AutoMag (pistol)
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| AutoMag | |
|---|---|
 AMT manufacture |
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| Type | Semi-automatic pistol |
| Place of origin |  United States |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Harry Sandford |
| Manufacturer | Auto-Mag Company |
| Produced | 1970 - |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 57 oz (3 lb 9 oz) (1.62 kg) |
| Length | 11.5 inches |
| Barrel length | 6.5 inches |
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| Cartridge | .44 AMP |
| Action | short recoil |
| Feed system | 8-round single-column box magazine |
| Sights | Adjustable target sights |
The .44 Automag pistol was originally created in the late 1960s by the Pasadena Corporation in an attempt to bring .44 Magnum ballistics to an automatic pistol design. It was the first semi-automatic Magnum production gun and was the first all-stainless production gun. The Automag concept also gave birth to three new cartridges: the .44 Auto Mag (.44 AMP), .357 Auto Mag (.357 AMP) and the lesser-known .41 Jurras Magnum (.41 JMP).
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[edit] Function
The short recoil operated Automag featured a rotary bolt with locking lugs located at the front similar to the M-16/AR-15 rifle. The Automag was a massive and heavy firearm designed to give handgun hunters .44 Magnum power from an autoloader. The .44 Automag was designed to shoot .429 inch, 240 grain bullets at about the same velocity as the .44 Magnum.
[edit] History
The genesis of the Automag was fraught with problems. In 1971, Automag developer Harry Sanford opened a factory - Auto-Mag Corp. - in Pasadena, California. Guns were made in both .44 AMP and .357 AMP, and changing calibers required only the additional barrel and cartridges. The same frame, magazine and bolt could be used on both. After producing about 3,300 pistols, AMC went bankrupt.
Lee Jurras, of Super Vel ammunition, commissioned a limited 1,000-piece run of Automags to be given the LJ-prefix on their serial numbers. They were to be custom-made to his specifications and were chambered for his wildcat .41-44 Jurras Mag Pistol (JMP) round. Jurras' own personal model, serial number LJ-0005, is shown in a promotional photo with a skeleton-framed shoulder stock and a 2x scope.
Trust Deed Estates (TDE) then took over and set up in North Hollywood, California, later moving to El Monte, California. During this time, High Standard had a number of Automags made with its name on the guns. Later, Ordnance Manufacturing Corp. (OMC) joined TDE and produced a few more guns. Finally, Arcadia Machine and Tool became the final resting place for the Automag.
Although few were built, the firearm gained some notoriety in Hollywood. The Automag was showcased in the fourth Dirty Harry movie, Sudden Impact (1983), starring Clint Eastwood as Harry Callahan, and in Natural Born Killers (1994)
Mack Bolan carried an Automag in The Executioner book series. The pistol was also featured in The Warlord (a DC sword and sorcery comic) although being in a world contained in the centre of the Earth Travis Morgan's ammo supply options were even more limited than usual for an AutoMag owner.
[edit] Ammunition
The .44 Auto-Mag Pistol (AMP) cartridge was introduced in 1971. Its rimless, straight wall case was formed by trimming the .308 Winchester case (or any other member of the .30-06 family) to 1.30 inches (33 mm). No U.S. manufacturer has offered a factory loading for this cartridge, but ammo was once available from the Mexican firm of Cartuchos Deportivos Mexico, while Norma (a Swedish firm) produced loaded ammo and empty cases. Today, .44 AMP brass is available from Starline Brass, but forming the case for the ammunition requires a set of custom dies from RCBS, an inside neck reamer, and plenty of spare time. Loaded ammo is available from Cor-Bon.
A scene in the film Beverly Hills Cop II has a scene where spent .44 Automag shell casings were found at a crime scene from a DESERT EAGLE .44 Magnum auto pistol, not an Auto-Mag.
The .357-44 AMP round was introduced in 1972. It was similar to the .44 AMP, except it was necked down to take the smaller bullet.
[edit] Collecting
The Automag was short-lived due to a variety of reasons, including the expensive manufacturing process; a production engineer once stated that the company lost about $100 on each unit. From 1971 to 1982, approximately 9,500 Auto Mags were manufactured, by different manufacturers and in different variations. TDE made a limited run of "A" series pistols in the early 70's that consisted of only 132 units. These "A" series are extremely hard to come by today, as most have been bought up by avid firearms collectors.
[edit] Statistics
Auto-Mag Pistol
- Manufacturers:
- Auto-Mag Company (AMC); Pasadena, CA (1970-1973).
- TDE Corporation; North Hollywood, CA (1973).
- TDE Corporation; El Monte, CA (1974).
- High Standard; ? (1974?).
- Chambering: .44 AMP (Auto Magnum Pistol) [10.74x33 mm] (1970), .357-44 AMP [9x33 mm] (1972), .41-44 JMP (Jurras Mag Pistol) [10.41x33 mm](?).
- Barrel Length: 6.5 inches.
- Overall Length: 11.5 inches.
- Weight: 57 oz (3 lb 9 oz) (1.62 kg) [.44 AMP]; 54 oz (3 lb 6 oz) (1.53 kg) [.357 AMP].
- Magazine: 8-round single-column box magazine.
- Sights: Adjustable target sights.
- Finish: Stainless-steel.
- Furniture: Two-piece black polyurethane (AMP models) or holly or ebony wood (JMP model) grips.
- Features: Ribbed barrel.
- Production: 1970-?
- Price: $275 each ($425 for a paired .44 AMP and .357 AMP barrel kit)
[edit] AMP Wildcat cartridges
These were rounds test-bedded by the developers, but never adopted due to the limited demand for the .44 AMP round.
- .30-44 AMP [7.62x33 mm] This was an experimental cartridge based on the .30 M1 Carbine bullet.
- .36-44 AMP [9.14x33 mm] This was an experimental cartridge based on the 9 mm Parabellum bullet.
- .46 AMP This was a theoretical short-cased round designed for a proposed narrow-frame model for shooters with small hands.
[edit] Other calibers
AMT (Arcadia Machine and Tool) manufactured several firearms under the Automag name, including the AMT AutoMag II in .22 WMR, AMT AutoMag III in .30 Carbine, AMT AutoMag IV in .45 Winchester Magnum and AMT AutoMag V in .50 Action Express.
[edit] References
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This article does not cite any references or sources. (September 2007) Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed. |
