Winchester -- What is their story exactly

Status
Not open for further replies.
G

Golden_006

Member
Joined
Aug 1, 2009
Messages
285
I can't find out what the story is exactly on Winchester. It seems like Google comes up with a bunch of different things that are out of chronological order and too difficult to piece together. And why such boring guns? They should let me run it
 
Cause they're owned by damn furriners.

(FN owns Winchester iirc.)
 
The old Winchester Repeating Arms Co became a division of the Olin Corp following WWII. They folded thier tent in 1980 and went broke but the company was purchased by it's employees and continued to operate.

It then became U.S. Repeating Arms Co from 1981 until 1989, when they filed for bankruptcy again.

The U.S.R.A. company was first bought by a French holding company, then sold to Belgian Herstal Group which also owns FN & Browning.

In 2006, the U.S.R.A. plant in New Haven CT was closed for good, and American Winchester firearms production ended.

Then the Olin Group entered into an agreement with FN to allow them to use the Winchester brand name on firearms produced at the FN-USA plant in Columbia, SC..

But like Solo said, Cause they're owned by damn furriners now.

rc
 
Olin is publicly traded. The ticker symbol is OLN. In addition to making Winchester ammo, they manufacturer chemicals and metal alloys.
 
I believe lever rifle manufacture is now by a Japanese company.
From their website:
"Our special historic guns -- 1885s, 95s, as well as other limited series rifles -- continue to be made at our factory in Japan."
Click to expand...
The Model 70, however, is made in the USA.
 
Oh japanese. That explains it. They make some of the most boring stuff around; albeit built well. Well at least a lot of the time.

I thought FN made FAL or some other turbo AR for a whole lot of money. Say what you want; it doesn't seem boring to me however.
 
You may call them boring, but historically they are one of the best names in the business. All those wonderful levers (66, 73, 76, 86, 92, 94, 95) , the early Model 54s, Model 70s, Model 21s, Model 12s, and Model 42s. Wow, what a 'non boring' bunch of guns. The American west and early 20th century American hunting heritage is built on these fine firearms.

BTW, the Japanese recreations of Winchester levers marketed under the Browning and Winchester name are as well, or better built than the originals. Absolutely beautiful, and certainly not boring to anyone older that 21.

It is really a shame the company failed to thrive the last few decades. Some blame management, some unions. Doesn't matter. They are gone as we know them. The reviews on the new Model 70s built in South Carolina seem to be pretty good. At least one of the traditional fine Winchesters is still available, even if it is made by FN.
 
Last edited:
Don't know how anybody can call FN products boring.

They have produced many of Browning's creations, and they're known for innovative military rifles. Their products are always top quality.

I assume the poster was being sarcastic?

If American corporations continue to suck all the profitability from companies they acquire for short term gains, get used to foreign ownership.
 
The only boring I can think of for FN is boringly reliable and boringly well-engineered.
 
"Cause they're owned by damn furriners."

Well by god if FN was good enough for John M. Browning then it's good enough for us.

:)

It's true.

John
 
Oh I get it FN owns both browning and winchester; markets their hunting guns under those names and markets its military style firearms as FN. No wonder it seems like they just make the same guns over and over. FN does the innovative stuff under the FN brand and makes the same guns over and over as winchester

I understand they made sime great guns over the decades and still did as Winchester, but perhaps it would've been in their interest to add a few newer models like an AR or something like it
 
Last edited:
Browning and Winchester are whisps of vapor... neither exist in any traditional form.

FN designs and manufactures firearms and brands them with the Browning/Winchester logos.

but perhaps it would've been in their interest to add a few newer models like an AR or something like it
Click to expand...

Who? FN?

They are too busy making crates of M-16's for the US military to bother marketing an AR to civilians.
 
I for one would love to have a Miroku "Winchester". Right now, I think, they are making high-end models. I'd like to see a regular old 94 come from them. That might put the Winchester brand out there to compete against Marlin, the undisputed level action leader from the middle of the 20th century up to today.

Competition is good.
 
I have always been pleased with the quality of the Miroku produced Browning guns.

Herstal Group CAN NOT make a commercial AR-15 by court order.
Click to expand...

I didn't know that. Not doubting, but do you have a citation?
 
You keep argung after the fact. I meant to suggest all these things before they went belly up


More to the point . . .

1. It might have been different if they did put out a successful AR (back then). They might have stayed in business.

2. I never said they should just put out another AR. I see Ruger and Remington at least trying some different gun designs; including Remington that accepts an AR mag. They aren't just making the same 5 guns they made for the last 100 years.

i know I'm new but from everything I've read here -- it seems Ruger dominated a market with a sporterized type firearm -- that didn't even shoot accurately (Although judging from the AR vs. Mini thread it looks like that's changed) and cost a ton of money; and were able to do this from what I CAN TELL simply because a Mini looks more attractive than an SKS. . Ah shoot I might as well get a Mini and forget it.
 
Well, the SX series of rifles are pretty new and different. I don't consider change just for change sake a good thing.
 
RC has it mostly correct, I'd just add that with Browning acquiring the licensing rights to the Winchester firearms branding, they're not restricted to "Winchesters" just made in South Carolina.
FN via Browning bought those rights to allow any foreign-made firearm produced by FN, or Miroku & so on for for FN, to be branded as Winchesters and imported through Browning channels to be marketed by Browning under the Winchester name.

Denis
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

C
  • Locked
Stories on the net after the fact
Replies
10
Views
680
Larry Ashcraft
Larry Ashcraft
S
  • Locked
What exactly is a SHTF scenario?
2 3 4 5
Replies
115
Views
5K
Mal H
Mal H
J
  • Locked
How Exactly is "Magnum" Defined?
2
Replies
36
Views
2K
Sistema1927
Sistema1927
Fast Frank
  • Locked
  • Poll
Poll: Gun related "Fish Story"
2
Replies
26
Views
2K
Joe Demko
J
H
  • Locked
The gift of Liberty (a short story?)
Replies
1
Views
379
Area 52
A
Back
Top