I have big hands and long fingers, this made the "ergonomic" grips on the Kahr's a little to skinny. The Kahrs may be a better options for someone with short fingers. I have owned 2 Kahrs and have sold or traded them both. I will have to admit the Kahrs look nicer, but the AMT is definitely easier for me to control in recoil. The 45's, 40's (which I carry most often), and the 357's are all very manageable to me in the AMT Backup, and the 9mm even more so. They are a real bargain. I have six mags in each caliber. I carry three, then switch to the other mags periodically to give the mags springs on the other three a rest. With all the mags I have bought and tested, I have found the mags to be the source of most of the reliablity failures on these guns. AMT did not take time to adjust the mag lips on many new mags. Once they are adjusted properly (the mag lips are too wide on many of them) and the feed ramps polished, this little gun feeds any round I feed it as fast as I can pull the trigger.
With the 45's, you can't get the full value of the heavy bullets anyway because they lose to much velocity in the short barrels. Go with the lighter bullets. They recoil less and retain plenty of stopping power in the 45 cal. Corbon has some really good light 45's designed for carry in short barrels.
I think the AMT Backup is one of the best deals on the used gun market and certainly worth every penny High Standard is charging for new ones. They are extremely simple mechanically, and once tuned, are absolutely reliable in all the calibers I have fired in it.
These guns have stiff triggers, but I consider that a plus on a pocket gun with no safety. They slide into and out of a pocket very easily because they have no bumps, bulges or levers to get caught on anything. For a pocket gun in a major caliber for under $300, it is a really hard deal to pass up. As a matter of fact the last AMT Backup I bought was $125 at the local gun store. The other I paid $175 for. I would not sell either gun for twice the money. I also had a chance to buy a 38 Super for $175 and I could kick myself for not doing it if for no other reason than to have a complete set of the calibers for the large Backups.. I would buy a used one now if you want a great deal on a great pocket gun. When the word gets out that they are being made again and the the MSRP is over $400, the price on the used ones is going to go up.
Roll Tide
