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 39 wadcutter bullets only). The shape of the rimmed cartridge limited the magazine capacity to five rounds. A further variant, the Model 952, in 9mm Luger, is still produced in limited quantities by Smith & Wesson's Performance Center. The Model 52 was discontinued in 1992 when the machinery to manufacture the pistol broke down and it was deemed too costly to replace. The Model 39 was the basis for the later Smith & Wesson Model 59, retaining the original 9mm Parabellum caliber, but incorporating a wider aluminum frame with a straight backstrap to accommodate a double-column magazine that could hold 14