No SHOT Show, But No Shortage of New Products

One of the toughest decisions the crew at the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) have likely ever made was the cancellation of this year’s Shooting, Hunting and Outdoor Trade (SHOT) Show, originally scheduled to take place next week in Las Vegas.

Industry journalists, including yours truly, enjoy the show not only because we get to handle and even try out new firearms and gear, but we can also plan a year’s worth of assignments, gun tests and reviews, say hello to old friends and shake hands with new ones. But the SHOT Show is also a lot of work for working journalists and representatives from every company exhibiting because, after all, its is a trade show, and the largest firearms industry show in the world by some estimations.

If the show were actually being held next week, Insider would be chatting with friends at Winchester, Federal, Hornady, Speer and Remington about the ammunition shortage and the outlook for relief this year. We would be talking with Vista Outdoor CEO and Director Christopher Metz, asking if he could elaborate and offer an update on a statement he made during the company’s quarterly earnings call in November. That’s when he said the following:

“We currently have over a year’s worth of orders for ammunition in excess of $1 billion. This is unprecedented for our company. With demand far outstripping supply and inventory levels in the channel at all-time lows, we see strong demand continuing, and this metric informs our viewpoint of what a recovery or normalization could look like. Now while I don’t intend to provide updates on this metric every quarter or even every year, I did want to provide additional context in these extraordinary circumstances to convey an underlying strength and strong foundational element to our business.”

He explained the shortage point-by-point, beginning with the fact there are “significantly more new shooters.” (Insider reported this last week with a link to the special video from Jason Vanderbrink, president of Federal, CCI, Speer and Remington.)

“According to data from the NSSF,” Metz said, “there are 6.2 million new shooters in 2020. This rate is more than twice the number of new shooters in the former surge. Anecdotally, there is no shortage of reports of sold-out shooting ranges and backlog firearm safety classes around the country.”

One interesting revelation was the increased diversity of these new gun owners. In his words, there is “much more diversity in new shooters than the industry has seen before.”

“This has led to an increase in participation,” Metz observed, “as they learn and enjoy their new purchases. Data from the NSSF indicates these shooters are more diverse, with large increases in both women and people of color entering the sport.”

The downside to adding an estimated 7.5 million new gun owners to the mix is that they bought ammunition for the guns they just purchased.

“We have cleaned inventory in all retail and wholesale locations,” Metz told others on the call. “Despite us producing flat out for six months, there is no buildup of inventory at any of our customers. In fact, every one of them would like significantly more. Simply put, consumer demand continues to outpace our ability to supply.”

Sources:
https://seekingalpha.com/article/4386571-vista-outdoor-inc-vsto-ceo-christopher-metz-on-q2-2021-results-earnings-call-transcript

New From Hornady

Typically, one of Insider’s first stops at the SHOT Show is at the Hornady booth, and this year would have been no exception because the company already posted new introductions online — and they’re impressive.

For handgunners, there’s the One-Gun Keypad Vault with a spring-loaded door that slams open with the right press on the keypad. Made from tough 16-gauge steel, it features an interior light that comes on when the door opens.

Hornady also has a new Magnetic Gun Mount. This little gem doesn’t look like much, but thanks to powerful rare earth magnets, it is reportedly rated for 43 lbs., so it will easily secure a 2 or 3-pound handgun in a handy spot. It has a rubber coating to protect your handgun’s finish.

To beat the next ammunition shortage, start reloading. Hornady has all you need, including a new electronic M2 Digital Bench Scale. This baby has a 1,500-grain capacity so you can weigh powder charges, bullets and even empty cases. It’s accurate up to 0.1-grain.

For a look at all of Hornady’s new offerings for 2021, you can visit their website linked below.

https://www.hornady.com/new-products

Another COVID Casualty

Like many of you, Insider is getting really tired of the COVID-19 pandemic, and underscoring that is this year’s cancellation (for the second time) of the Elmer Keith Memorial Long Range Invitational handgun shoot, which used to be one of my favorite springtime events.

This event raises funds for the NRA Foundation and Second Amendment Foundation — both entities that could use every penny they can raise. Founder Will DeRuyter notified Insider via email that the shoot will be back up and running in June 2022.

The Keith shoot is a hoot, and if you never heard of it, you obviously weren’t invited. Seriously, it attracts some of the finest long-range handgunners I’ve ever shot against. The event traditionally is held in farmland southwest of Spokane, Wash., and I’ve encountered shooters from Washington, Oregon and Idaho.

Near Fatal Femme

There are bad guys, and evidently bad girls, including one woman who now has a scar forming where she suffered a bullet wound while trying to break into one of the storage units at a Kenmore, Wash. storage facility, according to KIRO News, the Seattle-area CBS affiliate.

An attempted burglary is bad enough, but her misadventure went south by the shortcut when she was confronted by the live-in manager, allegedly pulling a gun on him. Much to her surprise — and lingering pain, no doubt — he also had a gun, and used it. One round to the shoulder put the brakes on her break-in.

Washington State has one of the most matter-of-fact self-defense/use-of-force statutes in the country.

https://www.kiro7.com/news/local/suspect-shot-kenmore-storage-facility/G4I6GB2OGNCR3JEVIDET5B6RHQ/