Pistol

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

The .44 Auto Mag pistol was designed to give handgun owners .44 Magnum power in a semi-automatic pistol. The .44 Auto Mag was designed to shoot .429-inch, 240-grain bullets at about the same velocity as the .44 Magnum revolver. The short-recoil operated Auto Mag pistol featured a rotary bolt with six locking lugs located at the front similar to the M16/AR-15 rifle. In 1970, Auto Mag Corporation president Harry Sanford opened a factory in Pasadena, California. The first pistol was shipped on August 8, 1971, and the company filed for bankruptcy on May 3, 1972, after making fewer than 3,000 pistols. The company opened and closed several times from 1973 through 1982 under several different names: TDE (Trade Deed Estates), OMC, Thomas Oil Company, High Standard, and AMT (Arcadia Machine & Tool). An additional 6,000 pistols were produced and sold during this period for a total of about 9,000. Sanford continued to sell spare parts until his death in 1996. His son Walter continued to sell the remaining parts online through automagparts.com. Production guns were made in .44 AMP. Experimental pistols were made in .45 ACP, .30 AMP, .357 AMP and .41 JMP. Changing calibers usually required only exchanging the barrel – the frame, magazine and bolt could be used with all calibers except .45 ACP.

In Their Own Story

The Auto Mag Corporation was short-lived for several reasons. The design team, headed by Mark Lovendale, took the AutoMag pistol from an unreliable experimental machined chrome-moly steel prototype designed by Harry Sanford and Max Gera and created a more production oriented and marginally reliable stainless steel version. The Lovendale design team was convinced the Auto Mag pistol was not ready for production and needed more changes to improve reliability and could not be produced at a profit. The design team believed that even with a correct finished design, the wholesale price of the pistol had to be greatly increased or the company would go bankrupt. The design team was unable to convince Sanford, and they all resigned. The pistol was then produced by the remaining staff, and put into production. Unfortunately the expensive manufacturing processes and materials, function unreliability and need for many parts to be produced by sub-contractors made the gun unprofitable resulting in bankruptcy of the original company. Under-pricing of the Auto Mag pistol made ultimate success impossible. One analysis claimed that the Auto Mag Corporation lost more than $1,000 on each pistol; each pistol sold wholesale for around $170. The pistols originally retailed for $217.50 in the 1970s. Used Auto Mag pistols now sell for much more. In August 2015 Walter Sanford sold all the assets of the company including the name, trademark, and all rights to AutoMag Ltd. Corp., a South Carolina-based corporation. Auto Mag is currently producing the first 77 Founders' Edition pistols with an 8.5" barrel, selling for $3,995 each. Classic Edition pistols with a 6.5" barrel are planned to sell for $3,495 each.

Reader's Guide

The .44 Auto Mag pistol is chambered in .44 AMP [10.74x33 mm] (1970), .357 AMP [9x33 mm] (1972), and .41 JMP (Jurras Mag Pistol) [10.41x33 mm]. Barrel length is 6.5 inches, overall length is 11.5 inches. Weight is 57 oz (3 lb 9 oz) (1.62 kg) for .44 AMP; 54 oz (3 lb 6 oz) (1.53 kg) for .357 AMP. Magazine is a 7-round single-column box magazine. Sights are adjustable target sights. Finish is stainless steel. Furniture is two-piece black polyurethane (AMP models) or holly or ebony wood (JMP model) grips. Features include a ribbed barrel. Production ran from 1970–2002. Original retail price was $217.50, later increased to $275 ($425 for a paired .44 AMP and .357 AMP barrel kit). Between 1971 and 2000 the Auto Mag wore eleven different names: AM, Pasadena, California; TDE, North Hollywood, California; TDE, El Monte, California; TDE, El Monte, California, High Standard; TDE, El Monte, California, Lee Jurras; TDE, El Monte, California, Kent Lomont; TDE / OMC, El Monte, California; AMT, Covina, California; AMC, Covina, California; AM, Irwindale, California; AM, Sturgis, South Dakota. Lee Jurras of Super Vel Ammunition commissioned a limited run of Auto Mags to be given the "LEJ" prefix on their serial numbers. They were to be custom-made to his specifications and were chambered in .44AMP, .357AMP, and in Jurras' wildcat .41 JMP. Some of Jurras's custom Auto Mags had custom leather holsters and magazine pouches, shoulder stocks, high polish finish, custom engraving, among other features.

Did You Know?

• The .44 Auto Mag pistol was designed to shoot .429-inch, 240-grain bullets at about the same velocity as the .44 Magnum revolver.
• The first pistol was shipped on August 8, 1971, and the company filed for bankruptcy on May 3, 1972, after making fewer than 3,000 pistols.
• One analysis claimed that the Auto Mag Corporation lost more than $1,000 on each pistol; each pistol sold wholesale for around $170.
• The .44 Auto Mag cartridge was originally formed by trimming the .308 Winchester or .30-06 Springfield case to 1.30 inches (33 mm).
• In August 2015 Walter Sanford sold all the assets of the company including the name, trademark, and all rights to AutoMag Ltd. Corp., a South Carolina-based corporation.