The .44 Automag - "Go ahead, make my day"

My question would be why a .44 mag?? Home defence? Bad idea in my eyes. The gun with it's regular ammo is heavy and has enough force to knock down your opponent but also go through the walls and have enough force to hit a person in another room by accident... Or on purpose who knows

Precisely what I was going to say.

IMO any pistol round bigger than good old .45 ACP is more a novelty than anything else.

As far as rabbits goes, well I guess it does make making stew out of them a bit simpler

reply to post by xmotex


I've owned a 44AMP for 25 years, bought & shot three boxes (100) of factory Norma ammo and reloaded nearly a thousand rounds of handloads. It's a handfull of gun, distinctively loud, accurate as hell and tons of fun to shoot. It even makes the long gun guys sit back and scratch their heads when I shoot open sights at 100 yards. I've exploded concrete blocks, punched a hole in an engine block and nearly shot myself in the toe when it slam fired. Practical? No. Fun? Hell yeah! If you've got about 3 grand to spend on the gun & dies, get it. The old story on the gun is that it was designed for Javelina and big game, I'm sure it will work well on rabbits. Maybe you can find the .22 caliber setup Dirty Harry used (so he wouldn't remove his finger prints).

The automag was designed and built in California by the designer Harry Sanford. The Pistol is built very well but if you shoot it much it needs to be tuned like a Ferrari. Lee Juras helped keep the firm afloat when they approached bankruptcy and special ordered 1000 Juras signature .44's. These are real collectors items today. The first 500 of the originals bring the most money. In 1981, the state of California confiscated 27 Automags that where very early serial numbers and in both .357 and .44 from a collector, and before any ajudifucation took place on this man, torched them in half and threw the parts in the ocean. The market hit $2500 for unfired models and has pretty much stayed there. Automag went bust in the 70's and bounced around between several owners. In later years AMT owned the patents and rights and produced a .22 version!

Zindo

[edit on 9/1/2008 by ZindoDoone]

I have the same gun as your photo, (it's not a real amp gun), and recommend you get one. I, too, think the original automags are awesome, but can't justify the price for something I'd never shoot, at least not currently. What I do have, and is what your photo is, is a Marushin automag. It is a replica, shoots 8mm airsoft bb's, uses propane (the kind you buy at walmarts for about $4) cylinders with a special adaptor, and cycles just like the real one every time it shoots. It comes in a nice aluminum carrying case, and best of all, costs around $200. Here is a photo of mine, in the case. Btw, I also have the .22 auto mag II, fun to shoot, but not real reliable.
Airsoft automag
Scroll down, you'll see it.

reply to post by Dr Love

Dr. Love

I don't blame you one bit. For many years, I've drooled over the AutoMag. The ammo itself is easy enough to come by as you simply make your own from very common components.

I would suggest you keep an eye in gun publications such as Shotgun News, and you can occasionally find one available.

Sort of like '66 Corvette convertibles with the 427, not a lot for sale, but if you look, there is nothing you cant' have.

I'm only talking off the top of my head here, but I think the guy's name was Jurris, and he designed the weapon. You'll get less kick (all other things being equal) with the AutoMag than with a wheelgun such as the Model 29.

The thing just LOOKS hot.

And when you get one, find a master gunsmith, and see if he can check it out and possibly make up a replacement part kit. A piece such as this deserves a top once-over.

Man! Good luck.

Well, crap. If I'd have known Zindo was on, I'd have kept my mouth shut. I apparently got my Jurris spelling wrong and misidentified him as the designer.

You listen to Zindo.

When he speaks, it is with authority.

Why an Automag? What do you intend to use it for or do with it? If it's a .44 you're after I would look into a Desert Eagle chambered in .44. One advantage of going that route is you're a quick barrel change away from .50AE or .440 Corbon and not as quick bolt and barrel change away from .357 Mag. Another option for .44 is a nice revolver which is probably better suited for a large caliber.

