WECSOG Auto Mag

Now that's funny... TRX302 Reading your post and then looked over on my desk and I noticed my Paperweight for the past three month. It's a Gen II production TDE casting, no machining.

The package from Walter arrived today with the prototype frame. It was exactly as pictured. Apparently it had been damaged and welded up more than once, shouldn't be any problem.

The dovetail has been welded up. I can't imagine why, unless this was originally machined for a square dovetail. The frame has some powder residue in nooks and crannies, so it was definitely an operable firearm at one time.

Yep, there are pits and voids, just like the later-production frame I have. And the mag release, and both triggers, and some of the accelerator bits. I guess AMT had those problems from Day 1.

There's a flat piece welded in the bottom of the frame ring; Bob B. mentioned doing this to some of the XP guns. This one is still flat, not bored round with the frame ring.

There are no bridges across the magwell for the bolt hold-open pin on the magazine. There's a semicircular groove in front, for the early prototype bolt hold-open. I'll probably modify a latch and magazine for this specific frame later. According to the book this style hold-open wouldn't reliably actuate when the magazine was empty. For an exotic-antique-occasional-shooter I don't think it matters.

The frame ring and dovetail need to be remachined. Shouldn't be any problem once I get set up for that.

Most interestingly, some of the parting lines from the molds were still visible on the polished prototype frame. It's immediately obvious that there are no mold lines in common with the later frame. So there were are *least* two sets of Auto Mag frame molds, completely different from each other.

I imagine those of you who have had more than one AM at a time already knew that. I had suspected it, but now I know...