As mentioned in my Initial Impressions and Deep Dive on the 692EG, this gun is my first real foray into the world of moon clips. It’s been an incredible learning experience, both frustrating and rewarding. I’ll be doing a dedicated moon clip article in the future, but I want to speak about my experiences with these clips and the Taurus 692 here.
I imagine quite a few shooters are going to be in a similar boat to me. These notes would’ve saved me a lot of time and money if I’d had them at the outset of this project. Hopefully my experience can help you with your 692EG shooting!
For this review I purchased three different makes and models of moon clip. Each is slightly different design, and I was curious to see which would come out on top. Let’s see how the different clips stood up to long term use.
Taurus provides 5x OEM “stellar” clips when purchasing the 692 Executive Grade. I also snagged an additional 25x Taurus moon clips in preparation for Revolver Roundup, for a total of 30x OEM moons. These come in at $21.95 for a 5 pack as of this writing. I opted to primarily rely upon these clips during my review due to their compatibility with my chosen clip holders, something not offered by TK Custom.
Unfortunately, the clips sold by Taurus have proven to be fragile. During my initial 500 rounds, I had 13 moon clips break. Initially thought this issue was isolated to ejecting moons with some live rounds still loaded. The heavier bullet would hit first, acting as a lever to snap off the tine of the clip. However, it turns out this isn’t the only way to break an OEM Taurus moon clip. I’ve also witnessed these snap under recoil in the gun, with the tine of the clip flying off and out of the gun. That’s less than ideal.
As of this writing, I’ve broken 19 of my 30 Taurus brand “stellar” clips. Each breaks in the same way, snapping off one of the tines which retains rounds on the clip. Virtually all of these have broken when being dropped during reloads, both with partially and fully fired clips. While these are less expensive than TK Custom clips on the surface, their lack of durability quickly adds up to greater expense. While fine for the range, OEM options are no longer my preference for the 692EG.
TK Custom is known as THE standard when it comes to moon clips. With this in mind, I initially grabbed two dozen clips from them for use in the 692 Executive Grade. Unfortunately I quickly found them to be incompatible with both brands of moon clip holders I’d picked up for this project. I picked up a Hogue universal holder, and a Revolver Supply Co single post holder for a 686 Plus. Neither of these would allow TK clips to slide over their center post, with the clips just balancing atop their posts, no retention whatsoever.
While the TK clips fit over the ratchet of the 692, you’ll want to stick with holders such as the Speed Beez magnetic belt rack, which I confirmed is compatible with TK 692 moon clips. Taurus OEM moon clips work just fine with both the Revolver Supply Co, and the Hogue holders, which led me to return most of my TK clips, and transition to using Taurus’ offerings instead.
Having only 5 TK Custom clips available, these have seen a significant amount of use over the past several months. Unlike the OEM offerings, TK clips have come out in far better shape. In total, I’ve bent a single TK clip, which recently occurred during this writing process. To date, none have broken, and I’m waiting for the TK Saver Tool to restock to try and fix this bent clip. With this in mind, I’m now of the opinion that TK Custom moon clips are the way to go with the 692 Executive Grade. You’ll be significantly limited on your carrier options, but durability concerns will be a thing of the past. MSRP on these clips starts at $39.95 for a five pack, but TK offers better pricing as quantity increases.
While looking for more moon clip options, I came across RIMZ. Currently EZ Moon Clip does not specifically support the Taurus 692. Comments made on their product page make reference to their 7-shot L-Frame clips being compatible, so I decided to give them a try. These moon clips are made from polymer rather than the typical metal construction. The EZ moons are exceptionally easy to load and unload by hand, with no tools required. This is especially helpful for those on a tight budget or if you forget your tools at home.
It turns out that the alleged compatibility is overstated. Due to differences in geometry, EZ clips do not seat nearly as well as TK or OEM offerings, nor do they extract well. These required me to press the clipped rounds into the cylinder with my thumb, and a fair bit of force on the ejector rod when extracting. During the review process I had several RIMZ EZ moon clips break, snapping along the portion which surrounds the cylinder’s ratchet. I would not recommend these for the 692 at this time, though they appear to be a quality product when paired with the gun intended for them.
If you’re using a moon clip gun, you’ll want some tools to help you load and unload the clips. While we can use our bare hands, that isn’t an ideal solution.
