This topic may have already posted but if it did I missed it. There are enough manufacturers in the market but I can't understand why Winchester couldn't make it when others are. What was so different about them?

I would guess that their nearly complete lack of innovation had something to do with it ( except WSMs, which they seemed to go overboard with ) and the fact that they only made a few mdels for the last 40 years. Everyone and their brother already has a winchester 94, and there is no big demand for new ones, Model 70s are nice rifles, but aren't anything special when there is a dozen other companies making similar rifles, and their shotguns weren't anything special or outstanding either.

They claim that the Unions are the big factor. I would have thought that the Short Mags would have pulled them through but maybe the Wincester (OLIN )was the driving force there and also the recieved the financial benifits.

This has me scratchin my head too. You got companies out there without a following, without too much of a name and they are able to get the job done. But you got winchester (us repeating) that has a cult following and repeat customers and still can't cut the mustard.

I have a feeling its like colt. Just mismanaged and refusing to leave New England to lower cost. I mean they pick one of the most expensive places in the US to work.

Actually, most all Winchester mechanical shotguns (omitting the SXS's, like the Model 21!!) have been rather poor. They really crapped up the Model 94 three decades ago, and with all thge similarly priced Model 70 cloneson the market, they lost their real advantage, which was the Model 70 of the pre-64 configuration. When they brought it back, more or less, it was too late. Particularly considering that the new "old" Model 70's have been plagued with quality control issues that the pre-64's didn't have!

Also, don't lose sight of the fact that USRAC was owned by an international conglomerate headquartered in continental Europe where the anti-gun mentality predominates, and it is likely those owners could have cared less if a US gunmaker went belly-up! The Brits who owned S&W a couple years back damn near did the same thing to that old outfit! The way those morons sold out to the Clinton administration was totally dishonorable, and nearly cost them all their business. We're lucky Americans reclaimed S&W in time to save it.

Wait, I guess I'm behind the times. Did Winchester recently file for chapter 11 or something?

More than likely bad management they seem to screw up more business than anything. Rich

In one of the news releases a while back, they told how much they were spending in pensions. It was unbeleivable how much money was going out to past workers, with nothing to show for it. I think that played a very big roll in Winchester having to shut it's doors. JMHO

Redhead. The closed it down, Period.

NO! The Belgian conglomerate that owned USRAC CLOSED the plant where M94's, M70's, and M1300 shotguns were being made. No more M94's, No more M70's!! Winchester (Olin) IS NOT AFFECTED-WIN. AMMO, ETC., WILL STILL BE MADE!