Being the neighborhood AMT guy has paid off. The local gunsmith just offered me a ridiculously good deal on an AMT Hardballer Longslide—practically for nothing. 

The problem is, it is missing the complete rear sight assembly. Sight base, blade, pin, springs, screws, the whole enchilada. 

Does anybody here have (or know where I can get) a complete sight?  Please help me bring this gun back to life!  Thanks!

I don't know if one can fit, but I will try and take a look this weekend.  I'm not optimistic, but I will still check.

(Following this thread in case someone has an exact sight and beats me to it)

By the way.... you lucky dog!  

I dove onto eBay and hey presto, found this:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/276293816340?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=sOqmp-duR5u&sssrc=4429486&ssuid=yOodP4aXT3u&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY" rel="nofollow - https://www.ebay.com/itm/276293816340

If it fits a Gold Cup, and my Gold Cup is the same as my Javelina, then hopefully it will fit my new Hardballer. And if not I can always just throw it back up on eBay again, maybe lose a few bucks, but who cares?

If all goes well this sight will drop right onto the gun and be fitted as part of the laughably cheap purchase, and I will walk out a very happy bunny. 

The story is that the gun was removed from the owner by law enforcement for some reason, and turned over to the gunsmith for storage. It was missing the rear sight for some reason. The miscreant paid the first storage bill and then disappeared completely, and it’s been sitting there for years and years ever since. 

So I guess it’s some sort of lien sale. The gunsmith has already made money and is more than whole already, and he’s tired of looking at it. I was having the rear sight blade changed (again) on my Javelina and he saw an opportunity to capitalize on my weakness for a good deal on an AMT.

We shall see what transpires when I get the sight next week. If for some reason it doesn’t fit, I will circle back around. In any event I will keep everyone posted.

I went and looked at the gun today. It’s a bit scruffy. Oddly the markings are partially worn off the slide which suggests it was holster carried?

It’s a Covina gun, making it early production, no?

My Javelina sight has the same dimensions as a Colt Gold Cup and I found and bought a Millett Gold Cup sight (which isn’t here yet). However in looking at this gun I see that the sight is shorter in length. So adapting this sight to this gun would either demand milling  the sight channel to make it longer or chopping the front end off the sight and drilling a new hole to mount it. 

Pics to follow. 

I was wrong—the markings are fine, it was just the lighting that was making them hard to see. 

I realized it’s been fitted with a very nice aftermarket grip safety and it feels like it has been given a trigger job. The trigger is MUCH better than my Javelina (which has had a trigger job that was only moderately successful). 

I will try to post pics again later….

It will be interesting to see what the solution is. I can either have the sight channel enlarged to accommodate the longer sight, or (preferably) have the front of the sight shortened and drill a new mounting hole in the sight and install it in the standard sight channel. 

More to follow in a few weeks (unless somebody happens to have a suitable sight lying around in which case I would instantly buy it and install it straightaway). 

Another broken screw?  What is it with you and broken screws.....?   LOL

Hopefully this one comes out easier than the Auto Mag.

Oh, wait, now I see! Is that a broken-off elevation screw I see?  Ah geez….fortunately I have a spare Millett sight (for another gun) that can supply the needed screw….

You crack me up! 

Still, I hope getting this one out is easier than the AM screw.

Yes, agreed.  The more I think about it the more I’m convinced that is the best way forward. 

When viewed from above the sight is shaped like a “T”. The leg of the T needs to be almost exactly one inch long (my Javelina sight is about 1 1/4”)

The width is .3100”.

