What Do We Lose if Remington Does Not Come Back?
Dr. John Woods 01.25.21
Big Green is in bankruptcy, again… and evidently the assets of Remington proper have been secured by a company titled Richmond Italia. Little else is known of them except their stated comments to keep Remington viable at some level.
“Some level?”
In 2017 the Ilion, New York plant employed some 700 personnel with 200 making the Marlin lineup. Sturm, Ruger, & Co bought the Marlin line and hopefully will be producing it somewhere. Currently, Richmond Italia has retained 200 hourly employees to make Remington Arms. The catalog will be sporting arms exclusively. Firearms made for military contracts are not expected. This is good news that we all hope works out.
If Remington Arms were to eventually fade from existence, what would that mean? If you are a Remington fan as I am, then first off there would be no new Model 700 rifles. What a void that would create in the hunting firearms market. I consider Model 700 rifles among the best ever made. Sure there have been some production glitches or less-than-stellar quality over the years, but then even the big automakers have had repeated recalls so it is just part of manufacturing. It is a tough business in the best of times. Remington rifles are primo.
Next, on the list would be the most iconic, pump-action shotgun ever made: the Remington 870. Millions have been made in a wide variety of models from plain-jane Sportsman models to deluxe versions with high gloss stocks and shiny blued steel. Remington 870s have been made to tackle upland game, wild turkey, waterfowl from ducks to geese, and even slug barrels for deer hunting. This is the same shotguns seen in war trenches and in the lock housings of endless law enforcement cruisers across America.
Following the pump actions came the semi-auto shotguns, now the 11-87 models and more recently redesigned autos. These include the Versa Max and the V3 versions dedicated to any kind of shotgunning action afield. These are state-of-the-art guns designed for tough use. The list goes on including Tac 13 and 14 guns, rail designed bolt action tactical rifles, dedicated tactical bolt actions, muzzleloaders, and more.
Remington has a whole selection of pistols including excellent 1911s in numerous configurations in multiple calibers including 45 ACP, 9mm, and 10mm. They have 380 pistols, too. There are all kinds of accessories, and everything else a shooting company usually supplies including comprehensive ammunition production. A loss of Remington Arms in the gunning world would be huge. Let’s hope they regain a strong footing even facing uncertain political times when it comes to firearms. We need Big Green.
