More hearsay ..yes the builders from Oregon went bankrupt and some of their gunsmiths started cooper arms. You can surf the internet and read the rest of the story. The old kimber did not build rifles as well designed and of consistent quality as these that is for sure. Old Kimber LA rifles have very inconsistent quality..you could not give them to me. BTW I had a matched pair of Oregon Kimbers in my hands 10 years ago and I could have easily purchased them one was a laminated stock 338 and the other a 270..Same guy had a Dakota 76 in 270 ... Comparing workmanship the closest comparism would be a Kia vs Bentley and I am not being fair to the Bentley. Hopefully they refined their skills at Cooper.. because I have heard plenty of trash about their early products as well.