How good are the norinco m14's

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brutus101

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Hi,

I was thinking about a norinco m14 shorty and a 22lr (marlin 795) as my first firearms but all the dealer here in Quebec that I spoke to seems to think that norinco m14's are crap.
To me, they look really cool and the fact we can have 10 round magazine for them is even cooler.
Also, having one would piss off the anti gun crowd, which in itself is a good reason to own a specific firearm except that I don't have enough money to buy one only for that!

The intended uses are target shooting (mostly), hunting, and SHTF/emergency preparedness(SHTF probably won't happen but better have it and not need it).

I am ready to dissasemble it and replace 300$-500$ worth of parts if necessary to improve/fix it.
Once done, can I espect it is going to last as long as other good factory 308 and be reliable shooting surplus ammo and commercial 308 ammo?
Is there much chance that I get a lemon?
What king of accuracy can I expect.

Do you guys use them for hunting? Do you like them for that application? What about scope mounting?

Is the shorty much noisier than the normal m14?

Thank you!
 
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Welcome to Cgn! Many questions. I have two m1a and love them. Why would you care about noise from a shorty? And there is always a chance of a lemon. I got one and the dealer replaced it. Get a great dealer, if anything. And I would not use this for shtf. I've carried it. There's lighter rifles.
 
As with even a new car or a new TV - there is always the chance you will get a lemon.

I don't own the rifle you are speaking about - and I am sure many here will be quick to correct me if I'm wrong - but I think I read somewhere that Norinco bought all the old manufacturing equipment from the USA (plus and patents, etc).

So I would think if they are putting the original equipment to use in building them - well how bad a thing can that be?

Truthfully, I am looking at buying one myself in the not too distant future - and have already decided on Norinco.
So perhaps, I'm biased.

More to the point - I'm a cheap bastard that doesn't want to pay 2 grand for a 'name brand'.

*edit-addendum*

I do like to tinker with things though - so I'm almost hoping there will be issues with it to fine tune.
I guess I'm an odd-ball like that...
 
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About the noise, it's just that I once shot a 12GA without earing protection and I found that firearms make a whole lot of noise... My ears were ringing for like 4-5 hours... But with earing protection it should be much better!

I will search for a local dealer that will replace if anything go wrong. I suppose that it don't take long/many rounds to know you've got a lemons.

What king of accuracy did you get of your m1a/m305 out of the box?
 
I like mine so far! Some QC issues but there is nothing that can't be fixed with some tinkering and advice from the crowd here on CGN.

The only thing I am going to replace on mine is the rear site, it was pretty craptacular.

I was told to save my money for a real M1A instead of spending lots of cash making a Norc into a Springfield.

Buy one and shoot it, go from there

:)
 
jt_trouble said:
I like mine so far! Some QC issues but there is nothing that can't be fixed with some tinkering and advice from the crowd here on CGN.

The only thing I am going to replace on mine is the rear site, it was pretty craptacular.

I was told to save my money for a real M1A instead of spending lots of cash making a Norc into a Springfield.

Buy one and shoot it, go from there

:)
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What kind of accuracy did you get out of yours?
 
Haven't even shot mine yet, mine had the barrel over indexed so it's stripped down sitting on my work bench.

I like to tinker so I'm going to fix the QC issues first before I take it out to range or the hunt.
 
orthoboy said:
I suck and have #### vision, but I'm 3 moa with no scope. And no coffee either. :)
Click to expand...

Well, look like I should achieve 2moa with it. I'm young with good vision and willing to learn. For me 2 moa and under is ok. 2 moa mens dead deer at 300-400m. I don't see myself shooting that far very often.
 
Buy norinco from a good retail dealer I have have poly/nor income m14 rifles from the beginning Still have the same one
for over 20 years, and it still works fine Just changed op rod spring guide pin to a longer one to use usgi stocks, beats wreaking
a good stock.
 
Same tooling, different levels metal quality.
Love the platform, less than thrilled everytime I handle one though.
 
OP, it is a great rifle if you like to DIY. If you are the right owner,
it is analogous to joining a fraternity of like-minded people who support your endeavors.
I have made friends whose common denominator is the M14-style rifle. Good friends!
 
I have shorty not particularly noisy, mine shoots ok. No real issues other than the rear site. Pretty soft ejection which is nice for clean up. Just remember good quality control and China really don't go together, so buy local if you can or from someone with a good rep for fixing serious problems, there have been a few bad ones.
 
Highly recommend the M14 platform!
As stated, buy from a good dealer who will replace a lemon.
With the extra cash you have in mind for upgrades go as follows;

-NM springuide and usgi spring $40-50 (S&J hardware or M14.ca has em)
-Usgi rear sight $120-150 (m1 Garand fits)
-Folten Armory Gen 2 bolt $350-400, this will need to be installed by a competent gunsmith or knowledgeable member here on gunnuts. (Armtac carries them or try the EE)

Usually these guns need a few adjustments like barrel indexing and tighten loose oprod guides, maybe a shimming of the gas cylinder too, but these are basic tasks for anyone with a working knowledge of the m14.

With good ammo, and good shooting, 2MOA is achievable; but don't be surprised with 3-4MOA.

Good luck!!
 
For starters you should always wear hearing protection while shooting anything bigger then a .22lr. With ear protection the noise is not damaging at all. I have owned 2 Norinco M305's and would recommend them and buy another. They are a great gun for the price, personally I would much rather have an M305 and put 1500$ in upgrades to it then a stock Springfield.
 
Also, My bone stock norinco with no upgrades except the rear sight is achieving 1.5-2" at 100m with American eagle 149gr ammo. (LC brass, bulk box)
 
How good are they? Good enough Sir.
The M14 is a sloppy battle rifle design. I've seen Norinco's out of the box shoot nice consistent 3-4" groups with relatively s**t ammo.
You have to ask yourself if you're the kind of guy that likes to take things apart, read up on them and do a little hands on work. If so then it's a great rifle and one of the best for reliability and decent dependable accuracy. Just make sure you can inspect the rifle before you buy one is all I'm going to say, check the indexing of the barrel, everything else can be easily fixed with simple tools around your house and threads/info from right here on CGN.
I'll say one other thing, if you're looking for sub MOA precision accuracy, just buy an M700 and save yourself a lot of time and money right off the bat Sir.
You can go broke real fast trying to turn something into something it isn't and never will be.......
 
Travis Bickle said:
How good are they? Good enough Sir.
The M14 is a sloppy battle rifle design. I've seen Norinco's out of the box shoot nice consistent 3-4" groups with relatively s**t ammo.
You have to ask yourself if you're the kind of guy that likes to take things apart, read up on them and do a little hands on work. If so then it's a great rifle and one of the best for reliability and decent dependable accuracy. Just make sure you can inspect the rifle before you buy one is all I'm going to say, check the indexing of the barrel, everything else can be easily fixed with simple tools around your house and threads/info from right here on CGN.
I'll say one other thing, if you're looking for sub MOA precision accuracy, just buy an M700 and save yourself a lot of time and money right off the bat Sir.
You can go broke real fast trying to turn something into something it isn't and never will be.......
Click to expand...

so noob question, what is this indexing of the barrel that everyone talks about....just bought a shorty and am now concerned (pics would be really helpful or direction)
 
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