AMT Backup .380

[Duetnao]

Hi, I've got an AMT Backup .380, & I think I'm looking for a replacement, but heres what I want to keep:
the added palm safety & the size. This is my car camping gun & I like that its just enough gun to do the job & nothing more & I like that I can feel extra secure with it chambered given the 2 step safety.

What I DON'T like about it is the difficulty with mag discharge, & how finicky it can be with different ammo. I've had it jam a few times out of the few times I've taken it out to shoot.

Being I want the palm safety & the size but easier mag swap & more reliable fire, what is the recommendations? Especially appreciate hearing from those that have owned the AMT backup. Appreciate the insight.

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[Anonymous 510]

Honestly I had owned one of these and I got rid of it didn't like the extreme pressure it took to pull the trigger and the mag change wasn't that fun as well... im my experience i tend to go with a glock 27 for my edc... but I also dont keep a round in the chamber only time I chamber a round is when im out hunting...just cause accidents can happen and the few seconds it takes to chamber a round does not bother me I have done tons of training from owb or iwb draw and charge the firearm and both are pretty fast and get the point across when the need arises but I hope you find what works best for you

 

[Alexx1401]

Hi, I've got an AMT Backup .380, & I think I'm looking for a replacement, but heres what I want to keep:
the added palm safety & the size. This is my car camping gun & I like that its just enough gun to do the job & nothing more & I like that I can feel extra secure with it chambered given the 2 step safety.

What I DON'T like about it is the difficulty with mag discharge, & how finicky it can be with different ammo. I've had it jam a few times out of the few times I've taken it out to shoot.

Being I want the palm safety & the size but easier mag swap & more reliable fire, what is the recommendations? Especially appreciate hearing from those that have owned the AMT backup. Appreciate the insight.

View attachment 2214454

Damn have not seen one of those for a LONG time. Had 2 back in the late 70's, maybe early 80's. Both needed some love to get them to work but once they did they worked. When the polymer pistols started to hit they got traded off. Ruger and Kel-Tec make a FAR better choice now for something like this. They are a lot lighter so they do have some kick, but if you enjoyed that you should be fine with them. My favorite for pocket carry now is the Ruger LCPII. Trigger is on the "feel" of a Glock so FAR easier to hit with. Wife who is VERY recoil sensitive has the same in .22LR and loves it. Since those have long been gone you may well find a buyer who "just has to have" it. Anytime they stop making something there seems to be some who will really pay well for them.

 

[orygun]

I had an AMT Backup 45. Not the same gun, but similar uses. It was too heavy, had a very stiff trigger and no sights to speak of. Always worked, but I never cared that much for it.
While it's bigger than your Backup, I have a S&W Performance Center Shield EZ 380. Awesome sights, grip safety along with a real thumb safety. Easy to load, easy to rack and shoots very well.

 

[wombatz]

Why 380 now that many 9mm compete head to head and offer more capacity?

 

[Ben B.]

For dual safeties in a .380 that size I can only think of the Sig P238, with grip safety and thumb safety.

I suggest you consider the long smooth DAO trigger of the Kahr pistols, specifically the CM9. The size is right, 9mm instead of .380, price is right in the CM9, better sights. If you must have a .380, look at the CW380.

I myself filled the role with a pair of Kahr PM40s and think highly of them.

The M&P Shield will do the job as well.

 

[Starslinger]

The Sig p238 does not have a grip safety, only a thumb safety. Great little gun though. I highly recommend it.

You could go with a Kahr and not keep a round in the chamber for extra safety.

 

[Alexx1401]

The Sig p238 does not have a grip safety, only a thumb safety. Great little gun though. I highly recommend it.

You could go with a Kahr and not keep a round in the chamber for extra safety.

This (empty chamber carry) used to be a fairly common "thing" that I seldom see anymore and for good reason. It "tends" to be a very poor way to carry any gun you may want to depend on to save your butt. When you watch what goes on the the "world around us" these days there is a LOT of kooks running around free who should be locked up. If you get attacked you really do not want to have to both remember to chamber a round and have the free hand to do so. If this works for someone great, but few will actually be able to pull it off in a split second when something unexpected happens. What will all too often happen is someone pulls the gun and then too late finds out it will not fire when they need it to.

 

[thorborg]

Remington 51 in 380, palm and thumb safeties, easy eject, if you don't want plastic. there is one in a 32 also.

 

[Starslinger]

This (empty chamber carry) used to be a fairly common "thing" that I seldom see anymore and for good reason. It "tends" to be a very poor way to carry any gun you may want to depend on to save your butt. When you watch what goes on the the "world around us" these days there is a LOT of kooks running around free who should be locked up. If you get attacked you really do not want to have to both remember to chamber a round and have the free hand to do so. If this works for someone great, but few will actually be able to pull it off in a split second when something unexpected happens. What will all too often happen is someone pulls the gun and then too late finds out it will not fire when they need it to.

This is his car camping gun. The chance that he will be suddenly attacked and end up in a quick draw situation without hearing someone messing around his car is extremely low.

 

[Alexx1401]

This is his car camping gun. The chance that he will be suddenly attacked and end up in a quick draw situation without hearing someone messing around his car is extremely low.

Both of those places are when he may VERY well need a gun and need it fast. This is a to each his own and most who do stuff like this end up fine. Reason is almost all of us will go our entire life and never actually have to shoot anyone. An empty gun is still of course better than no gun, but................

 

[Duetnao]

Why 380 now that many 9mm compete head to head and offer more capacity?

I didn't say it needs to be a .380. I just said I'd like to keep the added palm safety & the size.

 

[Ben B.]

I remember that I really wanted one of these AMT Backups when I was a kid in the 80s, and also the Grendel P11.

