Smith & Wesson NRA and NSSF over the issue of smart guns, thousands of retailers and tens of thousands of firearms consumers boycotted Smith & Wesson. CEO Ed Shultz, who negotiated the deal, was forced out in September of that year. By December 2000, the company's stock price was 19 cents per share. Smith & Wesson dropped its smart gun plans after nearly being driven out of business. On May 11, 2001, Saf-T-Hammer Corporation acquired Smith & Wesson Corp. from Tomkins plc for US$15 million, a fraction of the US$112 million originally paid by Tomkins. Saf-T-Hammer assumed US$30 million in debt, bringing the
Smith & Wesson Model 17 be dry. The Model 17 was discontinued in 1998, but in 2009 was reintroduced as the Model 17 "Masterpiece" due to a resurgence in the popularity of vintage Smith & Wesson revolvers. The company chose approx. fifteen previously discontinued models to produce once again. This was done under the "Classics" category of S&W's current offerings. Smith & Wesson Model 17 The Smith & Wesson Model 17 is a six-shot double-action revolver chambered for .22 LR. It is built on Smith & Wesson's medium-sized K-frame. Smith & Wesson's Models 16 and 17 have their origins with the company's Pre-World War 2