A NP-22 Review.

1895GS

CGN Ultra frequent flyer
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Location
Toronto, ON
Well here are a few pics I took of my new NP-22.
I thought I'd share a few first impressions.
Mind you I'm somewhat new to firearms and no pistol expert.
I have not had a chance to take it out to the range yet.

A few words before the pictures...
The price of the pistol certainly is right. For 359$ + tax + 20$ shipping, the price is just right compared to real SIG. Mind you it is not a real SIG. For a brand new SIG you are looking at 1100$ at the least. The finish is OK for a Norinco. I find that the NP-34 is a bit better in terms of fit and finish. The NP-22 finish is definitely rougher than a real SIG. This is not to say that the finish is horrible. Relatively speaking it looks quite durable.

The Np-22 has a standard picatinny rail, which I hope to mount a Streamlight TRL-1 or 3 on. I am leaning towards the 1. But others may chime in.

The trigger pull is horrible make no mistake. Compared to the NP-34, it is gritty with a long travel and very heavy. Even after cleaning, it still feels very heavy. Single action is more on par with the Np-34, but it still seems to be a bit behind.

Anyhow, here are the pictures.
I'll update this as I make corrections and add more info.

Please pardon the crappy pictures I am no photographer with my little snap and shoot camera.

box.jpg

Nice little box. Too bad they don't put a hole in the handle so you can lock it. It is padded on the inside. You do get some sort of metal tools for the gun but I chucked them since there was already a coating on rust on them. The gun with the included mag were safely drowned in Chicom-Cancer-Cosmo inside an airtight heavy duty plastic bag.

manual.jpg

The manual is not written in Engrish and is rather informative.
There are particularly useful tech specs about various pistols of the same family.
Sorry no annihilating firepower here.:D

np22and34.jpg

Here are the specs for the NP 22 and the NP-34.
Subjectively speaking from just feeling the triggers there is no way they have the same trigger pull. Even after cleaning the Np-22 felt just as heavy but a bit less grimy.

UPDATE: The mainspring assembly is interchangeable between the NP-22 and NP-34. They look almost exact. There is an issue though. When I swapped the NP34 mainspring assembly into the NP22 the trigger pull did not improve at all, it seemed to get worse. Alternatively, when I swapped the NP22 assembly into the NP34, the trigger pull on the NP34 seems to have improved somewhat. This suggests that the culprit of the horrid trigger pull is not the mainspring nor the mainspring assembly since the experiment suggests that the mainspring and assembly are to spec hence the interchangeability between the NP34. I think a more detailed strip of the frame is required and I suspect the culprit may be around the hammer/sear. The upshot is that a new mainspring may not be required to fix the trigger pull, on the downside the cause of the problem is yet unknown.

np56and58.jpg

A .45 Norc-SIG would be nice. Sadly John says these are not in production.
I've handled the old Np-58 and they are quite nice.

Extrasprings.jpg

Extra springs are included. One for the trigger bar and one goes into the locking block. They do nothing to improve quality of pull as I had foolishly thought.
Thanks to edyshock for pointing this out:
http://www.canadiangunnutz.com/forum/showpost.php?p=4920429&postcount=4
Important Update: I swapped in the spare lock block spring (bottom one in picture) while cleaning and noticed that the lock block and takedown lever were very difficult to replace. Once I did get them replaced I noticed that the pistol would no longer lock back on an empty magazine. I switched the old spring back in, very easily might I add, to find that full functionality was restored. Perhaps the new spring is out of spec or needs breaking in to remove some of its "springiness". The metal experts can chime in on this. In any case the lock block spring replacement is suspect.


largeshot.jpg

The pistol itself.
The slide is steel and the frame is aluminum.
Thanks to Rivalen for the astute observation.
http://www.canadiangunnutz.com/forum/showpost.php?p=4924397&postcount=14

leftsideofslide.jpg

The finish is ok, but nothing to write home about.
It looks rough but durable.
I'm happy with it.

rightsideofslide.jpg

GASP- serial numbers. Again. Finish is ok, but the right side of the slide looks rather busy with all the numbers and markings. At least they skipped any poetry.

machiningonslide.jpg

Notice the machine marks. I don't remember them on the SIG that I handled.

machininginupper.jpg

More machine marks on the inside of the slide. I don't think they matter too much here.

magwell.jpg

The magwell. There appear to be numbers here but they are not from the serial number. Mine read 4-1390. They are covered up by the magazine baseplate when the magazine is inserted.

lower.jpg

Yet again, the finish is ok. Sadly I marred up the trigger pivot screw trying to replace the lock block.:mad:
The trick to aligning the trigger pivot pin to reinsert the block is to use a credit card or bank card to prevent marring to the finish of the pivot pin. Live and learn.

Slidetop.jpg

The inside of the slide.

undersideofupper.jpg

Inside of the slide. Nothing spectacular.

