AMT "Backup" Questions

[DMoses]

I am interested in possibly picking up one of these but was wondering if anyone has exp. with one in any caliber. My interest is purely from a "bug" perspective.

How well do they shoot up to 7 yards.

How reliable are they?

And any other advice would be welcome.

I want a Walther PPK but they are really out of my price range.

[gigag04]

I would stray from the PPK even if you did have the money. My dad has a PPKS and the one piece design (barrel + frame = one piece) really jams up alot. Even with a steady, and familiar grip, it still jams up at least once or twice per 50.

I gotta learn how to shoot like James Bond, esp one handed



Sadly, I have no 1st hand experience with the AMT.

[ShootingStar]

DMoses,

I have an AMT 380 Backup I bought many years ago. At the time, small guns were not like they are today, you know, small and light...

The Backup is certainly small, but it's all steel and not very light. You might do better to go with a Keltec as the weight of the AMT is a little much in your pocket. I had a pocket holster for it that broke up the outline pretty well. It fits in your pocket more comfortably.

It also has a tendancy to shoot high. As someone mentioned earllier about the PPKS, the frame and barrel are one piece.

The worse thing about it is that it's pretty hard to get apart. It's been a long time since I even picked it up, but I remember the last time it was a bear to get apart. It is stainless steel though, so that helps. My recommendation is that you would do better with either a Keltec or a Taurus revolver that is ported to reduce the recoil. There's another post around here about a Backup Gun where these two were discussed.

I would have responded earlier, but didn't see the post until now. If you ever get down to the Friendswood area, I'd let you shoot mine.

God Bless.... SS

[quidni]

The more that I think about it, I don't think I will be getting a "BUG" in .45 Caliber. I can imagine just how painful it would be to shoot.
Then again I'm sure in a "high adrenaline" situation that would require me to use it, that I wouldn't feel any effects of the recoil.

Well, at least you wouldn't feel it until afterwards!

[Plink]

I've got an older model AMT .380 Backup from the '80's. It's the pre-Galena Industries single action. I've heard that they can be hit or miss on reliability.

Mine has been quite reliable. I have a friend who has one from the same time period, and his is reliable also.

I did open the magazine lips slightly, to increase the feed angle. It shoots hollowpoints well, has a fairly good trigger and if you take the time to align the tiny sights, it's surprisingly accurate. 7 yds would be no problem for even a headshot, given the time needed to aim.

It's a bit heavy for it's size, but that helps tame the rather snappy recoil.

[KinnyLee]

Off topic, but have you looked at the Glock 30s?
It's not particularly a small gun, but it's not really big either.


Don't mind the trigger finger on the pic. It's the only one I can find relative to someone holding it. lol
Let me know if you want to check one out. I have one.

[longtooth]

D, my BUG is a Kel-Tec P32. It is the one almost all the LEO carry in Lufkin. Several of the deputies on the SO carry one too. Will show you when we meet if you like. It is totally reliable. light. has available an extended mag if desired. 8 rd total. shootable w/ no discomfort. Melts in back pocket or front w/ simple homemade holster. I know some consider that to small. Dependable primary gives better room for smaller BUG. My opinion. Some have the 3AT. They have said these are now reliable since the 1st generation is no more. I bought one of the 1st & had nothing but trouble out of it & KT too. After 2nd generation I thought I would try again. It is in the factory now & agian trouble w/ the service dept. 1st had the well known extraction problems. 2nd after 150 rds the trigger failed. The 32 has never been a prob for anyone that I know. 3AT is either good or bad from the factory. I have tried twice & bad both times. Never again on any KT product.

[rbraughn]

First Post Here !!!

My buddy had an AMT, and The trigger pull was terrible, and I did not like it at all. It would be ok as a BUG in a pinch, But I wouldn't spend my money on one. YMMV

On a side note, I have an Interarms PPK (before the S&W version) and mine has always performed flawlessly, and is very accurate....I guess I have been lucky with mine....That said, after I got a G27, The PPK collects dust.

[GlockenHammer]

First Post Here !!!

My buddy had an AMT, and The trigger pull was terrible, and I did not like it at all. It would be ok as a BUG in a pinch, But I wouldn't spend my money on one. YMMV

On a side note, I have an Interarms PPK (before the S&W version) and mine has always performed flawlessly, and is very accurate....I guess I have been lucky with mine....That said, after I got a G27, The PPK collects dust.

Welcome! Find a sticky thread in the general forum and introduce yourself when you get a chance...

[NcongruNt]

I want a Walther PPK but they are really out of my price range.

Get an FEG PA63. It's a copy of the PPK, to the point that a lot of parts are interchangable - I just replaced my broken ejector spring with a PPK spring and it fit perfectly. It's also aluminum alloy-framed so it's nice and light. It's also fun to shoot. I've put probably near 1000 rounds through it in the 3 sessions I've shot in the past month and a half of ownership. The downside is that you're limited to 9mm Mak ammo, which you generally can't find at a big box store. The Hornady JHP is supposed to be excellent ammo for this gun, which I'm going to be testing out here in the next few days. Also, if you get one, don't shoot anything above 95 grains out of it - it's not designed for that. But really, it's a nice gun, cheap (Aim Surplus sells them for $130 with 2 mags), and it's pretty for a milsurp gun.

