Seecamp Conversion

Billman730 · January 27, 2010, 03:02 PM

First Hello Forumites. My name is Bill and I am a part time Gunsmith. I do specialized work on guns having retired last year. With my lifelong friend we manufacture REG Tooling rear Gunsights used for long range competition shooting.

A handgun closed thread caught my eye and I thought I would talk about it for a minute. I worked at Colt Chandler Evens, Pratt&Whitney as a young Guy during the Veit Namm war. My eyes kept me out of the draft as I could not see should my glasses fall off or be lost. While in New Haven I was lucky to meet a Guy who liked Guns as much as I did. I told him I wanted to get a gun treated with a new finish that had come out and he new of the process. We went to his home in New Haven and he introduced me to his Gunsmith Dad. It was Seecamp! Turns out I had met his son at the train station looking at gun magazines. The Dad was an older man and very friendly. After a while he asked to see my Gun his kid was going to coat for me.

I removed my Colt Commander [modified a bit by me and friends from work] and he looked at it with interest. The Butt was shortened and the slide and barrel had been modified. The barrel now projected out from the shortened slide about a 1/2". His Son told him he was going to give my gun a new finish as it had been worn clean of most of the bluing. I can't remember the Dads name but he showed me a converted 45 he was doing for a gun magazine article. It had a slick wide trigger that was placed in front of the stock Colt trigger and he said to dry fire the weapon.

Squeezing the trigger added to the Colt was as smooth as squeezing a Smith D/A. I was amazed how slick the release was also. I could not tell there were two triggers actually on the gun. I asked him to do my commander and he said yes. For $375 I got my gun D/A converted and had a slick new mat finish put on it that hardly needed oil and would not rust etc.

There was a side plate that was added to the commander that housed the conversion. So well done it was hard to see the edges. He had cut my Colts trigger down a bit so it stuck out of the grip just a bit. It looked like there was only a single wide trigger on the gun. Single action was perfect without a trace of takeup when squeezing off a round between the new added trigger and the Colt original trigger.

I said yes and paid for a new low profile micro sight set to be installed after a phone conversation with my new acquaintance. From the side the sight was nearly invisible with the new finish.

After owning it for a few years as slick as the gun was it turned out to be a bit heavy for day to day carry. A new 45 had come out and was also double action. It was half the weight and shot perfectly. Made by H&K it had a poly frame and black slide. I stupidly traded my Commander to Mike at Benton's for the H&K. I was a kid than still not thirty so I never stuck with many prize Guns for very long. LOL..

Five years ago I asked Mike about the Commander. He had traded it in for something newer also. We still laugh at how that gun got away. I have one of my H&K P7's left that I still use. Glocks have taken over the serious work when I go out and about but I still shoot Colt 45's a lot. Walt my sidekick and I shoot Colt 45's used for semi wadcutter shooting.

When personal safety is an issue my H&K goes along. Otherwise a Mini Glock 40 cal is my standard carry. Hard to beat the inside laser that rides the recoil spring as added sighting devise. LOL... Take Care

Chipperman · January 27, 2010, 03:45 PM

Welcome!
Cool story.
I spoke with Larry Seecamp on the phone once, very nice.

Billman730 · January 27, 2010, 07:01 PM

Chip Hello. It's been 30 tears or so Larry might have been the son I met while commuting from Bridgeport University to New Haven. Every time I take my Gold Cup out to play I miss the conversion! Sad no-one took it up. If I had one now I could use my CNC Milling machine and convert my GC no problem. Just to have something different. LOL...

WC145 · January 28, 2010, 07:19 AM

Long, long ago, in a land far away, I owned an ODI Viking. They came from the factory with the Seecamp DA system already installed. The company was innovative but didn't last long. I traded the gun away for something I can't remember. One of these days I'll probably try and find another just because.

RickB · January 28, 2010, 12:47 PM

My first home gunsmithing project was building a complete gun out of an ODI "frame kit" from Numrich/Gun Parts. It included all of the necessary pins and springs, as well as the frame. I had a bunch of G.I. parts, and bought an Essex slide to complete it. While functional, the DA pull is pretty bad. I'm sure Seecamp would fit the parts by hand to make the DA pull acceptable, but I never had enough interest in the gun to mess with it. A shooting buddy has a full-house Seecamp Commander, which not only has the DA conversion, but has been cut-down to approximately Officers ACP size. It has Seecamp's own adjustable rear sight/loaded chamber indicator, and the dual-telescoping recoil system that he subsequently licensed to just about everybody. I think Glock didn't want to pay, and Seecamp sued them (don't know if it was Seecamp the elder or the younger, at that time). It also features a one-piece welded backstrap that eliminates the grip safety. Novak's is making a big deal about their similar part, but Seecamp was doing it 30 years ago. Very innovative, all the way around.

Billman730 · January 28, 2010, 03:50 PM

Rick Thanks for checking in. I did get the round indicator and sight set along with the conversion. Seecamp was an amazing gunsmith.

Ct once was a great place to live for new Gun modifications. Now everything is far from here. When I wanted a Poly Choke vent Rib and Poly Choke installed on my Browning A-5 I was not able to go to East Hartford to have it done. Now the company is mid west somewhere I sent it out. It came back done right though.

