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From Customs to Custom

I discovered a custom 1911/2011 builder out of Spring Hill, Fla. and Ramseur, N.C., named Deep River Customs. Some readers may be tempted to stop right here, thinking if they’ve seen one custom gun builder they’ve seen them all. However, I would caution against that mentality as quite a few things set this company apart from the rest.

Deep River Customs was founded in 2012 as a collaboration between Ronnie Sewell of North Carolina and Hugh Sherron of Florida. Originally located in Ramseur, N.C., Deep River Customs opened an additional shop in Spring Hill, Fla. The manufacturing process is divided between the two shops.

Ronnie Sewell is retired from a successful business he built in Asheboro, N.C. He’s had a lifelong involvement with firearms, culminating in graduating from Montgomery Community College’s Gunsmithing program and the formation/partnership of Deep River Customs.

Hugh Sherron had a head start on most as his father owned a gun shop. He started shooting at the age of 5 and then worked in his father’s gun shop until enlisting in the Army. Wishing to build on what he already had in his repertoire, he received classroom and on-the-job training as an armorer and gunsmith, and served as a firearms instructor/trainer with U.S. Customs. Hugh is a U.S. Army veteran and a former Special Agent with U.S. Customs.

Why it Matters

Now, what sets Deep River Customs apart from most other custom gun builders? Deep River Customs developed their pistols with competition in mind from the get-go! This wasn’t a company that began doing a small amount of a single type of work and then ventured into something bigger. As a matter of fact, one of their gunsmiths is a fierce bullseye competitor in his own right. He knows what it takes to build one of these pistols to take the immense amount of rounds and other abuse competition shooting forces a pistol to endure.

In the competition pistol shooting arena, they specialize in pistols for Single Stack Division and Limited Class Divisions of USPSA, IDPA, Bullseye, PPSC, Bianchi Cup and 3-Gun competitions. They offer any and everything a shooter/competitor could want in a 1911- or 2011-style pistol.

Next, Deep River Customs builds their pistols to be the most accurate and reliably functioning pistols available anywhere, and it’s where they begin to pull away from the competition. All of their pistols are hand-fit from the highest quality parts available. Yes, every pistol they build is custom-built by hand — each and every piece. There are no assembly lines or machines doing the fitting or finishing; it’s all done by an actual human being who knows what the individual shooter wants.

As a result of those two unusual things offered by this company, their customers are a discerning bunch, including military SpecOps, law enforcement, competition shooters, collectors and those interested in self-defense or extremely high-quality everyday carry pistols.

For more info, visit deeprivercustoms.com or contact them by phone or email.

Ph: (336) 833-1911, (352) 556-1789, [email protected]

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