(see article below)
Business News
Lightweight revolvers
hot item for S&W
Wednesday, October 24, 2001
By WILLIAM FREEBAIRN
A new line of ultra-light revolvers in stores this month is proving
a success for Smith & Wesson, which can't keep up with demand. The
new guns are among the first in the world to use scandium, a metal that
has been used in Russian fighter jets and baseball bats. They are being
marketed under the AirLite Sc label and all are capable of firing a powerful
.357-caliber Magnum round that had been previously unavailable in such
a lightweight gun.
The smaller revolvers, which weight just over 11 ounces, have been shipping
for several weeks; larger guns should reach dealers in the coming days.
"It's a hot item," said Herb A. Belin, handgun product manager for
Smith & Wesson. "Our constraint is our production rate." The guns are
more expensive than stainless-steel revolvers. New guns carry a suggested
price of between $700 and $800 each.
The lighter guns are likely to be purchased by people who want them
for personal defense, especially those with permits to carry concealed
weapons, Belin said. Officials said developing the guns using the new metal
took longer than expected and taught them some lessons in metallurgy. In
high-speed video footage of the gun firing, the frame and barrel moved
dramatically due to the scandium alloy's flexibility. "That gun does the
rumba," Belin said.
Designers increased the size of some parts of the gun to reduce flexing.
Titanium was used in the cylinder for strength, but testing showed it was
also needed in the center pin and other parts of the weapon. Steel is used
for the hammer and trigger. "This taught us to make even stronger, tougher
guns," Belin said.
Scandium is a little-known metal that occupies a place on the periodic
table immediately before titanium. Discovered in the late 1800s, it found
use in the former Soviet Union, which had a virtual monopoly on the supply
from the Ukraine. The Soviets used it in fighter jets and missile parts.
When the Soviet Union broke up, the metal began to see more widespread
use, for example in aluminum baseball bats and mountain bike frames.
Although scandium costs about $7,000 a pound, the amount needed to mix
with aluminum and other alloying agents is small. Adding a little scandium
to aluminum strengthens the material more than twofold, Belin said.
Its weight will increase the number of people willing to carry it, Belin
said. "You don't need a holster. You can carry it in your pocket."
The lightest of the scandium guns is less than half of the weight of
the lightest .357-caliber Magnum the company made before. Because of their
light weight and flexible scandium-aluminum alloy frame, the guns deliver
a rapid "kick" to the hands of the person firing them. "Recoil is an issue,"
Belin said.
The gun can fire less-powerful rounds than the .357 magnum, for example
the .38 special, that can reduce recoil. "You really have to work at not
flinching (when firing,)" Belin said.
Smith & Wesson officials believe there may be another market for
the super-light guns. They have developed a prototype scandium alloy gun
that could be carried by flight crews on commercial airliners. There have
been calls for flight crews to be armed, although no steps have been taken
by the government in that direction.
The Smith & Wesson prototypes are black with an internal hammer,
so they could be carried in a trouser or jacket pocket without catching
on the fabric. The guns could be modified to fire a lower-velocity round,
which is less likely to cause damage to an aircraft, officials said.
The prototype air crew guns have not been publicly revealed before,
Belin said. A spokesman said the prototypes are simply a design concept
and will not necessarily be produced or be shared with people outside the
company.
© 2001 UNION-NEWS.
ABOUT SAF-T-HAMMER (OTC BB: SAFH)
Saf-T-Hammer Corporation is a firearm
safety company focused on preventing unauthorized gun use and unintentional
firearm accidents. Saf-T-Hammer customers include sporting goods distributors,
law enforcement distributors, law enforcement retailers, law enforcement
agencies and gunsmiths. Saf-T-Hammer acquired Smith & Wesson, one of
the world’s leading producers of quality handguns and law enforcement products,
in May of this year. Law enforcement personnel, military personnel, target
shooters, hunters, collectors and firearms enthusiasts throughout the world
have used the company’s products with confidence for nearly 150 years.
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http://www.smith-wesson.com
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