgot to mention is the trigger shoes themselves. The trigger shoes on both guns have a flatter appearance. I personally prefer the feel of the trigger shoe on the Taurus to the Hellcat. The shape of the trigger shoe is 100 percent personal preference, so you can’t take my opinion as gospel when it comes to this.
Slide Lock
When comparing the slide locks on the Taurus GX4 vs. the Springfield Armory Hellcat, I’m probably going to surprise you and say I like the slide locks much better on the Taurus GX4. It seems to be in a slightly better position for my larger hands and it’s just easier to manipulate.
I was impressed with how Taurus designed the slide style. It’s a shallow profile, yet it’s effortless to lock the slide back or drop it using the slide lock. It’s positioned a little farther forward, so if somebody has tiny hands, this slide lock design might be an issue.
I have a medium to large size hand, and I don’t find any issue with it. The Hellcat, on the other hand, has its slide lock position much further back, and for me, that presents a little bit of a problem. But if somebody has smaller hands, they’ll probably find this design preferable.
When it comes to the feel of the slide stop, the Taurus is a little less sharp after looking at it and feeling it initially. You would think it would be less effective than the slide stop on the Hellcat. That said, in use, there is no comparison between the Taurus GX4 vs Springfield Armory Hellcat when it comes to the slide stop.
I find the GX4 to be the winner, assuming you have medium-to-large hands.
Magazine Release
The magazine release on both of these guns is reversible so you can mount it on either the left or right side of the firearm. The magazine releases themselves are pretty similar. I will give some points to the magazine release on the Hellcat as it’s just a little more rounded and more comfortable to use.
The edges on the GX4 release are a little bit sharper. Both of these magazine releases have a similar reach to the hands, so there’s not going to be any difference or advantage when it comes to larger- or smaller-handed shooters using these firearms.
The most significant difference is going to be dropping the magazine itself. When I say this, I mean your hand is catching the magazine when it should be falling from the grip. The grip on the Hellcat is so short that I have to break my grip for the magazine to drop further.
The GX4 has that slightly longer and much wider grip, so my hand doesn’t block it nearly as much. If I drop the magazine release, I can block the grip using the bottom of my palm or drop and prevent the magazine from falling free. That said, I don’t have to break my hold much and that magazine comes right out. So there is going to be a slight advantage when it comes to reloading the Taurus GX4.
Springfield Armory Hellcat
Springfield Armory Hellcat
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Magazine Well
There’s a slight angle on the magwell of the Springfield Armory Hellcat, and there is none to be had on the Taurus GX4.
Right now, I find both of these guns reasonably easy to reload as my hand does act as a magwell when going to load the firearm. Your hand extending below the grips on these guns is somewhat of an advantage when it comes to getting the magazine in quickly.
Quality
I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I don’t see a difference in quality when comparing the Taurus GX4 vs. the Hellcat. But, again, this is not a slight on Springfield but rather a compliment to Taurus.
Taurus has really upped their game when it comes to quality. With pistols like the Taurus G3C and G2C series, you could notice a difference in quality compared to higher-priced guns. But when it comes to the GX4, there isn’t much of a difference anymore.
Aftermarket
The Taurus GX4 is very new on the market, so there aren’t many aftermarket options. The Springfield Hellcat, on the other hand, has plenty of aftermarket options available. Given the feature set of the GX4, I expect aftermarket options will come along shortly. Both of these guys have plenty of sight options, which is probably most people’s primary concern.
Taurus GX4
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Aesthetics
Aesthetically, I prefer the looks of the Taurus GX4. Neither of these guns are what you would call classic-looking firearms. That said, the Taurus GX4 seems to have a little more styling in it. The details of the gun looked slightly more modern and hip. The Hellcat, on the other hand, seems a little bit outdated. The lines of the Hellcat just aren’t as attractive, in my opinion, but everybody has their own thoughts on the subject.
Shooting
Shooting the GX4 vs. the Hellcat, I was somewhat disappointed.
The Taurus GX4 doesn’t have quite as good of a recoil impulse as the Hellcat. As a result, it feels more like you’re shooting a Glock 43 instead of the Springfield Hellcat, which has an excellent recoil impulse for such a small gun. Due to this, I’m going to have to give the advantage to the Hellcat. We’ll talk price below, which may change things, but there was a clear advantage in the recoil impulse for the Hellcat. As you saw earlier throughout this, the Taurus has many other advantages over the Hellcat, so I was somewhat disappointed to see this result.
Springfield Armory Hellcat
Springfield Armory Hellcat
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Price/Value
Currently, prices on the Hellcat are around $525 if you can find one in your local gun store. I picked up my GX4 for $350. MSRP on these guns is about $50 higher. With over $175 difference, it’s hard to ignore the value that the Taurus GX4 provides.
Closing Thoughts
I’d still probably go with the Hellcat over the Taurus GX4, just due to the recoil impulse of the firearm. That said, if the recoil impulse of the Taurus GX4 could be changed slightly, I would, without a doubt, go with the Taurus GX4. If you are price-conscious regarding firearms, I would not shy away from the Taurus GX4. For $350, this gun presents a significant value.
Spend an extra $50 to change out the front sight of the firearm, and you have a fantastic pistol that is on par with the Hellcat in every way except the recoil impulse. After that, you start reaching a point of diminishing returns for the money you spend. If the recoil impulse is not a big deal to you, then the Taurus is the way to go.
However, if you’re like me and you’re willing to spend an extra $175 to $125 for a softer impulse, then you’ll want to go with the Hellcat.
Taurus GX4
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Pros/Cons
Springfield Hellcat Pros
- Recoil impulse
- Size
- Factory sights
Taurus GX4 Pros
- Price
- Grip length
- Slide stop
- Ergonomics
Springfield Hellcat Cons
- Price
- Grip length
Taurus GX4 Cons
- Factory sights
- Recoil impulse
4 Comments
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You do great reviews. I love shooting the Micro’s and you are dead on with this. I do have a couple of different opinions on recoil. I prefer the Hellcat over the Sig 365 but actually prefer the GX4 over all three. And I cannot stand a U-shaped rear sight. I do a lot of fast point and shoot drills and the rear sight needs to be blacked out. The grip on the GX4 is about as perfect as any Micro I have ever shot. Just live this new gun. I also have the new Complete Slide with optics already gun on the GX4. Man, Taurus really stepped up to the plate on this new Micro 9. Quality, grip, control of shooting etc. Keep up the great reviews!
For the G4x Lakelineinc is offering ported and soon threaded barrels and a nice little compensator.
Iv gotta taurus 9mm, I luv her, she’s purple “purpygirl” but I need 1 more 9mm so I’m gonna mate her w/a hellcat9, I wanna laser this time!
ATS Advantage Tactical Sights pyramid sights for Glock fit the GX4 perfectly, I put orange rear. yellow front for the top of the pyramid, also added lakeline ported barrel, Trigger took some getting used to after using XD and Glocks so long.