AMT .45 Backup Problems

[.45 Aficianado]

Warning Shot Point well taken but my IWB holster is already occupied by my Kimber .45 Ultra Carry II Crimson Trace. I view the the AMT as strictly pocket or ankle carry BUG if reliable.

 

[.45 Aficianado]

Well, it is back from High Standard, and I can't say I'm thrilled. It was returned in dirty condition with gun shot residue and copper fouling in the barrel - again. (It was originally shipped new from the factory in dry condition, no lubrication, the same way with an empty shell in the box!). I looked at the back of the gun and nothing had been done about the hammer/slide/frame misalignment (see photo). I put a clip in and tried to chamber a round and the slide jammed coming forward (see photo). The bullet had not even contacted the feed ramp, so I don't think polishing is an issue. When I manually pushed the slide forward, I could get it to chamber. I fired 6 total shots. Of those, the slide only came half way forward in chambering the 3rd round, and the last round coming out of the magazine failed to chamber at all and stovepiped (see photo). I bought a Wolf recoil spring which appears longer and stronger (see photo) as others have suggested. Any other suggestions are welcome.

 

[.45 Aficianado]

Additional photos attached.

 

[Sulaco2]

Was at the WAC gun show in WA State this weekend and was surprised at the number of AMT .45 backups for sale I counted 15 and most going for an asking price of around 300. Almost picked one up but was stopped by the QC problems even with the original guns...

 

[Skans]

That misalignment is just wrong! That one needs to go back to the factory, if thats the way it came from the factory. All other problems are generally fixable.

 

[.45 Aficianado]

Sulaco2 I'm not surprised. I suspect anyone that has one that doesn't work will try to "unload" it at one of these kinds of venues - especially since smaller .45s are being produced by other manufacturers. I'm coming around to the way of thinking that even buying a new gun should come with a trial period at the range, where if not satisfied, can be returned for full refund.

Skans That is how it came to me. I suspect the atrocious misalignment of the slide/firing pin/hammer/frame is the reason the firing pin was broken before I fired the first round. I think the center-of-mass of the hammer coming down to strike the left side of the firing pin, resulted in a force vector that forced the firing pin sideways to the right instead of straight down center. I also think the gouging of the hammer into the metal of the left side of the frame, results in a timing delay on slide/hammer blowback, and rechambering a new round. Also, since the top of the hammer is centered to the left of the slide on blowback, its force must be lifting the left side of the slide in relation to the right side. Maybe that is causing the misfeed resulting in the live round stovepipe seen in the photo above.

 

[454me]

Hope you get your problems taken care of. I bought a 45 backup and it is not 100 % reliable yet. I still need to take it apart and do the fluff and buff. I do notice that its pretty reliable just after I clean it and gets worse as it gets dirty. I wish someone else made a equal gun. I looked at the pm45 before I bough the amt and it was way wider. Felt like it was 1/2 inch wider even the specs don't appear that way. I wear jeans a lot and they have the watch pocket in them. The amt will fit 3/4 of the way down into it. It makes a great little holster or you can just slide it into the pocket.

 

[.45 Aficianado]

454me Can you take a photo from the back of your gun and post it? I'm curious as to whether or not I have an unusual problem with my gun's misalignment, or that it is ubiquitous throughout the AMT community. Keep in mind that 100% reliability is not one hiccup in two boxes of shells. Jeans are a big part of my CCW wardrobe - I'll have to try that, thanks!

 

[ripnbst]

Negative ghost rider. The smallest .45 is a derringer type pistol called the Heizer Double Tap.

 

[RsqVet]

Your hammer to slide allingment looks as mine did. I suspect as long as the slide does not drag on the hammer it's considered normal and a consequence of the design. With slide and grips off you can see there is not much to position the hammer any other way. Having looked at many yours does not look any worse than average.

I think the hammer position is not responsible for most or all of your observed issues.

It looks from your pictures that the rounds are nose diving-- not even hitting the feed ramp in a tip up position to flow into the chamber. Mine did that as well which is what led me to mess around with magazines, springs and followers.

Holding the mag you may note that the follower is floppy tends to deflect down at the front, I think this is an issue. In a short amount of time / space that is available in the cycle of the gun it's not getting to the critical geometry to feed.

If this is best fixed with a better follower or tweaking the feed lips I do not know. I tried both and never got to 100%. close was as a 4 round mag, very stiff mag spring and anti tilt follower.

I do know from the 1911 a ton of feed issues get solved with a better magazine. Sadly there is no Wilson mag for the amt

 

[moxie]

"You can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear."

 

[vyse.04]

The smallest .45 is a derringer type pistol called the Heizer Double Tap.

But can you buy one is the real question... They lost their manufactorer recently, although I think they are looking elsewhere.

 

[.45 Aficianado]

RsqVet Although the bullet is not contacting the feed ramp in the photo I showed, I believe that suggests a problem with the slide binding as it comes forward. After firing several rounds, I can see a bronze streak half way up the feed ramp to the chamber from the PMC FMJ I'm shooting. Maybe I should switch ammo, and see if that makes a difference in reliability, although I've been happy with it in my other guns. Attached are images of the factory mags for the AMT .45 Backup, Kimber .45 Ultra Carry II, and Colt .45 Govt Model, Series '70. The only thing I noticed different about the feed, was how much harder it was to push the round out of the magazine in the AMT. Maybe the lip edges are rough creating friction on the moving cartridge. It's one thing I have not yet fluffed and buffed.

 

[.45 Aficianado]

"You can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear."

That's O.K. with me, since I don't own or need a purse! I do need a reliable BUG, even if I've got to do my own QC.

 

[454me]

Click on my link at the bottom and go to the Amt page. I put 2 pics on there showing the hammer to frame. My hammer doesn't touch the frame. It is closer to the left side than the right side. If you need precise measurements I can mic it for you. My camera does not have a macro feature so the closest one is not exactly clear. Hope this helps.

 

[454me]

I lied for some reason I keep getting a upload error on the web shots server. I don't know another way to do it unless I can put it directly here. Do you know how to put the pictures here?

 

[.45 Aficianado]

Click on the FAQs attachments and images. It's easy.

 

[454me]

Ok I am trying to insert the pictures hope this works. I had to go shrink them all so they would upload. I hate computers. They are the stupidest things in the house. Even the refrigerator knows to turn on the light when you open the door. The computer knows nothing.

 

[.45 Aficianado]

454me:
Your gun's relation of hammer to slide off center to the left looks very similar to mine. Have you shot it much? Are you getting hammer rub on the left lower frame when the hammer slams back in cycling another round from the magaine? Does the last round in the magazine flip up in the ejection port without entering the chamber causing a "live round stove-pipe" AKA BOB?

On the "Stovepipe Opinions" thread on this forum, the discussion for the BOB has centered around magazine problems (springs, lips, etc.).

 

[Sulaco2]

I was looking over my box of holsters last night and noted I still have a hand made belt holster for an AMT BU .45 DAO pistol. Send me an message if interested for you gun.