I want to buy a strain of cells but they only sell them as electrocompetent cells. I was wondering if I could make my own stock of calcium competent cells using the electrocompetent cells.
Yes. This will involve culturing the electrocompetent cells to certain cell density and then using calcium chloride step to make them chemically competent cells. However, it remains unknown whether these cells will reach to competence to the same level.
bacterial cell may be turned competent either chemically or "electrically". And once the competence is over (just by culturing the cells for instance), the cell becomes a normal bacteria ready for whatever treatment.