Why did L.C. Smith outsell Parker?

[Dean Romig]

Originally Posted by Justin Julian

Responding to the original question, perhaps consumers of the era were drawn to LC Smith's sidelock design, reminiscent of a best British gun, as opposed to the American boxlock.

The Smith thus, being easier to disassemble and work on yourself. A Parker is not the easiest gun to disassemble and put back together properly on the first or even the second attempt. (And, from what I've heard, Smiths needed a lot of internal maintenance.)

[Researcher]

When the first A.H. Fox Gun Co. ads appeared in sporting magazines in late 1905 and early 1906, the Parker Bros. ads near them said "135000 in sportsmen's hands". So, Parker Bros./Remington Arms Co., Inc. produced about 107,000 more guns from then to the end while A.H. Fox Gun Co./Savage Arms Corp. produced somewhere near 180,000.

I think a good part of this is the Sterlingworth. From its introduction in 1910 until after WW-I the Sterlingworth and Parker Bros.' Trojan escalated in price about the same. Then in 1922, A.H. Fox Gun Co. dropped the price of the Sterlingworth to $48, then in 1926 they really dropped the price again to $36.50, a dollar cheaper than the new NID Ithaca Field Grade which was listed at $37.50. Also, the Sterlingworth was offered in a greater variety of barrel lengths, and with the extra cost options of ejectors and the Fox-Kautzky Single Selective Trigger. Parker Bros. kept the price and the fit and finish of the Trojan high and sold about 33,000. Fox went to the lower price and eventually sold about 145,000 Sterlingworths.

[Jawjadawg]

Originally Posted by Dave Noreen

When the first A.H. Fox Gun Co. ads appeared in sporting magazines in late 1905 and early 1906, the Parker Bros. ads near them said "135000 in sportsmen's hands". So, Parker Bros./Remington Arms Co., Inc. produced about 107,000 more guns from then to the end while A.H. Fox Gun Co./Savage Arms Corp. produced somewhere near 180,000.

I think a good part of this is the Sterlingworth. From its introduction in 1910 until after WW-I the Sterlingworth and Parker Bros.' Trojan escalated in price about the same. Then in 1922, A.H. Fox Gun Co. dropped the price of the Sterlingworth to $48, then in 1926 they really dropped the price again to $36.50, a dollar cheaper than the new NID Ithaca Field Grade which was listed at $37.50. Also, the Sterlingworth was offered in a greater variety of barrel lengths, and with the extra cost options of ejectors and the Fox-Kautzky Single Selective Trigger. Parker Bros. kept the price and the fit and finish of the Trojan high and sold about 33,000. Fox went to the lower price and eventually sold about 145,000 Sterlingworths.

Those numbers are supported by the records. Parker produced @ 130,000 over a 30 year span - 1874 to 1904; and another 106,000 over the next 30 years. A person could argue that the price drop of the Sterlingworth alone accounts for the difference in sales over that time period. You could argue that the resultant drop of 18.5% in business over that time period is what unraveled the Meriden operations. I doubt either would have survived post WWII, but is it possible Fox brought down both gun makers - themselves by not charging enough, and Parker Bros. by siphoning off their business with the more economical Sterlingworth?

[Bill Murphy]

Read a few hundred Parker orders and you will see what brought them down. They were giving the guns away. The jobber and the retailer were each making more money than the factory, without any investment in skill or equipment.