Norc bashing is it really warranted?

BeaverMeat said:
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I think that's a large part of it, people use their possessions as an extension of themselves , and likewise others tend to judge them for it.
I knew a mechanic that had a perfectly good generic toolbox as he couldn't afford more at the time, after a while he picked up a snappon name brand box to replace it (looked pretty much the same with form and function). I understand there would be some increase in quality but certainly not enough to warrant the huge (seriously huge)price discrepancy. When I asked him about it he explained that in the mechanic world the type of tools and box you have will translate into respect or lack thereof from other mechanics. true story.
 
I have built a lot of guns on Norinco frames and receivers. I think I currently own maybe five? Not sure.

Some stuff they do pretty well, some poorly. I never trust their springs, and their heat treatment of small parts is totally unpredictable.

Dimensionally their M14 receivers are pretty good and their 1911s in .45 are pretty good.

Bottom line...any nork is a gamble. Some run for a few hundred rounds, others for tens of thousands, which is what a properly built handgun with no defects should do.

But their ratio of guns that will run tens of thousands of rounds without parts breakage to guns that will run a few thousand before small parts failure is not good compared to western manufacturers.


Is the bashing warranted? Depends on the bashing. Anyone who tells you "all norincos are garbage" is probably insufficiently experienced with norincos to be worth listening to. Anyone who tells you "norinco is just as good as anybody" is probably insufficiently experienced with guns, period, to be worth listening to.

Remember...a single example that runs for 10,000 rounds without parts failure is not impressive. When 99 out of a hundred run for 50,000 rounds with nothing but spring replacement...then they're playing in the league of western manufacturers.
 
Baddog377 said:
Grizzly is a tank and my 1911 runs like a machine,
Nice looking pistol ran good right out of the box, yes the slide was a little rough feeling but nothing a few hundred rounds couldn't fix. I like norks, they do what they are supposed to, i will buy many more. That being said I also like my shadow.
People are funny that way, sometimes a higher price tag gets people believing that a larger quality discrepancy exists than actually does.
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Why do people assume there is a HUGE price discrepancy all the time when comparing to Chinese guns? With the exception of the M14 there is something comparable to every Nork out there for $50 to $150 more that is 10 times the quality.
The most expensive gun I own is $1050, and it's an AR15 from when they were expensive. Most of my handguns are under $500, I tend to buy good VALUE firearms, the best combination of quality and price. Chinese has the best price but the lowest quality, there is no argument there...it's surprising how much better you can get for not much more money, and I don't think people realize that.
 
I'm surprised the word "burrs" has not yet arisen in this thread....:yingyang:


That said, it seems far more than a few Americans would desperately like to buy 1911's of Norc quality at Norc prices....:cheers:


Oh, and I like my Norc .45 ACP 1911A1-types, FWIW......cou:
 
Ok bottom line. I have owned 20+ norincos. Like I said. Aside from the 780 which was junk I am satisfied with the price point vs the performance. I am not an "operator" and if my budget allowed I'm sure I'd buy the nice chit (ferrari) vs the norinco (Toyota). But again I just punch paper with it. I am content is what I'm trying to say. I would never trust their equipment with my life nor in combat but to the ops original question. No I don't feel the bashing is warranted. You get what you pay for. Now as to much of the discussion that's occurring (and i am guilty of it too)
 
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I own an HP14" and by far beefier and heavier than its 870 counterpart and yes I spent 20 minutes polishing internals but action wise it ran like butter out of the box, never failed me 800+ rounds down range . Extra money left over from purchasing leaves you with more room to play with parts/pimping.
Finishing wise you can pull many popular manufacturers base models off the shelf look inside and see piss poor finishing, Ive spent the last few days helping a brand new marlin/remington 795 operate properly.
 
Have owned (or own) the Colt Woodsman clone M-93 in .22, CZ clone NZ-85 in 9mm, Tok clone 9mm, SIG clone NP-22 9mm, 1911A1 clone in .45ACP, M-305 M-14 clone and a Norc SKS. One dud which I bought used (caveat emptor) and occasionally they need a little sanding on the rough edges (like feed ramp) but on the whole I am very satisfied at the price point. Nowhere else can you try out so many different platforms for so little and at so little risk - you can flog 'em for what you paid for 'em for the most part.
 
