Seecamp fell on concrete floor!!! Help!

R

rob i

New member
I am so upset I could puke. Last night my beloved seecamp 32 fell on the floor. Horrible clumsiness on my part and I feel sick about this on so many levels. It didn't have a straight drop as I fumbled to try and catch it on it's way down, but eventually it landed on the only piece of exposed concrete in the particular room that I was in. It fell flat on it's side with no bouncing which is a plus I guess, but am wondering what internal damage I can expect if any. Miraculously, there barely a scratch, but what am I missing? Could steel components have bent or been damgaed by a three foot fall? It seems to cycle a round just fine when loading. I scrutinized the pistol over and over after the fall and notice just a few things, that may have been there before the fall. here is what I am noticing now. The slide seems to have a bit of play if rocked back and forth (side to side) when gun in unloaded. When a say a bit of play, I mean it is a very tiny bit. Here's the question. Am I over worrying this? Has anyone else had a gun fall on the floor? Any damage other than some scuffs and scratches? This is an all stainless steel gun. Please respond to ease my troubled mind. I plan on going to the range in about an hour to make sure things work ok. I appreciate any responses. Particularly from those who have been unfortunate enough to have their's fall on the floor.

Thanks
Rob
 
A

Arc Angel

New member
:) Easy there, Rob! Of course you're going to go to the range and test your beloved little pistol out before you get anymore upset - right!

Sometimes things happen; and a nice gun will get scratched. In the past I’ve used white jeweler’s rouge (And, sometimes, a Dremel tool) to buff scratches out. At other times I’ve taken a badly marked gun to a metalworking shop that has a glass-bead polisher. Put the frame in the enclosure, turn on the air gun, and minor dings and scratches simply disappear.

In the alternative there’s always Checkmate Custom Gun Finishing, or Walter Birdsong, too. What I usually do is to carry a gun for several years, let it get its wear and tear marks and, then, send it out for refinishing. I’ve always felt that it’s a better idea to spend money on a gun I know works well rather than buying a new one that may not.

Your Seecamp should be fine! :cool:


PS: I've got a custom-built Browning P-35 sitting on my desk. Guess what? It's been carefully fitted; and it's, still, got just enough slide, 'play' to operate. Calm down and have a good day! ;)
 
H

Handy

Moderator
I should be fine if nothing on the outside looks damaged.


Please tell me you weren't trying to snatch a loaded gun out of the air.
 
R

rob i

New member
Ok, thanks for the replies. I just got back from the range and put about 35 rounds through it with no problems at all. I then called Larry Seecamp and told him of my stupidity. I said, "larry, I'm an idiot, and I dropped my seecamp pistol on the concrete floor!" His immediate response was, "you want us to touch it up for you?" I told him that there wasn't really many scratches from the fall but wondered if I had damaged something perhaps that I couldn't see. He told me no way. He said, you could drop it and kick it across the floor and it'd be fine except for some scratches and scuffs. I was happy to hear that and also happy to hear that he'll repolish it once enough scratches build up. But, I won't be dropping it again....

Did I try to catch a loaded gun in the air. Ashamed to say, yes. It was an impulse reaction as I've never dropped a gun. I was scared that it might fire upon impact and tried dearly to keep it from falling. In my own defense, It was falling towards my chest and tried to catch it in a cradle hold in my arms, but alas, it was to no avail. I never used my hands to try and catch it, and it was nowhere near my hands. Please don't flame me. I see the error in my ways, and will never ever try and catch a loaded gun as it's falling. But of course that's moot point as I will never drop a gun again. Knock on wood of course.

Rob
 
H

Handy

Moderator
Hey Rob, no flame, just making sure you know. If you had to catch a gun, sounds like you did it the right way.

On the other hand, if you trust a gun for carry it should be because you trust that it absolutely would not fire if dropped. Modern guns have a host of mechanical features to prevent such an occurance.

Well, most modern guns, anyway. I don't think I'd carry a Keltec.
 
