well boys and girls heres the question is this m14 worth the money as it comes out of the box or do you have to add a bunch of aftermarket parts to make it a shooter .seeing that this would be a fun gun with the odd match im not dreaming it would be a springfield but I want to get some time out of it before I have to put money into it
norinco m14
- Thread starter slipp
- Start date
Well, where do I start?
Norincos M14 have better receivers than Springfields!!!
Out of the box, I was getting 2" groups @ 50 yards with cheap ammo.
After, unitizing it, replacing the rod, rod spring, adjusting the rod guide
to be in the center of the piston, adding shim to make the stock fit better,
I'm getting consistent sub 1" groups from 50 yards with cheap ammo.
Norinco can shoot better than most of us can. If you think that spending more
money on Springfield will make you a better shooter, think again.
Not accurate.
- Location
- Keswick, Ontario
Hungry has very up to date information on this in the stickies. Just give it a read.
Bottom line is with a few exceptions, (every batch has a real lemon or two) it's a great base platform, and is usable out of the box.
You can spend money on any gun. Why not this one?
Bottom line is with a few exceptions, (every batch has a real lemon or two) it's a great base platform, and is usable out of the box.
You can spend money on any gun. Why not this one?
even from the earliest days, all the norcs/polys are real norc/polys, there's no us parts in any of them that i know of- and i have one of the earliest norcs-serial is under 300- it's far easier for them to build a complete rifle from reverse engineered drawings than to try to source parts from war stock that they got somehow from who knows where-
Hi
The Springfields don't necessarily have US parts in them. It's been a *long* time since that rifle was in production and the parts bins are pretty empty. There are a lot of parts floating around that come from "who knows where" (since they aren't supposed to be from China ...).
Bob
The Springfields don't necessarily have US parts in them. It's been a *long* time since that rifle was in production and the parts bins are pretty empty. There are a lot of parts floating around that come from "who knows where" (since they aren't supposed to be from China ...).
Bob
+1 all of my norcs/polys were 100% Chinese when I got my hands on them. 4 of them have US parts now
My Springfield was built with 100% reproduction parts and it was problematic right out of the box. The Springer is long gone.
there is so many rumours and mis info out there on these rifles... it's comical.
they are great rifles..... but they cost 400.00 and come from china.
there a few key things to check
headspace, barrel index and stock fit and for accuracy.... tight gas system
and ALL this info is in the stickies
READ lazerus2000's FAQ'a at the top of the main battle forum.
i bought my first norc m14s long before i was active on this site.
I shot that rifle with nothing but .308 ammo and if i was doing my job, that rifle put 5 rounds into 2 1/4 inches at 100 yards, everytime, and it never malfunctioned in any way. I didn't alter it in any way other than to add a scope mount. I sold that rifle soon after joining CGN, to a fellow from this site..... he loved it. I own several of them now..... most of them are disassembled as i was going to do the usgi upgrade to one and keep the rest as spare parts.... as there is no supplier of replacement parts for these rifles.
USGI parts are an option for spares..... but at the cost of just a usgi bolt..... you may as well buy 2 norcs..... that way you have a shooter.... and a spare parts gun for down the road.
The M14S is also a fun gun to own if you like to tune/tweak/tinker and customize
they are great rifles..... but they cost 400.00 and come from china.
there a few key things to check
headspace, barrel index and stock fit and for accuracy.... tight gas system
and ALL this info is in the stickies
READ lazerus2000's FAQ'a at the top of the main battle forum.
i bought my first norc m14s long before i was active on this site.
I shot that rifle with nothing but .308 ammo and if i was doing my job, that rifle put 5 rounds into 2 1/4 inches at 100 yards, everytime, and it never malfunctioned in any way. I didn't alter it in any way other than to add a scope mount. I sold that rifle soon after joining CGN, to a fellow from this site..... he loved it. I own several of them now..... most of them are disassembled as i was going to do the usgi upgrade to one and keep the rest as spare parts.... as there is no supplier of replacement parts for these rifles.
USGI parts are an option for spares..... but at the cost of just a usgi bolt..... you may as well buy 2 norcs..... that way you have a shooter.... and a spare parts gun for down the road.
The M14S is also a fun gun to own if you like to tune/tweak/tinker and customize
Last edited:
"Best Bang For The Buck EH!"
From my perspective the Norinco M-14s are a great value most especially on the 50th anniversary of the M-14's introduction in 1957.
"As Is" they are great $400 service competition/hunting rifles with the intrinsic capabilty of being upgraded into National Match types either with your chosen gunsmith or a "do it yourself" approach.
Also the "ammo supply" is there in .308 NATO rounds..surplus or commercial.
Alternative you can spend $1200-$1500 or more for the "real thang" in Springfield Armory terms. Unless you were "prescient" to have a CA US Mil Spec one thats your main choice and then there is the "not so minor detail" that you cant take it legally to ANY range to shoot it!
Indeed IF you do have a bottomle$$ pit of dollar$ you could spend $7500 for a M-14 from one supplier on this site..
I have shot Norinco M-14s since the middle 1980s both in DCRA practices and competitions as well as "fun plinking" at 300 to 800 yards both with iron sights and a 3x9 Redfield scope on a good detachable scope mount. I did encounter headspace problems "as is" with one older 1980s era Norinco M-14 which was solved by my gunsmith. On that basis I would have a gunsmith check out the headspace on any Norinco M-14 you acquire. It wont take long and at the same time you can have him or her replace the Chinese wood stock with either a drop in issue US stock in wood or fibreglass and/or glass bed it.
