Remington Arms
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Remington Arms is a major American manufacturer of rifles, shotguns, other firearms, revolvers and ammunition. They also license the Remington name to hunting apparel, Arctic Cat ATV's, and other hunting and shooting products manufactured by other companies. It was founded in 1816 by Eliphalet Remington in Ilion, New York, as E. Remington and Sons. It is the oldest company in the United States which still makes its original product, and is the oldest continuously operating manufacturer in North America. It is the only US company which produces both firearms and ammunition domestically, and is the largest US producer of shotguns and rifles. Remington does not produce handguns. Its products are distributed in over 60 foreign countries, making its base wider than those of its competitors.
Remington has also developed or adopted more cartridges than any other gun maker or ammunition manufacturer in the world.
Remington is owned by Cerberus Capital Management.
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History
Remington began its long history in 1816. Eliphalet Remington II believed he could build a better gun than he could buy. Farming communities in the region were famous for their diverse skills and self-sufficiency, and the winter seasons were used for crafts that provided goods for self-use and also for sale. Eliphalet's father was a blacksmith, and wanted to expand his business into rifle barrel production. Local residents often built their own rifles to save on costs, but purchased the barrel. Eliphalet's father sent him to a well-known barrel maker in a major city to purchase a barrel, with the mission of observing the barrel-making technique. At the time, the method was to heat and wrap long flat bars of iron around a metal rod of the caliber desired. By heating and hammering the coiled bars around the central rod, the barrel metal became fused into a solid cylinder, at which point the rod was pressed out. After the young man returned home, his family added a successful barrel making operation to his father's forge, in Ilion Gorge, New York.
He began designing and building a flintlock rifle for himself. In the fall of that year, he entered a shooting match; though he only finished second, his well-made gun impressed other shooters. Before Eliphalet left the field that day, he had received so many orders from other competitors that he was now officially in the gunsmithing business. By 1828, the operation moved to nearby Ilion, New York, at the same site which is used by the modern Remington firearms plant.
In 1865, Remington incorporated into a stock company, and in 1873 began a new venture, producing Remington brand typewriters. Remington sold the typewriter business in 1886. The typewriter company eventually became Remington Rand, and the firearms business became Remington Arms Company. In 1888, Remington was purchased by Marcus Hartley and Partners, a major sporting goods chain who also owned the Union Metallic Cartridge Company in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The Bridgeport site became the home of Remington's ammunition plant.
A few years later, in 1912, Remington and Union Metallic Cartridge were combined into a single entity, called Remington UMC. Even today, Remington produces U.M.C. brand ammunition. In 1915, the plant at Ilion was expanded, and with this expansion became basically the same plant as today.
During World War I, Remington produced arms under contract for several Allied powers. Remington produced M1916 Berthier rifles for France, Pattern 1914 Enfield rifles for Britain, and Model 1891 Mosin-Nagant rifles for Imperial Russia. As the war intensified, Remington production grew ever greater.
When the U.S. entered the war, Remington became deeply involved in the war effort. Notable contributions by Remington included development and production of the U.S. M1917 Enfield rifle, a simplified version of the British Pattern 1914, and development of the Pedersen Device.
Late in the war, the collapse of the the Imperial Russian government had a severe impact on Remington finances. Russia had ordered enormous quantities of arms and ammunition, but ran short of money to pay for the orders. They delayed payment, pointing to alleged defects in Remington products. When the Bolsheviks took power in the Russian Revolution, they repudiated the contract entirely. Remington was left with huge stocks of guns and ammunition, and no prospects for payment. U.S. government intervention was required to save the company from bankruptcy.[1] Noting the explosive growth of business at the beginning of the war, and the precipitous decline at the end of the war, Remington made the conscious decision to promote and emphasize their line of sporting products. They viewed hunting products as a more stable business which might help them to survive future ups and downs.
During the Great Depression, Remington was purchased by the DuPont Corporation, which had made its fortune with improvements to gunpowder. A year later, Remington purchased the Peters Cartridge Company; today, you may notice that many of the Remington headstamps still have R-P on them, for Remington-Peters.
In 1940 the U.S. Army became worried about its ammunition capacity, and asked Remington to collaborate in a plan for national expansion. With the aid of DuPont, Remington built the Lake City Arsenal and Denver Ordnance ammunition plants, and three more plants later on. Though the plants belonged to the U.S. government, Remington was asked to oversee their operation. Among the weapons Remington manufactured for the government during World War II was the famous M1903A3 Springfield bolt-action rifle.
In 1970, Remington closed its ammunition plant in Bridgeport, Connecticut, creating a brand-new facility in Lonoke, Arkansas. This site was chosen as the geographic center of the sporting ammunition market. A year later, Remington built a new clay targets plant in Athens, Georgia.
In 1993, Remington was sold by DuPont to the investment firm Clayton, Dubilier, and Rice (CD&R').
In June 2007, a private equity firm, Cerberus Capital Management, acquired Remington Arms for $370 million, including $252 million in assumed debt. This happened because Remington was millions of dollars in debt and did not report a profit during the years 2003-2005. [2]
In December 2007, Remington Arms acquired rifle-maker Marlin Firearms. [3]
In June 2009, Remington announced their acquisition of the Dakota Arms company, of Sturgis, South Dakota. The transaction closed on June 5, 2009.[4]
Remington Models
Based on a list from the Remington web site.[5]
Current
Rifles
Shotguns
Obsolete
Rifles
- Scoremaster 511
- Sportmaster 512
- 241 Speedmaster
- Model 600
- Model 660
- M1903 Springfield rifle
- Model 788
- Nylon 66
Shotguns
Pistols
Production Sites
Remington has several production facilities today.
Corporate Headquarters: The corporate headquarters for Remington Arms is located at Madison, North Carolina.
Firearms Plants: Remington owns two firearms plants. The larger plant is located in Ilion, New York, at the historic site. A new, state-of-the-art firearms facility was recently built in Mayfield, Kentucky.
Ammunition and Components Plant: All of Remington's ammunition is developed at the 35-year old plant in Lonoke, Arkansas. This plant also is home to Remington's Powdered Metal Products Division, Industrial Products Division, and Ammunition Product Services.
Custom Plant: Custom firearms are hand-crafted by professional gunsmiths at the Ilion, New York facility.
Technical Center: The technical and research center for Remington is located in Elizabethtown, Kentucky.
Target Plants: Remington has two target plants: in Findlay, Ohio and in Ada, Oklahoma.
Notes
- ↑ The American Mosin Nagants
- ↑ Remington Arms Is Sold - New York Times
- ↑ Gunmaker Remington to buy Marlin Firearms USA Today, December 27, 2007
- ↑ Remington® Acquires Dakota Arms - Remington press release
- ↑ Remington Firearm Models
