Opinions about Norinco jw15a-13 vs Stevens 300f

bigmikey

bigmikey

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I'm looking for a new 22lr short barrelled rifle and would like to know if anyone owns either and could give me their opinion. And if you own both and could pick one over the other that would be even better! Since neither are easily attainable in the US there isn't a whole lot about them online and no comparisons i could find so whatever you can say would help me decide!! Thanks in advance y'all :rolleyes:
 
I've had several Savage rimfires...and a JW13A "Backpacker", 13" Norinco. Personally, I'd pick the Norinco..especially for the price. Being a CZ clone, it accepts CZ452 magazines which I FAR prefer over the Savage ones. The gun is robust, trigger creepy but not heavy. Being a short barrel with no forward weight, it's very nice for offhand shots. Decently accurate too. It was the ONE gun I didn't mind taking out in crappy weather simply because they're a little rough/greasy even when new! lol The barrel on mine was raw steel at the muzzle end, as though they took a standard length JW15 barrel and cut it to 13". However, the bluing on the rest of the components was nicer than what I've seen on my Savages.

I ended-up selling it because something else caught my fancy...but don't take that as a strike against the Norinco. It lasted in my safe a lot longer than my Savage rimfires did.:)
 
I had a Norc EM322, and still have a coach gun and a muzzle loader built on a 98 action. They are good guns. Never had an issue with either of these. Accuracy of the 22 was as good as my Savage, Henry or CZ.
 
.22LRGUY said:
I've had several Savage rimfires...and a JW13A "Backpacker", 13" Norinco. Personally, I'd pick the Norinco..especially for the price. Being a CZ clone, it accepts CZ452 magazines which I FAR prefer over the Savage ones. The gun is robust, trigger creepy but not heavy. Being a short barrel with no forward weight, it's very nice for offhand shots. Decently accurate too. It was the ONE gun I didn't mind taking out in crappy weather simply because they're a little rough/greasy even when new! lol The barrel on mine was raw steel at the muzzle end, as though they took a standard length JW15 barrel and cut it to 13". However, the bluing on the rest of the components was nicer than what I've seen on my Savages.

I ended-up selling it because something else caught my fancy...but don't take that as a strike against the Norinco. It lasted in my safe a lot longer than my Savage rimfires did.:)
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The cz magazines is a huge plus, did the steel crown rust or anything?
 
bigmikey said:
The cz magazines is a huge plus, did the steel crown rust or anything?
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Never did, and I didn't exactly baby that rifle. In cold weather, I'd leave it in it's case when I got home so that it came-up to the temperature inside. (avoiding condensation) Once warm, a wipe down with an oily rag quickly~that's it. Not a speck of rust/corrosion. The bore got a little TLC once in a while, but I checked the bolt face after every outing. I do that with every gun though. I want those clean, the extractors clean, etc.
 
I have a Norinco jw15a-13.

It's a really nice "basic" rifle. Rough and ready in its finish but actually a very decent little gun.

Mine arrived utterly slathered in grease - it came in a plastic bag and looked like it someone had poured about a quarter pint of very thick engine oil in it and shook the bag. Downside is that it took 45 mins in a sink of hot water to get the gun usable, Upside was that the gun was totally corrosion free. :) Tip - soak the bolt in a small tub of mineral spirit (turpentine substitute) for a few minutes to help degrease then oil it up again with light gun oil before use - mine was leaking thick goop for weeks until I finally did this.

The crown on mine was similarly bare steel - it really looked like they had cut down a full sized barrel and then smoothed it on a lathe. Overall though the synthetic stock was good and the quality of the machining was OK.

As far as shooting goes, the bolt action is rough, it took me a few hundred shots to get it working smoothly. You really need to be assertive with it. I found that some cartridges dont load too smoothly from the magazine and can get stuck with the bullet hitting the lip of the chamber and deforming. Copper plate rounds seems to work the best.

The magazine is all metal and seems robust. Potentially substitutable with the cz magazines - but they are $50 each :( and for a $200 cost rifle that's a lot.

The really weak point with this gun though is the open sights. The front sight is a monster - huge - and far too fat to be effective. As a fat black sight with a black rear sight getting a proper sight picture is miserable. You read on the internet about people who file down the front sight or using a triangular file to widen the rear sight. Neither option is really optimal.

I actually bought a red dot sight to put on the gun - the iron sights were that bad. For me this is a huge weakness. I wanted an ultra portable compact rifle - and strapping a scope on the top sorts of kills that.

With the scope it shoots really well. Acceptably tight grouping @ 50 yds that are limited more by my skill than the rifle.

My only other real niggle with the gun is that the on bolt safety does not work as described in the manual. This seems to have changed with versions so you may need to push up not down as described.

Worth mentioning that it is noticeably louder than my other .22LR - as you would expect from the shorter barrel.

In conclusion I'm glad I bought it - the price was right and its certainly a fun gun to shoot. However it is appropriately prices rather than being a bargain - for $200 you get a $200 gun, not more nor less, so set your expectations accordingly. If I was handier with the gunsmithing and could do something about the sights then it would be an outstanding purchase, but, as is, it's solidly OK.

7/10
 
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linux99 said:
I have a Norinco jw15a-13.

It's a really nice "basic" rifle. Rough and ready in its finish but actually a very decent little gun.

