This question was raised on another forum and Larry Seecamp was asked about it. Here is his response, which was also posted to rec.guns at the time (23 Feb 2000):
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I guess you're asking about the life of the LWS380?
I think the race car analogy in the release sheet kind of touches on it.
I would think that after a grueling race the car is not destined for the
scrap heap, but is rather overhauled and can be used in another race.
If the gun starts acting up on the shooter, behaving in a different
manner than it had previously, and the cause cannot be traced to
something simple like the ammunition or the recoil springs, the shooter
should get the gun back to us for maintenance so that we can restore it
to its original condition.
The test LWS380, which was picked for a test gun because many of the
properties of the gun were borderline and not ideal, went 800 rounds
without any maintenance of any kind -- no spring replacements,
lubrication, cleaning, etc. Nevertheless, my recommendation is to
replace the recoil springs after 200 rounds to be on the safe side.
Also, I've shot that particular pistol well over a 1000 rounds of mixed
ammunition total and the main parts appear in fine shape. Just about all
the visible
wear occurred during the first few boxes fired, with no appreciable wear
once the parts had married up. I thus don't see any reason why the life
of the pistol shouldn't surpass the life of the shooter, unless the
shooter is using heavier loads than the recommended Silvertips and/or
using the gun like a practice combat gun. Some things like shooting the
gun hot, for example, can adversely affect the physical properties of
the pistol over time. (Stainless retains heat exceptionally well, and
the gun should be
allowed to cool during a shooting session. Excessive heat retention can
stretch the barrel, change the temper on the springs, etc., etc.)
The answer therefore is: A thousand rounds is the floor we established
for the service life of the gun without any visits back to the factory.
After that, it may be that some pistols will have to be sent back to us
for maintenance. I can't say that this is necessarily expected, only
that it's a possibility. Do I foresee any LWS380s being worn out beyond
the point where they cannot be restored? Not really. But again, it's
important the pistol not be allowed to get too hot, which can change
mechanical properties, and that the shooter take note of changes that
may occur during shooting so that he doesn't aggravate an easily fixable
problem.
Hope this answers it.
By the way, anyone who needs to put thousands of rounds through a pistol
like the LWS32 or LWS380 in order to be able to hit the vital zones of a
man sized target at mugging distance is not a customer I want.
Regards, Larry
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That's the official response.
Regards,
Ken Strayhorn
Hillsborough NC
