Welcome to today’s Photo of the Day! This bizarre Semmerling LM-4 is one of the strangest solutions to a backup gun problem that didn’t really exist. Philip Lichtman introduced this manually operated .45 ACP pistol in the early 1980s. Shooters had to flick the slide forward and back after each trigger pull—turning what looked like a semi-auto into a glorified single-shot. Lichtman’s concept was simple: cram five rounds of .45 ACP into the smallest possible package for undercover agents and police backup use. At just 5¼ inches overall, the LM-4 hit its size goal but created a weapon that demanded more manual dexterity than most shooters had under stress. The manual operation works like this—pull the trigger in double-action mode to fire, then physically cycle the slide to eject the spent case and chamber the next round. Repeat four more times. The system ditched the complexity of self-loading mechanisms while keeping the knockdown power of full-size .45 ACP ammo.
The LM-4 failed completely in the marketplace. Despite clever engineering and genuine portability advantages, shooters preferred reliable semi-auto operation over manual cycling, even in backup guns. The weapon’s learning curve was steep. Muscle memory from conventional pistols worked against efficient operation. Cops and agents looked at it, maybe handled one at a gun show, then bought a snub-nose .38 instead. The manual cycling felt weird. Under stress, people forgot to work the slide properly. Malfunctions meant you were holding an expensive paperweight.
The LM-4 died quietly, proving that sometimes smaller isn’t better when the tradeoffs involve fundamental changes to how guns operate. Brilliant concept, impractical execution. A fascinating dead end in defensive pistol evolution that shows why most backup guns today are just smaller versions of full-size designs rather than completely different animals.
“Semmerling Model LM-4 Pistol.” Rock Island Auction Company, https://www.rockislandauction.com/detail/4094/3593/semmerling-model-lm4-pistol. Accessed 17 June 2025.
Writer | TheFirearmBlog
Writer | AllOutdoor.com Instagram | sfsgunsmith Old soul, certified gunsmith, published author, avid firearm history learner, and appreciator of old and unique guns.
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