I've had a few Norc guns, I most recently sold my M305 and I miss it dearly. I still have a Norc double barrel coach gun, it's a lot of fun but needs to be tightened up every once in a while.
 
pontcanna said:
Have owned (or own) the Colt Woodsman clone M-93 in .22, CZ clone NZ-85 in 9mm, Tok clone 9mm, SIG clone NP-22 9mm, 1911A1 clone in .45ACP, M-305 M-14 clone and a Norc SKS. One dud which I bought used (caveat emptor) and occasionally they need a little sanding on the rough edges (like feed ramp) but on the whole I am very satisfied at the price point. Nowhere else can you try out so many different platforms for so little and at so little risk - you can flog 'em for what you paid for 'em for the most part.
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Forgot to add the DA 12 gauge backpacker for $99. Basically fell apart on first usage, was replaced by CanAm and no problems since.
 
Norcs don't claim to be anything other than an inexpensive copy of a particular firearm, and most of their stuff shoots surprisingly well. If you buy them with that in mind you won't be disappointed. Now NEA on the other hand, slagging them is well deserved. because for a Canadian company that claims to have a high quality product made on state of the art equipment there is absolutely no excuse for the quality issues that they have had.
 
I really like my M14 and T97, LOTS of fun!

I'm looking forward to trying my NS522 once my birthday gets here!

Cheers
Jay
 
I owned a Norinco M14 for a long time and shot it a lot.
I also owned for a brief period a Norc AR 14.5" barrel and a T97.
I personally never had a single issue with any of them and like I said I shot them A LOT!
Also with all the time spent around guns and on ranges/shooting with friends etc I have never personally heard of or seen any real issues with theirs either.
My M14 had some quality control issues which were fixed in my basement with light effort and know how.
Likewise with their ammunition. I only use Norinco ammo 55gr in my 1:12 M16A1 AR15 clone. I have never had a failure to feed or fire and it shoots as accurate as American Eagle or any other bulk .223 Rem.

I honestly wish I had something actually negative to say about the three Norcs I owned and the ammunition I shot and still shoot quality and reliability wise but I don't. Not to say their guns don't have issues but no more or less than any other brands including some "North American" ones. The issue with Norinco haters is that they are biased and narrow minded. That's about it. They think it's made in China so it's pure garbage. Never owned one, never shot one, refuse to even have one in their house because it's cheap Chinese junk blah blah bah meanwhile all their clothes, their entire home is manufactured and furnished by Chinese made everything lol

I don't even own any Norinco firearms anymore as I downsized quite a bit recently. But I will never bash their guns. If you're frugal and don't mind putting a bit of work into a project then it's the best bang for buck on our market.
 
I had a M305 in a Sage EBR stock. Whenever someone questioned a $400 rifle in a $1000 stock I would hold out my hand and state if they wanted to give me the extra $1000 for a Springfield I would gladly take it if my rifle offended them that much. It's what I could afford at the time.

When I bought my first AR it was Norc 10.5. A perfect rifle at the time just to make sure I liked the platform. Once I realized I was hooked I sold it and "upgraded" to somthing a little nicer. Both Norc rifles functioned flawlessly and although I sold them both I haven't a bad word to speak of either.
 
My only experience is with the DA P762 from Canada Ammo in 7.62x25. I bought it more as a novelty than anything else. It seems to work fine (about 300-400 rounds so far without a failure) although it is a bit clunky/crude in terms of fit and finish. It does seem slightly less accurate than my other handguns although that may well be the cartridge, the platform or (most likely) just me.

Would I buy another Chinese gun?.... Maybe,but probably not. I'd agree that there are other "bargain" guns costing a bit more than Norcs that seem to be better value. IE: closer to high end guns in quality but at a discounted price. (Girsan vs a Beretta 92 and SAM vs the mid range 1911 offerings come to mind.

In the final analysis buy and shoot what makes you happy.
 
I own a norc ar 15 and 1911 I never had a jam or problem with either very reliable goes bang everytime but ugly as hell out of factory
 
As a new shooter, I got into norc's as a way of filling my gun cabinet (.45 gov, .45 commander, ar-15, np-22) I honestly can't fault any of them for function...traded for the real deals over a few years, fit and finish is better, but do I regret buying norinco products?....he'll no....not one failure between them...still got the ar and commander, love them....
 
I owned 3 of them. Bolt .22 Mauser look alike...just can't remember the name of the model. It was ok, but didn't really group with any ammo. Still fun to play with. 1911 made out of soft steel with slide stop eating into the slide after less than 300 factory rounds. M93 pistol in 22 that just desintegrated itself in my hands, falling apart on the range. Guy from work fired one round thru his M14 copy after which breech block just cracked in half. Other fellow fired 3 shells 00 low Recoil from Federal from his 870 Norinco version after which it totally desintegrated itself falling apart. This shotgun however was pre-owned, so God only knows if this was the shotgun's related issue or something fishy about the previous owner. Basing on that experience I gave up on anything Norinco.
 
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