Was a DA conversion ever made?
 

Ludwig Seacamp was a gunsmith who served in the German army during WW2, and felt that the double-action mechanism of his issued P-38 saved his life when he had to draw his pistol.

After immigrating to the USA, his general gunsmithing shop gained a real reputation among 1911 pistolero's who wanted a DA 45 ACP pistol. I have a 1911 with the Seacamp conversion and it's an interesting solution to problem not everyone agrees on.
Whether you think a DA 1911 is a good thing or not, I am impressed with the simplicity of his design and how robust it is.

So my question: was there ever a "one-off" custom DA Luger P08 conversion done by gunsmiths?
I've never heard of one or seen one, but I'm curious if it was ever done.

Thanks,

Garrett

Absolutely a good idea IMO.
I have a Hi Power I like a lot-that would be a good feature.

Pistols are rarely actually used in combat, but an instantly ready feature is an asset.

I know "cocked and lock" is the supposed SOP for 1911s, but I never liked it.

It is the SOP for a Hi Power also.

I don't think the Luger design could ever lend itself to a DA conversion. You would have to literally redesign the entire pistol.

I recall looking at a full-auto conversion for the Luger. Extended sideplate, modifed sear/firing pin IIRC. Considering that you only need to move the firing pin back until it locks, it might not be too radical. The Seecamp doesn't chamber a round; it just cocks the hammer. The Luger would need a trigger re-design, but maybe not too difficult.

I bet Olle or Rick W. could come up with something. :)

I agree with alanint. Not possible with a side plate redesign. The striker mechanism does not lend itself to a DA modification. If it did, it would have not even required a side plate to engage the trigger.

I'm with Doug, too. Not feasible with this design.

In the Erma wannabes, the sear interface with its release runs underneath the barrel extension, and there is no side plate to transfer the trigger pull. It would be much easier to convert one of them. For a Luger, it would be necessary to create a similar action, then effectively divorce the sear's set and release from the recoil-powered cycling of the action (extraction and chambering). It could be done, but what would we do without our pretty little side plates? The external lines would necessarily change!

Here is the Mauser Model 90 DA. Produced by FEG for Mauser, based on the S&W Model 56, which in turn was a combination of the FN Hi-Power and the P38's double action feature.

Shown together with Mauser's / FEG FN Hi-Power clone.

A Luger equipped with a properly sprung grip safety is as safe to carry in a properly constructed holster with the manual safety off as with it on. Just sayin'.