I hate waking up to sad news.

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - I hate waking up to sad news.

Posted: 4/3/2006 3:46:11 AM EDT

i know this has been talked about here but when reality hits it hits hard.

news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20060402/ts_alt_afp/afplifestyleusbelgium_060402202056

Posted: 4/3/2006 4:04:55 AM EDT

[#1]

I didn't know FN straight up owned winchester......... or is FN not Herstal?

Posted: 4/3/2006 4:21:10 AM EDT

[#2]

And yet another American icon shits the bed.......

Posted: 4/3/2006 4:39:39 AM EDT

[#3]

Quoted:
I didn't know FN straight up owned winchester......... or is FN not Herstal?

One in the same....

FN, Beretta (which owns most of the more famous Euro shotgun makers), HK, Steyr & SIG are pretty much IT for western-Euro gunmakers, save for the small-timers like Star....

Posted: 4/3/2006 8:02:14 AM EDT

[#4]

One in the same....

FN, Beretta (which owns most of the more famous Euro shotgun makers), HK, Steyr & SIG are pretty much IT for western-Euro gunmakers, save for the small-timers like Star....

In Europe, for the biggies, you left out Glock.

Steyr almost went out of business when BMW took over their factory a few years ago, but was able to relocate and re-establish themselves, but since their P-II and AUGs are dated, I don't see they have anything for the military/police market.

HK seems to dominate the military market there, seen alot of European military running around with G-36.

We have lots more firearm manufacturer in US than Europe, but then, most of us can still legally own firearms.

Posted: 4/3/2006 8:09:16 AM EDT

[#5]

Remember that John Browning worked for FN Herstal at one point.

Posted: 4/3/2006 8:20:03 AM EDT

[#6]

Quoted:
Quoted:
I didn't know FN straight up owned winchester......... or is FN not Herstal?

One in the same....

FN, Beretta (which owns most of the more famous Euro shotgun makers), HK, Steyr & SIG are pretty much IT for western-Euro gunmakers, save for the small-timers like Star....

Star of Spain is gone.
www.star-firearms.com/star/index.shtml

The 1990s were bad for defense companies all over the world. For the most part, companies in smaller markets either found their niche and flourished (Diemaco), or slowly perished. In Spain Star, Astra and CETME met their end.

The final years at Star saw a relative flurry of new models, and court challenges over restructuring plans and massive layoffs. Star filed for bankruptcy protection in late 1993 after taking out loans to invest in new CNC machinery. They were indirectly affected by the asian economic crisis; Spanish banks tried to cover Asian investment losses by turning the screws on those nearby companies owing them money, like Star. Star and Astra began cooperative investment and discussions of mergers in the mid 90s, but Astra was not in much better shape, so this eventually dragged both companies down.

I heard numerous rumours around this time that a large foreign cooperative, like Beretta, would snap them up, as they did with Sako. This was not to be however (and really doesn't make sense from a product line point of view.)

Employees of both companies, through their unions I believe, tried to set up a cooperative to take control of the companies. They planned to upgrade operations again, but also ran into trouble overextending themselves financially, and eventually these organizations also sought protection under bankruptcy laws.

On May 27, 1997 both Star and Astra closed their doors, and were placed in the Spanish equivalent of Chapter Seven bankruptcy, under the control of a Basque regional judge. Eventually, an agreement was reached that settled sufficient outstanding debt, and allowed some of the machinery and the intellectual property to be resurrected in two new companies. Much machinery was also sold at auction to pay debtors. Apparently all unassembled or unsold barrels and frames were destroyed by government order when the company closed. Unregistered parts were retained and seem to still be available thru Ipar (see below).

Posted: 4/3/2006 8:22:20 AM EDT

[#7]

Quoted:
Remember that John Browning worked for FN Herstal at one point.

Unless I'm way off, no, he didn't exactly work for them.

Browning went to FN to get the Auto 5 produced when Winchester wasn't interested in it. He then sold the American production rights to Remington mostly to spite Winchester, at least so I've read. Those guns became the Remington Model 11.

Might also note that FN, along with Winchster and Browning, are all part of the Herstal group.

www.herstalgroup.com

Posted: 4/3/2006 8:22:37 AM EDT

[#8]

Quoted:
Quoted:
I didn't know FN straight up owned winchester......... or is FN not Herstal?

One in the same....

FN, Beretta (which owns most of the more famous Euro shotgun makers), HK, Steyr & SIG are pretty much IT for western-Euro gunmakers, save for the small-timers like Star....

Star of Spain is gone.
www.star-firearms.com/star/index.shtml

The 1990s were bad for defense companies all over the world. For the most part, companies in smaller markets either found their niche and flourished (Diemaco), or slowly perished. In Spain Star, Astra and CETME met their end.

The final years at Star saw a relative flurry of new models, and court challenges over restructuring plans and massive layoffs. Star filed for bankruptcy protection in late 1993 after taking out loans to invest in new CNC machinery. They were indirectly affected by the asian economic crisis; Spanish banks tried to cover Asian investment losses by turning the screws on those nearby companies owing them money, like Star. Star and Astra began cooperative investment and discussions of mergers in the mid 90s, but Astra was not in much better shape, so this eventually dragged both companies down.

I heard numerous rumours around this time that a large foreign cooperative, like Beretta, would snap them up, as they did with Sako. This was not to be however (and really doesn't make sense from a product line point of view.)

Employees of both companies, through their unions I believe, tried to set up a cooperative to take control of the companies. They planned to upgrade operations again, but also ran into trouble overextending themselves financially, and eventually these organizations also sought protection under bankruptcy laws.

On May 27, 1997 both Star and Astra closed their doors, and were placed in the Spanish equivalent of Chapter Seven bankruptcy, under the control of a Basque regional judge. Eventually, an agreement was reached that settled sufficient outstanding debt, and allowed some of the machinery and the intellectual property to be resurrected in two new companies. Much machinery was also sold at auction to pay debtors. Apparently all unassembled or unsold barrels and frames were destroyed by government order when the company closed. Unregistered parts were retained and seem to still be available thru Ipar (see below).

Posted: 4/3/2006 8:36:10 AM EDT

[#9]

From Wikipedia

In 1977 FN acquired the Browning Arms Company which had been established in 1927, the year after Browning's death.

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - I hate waking up to sad news.

General » General Discussion

Warning

Confirm Action

About AR15.COM

Stay Connected

Newsletter

Contact Us