The length from the mounting pin to the rear of the slide channel (and thus the base of the “T”) is .6925”.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/275912157500?_trkparms=amclksrc%3DITM%26aid%3D777008%26algo%3DPERSONAL.TOPIC%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20221115143302%26meid%3D19020e190a514f1f93c4a2db9a6eebdc%26pid%3D101613%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D1%26mehot%3Dnone%26itm%3D275912157500%26pmt%3D0%26noa%3D1%26pg%3D4375194%26algv%3DRecentlyViewedItemsV2Mobile%26brand%3DAMT&_trksid=p4375194.c101613.m146925&_trkparms=parentrq%3A6f59ba4318d0a4f16bd7c1a9fffe1e30%7Cpageci%3Ab48b71a8-c29f-11ee-be73-d6956b6a9cef%7Ciid%3A1%7Cvlpname%3Avlp_homepage" rel="nofollow - https://www.ebay.com/itm/275912157500?_trkparms=amclksrc%3DITM%26aid%3D777008%26algo%3DPERSONAL.TOPIC%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20221115143302%26meid%3D19020e190a514f1f93c4a2db9a6eebdc%26pid%3D101613%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D1%26mehot%3Dnone%26itm%3D275912157500%26pmt%3D0%26noa%3D1%26pg%3D4375194%26algv%3DRecentlyViewedItemsV2Mobile%26brand%3DAMT&_trksid=p4375194.c101613.m146925&_trkparms=parentrq%3A6f59ba4318d0a4f16bd7c1a9fffe1e30%7Cpageci%3Ab48b71a8-c29f-11ee-be73-d6956b6a9cef%7Ciid%3A1%7Cvlpname%3Avlp_homepage

https://www.eccomachine.net/" rel="nofollow - https://www.eccomachine.net/

Ah, rats, the forum software is having another snit and won’t process any further pics. Oh well, the one above gives a good idea of what I need. 

The inbound Millett sight is of extremely high quality. If I can’t find a drop-in solution I will have to modify it to make it work. 

Hah! I want to shoot this thing TODAY! No way I’m waiting more than a week or two before I hit my friends machine shop and we start hacking and whacking the Millett sight to make it work,,,,

Just a quick update—my NOS Millett sight arrived today, and as I suspected, it appears to be identical to the one on my Javelina:

Interestingly, the underside of the sight has a hollow cavity. There is a boss cast into it through which the roll pin is inserted. So shortening the front of the sight and moving the roll pin aft is not as easy as it might otherwise be if the sight was solid. 

I wonder how important it is to have it solid from one side to the other?  If it was really important I could just drop a blob of weld in there and then machine it back. But I’m rather more inclined to just drill through the two sides and hope for the best. 

It seems the Python sight is very similar dimensionally to the Gold Cup/Millett sight, and the method of construction is basically the same, although it is a bit shorter. The elevation screw is a bit further aft. Depending on the location of the screw on the slide, it’s possible that this Python sight could be a solution also. 

However, there is yet another potential solution in the mix. Jason Waters (who should properly be referred to as Saint Waters in these parts) came up with an extra sight for an Auto Mag V for me, which is currently enroute. From the photos it appears to be the same too-long length as the ones pictured above, but the general appearance is the same as the one I need. So, depending on how things shake out, I may wind up using that one. 

Stay tuned….

Good to know, thanks!

Pantera Mike wrote: No, I don’t actually have a Python yet, but buying the sight will likely help me rationalize its purchase.

I knew I liked you.

If you are talking about AMT Javelina 10mm magazines (the 10mm Hardballer) I can go ahead and spare you the trouble. The magazines are absolute garbage. I kept mine just to keep them, but I have never had a factory magazine not cause at least 1-2 jams each time I used them. And I don’t mean once or twice in 50 rounds. I mean 1-2 jams out of the 8 rounds loaded. Colt, Wilson Combat and Shooting Star magazines all work much better (although the gun still does not operate flawlessly, failing to properly eject 2-3 times per box of 50)

Despite that I say the Javelina is well worth having!  And I do hope to fix it someday. I think the extractor is grabbing ahold too tightly and refusing to let go when the ejector smacks the back of the case. 

It will be interesting to see if my Hardballer functions better. The fact that it has an aftermarket grip safety and apparently a trigger job would suggest it’s been tweaked, so fingers crossed….

There are a lot of guys selling incorrect mags for the Automag IV guns.  The 45 Win Mag magazines have a half moon cut on the top front leading edge and the 10mm Magnum mags do not.  You will see a lot of 10 mags being advertised as for 45 Win Mag.

I see a pile of 10 magnum magazines for sale, but very few actual, real, 45 Win Mag magazines.

Tony

I have the similar one in 45 Win Mag with the long ported barrel.  Can't find reasonably priced mags to save my life but not overly concerned.   The 45 Win Mag mags are still more reasonable than the ones for my AR-30.  I have only seen 3 of them and the guy was asking $800 ea.  May make my own for that $.

Shorter in overall length to the Millett Gold Cup sight used on the later guns, pin hole further aft, elevation screw further forward—it checks ALL the boxes. 

