Americans’ appetite for personal weapons is in decline and may not recovery in early 2018. FBI background checks fell 7% in December and by 8% in 2017 overall. The CEO of American Outdoor (formerly Smith & Wesson), James Debney, points to a reduced “fear factor” that resulted in heavy discounting during the holiday sales season. That pressure likely continued, with imports of handheld weapons likely having fallen by as much as 40% in December as retailers sought to reduce inventories. The full year total likely dropped 9% to $1.9 billion. Imports of ammunition also fell, partly i...