The ATS Path for 2012

Shot Show Announcement:

Well, very soon we’ll be off to Shot Show 2012. Shot Show 2012 is in Las Vegas, Nevada, from Jan. 17 – Jan. 20, at the Sands Expo Convention Center. This will be our first time in the Law Enforcement section, which has traditionally drawn the most attention to our products, according to other companies who have displayed our products in that section in the past. Our booth no. is 6106.
In addition, for the first time, we’ll be displaying suppressed pistols adorned with an ATS. According to the largest U.S. importer / distributor of suppressors, the ATS is ideal for suppressors, as it is just tall enough to see over the can, yet low enough to fit in almost all holsters when the can is removed. We’ll also have two really impressive looking Mossberg tactical shotguns on display. Both, along with our Advantage Tactical Split-Ring Mossberg sight, have been completely camo finished.

Our booth will be more occupied this year than previous years. We’ll have our South American reps, some local reps, along with my wife and I to answer any questions you may have. Should you be in Vegas at that time, please stop by and visit.

For The Coming Year:

We are now starting our 4th generation of sights and the year 2012 will be one with more new products and a revamping of current ones. With each generation, we have added improvement to our sight system. This year we will do the same, as well as add to our product line.

Over the past 6 years, we have made ATS installation more user friendly, strengthened our front sight securing system, and made colored insert changes more stable and more flush fitting with the front and rear sights. We’ve also changed our rear sight insert pin from a dowel pin to a spring pin. The spring pin secures the insert and prevents against drifting during recoil. For 2012, we are looking at alternative compounds for our front and rear sight colored inserts. We are pretty happy with our current nylon 66 application, but we’ll be experimenting with even hardier compounds with the utmost humidity shield. Though you may not visually recognize the difference, a new front sight / rear sight insert compound may be just around the corner. Also, for 2012, the Glock and Springfield XD / XDm rear sights will have the same narrower profile as our Sig Sauer, Springfield and Kimber 1911, and S&W m&p rear sights. Customer surveys have shown either a preference for the narrower look or no preference at all.

During these past six years, we have also managed to manufacture 90% of our product in the U.S., along with 100% assembly and packaging in the U.S. By definition of several governmental agencies, the ATS is now “made in America”. At one time, most of our product was made overseas, but we have managed to bring it home and are working to get that last 10% home, too. Our largest, and very much appreciated vendors, Brownells, Inc., Midway USA, and Lone Wolf Distributors, have all been very supportive of the small price changes needed to bring our manufacturing home.

For new products in 2012, there will be a sight for the latest Taurus 709 / 740 and the Taurus 24/7 G2 pistols. Customer demand (you know what they say about the proverbial squeaky wheel) led to the Taurus project. Still to come is the “ATS Stealth Light” project. We have received favorable and not so favorable responses from customers about our answer for a true darkness “night sight”. In a posting to come, we’ll discuss more about this and address the subject of night sights, in general. Another project for 2012 will be the HK 45 and HK p30, as we have had many requests for sights for those pistols from U.S., as well as from European customers. Also, those European customers and customers from South American have been pressing for CZ 75 and Browning Hi-power sights. There are countless owners of those pistols in the U.S. and abroad that are seeking alternatives to the post-and-notch sights originally attached to those pistols. We hope to respond to those requests in the coming year. In one last addition to our proposed product line for 2012, we will be extending our split-ring shotgun sight line to accommodate FN shotgun barrel diameters. Now, certainly one of our split-ring shotgun sights should accommodate almost any shotgun. So, please call if you have a shotgun that is not listed on our website store.

There are two project upgrades for 2012. One will be facelift for the Guardian sight. We’ll give it more elevation flexibility, minimize the picatinny mount clamp, shorten the length of the mount itself, and radius everything to help prevent snagging. We may even provide a space on the clamp for a tactical light. A tactical light in that spot would also provide illumination to the front sight. The other big project that we’ll attempt to complete for 2012 will be a revamping of our S&W revolver sights. With any luck, the design overhaul may extend to Ruger revolvers as well, though we won’t have a definitive answer until we get more into the project.

Well, that’s a lot for us in 2012 but we’ll do our best to complete those projects. Oh, one last thing, we’ve just received our patent for our shim and color change systems, and our “stealth light” technology is now patent pending.

Richard