Are there 2 assemblers-makers of M-305's?

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buckbrush

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I seem to remember John from Marstar saying a couple of years ago that Marstar bought all the remaining M-305 recievers and was having them assembled and shipped as they needed them.

From what I understand the M-305's that Dark International, Russels, Epps, Milarm , HWSNBN, ...are not from Marstar but someone else. Are there 2 or more assemblers-makers of M-305's?. Perhaps a Norinco and Polytec situation? Or maybe selling to Marstar out the front door and sneaking some out the back for some other Canadian importer?

Can anyone shed some light on the situation? Currently Dark International has recieved some M-305's, and Marstar has been out of stock for months so someone is importing them besides Marstar?
 
i smell a conspiracy...... must.... make... tinfoil.... hat :D

all kidding aside, that's an interesting question. My thinking is with the chinese... cash is king... maybe dark invested wisely in a container full, and as an "international trading co." may not even be getting them direct from china... possibly some other offshore source. Alas, this is prolly not a question we would get an answer on.

one thing i can tell you, all of the m14s/m305 rifles i have bought since marstar introduced them... 1 from al simmons, 1 from dark, 3 from private individuals, and 2 through marstar... they have all been the same as far as receiver stamped markings and the overall finish has been consistant.
 
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The last m-305 I bought from Marstar has a blued reciever, all the others I have bought/seen from Marstar were parkerised.

I just thought of a possible reason for stores other than Marstar having m-305's. Perhaps Lever arms is distibuting some or all of their stockpile of them. They have sold them for a long time and can't be selling many at $699.00.
 
Lee Emerson (aka Different) details this in his online M14 book. I'm just typing off the top of my head.

All Chinese M14s are made by one of two plants either Polytech or Norinco. The story gets a lot murkier after that. AFAIR, the original production was never delivered to the clandestine groups intended. The rifles were returned to China where they were stripped to the recievers and most removeable bits scattered to the winds, cast into concrete or melted down.

When the Chinese realized there was money to be made, they started building rifles with the old receivers and new production parts. As successive North American buyers appeared with orders, the Chinese would assemble, grind off or weld and mark according to the contract. This is why there are so many model variations and where the complaints about bad quality control and bad parts arise. The Chinese didn't have things exactly right initially, but they learned and have gotten considerably better.
 
tootall said:
As I understand it, Norinco is not a factory, it is a trading company.
They market whatever state factory #37 or #128 builds.
Click to expand...

Likewise, Polytech was also a trading company privately owned by the PLA general staff. As well, the People's Armed Police got a piece of the action with CJA (China Jin An), which is how almost every M305/M14S I've seen here is marked.

Only Norinco remains. They are the official heavy industry trading company of the PRC.

The Central Commitee of the CCP shut down the private enterprises operated by (high ranking officers of) the various military branches back in the late 90s.
 
From Lee Emerson's book (p 193)

Production of Chinese M14 Type Rifles
All Chinese semi-automatic M14 rifle receivers and new (post-1978) production parts for them have been manufactured at State Arsenal 356 in Yunnan Province, People's Republic of China. Yunnan Province is in southwest China and borders the nations of Laos and the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam. All Chinese M14 type receivers are drop forged.

OK. OK. OK. I stand corrected. My first post had a qualifier, but since I'm the only one who reads the references, I'm entitled to misquote myself.
 
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