FXJohn. Two reasons for the slow down in gun sales. One, the ammo shortage. A gun is just an expensive club without ammo. Two, many of the panic sales were to folks who did not have a gun and were afraid idiot politicians would make it impossible to buy one.
I have purchased three new rifles in the past year, including one a couple of weeks ago. The only thing that will slow me down is I'm running out of room in my gun safe. Time for a bigger safe.
And I reload my centerfire ammo and I've been stockpiling reloading components, so the ammo shortage doesn't affect me. And as far as .22 rimfire goes, I started stocking up on it long before Obama was elected and the scare started. Let's just say I am good on .22 LR ammo for the foreseeable future.
I hunt and I go to the range 2-3 times a month. Like me, other gun enthusiasts enjoy shooting as a hobby, and there are millions of us. Bottom line, real gun enthusiasts aren't into panic buying, they just buy because they want to.
From the tone of your post I take it that you are not a gun enthusiast, so I thought you might appreciate a different perspective. Cheers.