"The new ownership is fighting to regain that status."
And at this point, from the new guns that I have seen that have been made SINCE the company changed hands, they're doing a piss poor job of it.
Of course, my assessment simply can't be trusted because of my bias against Smith & Wesson, the bias that has led me to purchase 3 S&Ws this year alone...
"But...it IS a fact that the "older" Smiths are of almost legendary quality."
Now isn't that quaint. I've stated numerous times, both here and on the old Compuserve Firearms Forum, that S&Ws quality control has been slipping since the mid-1990s, and have recommended that people purcuase the OLDER guns if they want an S&W.
I was doing that BEFORE the agreement was signed, and you said it was simply nothing more than my political bias against the company, NOT issues of quality control.
Now you come out directly and agree with my statement regarding the quality of the older guns.
Isn't that interesting...