Shield - Why so few being delivered

[mbrittb00]

First of all, please understand this is not a complaint, just a curiosity. Trying to figure out how this whole industry works.

I understand that the Shield is a super popular pistol, however it also seems that they supply is also very slow. I'll be honest I don't really have a clue how the whole industry works. Do they have a factory that is solely responsible for producing the Shield? How many can they reasonably produce in one day? I understand that there are 10,000s of gun dealers around the country, but it still seems like they should be able to easily produce enough product so that every dealer could get 3-4 (or more) guns per month.

 

[petes67bird]

I have about 7 gun shops within an hour from my home, none of them have seen one since around May, and some have never gotten their first one yet. I find them out of state, but then the gun shops think they can either sell above MSRP when they hear your out of state or they wont sell to you at all. I have gotten to the point where I may pick up a XDS instead.

 

[pazzo]

Initial release of Shield in 4/2012 by S&W maybe had 20k pistols.
Once the word was out on how well they felt/worked, those were quickly sold and SW was tooling for other models. The number of 20k is a guess, but you get the point. Manufactures often retool lines for different pistols so production is cyclic.

 

[GregoryJ]

I visited a LGS for the first time a couple weeks ago. I was told by the person there (owner?) that the reason the Shield is so hard to obtain is that the Shield parts were milled in Germany by Walther shipped here and assembled. The parting of S&W and Walther is affecting availability of parts.

Don't shoot the messenger, just relaying what I was told.

 

[timn8er]

There really seem to be more Shields available lately. On the 29th of
last month I was on this forum & someone posted that Bud's had them
again. I got one ordered and today they emailed me that its getting
ready to ship. While I've been waiting for it my LGS has called me twice
to let me know they had one in for me.

 

[ARTT1]

Picked one up this week at my local shop, paid MSRP

 

[NucPhysics]

Initial release of Shield in 4/2012 by S&W maybe had 20k pistols.
Once the word was out on how well they felt/worked, those were quickly sold and SW was tooling for other models. The number of 20k is a guess, but you get the point. Manufactures often retool lines for different pistols so production is cyclic.

If I remember right, I am fairly sure that S&W claimed they had 3000 Shields assembled and ready to ship when they announced it in April.

Having the guns made before the actual announcement was a notable change for most gun manufacturers as many make the announcement then rush to mass production as the orders come in. Problem is, too many first-run guns seem to be buggy and need service and then as the complaints start hitting the web, sales drop off quickly and the gun gets a bad image.

I personally felt (well.. hoped) that S&W had taken their time to assemble the guns before hand and ensure quality trying to avoid the hang-ups and problems so many gun makers have after an initial release. I took a chance and bought one within 3 days of announcement in hopes the first ones were actually carefully made and the QC closely monitored. So far so good.

 

[krtstrk]

Be Patient..
Ive been on lists at cabelas and sportsman warehouse for three months. Monday cabelas called and I picked mine up. Today Sportsmans called and they had one. I think they just come in batches to different areas. Just have to be patient. I got tired of waiting and got a Taurus 709 slim, three weeks later my shield arrived. Oh well. By the way, contrary to a lot of different opinions out there. The Taurus is one fantastic little gun. The Shield better wow me on the range, the trigger doesnt impress me so far.

 

[USAF385]

I think it was in May that I bought mine. I hadn't been keeping up with things and hopped on the S&W website to check things out. They had the Shield on the front page and I knew I wanted one immediately. The next day I visited my favorite shop and he had the .40, so I snagged it.

I'm happy I did now that I see how rare they've become.

 

[2tango2]

I found out a few days ago that one of my airmen works at S&W...I plan on asking him a few questions if I end up seeing him this weekend lol

 

[Alnamvet68]

I visited a LGS for the first time a couple weeks ago. I was told by the person there (owner?) that the reason the Shield is so hard to obtain is that the Shield parts were milled in Germany by Walther shipped here and assembled. The parting of S&W and Walther is affecting availability of parts.

Don't shoot the messenger, just relaying what I was told.

Find another LGS.

 

[MichiganScott]

I waited 18 months in 1977-1978 for my Model 29. Long waits are the norm for high demand product.

 

[GregoryJ]

Find another LGS.

I sincerely doubt I will go back. All this started when I saw that they had a IWB holster for the Shield behind the counter. I asked to take a closer look at the holster. I didn't have my Shield with me and was thinking about going back with the Shield to test fit etc. until I was told the reason for the Shield shortage.

 

[Nwmarc]

Was in a LGS yesterday in Milw OR and they had several Shields come in. They sold all the 40 cal but still had 9mm in stock. So, hopefully this is a good sign. I picked mine up last June and love it.

 

[00dahc]

Was in a LGS yesterday in Milw OR and they had several Shields come in. They sold all the 40 cal but still had 9mm in stock. So, hopefully this is a good sign. I picked mine up last June and love it.

What's their asking price?

Many shops around the Seattle area have Shield's in stock now and all are asking $600.

 

[mbrittb00]

I guess the question is, what are they production plans? Are they trying to ramp up production by re-tooling a plant, or are they just going to keep putting them out at a few 100 per day? The problem is there isn't any info, at all. I guess this is pretty typical for this industry, but it's frustrating.

Personally I think it would be smart to ramp up production. Eventually demand for the Shield is going to wane, but that will be for one of two reasons. 1) People have gotten tired of waiting (this would not be good for PR), or 2) The next best thing has come out (this would be a lost sales opportunity).

 

[robkarrob]

Mid summer S&W was running three shifts, assembling the Shields. Production was estimated at around 1000 guns a day, five days a week, which is 5000 a week. S&W does not release their manufacturing numbers. Who knows what the production figures are currently? 5000 Shields a week may sound like a lot, but divide that by over 50,000 dealers in the US, and you can see why it is hard to find them. Spread that out and it is 1 gun per dealer per every 10 weeks. Some of the larger dealers have exclusive contracts with S&W, and get many more guns than other dealers. I am sure some small gun shops don't ever get any.

This was reported by ABC World News, back in December 2012:

According to the latest Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives numbers (as of Aug. 1), there are a total of 129,817 gun dealers in the US, which includes retail stores (51,438), "collectors" (61,562), pawn shops (7,356), and importers and manufacturers.


Bob

 

[2tango2]

Will be interesting to see if the xD-S 9mm takes a bite out of the demand for the Shield when it is released. Seems to be the next big thing in the 9mm world. I'll be in the market for one


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[37thguy]

Try Shiptons Big R

 

[MackIII]

Try Shiptons Big R

Do you know what they are going for there?