Mine arrived utterly slathered in grease - it came in a plastic bag and looked like it someone had poured about a quarter pint of very thick engine oil in it and shook the bag. Downside is that it took 45 mins in a sink of hot water to get the gun usable, Upside was that the gun was totally corrosion free. :) Tip - soak the bolt in a small tub of mineral spirit (turpentine substitute) for a few minutes to help degrease then oil it up again with light gun oil before use - mine was leaking thick goop for weeks until I finally did this.

The crown on mine was similarly bare steel - it really looked like they had cut down a full sized barrel and then smoothed it on a lathe. Overall though the synthetic stock was good and the quality of the machining was OK.

As far as shooting goes, the bolt action is rough, it took me a few hundred shots to get it working smoothly. You really need to be assertive with it. I found that some cartridges dont load too smoothly from the magazine and can get stuck with the bullet hitting the lip of the chamber and deforming. Copper plate rounds seems to work the best.

The magazine is all metal and seems robust. Potentially substitutable with the cz magazines - but they are $50 each :( and for a $200 cost rifle that's a lot.

The really weak point with this gun though is the open sights. The front sight is a monster - huge - and far too fat to be effective. As a fat black sight with a black rear sight getting a proper sight picture is miserable. You read on the internet about people who file down the front sight or using a triangular file to widen the rear sight. Neither option is really optimal.

I actually bought a red dot sight to put on the gun - the iron sights were that bad. For me this is a huge weakness. I wanted an ultra portable compact rifle - and strapping a scope on the top sorts of kills that.

With the scope it shoots really well. Acceptably tight grouping @ 50 yds that are limited more by my skill than the rifle.

My only other real niggle with the gun is that the on bolt safety does not work as described in the manual. This seems to have changed with versions so you may need to push up not down as described.

In conclusion I'm glad I bought it - the price was right and its certainly a fun gun to shoot. However it is appropriately prices rather than being a bargain - for $200 you get a $200 gun, not more nor less, so set your expectations accordingly. If I was handier with the gunsmithing and could do something about the sights then it would be an outstanding purchase, but, as is, it's solidly OK.

7/10
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^WAY better, more thorough reply than mine. :) I'd forgotten about the front sight, that's 100% correct. I never used mine with iron sights. I drifted the rear sight out, mounted a vintage/compact Bushnell scope.
 
Though the Savage is pretty good, the JW-15 gets my vote with a superior action design. For a few months earlier this year, the local CT had them for around $185 which was a screaming deal. Yes to the cleaning required. I should mention, once you know how to do it, you can disassemble the bolt in less than a minute, so cleaning out the goop shouldn't require soaking.

It's the perfect beater gun, compact, scratches don't matter, you can mess with things to make it better all day long, cheap to buy, shoots pretty well and doesn't jam. Mine gets 1" 10 shot groups at 50 yards with a scope. That's using my favourite bulk ammo, the fantastic CCI AR Tactical. Now if you want a semi auto instead, the JW-20 is just as or more accurate, weighs less, is take down (can be even more compact), is scope-able etc. You get the idea.
 
I have the JW15A with the 24" barrel. Action and internals were rough and tight; but having tool and die experience, some polishing and spotting, and a trigger adjustment made a big difference. Polished up the safety too and it works much better now. Agree about the sights, the rear in particular; I put on a cheap Tasco "pronghorn 3 x 9 and it puts either CCI Standard Velocity or Eley Club; 10 shots in one tight ragged hole. Looks good, shoots good, works good.

I like mine.
 
My JW15a-13 is the first rifle I grab for a plinking walk in the woods. It wears a Simmons fixed 4x scope and is plenty accurate.
The trigger has been smoothened and its a fun little 22lr bolt....
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The JW15A is a great little gun - compact, rugged and accurate. The factory sights are poor, but Skinner makes a peep sight for it (though you will probably have to raise or replace the front blade). You can also mount a scope but there are a couple of cautions. One, the bolt throw is high and won't clear the eyepiece of some scopes. Two, there is limited mounting room on the receiver. So it may take some looking to find a scope that works.
 
I have the 15A backpacker. Fun little gun, more accurate than I expected it to be. Bought it specifically as a beater that I could use my CZ mags in. CZ mags are plentiful, if not cheap, but they're super reliable. People forget that the Achilles Heel of reliability for a lot of rimfires is actually the mag, not the action.

Rugged little gun that takes whatever abuse you throw at it, based on a solid design.

Best part about getting the Norinco: it isn't a Savage.
 
JimV said:
The JW15A is a great little gun - compact, rugged and accurate. The factory sights are poor, but Skinner makes a peep sight for it (though you will probably have to raise or replace the front blade). You can also mount a scope but there are a couple of cautions. One, the bolt throw is high and won't clear the eyepiece of some scopes. Two, there is limited mounting room on the receiver. So it may take some looking to find a scope that works.
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I had this exact problem with my telescopic sight. It's the reason I swapped it for a much more compact (but marginally less useful) red dot.
 
linux99 said:
I had this exact problem with my telescopic sight. It's the reason I swapped it for a much more compact (but marginally less useful) red dot.
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Older scopes with a smaller diameter eyepiece are the most likely to fit. Mine is currently wearing an old Burris 4x. It works but I still can't fully grasp the bolt knob. Among other things I tried an AR 4x where the eyepiece is the same diameter as the tube, but it wasn't long enough to mount properly. I will probably put the Skinner back on. Skinners can't be easily adjusted, so once you've got it sighted in that's basically it for all practical purposes. But the Norc is really a short range gun anyway and with the Skinner clamped on the whole set up is more or less indestructable.
 
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