January 27, 2010, 03:02 PM	#1
Billman730 Junior Member Join Date: January 27, 2010 Location: Central Connecticuit Posts: 10	Seecamp Conversion First Hello Forumites. My name is Bill and I am a part time Gunsmith. I do specialized work on guns having retired last year. With my lifelong friend we manufacture REG Tooling rear Gunsights used for long range competition shooting. A handgun closed thread caught my eye and I thought I would talk about it for a minute. I worked at Colt Chandler Evens, Pratt&Whitney as a young Guy during the Veit Namm war. My eyes kept me out of the draft as I could not see should my glasses fall off or be lost. While in New Haven I was lucky to meet a Guy who liked Guns as much as I did. I told him I wanted to get a gun treated with a new finish that had come out and he new of the process. We went to his home in New Haven and he introduced me to his Gunsmith Dad. It was Seecamp! Turns out I had met his son at the train station looking at gun magazines. The Dad was an older man and very friendly. After a while he asked to see my Gun his kid was going to coat for me. I removed my Colt Commander [modified a bit by me and friends from work] and he looked at it with interest. The Butt was shortened and the slide and barrel had been modified. The barrel now projected out from the shortened slide about a 1/2". His Son told him he was going to give my gun a new finish as it had been worn clean of most of the bluing. I can't remember the Dads name but he showed me a converted 45 he was doing for a gun magazine article. It had a slick wide trigger that was placed in front of the stock Colt trigger and he said to dry fire the weapon. Squeezing the trigger added to the Colt was as smooth as squeezing a Smith D/A. I was amazed how slick the release was also. I could not tell there were two triggers actually on the gun. I asked him to do my commander and he said yes. For $375 I got my gun D/A converted and had a slick new mat finish put on it that hardly needed oil and would not rust etc. There was a side plate that was added to the commander that housed the conversion. So well done it was hard to see the edges. He had cut my Colts trigger down a bit so it stuck out of the grip just a bit. It looked like there was only a single wide trigger on the gun. Single action was perfect without a trace of takeup when squeezing off a round between the new added trigger and the Colt original trigger. I said yes and paid for a new low profile micro sight set to be installed after a phone conversation with my new acquaintance. From the side the sight was nearly invisible with the new finish. After owning it for a few years as slick as the gun was it turned out to be a bit heavy for day to day carry. A new 45 had come out and was also double action. It was half the weight and shot perfectly. Made by H&K it had a poly frame and black slide. I stupidly traded my Commander to Mike at Benton's for the H&K. I was a kid than still not thirty so I never stuck with many prize Guns for very long. LOL.. Five years ago I asked Mike about the Commander. He had traded it in for something newer also. We still laugh at how that gun got away. I have one of my H&K P7's left that I still use. Glocks have taken over the serious work when I go out and about but I still shoot Colt 45's a lot. Walt my sidekick and I shoot Colt 45's used for semi wadcutter shooting. When personal safety is an issue my H&K goes along. Otherwise a Mini Glock 40 cal is my standard carry. Hard to beat the inside laser that rides the recoil spring as added sighting devise. LOL... Take Care

January 27, 2010, 03:45 PM	#2
Chipperman Senior Member Join Date: January 31, 2000 Location: Live Free or Die, Baby! Posts: 1,550	Welcome! Cool story. I spoke with Larry Seecamp on the phone once, very nice.

January 27, 2010, 07:01 PM	#3
Billman730 Junior Member Join Date: January 27, 2010 Location: Central Connecticuit Posts: 10	Chip Hello. It's been 30 tears or so Larry might have been the son I met while commuting from Bridgeport University to New Haven. Every time I take my Gold Cup out to play I miss the conversion! Sad no-one took it up. If I had one now I could use my CNC Milling machine and convert my GC no problem. Just to have something different. LOL...

January 28, 2010, 07:19 AM	#4
WC145 Senior Member Join Date: October 18, 2008 Location: Downeast Maine Posts: 1,836	Long, long ago, in a land far away, I owned an ODI Viking. They came from the factory with the Seecamp DA system already installed. The company was innovative but didn't last long. I traded the gun away for something I can't remember. One of these days I'll probably try and find another just because.

January 28, 2010, 12:47 PM	#5
RickB Senior Member Join Date: March 1, 2000 Location: Boise, ID Posts: 8,518	My first home gunsmithing project was building a complete gun out of an ODI "frame kit" from Numrich/Gun Parts. It included all of the necessary pins and springs, as well as the frame. I had a bunch of G.I. parts, and bought an Essex slide to complete it. While functional, the DA pull is pretty bad. I'm sure Seecamp would fit the parts by hand to make the DA pull acceptable, but I never had enough interest in the gun to mess with it. A shooting buddy has a full-house Seecamp Commander, which not only has the DA conversion, but has been cut-down to approximately Officers ACP size. It has Seecamp's own adjustable rear sight/loaded chamber indicator, and the dual-telescoping recoil system that he subsequently licensed to just about everybody. I think Glock didn't want to pay, and Seecamp sued them (don't know if it was Seecamp the elder or the younger, at that time). It also features a one-piece welded backstrap that eliminates the grip safety. Novak's is making a big deal about their similar part, but Seecamp was doing it 30 years ago. Very innovative, all the way around.

January 28, 2010, 03:50 PM	#6
Billman730 Junior Member Join Date: January 27, 2010 Location: Central Connecticuit Posts: 10	Rick Thanks for checking in. I did get the round indicator and sight set along with the conversion. Seecamp was an amazing gunsmith. Ct once was a great place to live for new Gun modifications. Now everything is far from here. When I wanted a Poly Choke vent Rib and Poly Choke installed on my Browning A-5 I was not able to go to East Hartford to have it done. Now the company is mid west somewhere I sent it out. It came back done right though.