AMT Backup Reviews

by **tigwelder56** » Tue Apr 03, 2007 1:25 pm

Sensei, did you have any luck finding the springs you were looking for?

by **hemiram** » Sat May 05, 2007 4:22 am

I had a 380 backup years ago, total POS. Had to go back to the factory twice, came back all scratched up both times. Had a nearly 40 pound (Gunsmith at the place I shot's best guess, his scale didn't come close to going high enough.) trigger pull when new. After it went back to AMT the second time, it was only about 25 pounds, and it still jammed constantly. I finally had the gunsmith take it apart (he said it was amazingly crude), and polish up a few things and it actually didn't cut my finger anymore, and would shoot an entire mag of hardball without jamming, most of the time.

I couldn't depend on it, so I sold it and tried several others before getting and sticking with a Beretta 950 Jetfire. I still have it, almost 28 years later.

by **tigwelder56** » Sat May 05, 2007 4:40 pm

I've got the DAO 380, bought it maybe 6 or 7 years ago, don't recall. I haven't had near the problems most people have had with their's. Was yours a SA or DAO? I don't have luck with anything but ball ammo. I read in some report that you're not supposed to shoot anything but ball ammo in an AMT 380 Back Up. I don't know about the other caliber pistols. Mine is quite reliable with ball ammo and in a split second I think I'd rather be able to throw 6 ball ammo slugs at the bad guy than a rock. A gunsmith told me some time ago that if you buy a snap cap and just dry fire the pistol over and over it'll smooth out a lot of that crude machining AMT is known for. I agree with you 100% on the trigger pull being a bear! I think mine is in the neighborhood of 15 pounds. I've also got a Beretta Jetfire and 21A in 25acp. I guess we think a bit alike! I went out today and bought a Seecamp 32acp. I hope it's as good as they have been said to be!

by **hemiram** » Sun May 20, 2007 8:25 am

It was DAO. The triggers seem to vary all over the place, from merely "stiff" to like mine where it was almost like something was stuck inisde, and was about to break. I liked the gun itself, if I had any confidence it would fire when I might have needed it, I wouldn't have offed it. I'm not keeping any gun I can't depend on.

by **tigwelder56** » Sun May 27, 2007 8:01 pm

This is a statement from the Internet Armory regarding ammunition selection for this small auto. I gave up shooting JHP's in mine some time ago due to the unreliability of it. This short comment by them might answer some questions people have about this pistol's reliability and one possible way to improve on it.

"Federal FMJ, 95 grains, has a 51% one shot stopping success. This cartridge is well suited for use in the Davis P-380, Accu-Tek, EAA -380, Tanarmi, AMT/OMC/TDE "Backup", Heritage, FIE, Jennings, Bryco, Lorcin, Llama, and other low-priced handguns. The JHP ammunition should never be considered for use in these firearms."

Tig

by **ryanbreneman72** » Sun Oct 07, 2007 2:16 pm

cynykle1 try the dealer you purchased it from.or the state police who control the registration of firearms in your state.i had one in .45 acp WOW!!!!! what a handfull.I HAD TO GLUE A PEICE OF RUBBER TO THE BOTTOM OF THE MAG BECAUSE IT WAS ALMOST POPPING OUT OF MY GRIP.

by **gunnutz** » Sun Oct 21, 2007 10:14 am

hey tig, I noticed you are looking for ammo for your AMT. Have you tried Fiocchi JHP? They are a tad shorter than most, and work will for me in .32, 380 an 9x18. gun

by **tigwelder56** » Sun Oct 21, 2007 1:36 pm

Hey Gun,

I haven't tried the HP's in my AMT 380, but have tried them in my Seecamp 32. They were much too long to even fit into the magazine of the Seecamp. They are a recommended load for the Seecamp but I've had nothing but problems with them. They have changed their bullet design for the 32 at Fiocchi as well. They used to have a semi jacketed HP and now they offer a full jacketed HP. Neither one worked for me in the 32. I'll pick some up for my 380 and hope they feed. AMT has mentioned in the past that you should only shoot ball ammo in their Back Up models. But they have changed ownership a few time and it's hard to say what changes the new manufacturers have made. Thanks for the tip!

by **gunnutz** » Sun Oct 21, 2007 5:06 pm

what year is your seecamp, tig. they work great in my seecamp and bersa 380. Who can figgure this stuff. A guy must just have to hold hi lip rite.................gun

by **GlockRocker** » Sat Apr 05, 2008 11:16 pm

Here is an email that I sent Gun Directory. Let me know what you guys think. I'm trying to get them to run a battle test for small CCW pistols. I had to shorten it.

What if you ran a huge promotion on this site to gather funds and ideas to do a "CCW" field battle test? I'm sure enough people on here would donate $10 to help you guys purchase all of the widely used CCW pistols and out them to the test. An unbiased test.

I'd like to see the Beretta Tomcat, Bobcat, Seecamp, NAA Guardian and Mini, Kel Tecs, Ruger LCP, Bersa Conceal, AMT, Kahr PM9, Tuarus 25 series, Walther TPH and the Derrenger LM5 go head-to-head in a shoot test for reliability mainly, accuracy secondary, conceal ability, warranty, etc. I don't think this has ever been done.

I do marketing and graphic design and would help coordinate it for free (web banners, etc.). Every gun has good posts and bad posts related to it... but who really knows what's best?