Very nice mini 1911 ... Llama MicroMax 380

J

jimku

Moderator
If you have a love affair witn 1911 handguns, you have GOT to get your hands on one of these!
Cuter than a little puppy, more fun to shoot than there are words for, super nice trigger, runs on almost any ammo you stuff in it, and as accurate as you could ask for. I don't remember where I got the stag grips, but to me they make the little bugger awesome. I have a spare magazine, so primary carry is reasonable, although I don't carry it. Mine lives on my nightstand loaded with Underwood Xtreme Defender ammo so that if I have to use it in the house I won't be over-penetrating and patching walls, buying a new TV set, furniture or whatever.

They are made by Metroarms in the Philippines, and sold by Eagle Imports and they are known for really nice guns that are affordable. The 45ACP in the top picture is a Metroams American Classic II with a full compliment of Willson Combat parts ... all internal parts, barrel bushing, hammer, trigger, beavertail, mag release ... all hand-fitted by the best 1911 specialist gunsmith I could find in the NorthWest. Before the work was done he told me the steel, barrel, frame to slide fit were all right on par with his personal high-end Dan Wesson ... and I believe him given how the gun felt and shot out of the box (now it is phenomenal).

https://americanclassic.eagleimportsinc.com/americanclassic/firearms/

https://eagleimportsinc.com/llama/firearms/micromax

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Now that's pretty cool. I have one of the original Llama .380's. They've changed quite a bit since they left Spain, Brazil, or wherever they were originally born. I've never had a hiccup with mine either.
 
It's a reboot of the Spanish LLama Micromax. I don't think it should be regarded as a continuation of the same pistol, even though Eagle Imports appears to have somehow acquired the rights to the Llama name. Armscor/Rock Island is also making a clone of the original Llama Micromax. The Armscor version is in their "Baby Rock" series.

https://ezine.m1911.org/showthread.php?240-Armscor-Baby-Rock-380-Review


Armscor has also cloned the Spanish Llama double stack:

https://ezine.m1911.org/showthread.php?267-Rock-Island-Armory-BBR-3-10-Review&p=897#post897


What this suggests to me is that any patents and/or copyrights on the Spanish Llama pistols have expired, so the designs are now in the public domain and up for grabs by anyone who wants to make them.
 
There a reviews out there that say they had problems with the Baby Rock and were not happy with it. I see no such reviews for the MicroMax. Generally speaking, from reviews across the board, Metroarms seems to be putting out better guns than Rock Island.
 
Bill DeShivs said:
The Spanish Llama small frames had the same angle, and it's not the same as a 1911.
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No it's not the same. So what has that to do with anythng? Everything else is very much like a 1911, it feels like a 1911, functions like one, points like one, looks like one except for its slightly different grip angle. It is also straight blowback unlike a 1911, but it disassembles and goes back together like a 1911. Do I care? No. I love the little gun and consider it to be a small 1911. You may not. Oh well. :)
 
jimku said:
No it's not the same. So what has that to do with anythng? Everything else is very much like a 1911, it feels like a 1911, functions like one, points like one, looks like one except for its slightly different grip angle. It is also straight blowback unlike a 1911, but it disassembles and goes back together like a 1911. Do I care? No. I love the little gun and consider it to be a small 1911. You may not.
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I agree with Bill DeShivs. It's not the same as a 1911, despite the makers' efforts to portray it as a sort of small 1911.

With all due respect, if the grip angle is different from that of a 1911, it can't point like a 1911. You have apparently learned to compensate for the difference, but that doesn't make it the same. Remember, it doesn't take much. The reason the M1911A1 has an arched mainspring housing is that too many soldiers felt the original M1911 (which had a flat mainspring housing) pointed "too low."

You are obviously free to consider it a small 1911 if you wish. Most 1911 aficionados disagree. Your post notes four areas in which the MicroMax differs from a 1911, and from that you conclude that it's the same. It's like a professor I once had used to say: "So all the time it's the very same thing, except it's different." (For maximum effect, this must be read with a strong Cuban accent.)
 
A Llama 45 on same level as a high end Dan Wesson? Yea I hear you. I would keep it separate with one of the AK-47s that shoot into one hole at 100yds.
 
Not to hijack the thread, but Iver Johnson had a little Pony gun that looked an awful lot like the old Llama. Were those the same pistols with different markings?
 
Aguila Blanca said:
The reason the M1911A1 has an arched mainspring housing is that too many soldiers felt the original M1911 (which had a flat mainspring housing) pointed "too low."
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I suppose that's why to this day you can get a 1911 either way, and interchangeable mainspring housings either way to suit preference. Eh? Neither is right, neither is wrong, just a matter of preference. And incidentally my 1911 45 ACP has a flat one ... and a high-end one at that from Ed Brown with a snakeskin pattern. Now, why on earth do you suppose a high-end parts manufacturer like Ed Brown would offer such if there weren't enough people wanting them to make it worthwhile?? Huh? And please don't insult yourself by claiming all those afficionados shoot low!
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Drm50 said:
A Llama 45 on same level as a high end Dan Wesson? Yea I hear you. I would keep it separate with one of the AK-47s that shoot into one hole at 100yds.
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Nobody said anything about a Llama 45 being on par with anything, there is no mention anywhere in this thread of a Llama 45. And nobody said a Metroarms 45 was on par with a high end Dan Wesson either, just that the steel and barrel quality and slide-to-frame fit was on par with my 1911 specialist gunsmith's personal Dan Wesson before he worked his magic on either, which says nothing at all about the barrel bushing fit, or fit / quality / smoothness of any of the internal parts, the trigger or anything else.

And nobody said anything anywhere to my knowledge of an AK47 shooting one hole at 100 yards either. Just because a gun has iconic status does not mean it can or will shoot one-hole groups at 100 yards ... in the case of the AK47 its durability and ability to keep right on running in the face of abject abuse is what makes it iconic ... not its accuracy. It is so iconic that it is even found on at least one national flag.

Flag of Mozambique
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jimku said:
Aguila Blanca said:
The reason the M1911A1 has an arched mainspring housing is that too many soldiers felt the original M1911 (which had a flat mainspring housing) pointed "too low."
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I suppose that's why to this day you can get a 1911 either way, and interchangeable mainspring housings either way to suit preference. Eh? Neither is right, neither is wrong, just a matter of preference.
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I agree, it is a matter of preference. I prefer flat, and if I happen to come into possession of a 1911 that has an arched mainspring housing, I change it. So?

jimku said:
And incidentally my 1911 45 ACP has a flat one ... and a high-end one at that from Ed Brown with a snakeskin pattern. Suggest that maybe you study a bit more?
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Study what more? Nothing I wrote is incorrect, or even controversial. The reason for the change to the arched mainspring housing is a well-documented fact.
 
Aguila Blanca said:
I agree, it is a matter of preference. I prefer flat, and if I happen to come into possession of a 1911 that has an arched mainspring housing, I change it. So?


Study what more? Nothing I wrote is incorrect, or even controversial. The reason for the change to the arched mainspring housing is a well-documented fact.
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Whatever. Peace.
 
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10-96 said:
Not to hijack the thread, but Iver Johnson had a little Pony gun that looked an awful lot like the old Llama. Were those the same pistols with different markings?
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When did Iver Johnson have such a gun? They don't show anything like that on their web site. I just went through my notes from the SHOT Shows for 2020, 2018, and 2017 (I missed 2019 due to illness) and didn't see anything like that.
 
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