Aguila Blanca
Staff
Jim Watson has a good point.
I don't remember how many years I have been attending the SHOT Show. I know I was at the last one that was held in Florida - however long ago that was -- so it's been at least that long. I didn't go this year, obviously, because there wasn't one, but when I go I have a special interest in 1911 manufacturers and vendors. And as much as I try to stay current on who's making 1911s, I can't remember a SHOT Show where I haven't stumbled across at least one or two makers I had never heard of.
Considering that the 1911 was supposedly written off as obsolete several decades ago, it's astonishing even to me that there are still new companies who want to get started making -- 1911s. Maybe it's because the design is no longer protected by patent and because parts are so readily available, but take a look at the market. There are DOZENS -- literally -- of companies making and selling 1911s. Prices range from $300 (or so) for something like a Tisas from Turkey to $8,000 or $10,000 for one of Cabot's top-of-the-line pistols, with pretty much every price point in between represented by anywhere from three or four to a dozen or more makers.
I'm not a business genius but it leaves me wondering -- why in the world would any new company set out to try to crack that market?
I don't remember how many years I have been attending the SHOT Show. I know I was at the last one that was held in Florida - however long ago that was -- so it's been at least that long. I didn't go this year, obviously, because there wasn't one, but when I go I have a special interest in 1911 manufacturers and vendors. And as much as I try to stay current on who's making 1911s, I can't remember a SHOT Show where I haven't stumbled across at least one or two makers I had never heard of.
Considering that the 1911 was supposedly written off as obsolete several decades ago, it's astonishing even to me that there are still new companies who want to get started making -- 1911s. Maybe it's because the design is no longer protected by patent and because parts are so readily available, but take a look at the market. There are DOZENS -- literally -- of companies making and selling 1911s. Prices range from $300 (or so) for something like a Tisas from Turkey to $8,000 or $10,000 for one of Cabot's top-of-the-line pistols, with pretty much every price point in between represented by anywhere from three or four to a dozen or more makers.
I'm not a business genius but it leaves me wondering -- why in the world would any new company set out to try to crack that market?