 

[RVTECH]

What I DON'T like about it is the difficulty with mag discharge, & how finicky it can be with different ammo. I've had it jam a few times out of the few times I've taken it out to shoot.

Have you ever taken it completely down, inspected all the internals and gave them a good cleaning and polishing? IE all edges, all parts that interact with one another etc?

If not, doing so MIGHT dramatically improve it's operation.

Many years ago a friend of mine had an AMT 1911 that was having problems and he asked me to look at it and it was pretty 'rough' inside but after a good cleaning and polishing of all internals it cycled 100%

Something to consider anyway.

 

[1775usmc]

This (empty chamber carry) used to be a fairly common "thing" that I seldom see anymore and for good reason. It "tends" to be a very poor way to carry any gun you may want to depend on to save your butt. When you watch what goes on the the "world around us" these days there is a LOT of kooks running around free who should be locked up. If you get attacked you really do not want to have to both remember to chamber a round and have the free hand to do so. If this works for someone great, but few will actually be able to pull it off in a split second when something unexpected happens. What will all too often happen is someone pulls the gun and then too late finds out it will not fire when they need it to.

Carrying a gun with an empty chamber (thinking you'll always have time to rack a round) is the equivalent to driving a car without a seatbelt (thinking you'll have enough time to put it on before being involved in an accident).

 

[gmerkt]

Carrying a gun with an empty chamber (thinking you'll always have time to rack a round) is the equivalent to driving a car without a seatbelt (thinking you'll have enough time to put it on before being involved in an accident).

Somehow, I don't see those as comparable. But I'll leave that alone. When it comes to carrying a semi auto around with a loaded chamber, I'm thinking of probabilities, likelihoods and scenarios. Meaning, people are more likely to shoot themselves accidentally than they are going to need to draw a loaded and charged weapon in defense. Revolvers, I have no issue with carrying one of those with all chambers charged. The nature of semi auto pistol designs introduces potential for mishap that just doesn't exist with revolvers.

Re. scenarios, if the element of surprise is so great and circumstances are so dire, you may not have much chance of viable defense even with a charged chamber. Example, you're in the coin shop and an armed robber comes in, he's already got his gun drawn. You may just want to leave your pistol holstered, chamber charged or not.

This is just my opinion. I have a Glock G19, I would never trust that thing or myself enough to carry it around concealed with a charged chamber. But then again, I don't much like carrying a gun in public anyway. At my age, I try to stick to places where I'm not likely to need one. When I'm out in the hills shooting, that's another story. I always open carry a gun out there. Because my chances of getting jumped by a blue tarp tweeker (sp. tweaker?) are great enough that I feel the need.

 

[1775usmc]

Somehow, I don't see those as comparable. But I'll leave that alone. When it comes to carrying a semi auto around with a loaded chamber, I'm thinking of probabilities, likelihoods and scenarios. Meaning, people are more likely to shoot themselves accidentally than they are going to need to draw a loaded and charged weapon in defense. Revolvers, I have no issue with carrying one of those with all chambers charged. The nature of semi auto pistol designs introduces potential for mishap that just doesn't exist with revolvers.

Re. scenarios, if the element of surprise is so great and circumstances are so dire, you may not have much chance of viable defense even with a charged chamber. Example, you're in the coin shop and an armed robber comes in, he's already got his gun drawn. You may just want to leave your pistol holstered, chamber charged or not.

This is just my opinion. I have a Glock G19, I would never trust that thing or myself enough to carry it around concealed with a charged chamber. But then again, I don't much like carrying a gun in public anyway. At my age, I try to stick to places where I'm not likely to need one. When I'm out in the hills shooting, that's another story. I always open carry a gun out there. Because my chances of getting jumped by a blue tarp tweeker (sp. tweaker?) are great enough that I feel the need.

I'll just say I completely disagree (my opinion). But I also have been appendix carrying a Glock 19 or 17 variant for over 10 plus years. I won't leave the house without a Glock and a round in the chamber.

Training is key along with a quality holster.

To each their own. But I don't carry for what I think WILL happen. I carry for whatever CAN happen. And if I'm in a hands on altercation I won't have time or the ability to rack a slide. And I deal in close quarters with the public on a daily basis.

 

[Duetnao]

For dual safeties in a .380 that size I can only think of the Sig P238, with grip safety and thumb safety.

I suggest you consider the long smooth DAO trigger of the Kahr pistols, specifically the CM9. The size is right, 9mm instead of .380, price is right in the CM9, better sights. If you must have a .380, look at the CW380.

I myself filled the role with a pair of Kahr PM40s and think highly of them.

The M&P Shield will do the job as well.

Definitely doesn't need to be another .380.

 

[gmerkt]

And if I'm in a hands on altercation I won't have time or the ability to rack a slide.

And here is the problem for me. Being as I'm 75 years old, in a truly hands-on situation, I'm probably not going to be able to draw the gun much less rack the slide.

 

[Alexx1401]

Have you ever taken it completely down, inspected all the internals and gave them a good cleaning and polishing? IE all edges, all parts that interact with one another etc?

If not, doing so MIGHT dramatically improve it's operation.

Many years ago a friend of mine had an AMT 1911 that was having problems and he asked me to look at it and it was pretty 'rough' inside but after a good cleaning and polishing of all internals it cycled 100%

Something to consider anyway.

When I had a couple of these that was how I got them to run 100%. Simple polishing. The trigger on those? Now that was a whole different problem. Often someone who had never fired one would at first think the safety was still on. After I got used to it was no big deal to me. Every one of them I ever handled was like this so I had to guess the Co was doing it on purpose. As a way to try to keep people from having AD's with them.