If you just want a big powerful handgun look into the S&W .500 Magnum or even something like a .454 Casull or big .460

If you want a powerful and reliable auto loader have you considered a 10mm?

Another option and certainly a much cheaper one for an automag if you want it more to hold it and look at then take to the range would be one of these

www.specialairsoftsupplies.co.uk...

www.japanairsoftguns.com...






[edit on 13-1-2009 by warpboost]

What is it with "why do you want it?" questions?

If he wants the Automag he wants the Automag. Not a good "D" gun, so what? Too big to carry, so what? A pain to get ammo, so what?

The dude wants an Automag. Posing alternatives doesnt help him get an Automag.

It's like watching a movie and wanting a WRX all rallied out and everyone asking why do you need that? You cant open it up on the freeway. It's expensive. A pain to maintain. Pricey to insure. Then suggesting he buy he a Ford Focus.

Sometimes you just want something. Given the ridiculous amount of debt so many seem to be floating on I find it hard to believe that Americans are so focused on only having what they need. I have an M1 Garand I dont need. It's heavy and expensive to shoot. I dont hunt with it. But when I saw Gran Torino the other day and I looked over and said "that's what I got hanging on the living room wall" it sparked interest and a dialog and somebody learned about the gun that may not have otherwise had the opportunity to do so. (Note: it wasnt some stranger in a theater)

Though, I could be wrong and the "why do you want that?" replies could be coming from the most frugal and thrifty people on the planet.

Some great info and opinions in this thread. I still want one and HAVE come across a couple, but was unwilling to fork over the cash at the time. Definitely would be strictly a convo piece and not for real world use.

I want a Jimmy Lile Rambo knife too, same reason.

BTW, "unwilling to fork over the cash" = "buy that thing and kiss your sex-life goodbye".

Peace

Harry Sanford's son just recently put some of Harry's own Auto- mags up for auction on GunBroker. I didn't keep a close eye on the auctions or even if he managed to sell them but the reserve prices where high, I can tell you that. He had a complete set of prototypes of like 14 calibers that could be used on one lower reciever. From .22 all the way to .45 Winchester magnum. Harry Sanford was a true, self taught, genious with the inner workings of firearms.

Zindo

I know how bad you want an automag BUT there might be something else to consider - the Wildey. It was the star in Death Wish. You can get it chambered in .45 min mag or .475 wildey magnum.

The best part is the company is still around and ammo is accessible! Also - a Wildey can be had for about a grand less.

www.wildeyguns.com...

Instead of buying an Automag you could buy the whole company and for just $100K I'm not sure how long ago that was posted or if its even still accurate? It seems like a great deal and for someone. Maybe you could get some investors together and do something? You could probably buy it, liquidate all the parts, tools, maybe even license the design to some other companies, recoup all your money and get a few automags out of it

THE ORIGINAL AUTO MAG COMPANY IS FOR SALE

You get all the parts, inventoried, that we sell on this site. You get millions of dollars of the original tooling used to make the original pistol. You get 300 of the original Aristocrat brochure. You get everything my father had left from the AutoMag Company upon his passing. My mother does not want to do this any longer and frankly, the part sales just are not worth my time. So if you wanted to start production of the AutoMag again - this would be a good start. There are hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of parts and tools. You get the rights that we gave to Galena and got back prior to their bankruptcy. You get all unfinished pistols that were being made for the Harry W. Sanford commemorative series. I know you are going to want to see an inventory of the parts and look over the tooling, so email me using this link and lets talk. The price stands at a firm and bargain $100,000.00 for my Father's legacy and would make you a famous pistol manufacturer, overnight. Once in a lifetime opportunity for the right person.

Source

[edit on 13-1-2009 by warpboost]

Watched Sudden Impact for the billionth time a couple days ago and it reminded me of this thread I made not too long ago.

I STILL WANT ONE DAMNIT!!!!! Man what a collector's piece!

Peace