The underside configuration (with a pair of indents ahead of and behind the elevation screw) matches similar indents in the top of the slide. I’m convinced this will drop straight in. I couldn’t be happier!

The only thing missing is the pin needed for installation. I was able to source them from Kensight:

https://kensight.com/kensight-elliason-sight-hinge-pin-set-of-2/" rel="nofollow - https://kensight.com/kensight-elliason-sight-hinge-pin-set-of-2/

They should be here next week, at about the same time I can spring the Hardballer from 10-day Gun Jail. I should be shooting it by this time next week. 

Thanks Jason!!! 

Lastly, you can see that the one screw has white stuff on it, and that is thread sealing compound.  I use it as kinda a locktite in some situations as it really doesn't dry out like real locktite so you can still adjust a little (it will eventually dry out), but it does add tension to the screw, so be careful.  

Tony may have a better suggestion, but that screw doesn't have anything to keep it from slowly backing out......there's no detent.

The gun is still at the gunsmith’s shop (gun jail) so I am having him install the sight for me. 

Very nice!  Congrats!!!

And I ditched the Hogue grips in favor of the classic Pachmayr grips that grace all of my 1911 variants:

Tomorrow I will shoot it for the first time. Wish me luck!

And thanks to all who helped me get this far, especially Jason Waters!

The elevation screw on the sight doesn’t have any detents at all. I guess it relies on the tension from the springs under the sight to keep it in place. The supplied springs were of unknown power and don’t seem to be strong enough. Under recoil the screw would shift slightly, rotating up about 90-120 degrees with each magazine. 

Accuracy was curious at first because I was getting vertical stringing (more than usual—that’s a well-known flaw I have anyway). Here is a 4-inch circle at 15 yards:

This is a 3-inch circle:

The first round was a called flyer in the yellow tape, and the rest strung from lower left to upper right. 

Eventually I took to adjusting the screw with every shot. This was a 1.5 inch box at 15 yards:

In short, it’s terrific!  Oh, all this was with cheap generic Blazer 230-grain hardball. 

I stopped by a friend’s house on the way home and he hooked me up with a product called Vibra-Tite. It’s like Loctite, but different. It’s applied to a threaded fastener and allowed to dry for 24 hours. Once installed, it provides just enough friction to keep the fastener from moving under vibration, but it can be moved manually, and unlike Loctite it’s reusable—that is, if can be moved repeatedly and still retains its friction properties. He gave me a small tube, which I will also likely use on my Auto Mag recoil rods which are forever coming loose. 

Anyway, it was a great day, and I brought along my Javelina and Detonics 45 just for the fun of it.

Good times!

 

Locktite makes several levels of strength most are only aware of blue and red.

I was playing with…ahem, carefully inspecting my new Hardballer and noticed that when I looked at the sights, it looked back at me like this:

I set the slide down on a table and whipped out my iPhone:

It’s difficult to empirically determine rear sight cant like this, but I inverted the slide and whipped out my trusty level, which revealed this:

The sight is visibly crooked atop the slide. 

Legendary AMT quality once more, I suspect. 

I looked at the mounting pin holes on both sides:

It would appear to me that the hole is slightly lower on the left side (immediately above) which in turn is causing the sight to tilt slightly. 

It would probably be a monster effort to rectify it, and frankly it doesn’t seem to impact how well I’m able to use it, so I am inclined to just leave it alone and chalk it up to typical AMT quirks. 

I also used a feeler gauge between the bottom of the sight and top of the slide, in an effort to preserve sight alignment, and then changed out the elevation screw for my spare which I had previously treated to Vibra-Tite. The old one came out effortlessly while the coated one took measurable (but not unreasonable) effort to install. Here is the old uncoated screw afterwards (I hadn’t noticed that the slot was in much better shape)

I am tentatively planning on shooting it again on Tuesday or Wednesday to test the effectiveness of this repair. Fingers crossed!

So I’m calling this case closed. I’m a happy bunny, and I plan to remove my recoil rods from my Auto Mags and give them the Vibra-tite treatment too. 

Thanks to everyone who supported me in this venture and especially to Jason who came up with the sight. (BTW it’s amazing how quickly the body adapts and I didn’t even notice that it is slightly cocked to one side).