Anyone else disappointed with the S&W Governor announcement?

[forindooruseonly]

S&W is tapping into a market that has grown hugely, despite the fact that one shop cannot "get rid of theirs". Perhaps it's their pricing?

Maybe they are out of line, maybe it is a regional thing since I referred to shops, as in plural. My point is that around here, the market that "has grown hugely" has slowed considerably. Markets grow hugely until they contract...

But whatever.

 

[Dimis]

seems all S&W has done latly is jump on bandwagons

everyone talked trash on both the Taurus Judge and the Ruger LCR yet enough sold for smith to put out the polymer bodygaurd and the governer (which I agree is a stupid name they should have used a model number)

maybe next year they will have an Arnold Schwarzenegger version called the governator on the X frame lol
just imagine the TRR8 style with 8 shots of 410 with light laser and red dot

 

[Buck Snort]

Hey, S&W is in the business to make a profit. If they see another company with a really hot item then it only makes sense they'd want a piece of the action. Competition and the free enterprise system is a wonderful thing. At a minimum, we should not see Taurus raising the price on the Judge!

 

[18DAI]

If they want to profit, perhaps they might try making a handgun worth buying. Maybe even make their QA/QC as good as their curomer service too.

You know, like they did prior to 2001. TJ

 

[Guillermo]

You know, like they did prior to 2001

wasn't 96 the year that the MIM monster's shadow fell upon the company-formerly-known-as-smith-and-wesson?

 

[9mm+]

+1 Dimis -- very true and very funny!

 

[Nushif]

Have you noticed some of the strategy here though?

First Taurus came out with the Judge, got burned by the entire ... open minded and objective, as well as level headed gun community for their crappy product and here comes S&W! They introduce the same gun, compete in the market and don't catch nearly the same amount of vitriol.
Or look at the LCP. Ruger brings back the concept of a small .380 into the spotlight ... and a few months later S&W attaches a non optional laser, adds a couple hundred bucks to the price and for some reason their gun is miles better clearly.

Sounds like S&W knows their consumer base more than anything else.

 

[18DAI]

Some folks will pay idiotic amounts for a POS that bears the famous logo. Then they will appear on many different gunboards defending their purchase/proclaiming it to be just as good as the older guns/shoots more accurately than all the pre locks they don't own/they sold all their Rugers and will only purchase S&W wind up guns.

Gunrags excuse anything S&W does < American Handgunner - "Much ado about nothing" > and take the advertising money. They have never met a gun they didn't like. Especially if it has S&W cheaply laser etched on it.

Evidently, S&W has no gun people in their hierarchy. A quick glance through their catalog shows ugly guns made cheaply and priced by extreme optimists.

I have noticed over the last ten years or so, that the majority of the gun buying public is willing to fork over large amounts of money for overhyped overpriced absolute junk.

Then some go on gunboards and declare it to be the best thing since sliced bread. (Ex: S&W M&P - well......after you purchase after market parts and blah, blah, blah.) Folks need to get out and shoot more. Find some guns with real triggers to shoot too.

The gun manufacturers are evidently well aware of this trend and giving them what they will buy, as cheaply as they can manufacture it. Sad. TJ

 

[mnhntr]

Instead of getting their quality back into the revolvers they produce, why not just copy others cheap crap? Makes sense to me when everyone on the forums is raving about the older S&Ws, but hey its not what the customers want, just whats cheap.

 

[CornCod]

While I have nothing against S&W producing a Judge clone, I do take issue with the fact that the more established US firearms manufacturers have a terrible record of innovation in the last 20 years. So many of these companies are stuck in the late 19th Century. The most innovative American gun company is Kel-Tec. If I were Chairman of the Board of Smith and Wesson, I would fire the current guy running S&W and hire George Kelgren or whoever's calling the shots at Kel-tec now.

 

[9mm+]

While I have nothing against S&W producing a Judge clone, I do take issue with the fact that the more established US firearms manufacturers have a terrible record of innovation in the last 20 years. So many of these companies are stuck in the late 19th Century. The most innovative American gun company is Kel-Tec. If I were Chairman of the Board of Smith and Wesson, I would fire the current guy running S&W and hire George Kelgren or whoever's calling the shots at Kel-tec now.

Bingo. You hit the nail on the head.

 

[fireside44]

If I were Chairman of the Board of Smith and Wesson, I would fire the current guy running S&W and hire George Kelgren or whoever's calling the shots at Kel-tec now.

I don't think the world is ready for a bullpup .500 S&W that takes forever to make it to market.

 

[230RN]

Will the 28 gauge version be called "President?"

Will the 20 gauge version be called "Prime Minister?"

Will the 12 gauge version be called "Emperor?"

Terry, 230RN

 

[hardworker]

What on Earth was Smith and Wesson thinking? They should be spending more time developing 1911 clones, pocket 380's and snub nose 38's. That's what the market needs more of right now. Why waste time making a revolver that will sell like hotcakes and make the company money for the future when they can just plod along on the same old revolvers and semi-auto's they've been making for 30 years? It's like they've never had a marketing class.