Barrel.jpg

The barrel appears well built and the locking pieces look very durable. Only time will tell. There was a bit of carbon fouling in the chamber area, probably from the test fire at the factory. The rifling is crisp and pronounced.

Fedpath.jpg

Here is the feedramp on the barrel. The locking block also has the lower part of the ramp cut into it, I do not know if this differs from a real SIG. Please chime in folks.
I can not speak about the reliability until I do some test shots and grouping shots.

Backofhammer.jpg

The butt end of things.

magazinefrombehind.jpg

It is a magazine. There are holes that indicate how many cartridges are in the magazine, 5-10 and the sadly unused 15. I purchased three magazines and all thee fall out readily when ejected. They seem well built and are all steel construction.
The NP-22 mags will fit into an Np-34 but not vice versa.

magazinestripped.jpg

The innards. Notice the follower block that sits on top of the inside of the baseplate to limit capacity. I had no issue stripping the magazine without that ice-pick looking thing that came in the box. Other users have indicated this is what that pick thing is used for. I chucked it.

moremagazines.jpg

The baseplate has the last four digits of the serial number inscribed.
Calling 2444...

magazines.jpg

The side view. I very much like the construction of these and they feel very durable.

SirBunikers.jpg

Mr. Bunikers. He is not dinner and quite deadly with his .22. Intruders beware.

I would appreciate any comments and suggested corrections.
Stay tuned for a range report.

Things to do:
-Lights and sights.
-Holster
-Mainspring replacement.

Cheers.
 
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Looks great...I'm looking forward for the range report, the NP22, NP58 (just gotta have the .40 :redface:) and the NP34 are top on my list for purchases, you may just seal the deal for me. But once again decisions, decisions, back down to the whole should I buy a 9mm or a .40??? :(
 
Question about the rabbit. Is it domesticated or does it act like a wild animal?

Somebody abandoned Mr. Bunikers and I found him during my shift.
He is definitely domesticated and very timid, it was a good thing I managed to catch him, otherwise he would have been a raccoon snack. There is no way you can catch a wild rabbit.
I suspect he had a rough past since he is very skittish, even for a rabbit.
Hopefully his previous owners get a dose of karma one way or another.
 
Looks great...I'm looking forward for the range report, the NP22, NP58 (just gotta have the .40 :redface:) and the NP34 are top on my list for purchases, you may just seal the deal for me. But once again decisions, decisions, back down to the whole should I buy a 9mm or a .40??? :(

I would suggest you go with the NP-34 if you can find one.
The trigger on that thing is great, and overall it feels better and the finish is nicer. I'll do a review sometime.
Unless you really want the rail...
 
Somebody abandoned Mr. Bunikers and I found him during my shift.
He is definitely domesticated and very timid, it was a good thing I managed to catch him, otherwise he would have been a raccoon snack. There is no way you can catch a wild rabbit.
I suspect he had a rough past since he is very skittish, even for a rabbit.
Hopefully his previous owners get a dose of karma one way or another.


Very handsome bugger, some rabbits are just always nervous around humans, no matter how well they are treated. He could have also escaped.


Ty for the review.
 
Thanks for the review. The finish doesn't look too bad beside the machining marks; as long as it's durable. For the price it's a good buy imo. According to the weight, I take it the frame is alumnium?
 
Thanks for the review. The finish doesn't look too bad beside the machining marks; as long as it's durable. For the price it's a good buy imo. According to the weight, I take it the frame is alumnium?

Correct.
The frame is aluminum and the slide is steel according to the magnet test.
I'll add that in. Thanks!
 
Really looking forward to more on this. Still waiting for mine from MarStar.

Not sure how bad your willing to mangale your new toy, but I would love to know how easy it is to slap new Low Lights sights and springs on that. Overall how compatible it is with an Actual Sig 226 in terms of aftermarket parts.
 
Really looking forward to more on this. Still waiting for mine from MarStar.

Not sure how bad your willing to mangale your new toy, but I would love to know how easy it is to slap new Low Lights sights and springs on that. Overall how compatible it is with an Actual Sig 226 in terms of aftermarket parts.

I'm ordering some parts and I'll report back on compatibility.
 
1895GS, great review. Definitely keep us posted about compatibility. I came to the forums to ask if the Sig P226 and NP22 had interchangeable parts.

I'm very interested in a NP22 but I would like a P226 .22lr conversion. If a P226 conversion kit works then I'll have 2 guns for less than the price of a single 226.... A 9mm for shooting sports and a .22 for cheap paper punching.
 
yes most of SIG parts are compatible, when ordering parts make sure that this is pre 1992 SIG parts or as many websites will state "old" style. New style Trigger bar spring and main spring won't feet, but the old one will.
I also have confirmed with one of the CGN user that SiG sights for P22x and aftermarket sights also will feet but grips screws won't
 
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