Americans are buying fewer guns says Smith & Wesson

[george burns]

They should go into the "Range " business, having all these guns with no place in most places to shoot them starts to wear thin also. Plus a thousand dollars for a revolver is a bit ridiculous, along with over that amount for a 1911.
When pistols, blew past AR's that was the turning point.

 

[4v50 Gary]

The consumer is broke, credit card maxed out and doesn't have the discretionary spending funds that flowed freely in the '90s and early 2000's.

 

[ATLDave]

Entirely predictable. There was a surge of panic-based buying that created a temporary bubble. Many consumers were advancing their purchases in time. Whatever they planned to buy over the next X years, they purchased during 2013, often at inflated prices. That means that 1. they have already purchased whatever they were going to buy and 2. they may have to make do with slightly fewer purchases because they bought at peak prices.

 

[Owen]

I definitely think we are on the downside of the bubble caused by the Obanic. Watch for the small companies that popped up to build ARs, etc to start dropping like flies.

 

[buck460XVR]

Get rid of those locks and Cut the prices by a 1/3 and see what happens.

I think most of us can think of products that can improve sales. Here are some off the top of my head:
- All revolver model available without a lock
- get the 629 into volume production
- 5" 625
- 5" 610
- 610 Mountain gun
- Centennial light weight 9mm

Seems that with their professional marketing team and all the monies they invest in R&D, that they would know almost as much about what the public wants as random posters on the internet......no wonder their sales are dropping!

As for making variants for niche markets, now that the high demand for the more common models is reduced, S&W may find time to produce the smaller runs of models with less demand. S&W is not the only gun manufacturere to experience a decline in sales lately. My LGS has SA ROs and Kimbers comin' out his ears, where as a year ago they were impossible to find. As has been said, the market is saturated and the extreme hunger has been fed. Life is returning to relative normalcy. Those of us with S&W stock are still smiling.

 

[Sol]

I'm guessing that people are buying fewer NEW guns and are opting in for nearly unfired USED guns at a cheaper price.

Once all the panic buyers realized that they didn't buy pre-ban guns, they had to recoup some of their costs.

 

[MagnumDweeb]

The peak sales point was bound to happen at some point. Incomes haven't been growing substantially. There is still a lot of financial uncertainty in the world. There are more gun makers now than ever, and the market share is one filled with goods that don't wear out like computers do.

I bought two new guns in the last two years. A XDS .45 acp and a Kel Tec P3AT (the Kel Tec had far fewer issues out of the box and has run like a dream).

But I've bought over a dozen guns on the used market for prices that are a steal.

For example a AK MAADI (the Egyptian clone, it shoots well at 100 yards but it's not VZ 58), a Ruger Blackhawk .44 magnum, Yugo SKS, and beater Ruger Secruity Six with a 6" barrel were mine for a $1,000. Because gun shops and pawnshops had beat the seller down so hard (he told me the best offer he got was $900 for the whole kit so I offered him $1,000).

Pawn shops and Gun shops are off their rockers on pricing and don't want to admit their time in the sun is done from the demand side, so folks are getting smarter about private sales and I'm gobbling them up at steals. And if folks are liquidating their used collections, they aren't likely buying new guns, and since I'm buying used I feel no need to buy new (wasn't going to likely anyways since I got a deal from my buddy with an FFL for the two guns I bought). So there is a cascading effect on the market.

Stop trying to make a 300% profit on your goods and instead only try to see a 70% profit and mystically you'll see sales rise. But that's not how the industry works so now there will be another post 2008 dip in the market with prices (think the awesome buying of the second half of 2009 and the first half of 2010).

Hope the gun company's made their money, now it's time to pull back from the new gun market and let it slide down.

 

[itsa pain]

Americans are buying fewer guns because due to hoarding and gluttony are using their gun money to buy every 22 rimfire round made or will be made for years to come

 

[rdhood]

I haven't been buying guns. I've been buying ammo and magazines.

 

[cfullgraf]

You're missing the entire point. No one from Japan could replicate the Harley Mystique that was (is?) in such great demand.

As rcmodel said, Harley found out in the 70's and 80s that they could not sustain sales on the mystic alone. The motorcycles were junk and folks just stopped buying them. Harley almost went the way of the dodo bird.

Nothing like corporate medalling. I think it was AMF that started Harley's near demise.

Harley got government assistance and got their act together and turned around the company where they sold excellent products again.

Back to Smith and Wesson, maybe some of their interesting models in their catalog will make to my part of the world now, lock or not.

 

[Art Eatman]

Stick with declining S&W sales--and possibly by other manufacturers as well. It's about the general market, availability of money, "bought out" billfolds, etc.

 

[Manny]

I've looked at S&W's occasionally, but the gawdawful lock drives me away every time on their revolvers, and the Model 41 I looked at had embarrassingly evident machining errors that would have been unacceptable on a cheap HiPoint let alone a supposedly top-of-the-line target pistol out of their custom shop. I have bought a few Rugers lately and have been very happy with them.

Truthfully I've always had a strong preference for Rugers over S&W revolvers since I first started shooting in the early 80's and if anything it's only gotten stronger with time. The only S&W's I find interesting these days, aside from the classic Model 41's, are the new 9mm revolvers. Sounds like they did those right, besides the lock. One of those may be enough to tempt me... unless Ruger follows suit. If they do I'll get the Ruger, no doubt about it.

 

[Deaf Smith]

Be happy to know Buffoon Biden said today the reason there has been a lack of gun control is the 'Teabaggers'.

See Obama and company still want to grab 'em but those nasty old folks down the road, the 'bitterclingers', just keep getting in their way.