 

[JR47]

You know, like they did prior to 2001. TJ

You must be young. In the 70s and 80s S&W had terrible QC problems. So much so that the written word said to buy "old" models. Today, though, these same poor QC models are mooed over as "the good old days". Sheesh.

 

[PapaG]

We are getting a big laugh out of it here in Illinois...the state where the Judge sends Governors to jail.

 

[Guillermo]

when they can just plod along on the same old revolvers and semi-auto's they've been making for 30 years?

too damned bad that they are not making the "same old revolvers" that they made instead of the garbage that they currently produce

 

[Dave T]

I've been disappointed in S&W since they dropped the pinned and recessed features of their revolvers. They are run by the bean counters these days who only care about the bottom line. As long as it sells it doesn't matter how good it is, how it looks or even if it's functional. Promise to repair it for life and people will overlook shoddy workmanship and poor design.

Dave

 

[earlthegoat2]

There is a lot of new and uninformed shooters and gun owners out there who have heard of a great gun company called Smith and Wesson.

They were a great gun company. Just like GM used to be a good car company.

Crikey, I just read some of the threads in the S&W forum on the same topic. Geez, it seems like a lot of those people were incensed by this announcement. A lot of acrimony from S&W devotees.

Sure to be shut down by the S&W Forum patrol in short order. That forum is in bed with S&W and wont let an ill word be spoke about them.

 

[sixgunner455]

Nope, not disappointed at all. A little surprised, but not disappointed. They can make what they want. I'll buy what I want.

Judge/Governor/Thunder5 - all the same dumb idea that seems cool when you first hear about it, but on thoughtful reflection, you spend your money on a Colt PPS or S&W 19-3 and move on.

 

[MCgunner]

maybe next year they will have an Arnold Schwarzenegger version called the governator on the X frame lol
just imagine the TRR8 style with 8 shots of 410 with light laser and red dot

Well, Taurus has already announced a larger frame .454 firing Judge. Don't remember the name....SCOTUS? Anyway, it's a Judge on steroids.

Or look at the LCP. Ruger brings back the concept of a small .380 into the spotlight ... and a few months later S&W attaches a non optional laser, adds a couple hundred bucks to the price and for some reason their gun is miles better clearly.

The LCP was, itself a Kel Tec P3AT rip off! Kel Tec is an innovative company, but they're young, not old and stodgy and dusty and past their prime. They also have some great customer service. Not knocking Ruger, but hey, they weren't the first in the compact 380 market. I have a Grendel P12 that's a good gun other than I don't care much for the trigger. It accepts 11 round magazines, so it's a double stack, but while being slightly wider (like .95" or something), it's the same height and length as the LCP and weighs only 12 ounces. It was George Kelgren's first in this comcept and I like the firepower over the current crop of pocket .380s, gun is 20 years old now. The P11 came from this concept and then the P3AT. Ruger was WAY late to that party.

I sorta prefer the Grendel as a pocket gun to the LCP, too. It has a heal clip magazine latch, what any true pocket pistol SHOULD have. I haven't had trouble from my P11, just sayin'.

 

[Nushif]

Not knocking Ruger, but hey, they weren't the first in the compact 380 market.

Ruger brings back the concept of a small .380 into the spotlight ...

Let's face it, at first the Kel-Tecs were a bit of a niche gun. Plastic little mouseguns no good for anything except peeving the BG real bad and exploding in your hand, etc.
I really do think it took an established name to reintroduce the concept behind a Derringer.
Feel free of course to skim my post and correct something I never said. 8)

 

[MCgunner]

Well, I bought a Kel Tec P11 in 1996 and have been quite happy with it, prefer it to the alternatives from Taurus, Kahr, Skyy, Glock (though the G26 was out when I got the KT and it's not really in that size class), et al. Ruger is soon to jump on the PF9/P11/709 etc 9mm subcompact band wagon. They're running ads about it, but I don't think it's released, yet. Now, maybe that's a "re-introduction" to the concept, but not for me. I liked the little P3AT, too, and my Grendel way before Ruger jumped on the band wagon...oh, sorry, "re-introduced the concept".

BTW, my Kel Tec has over 11,000 rounds fired through it and hasn't blown my hand off, yet. About 500 of those total have been +P rounds. It still shoots to POA 3.5" at 25 yards accurate. I don't need the "re-introduction" of the Ruger. I have a perfectly good firearm in that concept, thanks.

I have 7 Rugers, love my Rugers, just calling a spade a spade.

 

[HiWayMan]

I sorta prefer the Grendel as a pocket gun to the LCP, too. It has a heal clip magazine latch, what any true pocket pistol SHOULD have. I haven't had trouble from my P11, just sayin'.

I agree....first time I've seen it in print though...tired of the mag on my Kel-Tec just hanging in there so to speak.

 

[Paladin7]

I was really disappointed in the news.

In my mind, this is a group of marketing weenies getting together and seeing the success of the Judge in the market, decided, what the hell, let's go for it... I could just picture how this went down...

Anyway, if its not a commercial success, they'll discontinue it and it will become a highly sought after collectors item...go figure...