Hands on 'Shorty' M305 review.

[aftermidnight]

Got it today.

The Good:

As advertised, 18.5inch barrel, bayonet lug, milled slot flash hider, synthetic stock, sling, tool, cleaning kit, oil bottle (yes there's "something" in it.. careful when opening) and 2 5/20 round magazines.

Packing: cardboard box with styro lining. rifle, magazines and sling are sealed in separate plastic bags. Good thing because everything except sling is dripping in oil.

The Bad:

Still par for the course Norinco quirks.
The flash hider is welded on in the usual places.

Rear sight: This one, the windage adjustment is very stiff. I will have to disassemble the sight and see what's going on there.
The barrel still has the staked set screw under the op rod.
The op rod retainer pin still is the short version.

The Ugly:

The op rod guide is loose.

Bottom line: It seems this version has the same issues common to the others. Don't be surprised if you have to do some tweaking.

 

[homeless]

Wow what a deal. 1000 rounds of ammo and a shorty to boot!

 

[f55]

Congrats

The op rod guide was loose on my norinco m305 as well (non-shorty), used red lockthreader to sort it out.

 

[TacticalDan]

Hi did u pick up your shorty at the show or is canam shipping already?

 

[Hungry]

Loose op rod guide? We can fix that! ALL (read: every single one) of the USGI M14's I owned had loose op rod guides, and whether I like it or not, I had to get good with a pin punch and roll pins!

I appreciate that first impression report! It's great to hear that, f55! Thanks!

Cheers,
Barney

 

[aftermidnight]

I picked it up at the HACS show in Burnaby.

Hi did u pick up your shorty at the show or is canam shipping already?

 

[TacticalDan]

did you get to handle a few how is the front sight are they off set or pretty straight?

 

[smartcard]

picked mine up at the show also

might have to upgrade the bolt stop .... not catching too well

 

[aftermidnight]

There was one unit on display. I didn't look at it all that much.

The front sight on mine appears straight. It is also staked with the base on the front of the sight.

 

[Chumlee Bumsnag]

I grabbed mine at the show today also. It's my first one so I need to get familiar with it before I make any comments.

 

[f55]

I grabbed mine at the show today also. It's my first one so I need to get familiar with it before I make any comments.
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Very Nice

Damn, i have to stop looking at this forum, all i can think of now is new m305 shorty + troy rail

 

[Gormley Green]

Nice, looking forward to receiving mine. This is my first M305. It sounds as though the loose op rod guide is common - what's the DIY fix? I want to be able to send some lead downrange ASAP upon getting this thing cleaned up.

 

[chemo]

can you really put on the bayonet with the gas plug that close?

 

[cantom]

I grabbed mine at the show today also. It's my first one so I need to get familiar with it before I make any comments.
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It's pretty cool that they have bayonet lugs.

Now, why in the hell is Norinco still spot welding the flash hiders on? Or are these also being sold in the US?

I don't think they are able to be sold in the US, so what gives with the welds?

 

[mountainspruce]

For these and others, nothing a good machinists punch and a little loctite won't cure...

 

[Chumlee Bumsnag]

This might be a dumb question, but after removing the gas cylinder plug , the piston won't come out of the tube because it hits the bayonet lug before it is far enough out to remove. The only solution I can see is removing the flash eliminator, sight assembly. Is there another
way?

 

[aftermidnight]

when you loosen the gas lock, slide the cylinder off the splines and rotate it 45 degrees.

remember, this is a dry gas system. get all the oil out of the cylinder, gas plug and piston.

 

[Chumlee Bumsnag]

when you loosen the gas lock, slide the cylinder off the splines and rotate it 45 degrees.

remember, this is a dry gas system. get all the oil out of the cylinder, gas plug and piston.

Thanks boss.

 

[RemingtonMarlin]

Nice tip. I happened to order one from CanadaAmmo as well (last night).
I was wondering if the SKS has the similar gas system cause I usually lightly oil those parts in my SKS.

Thank you.

when you loosen the gas lock, slide the cylinder off the splines and rotate it 45 degrees.

remember, this is a dry gas system. get all the oil out of the cylinder, gas plug and piston.

 

[Boomer686]

Welcome to the M14/M305 addiction! Fun platform with lots of opportunities to learn, modify, improve which adds to the enjoyment of owning these rifles.

Regards,