[nuparadigm]

I am interested in possibly picking up one of these but was wondering if anyone has exp. with one in any caliber. My interest is purely from a "bug" perspective.

How well do they shoot up to 7 yards.

How reliable are they?

And any other advice would be welcome.

I want a Walther PPK but they are really out of my price range.

I owned an AMT .45 Backup for several years. I had it ported (which made it extremely loud) and it was a good 7 yard weapon ... reasonably accurate. It went from me to an HPD guy, but he may have sold it by now.

It was reliable and it ate anything I fed it. The magazines look like minature 1911 magazines and they are fairly difficult to find - but they are out there if you look hard enough.

The weapon cycles very slowly; so slowly that you can almost eat your lunch between shots.

[pistolchamp]

I have carried this gun in my truck and in my back pocket for many years. Yes its heavy and the trigger is terrible, but, certainly good enough for combat range and the gun has been completely reliable through over 2,000 rounds of all kinds of ammo, factory and handloads.

I just this week changed to a Kahr PM-9 polymer framed stainless slide in caliber 9 m/m that weighs very little and dissappears in the back pocket of my jeans. I also got a new North American Arms NAA380acp stainless pistol and its just as cute as it can be. I bought both so I could compare them and the Kahr stays and the NAA is for sale. Decision made in one hour at the range.

Both were completely reliable right out of the box and reasonably accurate especially the Kahr. I also tried a Kahr in 40 S&W and it was brutal in recoil, much worse than the old AMT 45 backup.

[CWOOD]

This is my unfortunate experience with the .45 Backup. I REALLY liked it when it came out and HAD to have it. Take this information and use it as you prefer. Mine may not have been typical...I can only speak for the one I had.

I had my my AMT Backup .45 for nearly four years starting in 1998 and it was my carry weapon although I never fired it much. Money for ammo was tight then and it is not pleasant to shoot. It always bit the web of my hand and had significant recoil. The ejected rounds always seemed to hit me in the forehead.

I loved the concept. Small, compact, stainless, simple and stoutly made. It is really almost a contact weapon with a barrel of less than 3" and a groove for sights, but I carried it everywhere.

As the time for my CHL renewal approached I wanted to run through the proficiency exam a couple of times as I had previously qualified with another pistol and had maybe only 200 rounds through this in the four years.

I had several misfires/failures to eject/feed during my first run. I never made it through my second attempt. It jammed like I have never seen before. The slide was in a fully retracted position and two rounds (one live and one spent casing) were jammed in the ejection port. The slide could not be pulled back further to clear it. Since the hammer spring shares duty as the magazine latch, I could not drop the magazine to assist in clearing the double feed. Literally nothing would move. I was really concerned about the partially chambered round and the unejected case.

Fortunately, I was out in the country and tools were close at hand so I didn't have to drive with it in that condition. Using a small screw driver I was able to force the magazine latch open to drop the mag. That seemed to relieve a little pressure on the slide and I was able to pry it back just enough to clear the casing and eventually solved the problem. I never fired it again.

I stripped the weapon and found that the ejection rod was the primary culprit. It had become loose and wobbly and would occasionally miss hitting and ejecting the round to be ejected, causing the double feed. I further dissambled the pistol and was able to remove and then shim the ejection rod in place with a leaf from an old feeler guage. It actually seemed to be a pretty good repair. It would cycle rounds and eject them propely and there was no longer any wobble in the rod. However, I had lost confidence in it and wouldn't carry it.

I later sold it to a dealer at a gun show. That is my experience. Your mileage may vary. I soon bought a Glock 30 which is thicker but but only has a slightly larger profile. A Glock 36 would be pretty close to the AMT in size and weight.

Another thing to consider, which prompted my final decision to dispose of the AMT is that the company was then out of business and there was no source of parts or service. Had I been able to send it to a factory to be permanently repaired it MIGHT have influenced. I love my G30 and would probably like the G36 for the roll the AMT once had. Thank God I found out in practice and not in a time of need.

Whatever course you choose, I wish you all the best. I hope this helps in some way.

[NcongruNt]

I want a Walther PPK but they are really out of my price range.

Get an FEG PA63. It's a copy of the PPK, to the point that a lot of parts are interchangable - I just replaced my broken ejector spring with a PPK spring and it fit perfectly. It's also aluminum alloy-framed so it's nice and light. It's also fun to shoot. I've put probably near 1000 rounds through it in the 3 sessions I've shot in the past month and a half of ownership. The downside is that you're limited to 9mm Mak ammo, which you generally can't find at a big box store. The Hornady JHP is supposed to be excellent ammo for this gun, which I'm going to be testing out here in the next few days. Also, if you get one, don't shoot anything above 95 grains out of it - it's not designed for that. But really, it's a nice gun, cheap (Aim Surplus sells them for $130 with 2 mags), and it's pretty for a milsurp gun.

An update to this: A few weeks ago I tried out the Hornady XTP ammo, and WOW! The brass is really slick, and you can feel the difference in how smooth the ammo feeds when it's cycling. It was some really nice ammo, and I've got some on order to use as my carry ammo.