Battle of the Shorty Bolt .22's

p.Rundle

p.Rundle

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Hey folks, just wanting to get peoples opinions on two short bolt action .22 LR's I've seen lately. The Stevens 300F and the Norinco JW15A Compact. Pros and cons of one vs the other? Just for a bit of extra fun lets consider a survival scenario, which is easier to fix/find parts for? I'm assuming the Stevens since it's basically just a Savage (I assume).

If the Norinco costs the same as the Stevens, surely there's something that makes it equal! The 300F can use Savage mags which is a huge pro, how much are the Norincos?

For some reason I really seem fixated on short barrelled bolt actions right now! So neat!
 
I like the stock on the Norinco better and it's easier to mount a peep sight on the dovetail if you want a longer sight radius. It's a CZ clone so CZ mags will work.
The Steven's bolt is further forward and interferes with a rear mounted peep sight.
 
p.Rundle said:
I'm in university. I didn't know Anschutz made a 14" but I know I can't afford it lol. The fact the Norinco is a Cz clone is a HUGE plus though. Will it take Cz parts (like a Cz extractor) ?
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I didn't know either. Just had a look around, $1399CDN versus $200-$300CDN. I have no doubt it's worth it, also know for a fact I can't afford one either.
 
freezer filler said:
Forget both of them and get a 14" Anschutz
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^yep...in the same price range as a Norinco. :p

To the question...I don't think either one of them are gems, but I bought a JW15-A (Backpacker), short-barrel Norinco several years ago and it's been a great rifle to be honest. CZ mags do work in it if that's a selling point...but it's a good option as the Norinco ones seldom work well. lol Anyhow, I rarely use mine these days as I have a couple of other rifles that tickle my fancy more...but it's the one I grab if the weather looks sketchy, if I'm out in sub-zero temps planning on clearing pigeons from barns~that sort of thing. I've been let down by too many Savage rimfires in recent years, and am on more of a CZ/BRNO/older Marlin kick these days. That Stevens would be no temptation to me unless having a short 22MAG would be an advantage somehow. (no need for one)

In the interest of full disclosure~Norinco simply chopped their standard length, (already) blued barrels for these guns, so that results in 2 things~raw metal at the muzzle end, and too short a sight radius. It WOULDN'T be too short a sight radius if they made a finer, front sight blade to compensate for how close it is to the rear sight...but they didn't. I have a little compact scope on mine so not an issue for me, but if you planned on using iron sights, you might need to play with it a little.
 
I had a stevens 305f, it was a fine little .22mag but after owning one and selling it, the allure of short barrel bolt actions is gone.
Not that there was anything wrong with it, it functioned fine. The stock is far from nice but it works.
As for parts, both are cheap enough to pick up a spare or two if things are seriously looking doom and gloom for you, otherwise I wouldn't worry too much about such things.
 
RAYdiation said:
Don't mean to hijack the thread, but which model CZ would the JW15A mimic? Planning on getting one.
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I think the best way to describe it would be to say that the ACTION on the Norinco is a clone (albeit, rough around the edges) of the CZ. So, everything from the barrel back. (CZ452/BRNO) The stock shape on the Norinco is it's own...the design maybe a nod to the BRNO 2/CZ452 Lux near the forend.
 
I'm with .22LRGUY….picked mine up on the EE for ~$120. Previous owner smoothed out the trigger. Added a $40 Simmons 22mag 4x fixed power scope.
Fun little plinker…..get one!
DSCN1715_zpsejtkhmlf.jpg

DSCN1497_zps7c1b78ac.jpg
 
RAYdiation said:
Don't mean to hijack the thread, but which model CZ would the JW15A mimic? Planning on getting one.
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The JW15A is a clone of the Brno #1 so has a different trigger, firing pin, and safety than the CZ which is a derivative of the Brno #2. Magazines and extractor are interchangeable. I had a 13" JW15A but gave it to my son for a truck gun. To be honest I didn't find it to be that accurate as the iron sights are pretty crappy. Putting a small low power scope on it would probably be best. The stock felt surprisingly solid and it was certainly handy to carry.
 
I'm with all the folks that say look at the JW15A I put on a fixed no name 4x scope and upgraded to a yodave cz452 striker spring without any issues. The polymer CZ452 10 round mags had some feeding issues at first but those have worked themselves out without me needing to take a file to the mag. For around $200 I think it's a pretty good value.

Here's mine
2m6qvlh.jpg
 
legi0n said:
maybe not in a heartbeat and also don't expect magic
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I'm not expecting laser accuracy but a 13 inch barrel is enough for like 98% burn on 22 powders (usually) so velocity isn't an issue and the shorter barrel helps with accuracy too. The big thing is reliability. As long as it's reliable and has practical (small game inside 100m) accuracy, I'm a happy camper.
 
I love my jw15 shorty. Look up the "not a steaming pile of ####" thread. I put a 2-7x32 cabelas scope on it and bought a cz 10 shot magazine. Its fun and light. Im considering buying a boyds stock for it because i like it so much.

An interesting read:

http://www.gunrack.co.nz/jw-15-trigger-improvement/

I'm tempted to get the spring from yodave as well. My bolt is pretty rough but has loosened up a bit with use.
 
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