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Thread: IDPA Shooters--Ruger Wants Your Input

  1. #11
    Quote Originally Posted by DAB View Post
    Rob Vogel got a lot of shooters....
    I've been a member of and/or shooter of IDPA for probably 15 years. Glock has always been the gun of choice for ESP and SSP.


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  2. #12
    Member Peally's Avatar
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    If making a shooting team makes real financial or marketing sense I'd like to hear it. People vastly overestimate how common competitive shooters are, how many people give a crap about competition, and how many people spend money based off of a shooter's recommendations. It's a near zero return on investment, and a lot of people don't like that fact because they view sponsorships as some sort of holy prestige laden goal versus the reality of it being a very minor side job. Going off the last USPSA annual reports I can recall, the number of production GMs is maybe something around 150 in the country (that's being very generous), out of maybe roughly 20,000 total members. That's in a country of 50 million households that own firearms (that's 50,000,000). Mathematically that's struggling to even be a drop in the ocean.

    This is all beside the fact that it's an individual sport and there are literally no actual teams.

    The only types that might be worth it to get them sales are the big names (like Doug), but being members of an arbitrary "team" isn't the reason they're going to get those sales at all. Doug could pimp Ruger just fine without a jersey. Like other company teams we see I expect this will either be a gig for funsies (HK) or it'll tank in a few years due to reality setting in (Sig). It's similar to sponsorship in motorsports where it's not about making money, it's about putting cash into the game because the big wigs at the company simply just enjoy it and want it to succeed.

    I'm glad they're finally becoming relevant and making cool shit but they'd sell far more swag getting a boring YouTube personality to play with their latest and greatest gun (nutnfancy, Hickok45, etc). All I'm saying with my snarky comment is either someone at Ruger likes IDPA and USPSA enough to pay Doug for a swanky jersey, or they'll cut their losses once Ruger hits a rough spot and isn't financially booming.
    Semper Gumby, Always Flexible

  3. #13
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    the problem with this survey idea is the same as Ford and the Edsel: ask everyone what they want in a car/pistol, compile the results, and make what the plurality wants. and then no one buys it because 80% of the respondents don't see their selections on the product. "Ruger doesn't listen to customers" will be the cry.

    i'll stick to my prior post.

    as for IDPA, reading a bit of history, everyone was convinced that a 1911 would beat any other pistol because of it's great trigger. Vogel and Langdon and others showed them otherwise. and the market responded with guns and parts that were suited to this type of shooting. competition has a way of weeding out bad ideas, but it can also be used to showcase a new idea that has not been time tested. maybe it will succeed, maybe it will fail.

  4. #14
    Quote Originally Posted by Peally View Post
    If making a shooting team makes real financial or marketing sense I'd like to hear it. People vastly overestimate how common competitive shooters are, how many people give a crap about competition, and how many people spend money based off of a shooter's recommendations. It's a near zero return on investment, and a lot of people don't like that fact because they view sponsorships as some sort of holy prestige laden goal versus the reality of it being a very minor side job. Going off the last USPSA annual reports I can recall, the number of production GMs is maybe something around 150 in the country (that's being very generous), out of maybe roughly 20,000 total members. That's in a country of 50 million households that own firearms (that's 50,000,000). Mathematically that's struggling to even be a drop in the ocean.

    This is all beside the fact that it's an individual sport and there are literally no actual teams.

    The only types that might be worth it to get them sales are the big names (like Doug), but being members of an arbitrary "team" isn't the reason they're going to get those sales at all. Doug could pimp Ruger just fine without a jersey. Like other company teams we see I expect this will either be a gig for funsies (HK) or it'll tank in a few years due to reality setting in (Sig). It's similar to sponsorship in motorsports where it's not about making money, it's about putting cash into the game because the big wigs at the company simply just enjoy it and want it to succeed.

    I'm glad they're finally becoming relevant and making cool shit but they'd sell far more swag getting a boring YouTube personality to play with their latest and greatest gun (nutnfancy, Hickok45, etc). All I'm saying with my snarky comment is either someone at Ruger likes IDPA and USPSA enough to pay Doug for a swanky jersey, or they'll cut their losses once Ruger hits a rough spot and isn't financially booming.
    Paid shooting professionals are few and far between. How many people make a living at it other than Leathem, Jerry, Julie and a few others like Jarrett and Butler. And most of the really big guys also have schools and/or teach on the side.

    According to the Ruger press release, Koenig is going to be team captain but also brand ambassador. We don't know what that means yet but I bet Doug will be doing more than just shooting Ruger guns and wearing Ruger shirts.

    I'm not disagreeing with you about the return on investment stuff but there's going to be a happy medium. How much does Ruger pay to advertise in American Handgunner or Guns and Ammo VS how much will they pay the shooting team to represent Ruger? Dropping a few full-page ads in exchange for a celebrity spokesman makes sense as long as they don't overdo it like SIG did.

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  5. #15
    Ruger has a similar survey for ICORE if anyone is interested.

    https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...zwhBA/viewform

    If one exists for other sports (USPSA or 3gun) I haven't seen them yet.

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  6. #16
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    sponsored shooters are a marketing expense. they go out, show how wonderful their sponsor's gun/gear/ammo is, and hopefully Billy-bob thinks "hey, that's a pretty nice gun, maybe i should get one too". i recall seeing ads in the IDPA magazine last issue for Safariland gear, with Vogel's competition gear all laid out and labeled, so any reader could easily duplicate it if they so desired. the goal is to sell more product.

  7. #17
    I hope they make an, “N frame/Redhawk,” size revolver in .45 ACP that is analogous to the smaller framed Match Champion.

    Like a Ruger version of Jerry’s 625 revolver without the lock.


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  8. #18
    Member Zincwarrior's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by DAB View Post
    didn't see an option for: accurate and ergonomic. too many personal preference options that don't really make a gun good or bad. i've shot all sorts of guns, well. the options they provide were not the determining factors.

    make a good pistol, support it, buyers will come.
    Agreed. Took the survey. Nothing on trigger pull weight and reset, nothing on accuracy.

    It's a no serious survey as a result.

  9. #19
    Member Zincwarrior's Avatar
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    Do like S&W, Glock, Walther,etc. Make a very good regular production model, then make a competition version for about $300 more with better trigger, sights, and accuracy. Walther just did it with their Q5.

  10. #20
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    and in the case of Walther, they are offering contingency money if you shoot and win with one of their pistols. another way of encouraging people to buy and shoot and compete with their pistols.

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