OK does anyone have any facts on revolver sales pre and post locks? Does Smith sell at least as many revolvers as they did before the dread lock appeared?
But see, that wouldn't tell you anything. You don't have a control group. If they introduced the ILS and sales stayed the EXACT same, it isn't correct to say, "the ILS didn't affect sales" because you don't know what sales would have been without the ILS!
I'm perfectly willing to believe there are hordes of the unwashed masses who don't care and continue to buy the new guns. But are they your target audience when you "reintroduce a classic design?" Don't you expect a big chunk of sales to be to older folks who failed to buy an original back in the day and would love a chance to rectify that problem?
Look at the new M21 and M22. Do we really expect the raging hordes of Glock owners to line up and buy them? (Nothing against Glocks, I have two.) You will sell some of them to twenty year olds but surely your market will mostly be to the older aficionados. I was _thrilled_ when I heard S&W was going to remake the M21 and M22. There was no doubt whatsoever that I was going to buy both. Until I discovered that they weren't the five screw, FP on hammer, no ILS guns I had been expected.
So no, we can't say _for sure_ how much the ILS has affected sales. But it defies logic to say that it hasn't affected the sales of the "classic style" reintroductions!
And for no good reason that I can see. US Firearms doesn't put an ILS on their SAA copies! How much more "inherently dangerous" can a handgun design be than an original style SAA? No transfer bar, a safety notch that isn't really a safety notch, etc. But US Firearms continues to make them true to the design. Because that's what their customers want! Sometimes I despair that S&W (and Ruger) just don't get the whole "the customer is always right" viewpoint!
Gregg