Jack Warne left to found the Warne Manufacturing Company in February 1991, which began manufacture of a new rifle scope mounting system. In 1990, several Kimber employees, including Dan Cooper, left to found Cooper Firearms of Montana. However, Kimber of Oregon's assets were liquidated.
Engel had difficulty running Kimber and soon the company sought bankruptcy protection. In 1989, Kimber of Oregon was sold to Oregon timber baron Bruce Engel, who founded WTD Industries, Inc. In the late 1980s, the company began to struggle after a private stock offering fell short of covering the costs of developing the M89 BG (Big Game) Rifle. Jack Warne acquired the Brownell quick-detachable rifle scope mounting system for Kimber. 22 long rifle caliber rifles, began to expand its product line and eventually acquired a second manufacturing plant in nearby Colton. An Australian, Jack Warne moved to Oregon in 1968 after Portland-based Omark Industries purchased the Australian firearms manufacturer, Sporting Arms (or Sportco), he had founded in Adelaide, South Australia, following World War II.įollowing its founding, Kimber of Oregon, which quickly built a reputation for accurate. Kimber was founded as 'Kimber of Oregon' in 1979 by Jack Warne and his son Greg Warne in the small town of Clackamas, Oregon.