I picked up tools from TK Custom, arguably THE leader in moon clips and moon clip accessories in the US. This purchase provided me with 5x TK moon clips to test out. I highly recommend picking up this loading tool, it’ll save you a lot of time and effort in getting your moons setup properly. In addition to saving time, this will also improve the lifespan of your clips, reducing the likelihood of bending of breaking them while loading and unloading.
The cost of entry is a little high, but picking up the TK bundle of the loader and de-mooner is a great package. As your collection of moon-clip revolvers grow you can simply swap out the mandrel on the loader tool to accommodate different clips. Coming in at $13 a piece, these mandrels are fairly affordable. The de-mooner tool works with brass .45 caliber and smaller, so it’s a buy-once cry-once solution.
I was given a Speedbeez Compact Moon Clip De-Mooner Tool during Revolver Roundup. This also works very well, but does not contain the de-mooned rounds. While not quite as ergonomic, this tool is far more compact, and has found a home on my Retention Ring, alongside tools from Patriot Products AZ, LLC. I suggest picking up one of these as an addition to the TK tools, with this living in your range bag. Just about any caliber will work here, as one side is meant for .45’s and the other for .38’s/9mm.
If you plan on unloading several moons in one sitting, the TK will be more comfortable. However, this Speedbeez tool is a much more convenient option, especially on the road.
Initially I was not able to hand-load my moon clips. There was too much tension, and I didn’t have the finger strength to snap rounds into or out of place. Over time I was able to insert and remove rounds into/from the clips by hand, which was helpful when tools weren’t readily available. That said, I wouldn’t recommend this practice. Handling moon clips in this way carriers greater risk of damaging them, and is time consuming. Pick up a tool, and give yourself, and your clips, a break.
If we’re carrying, competing, or training with these guns, there’s a pretty good chance we’re gonna want a reload. Most of our options are competition oriented, which will impact their ability to be effectively concealed. That said, I tried out a few different ways of carrying spare moon clips to see how they compare to each other.
The Revolver Supply Co Single Post holder is a fairly simple piece of gear. Moon clips slide down the center post, which can stack two loaded clips safely atop each other. The backside of this holder is angled forward, which applies pressure to your clips, retaining them during movement via friction. A fixed belt loop is integrated to the backside of the holder, which wearers thread their belt through for carry.
Overall, I think this is a pretty solid solution. It takes up very little room on the belt to hold two reloads, and it stays in place on the body pretty well. The fixed belt loop means shooters will need to avoid thicker belts such as the Magpul Tejas.
The Hogue Universal Moonclip holder was another piece of gear I started this journey with. Unfortunately, “universal” is a strong term to use with this product. Much like with the Revolver Supply Co carrier, this one also does not work with TK Custom clips. That said, it worked pretty well when paired with Taurus moons. This holds two clips side by side, and simply clips over your belt using basic polymer belt clips.
The clips are protected in the front by polymer that wraps in front them, also acting as your retention through friction. Grab the clips from the side, and go to work. I like that this holder seems to work with a wider variety of belts, and is fairly inexpensive. Moon clip compatibility may be a little limited, but the gear itself is fine.
Next I wanted to try something a little different. Magnet-based holders are extremely popular with moon clip guns in USPSA, so I decided to give one a shot. I went with Speed-E-Rack for this style of holder. While they offer full competition belts, I opted for a two-post variant, holding only two clips. This keeps things relatively compact and on par with other holders in this article. The Speed-E-Rack attaches to the belt via a Tek-Lok, which is extremely easy to use.
Interestingly, I got significantly different retention between Taurus and TK clips with the magnets on this holder. Taurus OEM moons had a really strong connection, sitting firm atop their posts. Conversely, TK clips had pretty weak retention, falling off their posts when running during a drill. While retention varies, both were very quick to get into action during a reload, and I had no issues with reliability or repeatability of loading.
Additionally, the folks at Speed-E-Rack were very responsive, and got my order shipped very quickly. This setup cost me $53, though the price drops to $38 when forgoing the Tek-Lok.
There are a fair few options when it comes to moon clips and moon clip accessories for the Taurus 692 Executive Grade. While I’m certainly no expert, I feel like I’m starting to get a good feel for the market and what it offers. I’ve learned a ton over the past year with this gun, and I’m still finding new pieces of kit to test out. Hopefully this helps you sort through options to find something that suits your needs.
Later this year I should be picking up a new moon clip revolver, this time in 45ACP. As I learn more about that gun’s intricacies, along with any new bits on the 692, I’ll be sure to keep you updated!
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