I was wondering if anyone had a rundown on the model 500 and the date of any production changes that have taken place. I know that the earliest guns had a case colored hammer and trigger which was later changed to a silver appearance (I would appreciate if anyone can comment on the reasoning behind this change), and also that the plastic cases have changed appearance over the years. I have had a hard time finding any information on this subject. In addition, I am interested in dates of introduction and discontinuation of the model 500es and why some packages seem to come with unwrapped white firestarters while others had 3 wrapped firestarters.

Thank you,
Shawn