J

JNewell

New member
Consider the stress the gun takes every time you fire. You could damage something like an adjustable rear sight, perhaps, or maybe ding the muzzle, but the universe of possible problems is pretty small. Glad everything worked out fine.
 
J

JohnKSa

Administrator
It's virtually impossible for a modern, well-made gun to go off from being dropped.

Any gun can go off if you grab it wrong while trying to catch it.

Grit your teeth and let it fall. It's tough--I've had to do it.
 
C

chameleon

New member
Hi Rob, I guess time stood still for a second while that cute little Seecamp was in the air, what a scarry moment.
Like stated above, the modern firearms have to be manufactured to withstand a ten foot fall without fireing. Seecamps are no exception, it is a well made firearm, and can take many falls, and many scratches. As Mr. Seecamp offered, you could always send it back to him.
Some years ago, he gave me one of the buffing wheels he uses to polish the finished product.
Since I have the latest production slide and frame, I haven't had any problems with blemishes on the finish, as I experianced in the past, and attributed to leather holsters.
I'm happy to hear that your LWS 32 functioned great at the range, as I am real partial to those little guns.When I hear of one getting "hurt" I feel horrible.
When you can, buy another LWS-32, just in case you have a problem and need to return it to the factory. You'll really feel naked without one.
 
R

rob i

New member
chameleon-

Thanks for the reply. I do plan on buying another seecamp for sure, but not until I move to NH and can buy the non california edition model. It's not that I don't like the california edition, but here in Mass, that's the only one you can buy, and they cost around $570. I've seen the ones without the trigger locking device sell for much less than that on gunbroker and will get one of those as soon as I get out of this darn state! I have actually had to send the pistol back to Larry as I experienced a failure to eject issue when I first got it. I did feel naked without it! I haven't had it back for more than two weeks when I dropped it!!!! I was so afraid it was going to have to get sent right back! But no, I think all is ok. I can't even tell which side it landed anymore as the scratches were basicly nill. wierd. I thought it was going to look totally mangled when I picked it up. I was very surprised to see that it looked pretty good. The funny thing is that I've put more scratches on it by field stripping it and reassembling than from this fall. Ugh, I sincerely hope that this never happens again. Why couldn't I have dropped my ugly Glock 19?!?!?!?

Thanks again,
Rob
 
G

gunsmith1

New member
seecamp

If you think you damaged it you are probably right! Better sell it to me cheap! Just kidding I'm sure its totally fine.
 
U

U.F.O.

New member
Handy

"Well, most modern guns, anyway. I don't think I'd carry a Keltec."
Click to expand...

What's the scoop on Kel-Tecs? I own a P3AT and I'd love to know if a dropped gun could cause an AD here. Thanks.

U.F.O.
 
A

alamo

New member
The P-32 and P-3AT have a hammer block and are as safe as about any pistol to drop. Fella on the KTOG Forum did some drop testing also with them, no problems.
 
K

keens

New member
Glad I am not the only one who has a fit when I bump, scratch, or drop a gun...It doesn't happen much, but those times it does...ouch.
 
A

alamo

New member
Which, IYO, would be an unfair/inaccurate position?
Click to expand...

Absolutely. Great little pistols. I have 4 of them - 1 P-11, 2 P-32s and 1 P-3AT. Will get another P-3AT before too long.
 
U

U.F.O.

New member
Ditto on the P-3AT. Is yours stock or have you done any modifications on it? (ramp job, F & B, hard chrome slide, new extractor)

U.F.O.
 
A

alamo

New member
Mine is a fairly early one, 27XX. Got in 10/03. Had to get a new assembly pin after they were redesigned. I always do an F&B. Had it nickel plated by Jack Fuselier. He does great work. Only a few problems with it the first outing which I attributed to a new/stiff magazine spring. Only had a problem with the first shot when loaded all the way 6+1. I worked the follower up & down a couple of dozen times with a ruler and it has been perfect since.

Houge Handall, Jr. grip and the Bersa mag extender too. Mag extender really makes a difference.

http://www.gunsmith.fuselier.com
 
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