Seecamp LWS 32 modifications...

[RoyB]

Bought a Seecamp LWS 32 pocket pistol. This is a great personal protection handgun, but I found it has one flaw. The slide can not be racked with the magazine installed. So to clear the chamber you need to unload the magazine, insert it into the pistol and slide the rack. Huh! So I took it apart and found the piece responsible for such action. I went into the machine shop and whipped up a new part that allows chamber clearing with the mag removed. Pictures and a pictorial are here

http://public.fotki.com/Rbertalotto/seecamp_modifications/

[Tankmurdock]

Looks like you have a lot of talent. But beware when you mess with the safety system a a gun used for "concealed carry" you may have liability problems in a Civil Lawsuit from a lawful defence of your life.

Lawyers love to hit on this item......

Tank

[RoyB]

Thanks Tank

Got it.............:')

[JohnClif]

If your modification allows the firing mechanism to be activated without the magazine being inserted into the gun, then you have just disabled the primary safety for this handgun.  What are you really gaining for this?

The proper way to 'clear' a Seecamp is to withdraw the magazine, remove the cartridges from it, re-insert it into the pistol, and then cycle the slide to remove the round.

The gun is designed as it is because Seecamp wanted an easy way to render a DAO gun absolutey safe... remove the magazine and the gun cannot be fired.  The firing mechanism still tries to work, but the slide/hammer is retarded from full movement.  Anything that would restore full movement to the slide/hammer without the presence of the magazine eliminates this.

Your fix seems like a solution to a non-existent problem.  Yes... it can be a hassle to unload a Seecamp.  The quick way around this is to have a spare empty magazine at home that you can insert into the gun to clear the chamber.  You can also just cycle the slide seven times and empty all of the rounds via the chamber/ejection port.  

This pistol was not designed for ease of unloading.  The design criteria included small size, ease of operation, no active (manually engaging/disengaging) safeties, and a foolproof and reliable means of quickly rendering the gun inoperable (removing the magazine).  Your modification in no way adds to the gun's primary role as a compact and reliable self-defense pistol, and seriously detracts from its safety.

This is one 'improvement' I definitely will not even consider applying to my LWS 32.  In fact, I consider it dangerous.  If you ever sell your Seecamp and a future owner or user shoots himself or someone else accidentally with it you are in a world of hurt from a legal liability standpoint.

[RoyB]

The only safety a handgun needs is an owner that treats his gun safely......Period!  Your arguement is an extremely slippery slope to more gun control than we need.

"The proper way to 'clear' a Seecamp is to withdraw the magazine, remove the cartridges from it, re-insert it into the pistol, and then cycle the slide to remove the round. "

This is insane! In my line of work I sometime have to enter buildings where I need to clear the action to show the gun is unloaded. It's rediculus to stand there clearing a mag so I can reinsert it and then clear the chamber.  Sorry, I don't agree with your logic.
 Sure, if the gun accidently went off and shot someone and I was found to have disabled the mag safety, they would hang me by my thumbs. But if I accidently shot someone, reguardless of whether the firearm had some "feel good" safety, then I should be hung by my thumbs.

[KN]

I gotta agree with RoyB on this one. Mag release safties are a usually a joke. The only thing they are good for is getting you killed when you need your gun the most. If there were really a liability problem with mag safties then all the manufacturers would build them in. Any gun I will use for self defense will NOT have a mag safety. Just my preference and opinion.   KN

[RoyB]

I'm sorry to keep this thread going, but it really burns me up when supposed "pro Gun" folks start spewing the nonsense that firearm safety can be litigated and/or designed into a firearm.  This is nothing more than false security.  A firearm is made safe by the handler........period!

And as KN stated, in a self defense handgun, most experts will tell you that a mag safety just may cost you your life in many situations.

Being able to easily, and readily clear the chamber after dropping the mag, like 99.99999% of the semi automatics out there makes the Seecamp much more farmiliar and therefore safer.........That's my story and I'm sticking to it..............

[hogship]

From a legal standpoint, thwarting a firearm's safety device is not very wise. If it becomes the subject for discussion in a court of law, it will definately not yield positive results for the gun owner.  However, it is the right of the gun owner to do whatever he feels suits his needs.......He must understand, however, that there is a legal risk involved by defeating the safety.

RoyB: Our exchange on this subject seems to have been lost with the server change at GB.  I feel that you misinterpreted the meaning of what I said then. Let me say this.... I feel Seecamp would have been better off to forget about the magazine safety alltogether, but since they did see fit to incorporate it into the design, the buyer should be familiar with it's use, as applied to their own particular circumstance. If it doesn't fit the indivudual need, he should think about another firearm for that particular purpose.

I agree that no safety device is a substitute for safe handling.....but, safeties are,  as they should be, used when applicable.

IMHO, Seecamp made an unwise choice when deciding on the magazine safety. If a safety device was a necessity for their design, there are other ways to accomplish the job without disabling the pistol during a magazine change.

hogship

[RollTide]

I bought a NAA Guardian.  All the good points of the Seecamp without the mag safety.  At the time, it was purely a matter of economics (got the NAA for $230), but with all this talk about the gymnastics build into clearing a Seecamp, just makes me glad I went with the NAA.  I like the fact that the NAA has no ejector.  When you are clearing the weapon, you just remove the mag and rack the slide.  Because there is no ejector, the round from the chamber simply falls down the empty mag  well right into the hand your are holding the gun with.  Quick to load, quick to unload.  I like it.

Roll Tide

[Lancel]

No need to empty a magazine to empty the chamber.  The Seecamp functions like other autos except you pause before completely removing the magazine to retract the slide.  Easy and simple.

Been loading and unloading a Seecamp since 1989 and never had to empty a magazine to unload the chamber.

Larry

[Gregory]

One of the things I like best about my Beretta Tomcat is the tip up barrel.  So very easy to clear the gun.

[Lancel]

You said it, Greg.
You can even unload a Beretta Tomcat with one hand by turning it upside down and opening the barrel into your palm.

:-)
Larry