You Do Get What You Pay For. $400 and change for a 50 year old proven design M-14 is great value in my opinion. IF I could have ONLY ONE Rifle it would be either a NM Norinco M-14 or a M-1 Garand in .308.
From my perspective the Norinco M-14s are a great value most especially on the 50th anniversary of the M-14's introduction in 1957.
"As Is" they are great $400 service competition/hunting rifles with the intrinsic capabilty of being upgraded into National Match types either with your chosen gunsmith or a "do it yourself" approach.
Also the "ammo supply" is there in .308 NATO rounds..surplus or commercial.
Alternative you can spend $1200-$1500 or more for the "real thang" in Springfield Armory terms. Unless you were "prescient" to have a CA US Mil Spec one thats your main choice and then there is the "not so minor detail" that you cant take it legally to ANY range to shoot it!
Indeed IF you do have a bottomle$$ pit of dollar$ you could spend $7500 for a M-14 from one supplier on this site..
I have shot Norinco M-14s since the middle 1980s both in DCRA practices and competitions as well as "fun plinking" at 300 to 800 yards both with iron sights and a 3x9 Redfield scope on a good detachable scope mount. I did encounter headspace problems "as is" with one older 1980s era Norinco M-14 which was solved by my gunsmith. On that basis I would have a gunsmith check out the headspace on any Norinco M-14 you acquire. It wont take long and at the same time you can have him or her replace the Chinese wood stock with either a drop in issue US stock in wood or fibreglass and/or glass bed it.
You Do Get What You Pay For. $400 and change for a 50 year old proven design M-14 is great value in my opinion. IF I could have ONLY ONE Rifle it would be either a NM Norinco M-14 or a M-1 Garand in .308.
All I have spent on mine is the money to attend Hungry's clinic in Calgary. The other mods I have made were through friends and as Hungry put it "NETWORKING" Got a new op rod and spring, shimmed the gas block and shaved the piston rod. Just waiting to weld the end up and dremel out the stock in Hungry's words "a #### load" As it sits right now I shoot 1 inch groups at 100 with surplus ammo from Milarm (battlepacks) That is with stock sights.
You could spend tonnes of money on one of these rifles but WHY?!?!? They are great shooters right out of the box.
Barney my weld job is costing me a beer not a Timmie's so the price has gone up!
Hungry here: Yeah, the cost of welding was usually a large Tim's Double-double, but since your price went to a beer, you must be going to the wrong welder
I'm glad that you are not spending a lot of money on this boomstick. The secret to having the most fun with this rifle is 'tweaking accuracy on a Welfare budget', that's half the fun of this M14 addiction. Just go and look at the black rifle forum.... those guys would give their left nut for M4 cuts on their upper receivers, yet they don't come out to my Service Rifle and CQB matches. They spend too much time in front of the mirror admiring themselves, the mirror Kommandos.
You could spend tonnes of money on one of these rifles but WHY?!?!? They are great shooters right out of the box.
Barney my weld job is costing me a beer not a Timmie's so the price has gone up!
Hungry here: Yeah, the cost of welding was usually a large Tim's Double-double, but since your price went to a beer, you must be going to the wrong welder
I'm glad that you are not spending a lot of money on this boomstick. The secret to having the most fun with this rifle is 'tweaking accuracy on a Welfare budget', that's half the fun of this M14 addiction. Just go and look at the black rifle forum.... those guys would give their left nut for M4 cuts on their upper receivers, yet they don't come out to my Service Rifle and CQB matches. They spend too much time in front of the mirror admiring themselves, the mirror Kommandos.
Last edited by a moderator:
Stock M14s
Agreed! Mine shoots sub 2" groups at 100 m with old DA surplus ammo, open sights, old eyes and no mods at all. IIRC every 5 shot group I've shot was sub 2", the best was .9" and I'm not discounting any "fliers".
I thot about doing some mods but when I looked at my targets I concluded there just wasn't much point.
Agreed! Mine shoots sub 2" groups at 100 m with old DA surplus ammo, open sights, old eyes and no mods at all. IIRC every 5 shot group I've shot was sub 2", the best was .9" and I'm not discounting any "fliers".
I thot about doing some mods but when I looked at my targets I concluded there just wasn't much point.
another point to be made is that a lot of these groups can be shrunk considerably by handloading- get a good target recepie and duplicate it as close as you can, see how it shoots , then go up and down the scale from there- i got some nifty 5 round clovers using 180's before i knew any better out of my old norc- using 748 and ww cases, she'd put a 20 round mag into a twonie sized hole at 100 yards , but i'd get 4 inch groups using ivi surplus- just shows what can be done- as far as spare parts go, i know the isrealis disassembled the rifles they didn't use into parts, so there probably is some market there as well as the "spares" market in the u.s., but we can't get access to either of those
Hi
It is not unreasonable to expect that you can get a 2:1 group "shrink" by using good hand loads. That assumes you are already using some pretty good surplus ammo. If your "reference" was made in who-knows-where-astan you may do quite a bit better than that.
Bob
It is not unreasonable to expect that you can get a 2:1 group "shrink" by using good hand loads. That assumes you are already using some pretty good surplus ammo. If your "reference" was made in who-knows-where-astan you may do quite a bit better than that.
Bob