Now if the Democrats take the house back.....

Yea... better vote in November no matter how ahead conservative candidates are.

Deaf

 

[wideym]

At the gunshop I work at, sales have declined significantly over the past six months and specifically in the last four. People just aren't buying new guns period, so we aren't buying new guns from our distributors. Even I usually buy used guns anyway, due to the heavy discounts over new.

We have also seen AR-15s steadily trickling in over the last six months and have had our distributors pushing cheaper and cheaper AR-15s nobody wants anymore. If a guy can't afford a nice $600 AR, then how is he going to afford a nice new S&W?

 

[CoalTrain49]

I look at demographics and the economy. I'm a retired baby boomer. A lot of people I know are either retired or close to retirement. We are a very large part of the buying public now. Being retired has a profound effect on what people buy. When one is working there is an attitude that I can pay for it in a few months so I'll just put it on the card. When I retired a few years ago I cut up all of my credit cards and no longer use credit except for a small mortgage with a ridiculously low interest rate that the bank should have never made. Most of the old timers that I know don't buy gadgets and toys anymore and have cut their expenditures in every conceivable area. The biggest reason is health care costs.

I have a lot of firearms but I don't buy new any more. My last new gun was purchased with cash as a retirement present to myself several years ago. Now I sell a gun or two every year to buy another used gun.

The economy is still in the ditch and millions have dropped out of the work force either thru job loss or retirement. When you mix that with stagnant wages, increasing healthcare, rent, taxes and transportation costs, it doesn't leave much money for recreation purchases.

If you look at what the large manufacturers like S&W are building you will see a definite trend. The trend is toward less expensive models. MIM is becoming standard fare with all of them unless you get in the 2K range. That's because the market is shrinking and the average buyer can't afford a 1K gun and ammo.

The ammo makers are doing record business because people have decided that all they can really afford is ammo to shoot what they already own. Even that has some people stretching their budget.

 

[itsa pain]

As rcmodel said, Harley found out in the 70's and 80s that they could not sustain sales on the mystic alone. The motorcycles were junk and folks just stopped buying them. Harley almost went the way of the dodo bird.

Nothing like corporate medalling. I think it was AMF that started Harley's near demise.

Harley got government assistance and got their act together and turned around the company where they sold excellent products again.

Back to Smith and Wesson, maybe some of their interesting models in their catalog will make to my part of the world now, lock or not.

Yes after Harley had the govt put a big tax on Japanese bikes over 600cc's. I bought mine right before the punishment tax took affect. Harley is just another GM on two wheels. Just as Rockefeller said: Competition is a sin. Same mechanics involved in getting Norinco products banned here

 

[alsaqr]

The consumer is broke, credit card maxed out and doesn't have the discretionary spending funds that flowed freely in the '90s and early 2000's.

That sums up the situation very well. Some folks are strapped for cash: They are selling guns for much less than their purchase price. Earlier this year the local Academy store had few AR-15 rifles in stock. Last week there were 40 AR-15 and AR-10 rifles in the racks.

 

[skoro]

The current buying frenzy was bound to lose steam at some point. Maybe the ammo panic will start to show signs of slacking a little in the not too distant future.

 

[Praxidike]

"The gunmaker expects its sales to slow over the year as Americans buy fewer firearms.

It looks like Americans may be buying fewer guns this year.

Smith & Wesson SWHC 0.83% , the 162-year-old gunmaker, lowered its guidance for the quarter and rest of the year, even as it reported better than expected sales in its fiscal fourth quarter that ended Apr. 30. Shares of Smith & Wesson’s stock had dropped nearly 9% by the close of trading Friday following the announcement..."

Complete Story at Fortune Magazine Website

Honestly, I only owned 2 firearms before Obama and friends sent the market into a tizzy. I had a full sized handgun for the home and a smaller one for conceal carry. I had no plans to buy more... By the end of 2013, I literally owned 4x as many firearms (which I couldn't find any ammo for)... I didn't even know what an AR15 was before they tried to ban it. After searching and reading up on it, I rushed out to over pay for one before it was to be banned.

It's like a double edged sword for gun makers. Support one party and gun sales sky rocket, but you risk costly legislation and bans. Support the other party, and you ammo and gun sales drop... I really think that the market is just returning to normal...

 

[Praxidike]

The current buying frenzy was bound to lose steam at some point. Maybe the ammo panic will start to show signs of slacking a little in the not too distant future.

Hopefully... Also, am I the only one who thinks that this is good news? Lower demand after a period of high demand equals excellent prices and deals At least that is how I see it... I just picked up a M&P shield for $340 shipped. This time last year they where $100 or so more.

 

[astra600]

I think Ruger is a full line manufacturer. Unless I missed the shotgun page on the S&W website.

 

[nathan]

Cost of ammo and range fees have all gone up.

 

[3212]

Range fees.I live in a suburban area and belong to a club 12 miles away in the country.I pay 35 dollars a year to shoot from sunrise to sunset 7 days a week unless there is a weekend competition.I cannot believe the fees the urban ranges charge for very limited shooting opportunities.I could not afford the practice I need to feel confident for hunting.No way will I pay $1,000 for any firearm and haven't paid retail for ammo for 20 years.

 

[Hangingrock]

A theory often mentioned "there is only so much disposable income". Maybe that point has been reached. If so I'm surprised that it has taken this much time to reach that point.

 

[Bezoar]

they are only focusing on two market segments. semi automatic and j frame.

if they could actualy produce k frames and n frames and even l frames their sales would go up. When the national distributors cant even get a k l or n frame you know its a company issue.