Ar opinions: NEA vs Norinco

My First AR was a NEA (early run) Sept 2012.

It was "Ok" off the hop, an issue with the BCG and extractor (Snapped).. but hey, one quick phone call and a email with a pic and boom- Brand new BCG a couple days later.
The two biggest selling points for me (covered in the thread already) was the Canadian made/Warranty.

After running it for 2 years, with some standard mods (SSA trigger, BCM, Magpul stuff, LAR mags)... its been a top contender at our club matches for reliability- never an issue.
Its a great starter gun for price wise, and let me add stuff throughout the years. My newest rifle will be set-up exactly like I want after a few years of tinkering and learning about triggers etc.

PWS inbound.. and after becoming a better shooter, I can confidently run a higher value gun and benefit from it. Most shooters will never shoot "Up to" the capabilities of the rifle/pistol ..I'm rambling.

You could always get it... if it doesn't work for you- sell it ?
 
Moe said:
Took my Norc to an IPSC 3 Gun with the stock irons. Was the only guy out of 19 not running a dot. Came 2nd. thing shots as good as any of the 3 Colts, 1 Bushmaster, and 1 Armalite I owned. Never had a jam in the 2K rds I have through it. For a time it didn't get cleaned for 500 rds (twice I did that).

Finish Meh, accuracy and reliability are par with my previous AR's

Moe
Click to expand...

Our two Norinco M4's have been flawless as well. Great value for the $$$!

Cheers
Jay
 
I dont understand why so many say the Norc is ugly or has a "less than par" fit and finish. I havent owned any other AR besides my Norc but have handled a few and MY norc looks great, the outside surfaces are nicely machined and all anodized (not painted) and I think its a GREAT looking gun compared to the Norc .22 rifle I owned for a couple of weeks.

As for function, the ONLY problem i have with mine is it doesnt get used nearly enough....
 
rubberdown said:
I dont understand why so many say the Norc is ugly or has a "less than par" fit and finish. I havent owned any other AR besides my Norc but have handled a few and MY norc looks great, the outside surfaces are nicely machined and all anodized (not painted) and I think its a GREAT looking gun compared to the Norc .22 rifle I owned for a couple of weeks.

As for function, the ONLY problem i have with mine is it doesnt get used nearly enough....
Click to expand...

most guys remember the older, painted norcs.

Lets face it... most ARs are basically the same for sporting purposes.... same specs, very similar or the same materials. Are some better than others? Sure... but by how much?
are they worth the cost? Depends what you want.

I look at fit, finish, manufacturing method, customer reviews, and most importantly ---- REAL LIFE EXPERIENCE ----

I currently own: Armalite, NEA, Blue line, Norinco... and I have used Colt, Diemaco, Knights, and DD, as well as handled in store DPMS, CMMG, RRA, and a few others.

In my experience I could have bought one ATRS or similar lower and multiple uppers/barrel lenghts/rails.. to do what I wanted... or for less money, 4 complete AR-15s

Buy what is important to you.
 
Last edited:
Suputin said:
Every consumer product on earth is going to have some number of issues. You totally ignored the number of people who posted they have NEAs and have had no issues with them and fixated on one who claimed a problem.





For sure the old nitriding process produced a less than attractive finish which fulfilled function over form. To my understanding this issue has been addressed and the barrels will be a nice even black now.

Hand filing every single part when parts are being made on an industrial scale is simply not possible.

Seeing as NEA has its share of haters who glomm on to any hint of criticism, it would have been nice to have included the last sentence in the OP.
Click to expand...

No, I've seen many reports on and off CGN. I've been very hopeful of NEA since launch. There have been several reports on this thread and others of two concerning issues 1) Blems and uneven nitriding on newer models , 2) sharp edges. Buying one sight unseen online, I would not be happy with either of these.
 
Well, I have...but I've heard everything.

Now HOW MANY complaints have I heard about the A-list companies relative to the number of rifles they've put out? Yeah...for this reason I tend to agree with your conclusion.

I don't recommend brands anymore because I have made too many personal contacts in that industry now to feel anything other than phony or sleazy by endorsing something.

But I have rarely met anyone who said to me, "In retrospect, I wish that instead of saving up an extra couple of hundred bucks and going with a well-known and proven manufacturer, I'd bought what I could afford at the time I first wanted a gun."

Not running down either option in the OP...I've got guns from both of them for a number of reasons and there are things I like about them in both cases. And I will say that I have never had a single failure from my NEA in 3000+ rounds.

I primarily shoot Colt, BCM, Glock and limited-production 1911s now though.
 
Norinco ar's are now $600 at canam, there is no reason not to grab one when it's that low, you can sell it for 600 on the EE easy if you don't like it
 
luke s said:
Norinco ar's are now $600 at canam, there is no reason not to grab one when it's that low, you can sell it for 600 on the EE easy if you don't like it
Click to expand...

If I didnt already have one, I would grab one, its already got a quad rail on it so thats one less upgrade, and its only 6 bills!!!
 
I've had my Norinco for a a few years now replaced the furniture with Magpul MOE and it's a decent looking rifle. If I waited till NEA came out and got that instead I'd probably keep it stock but no regrets getting the Norinco.
 
Last edited:
Daver_II said:
budget builds are good fun.... but seldom are really.... budget....
Click to expand...


094c292964a9594cc3123038d1d0f162.jpg


My budget build tallied in at 850 bucks .... But there was some trading and bartering involved and a couple trades

It's somewhat of a NEA norc hybrid untill my spikes bcg comes in
 
Nothing wrong with norinco. Very reliable. I have no issues with the finish either. The finish issue was on earlier imports that were painted not anodized. Unless you "need" a brand name, grab a norinco. They are just as reliable if not more so.
 
My Norc has been perfectly adequate for what I wanted - blasting paper targets at 100 yards and less.

Also have owned Dan Defense, Colt, and SGW. They all worked, too, but not any better.

I compete with both Norc and NEA. Both have a Rock River trigger and similar optics and both are keepers.

I am more concerned about function than cosmetics.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom