SOLD OUT: All-New TYPE 81 SPECIAL EDITION

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Question for folks who have been following this thread more closely than I - has there been anything from TI to suggest that these rifles are either refurbs or parts kit guns?

I stripped my stock and under the red paint there had been since pretty obvious repairs to the furniture. I also received a pretty rusty/pitted LMG that had been refinished (parked) in the first batch.

To be honest I still really enjoy the gun, it was just a bit surprising

Haha that was my comment on your FB post stating they are using surplus wood... has 0 merit in reality just said it as a joke. But wouldn't surprise me really.
 
Phuck me.. after a month of my kobra order being lost and the hassle of getting it sent out again it finally arrives.. half excited until I realized they never added the threaded pins or right side safety in my order like they claim on the sale ad.

Needless to say I'm a bit pissed at this whole ordeal.

And now to wait even longer for my missing parts.
 
Post pics! But nothing direct from TI, but I think it's safe to assume that the factory most likely takes "out-of-spec" production parts and just makes them work. Whereas most production facilities factor in a certain number of out-of-spec parts/components to be produced and scrapped (the lower the tolerance and more accurate the dimensions, the increased number of scrapped parts), then adds that additional cost of scrapped parts into their quote. I just think that the factory isn't scrapping these parts and just repairing/adjusting them to make it work. Which is probably the right decision. This rifle is meant to be cheap, and function and I think it accomplishes just that.

20211024_095349

Several spots have been filled as pictured, and two spots appear to have cracked and been pinned.
 
20211024_095349

Several spots have been filled as pictured, and two spots appear to have cracked and been pinned.

Completely normal for hardwood these days. The days of big strait clear hardwood is dying fast, so especially for a manufacturer such as this at a gun this price, that’s going to be common. I had a Ruger stock with a blatantly filled knot hole, walnut too.

The other side of that coin is I don’t see the profitability of “refurbishing” a stock, if it was pulled or returned it wouldn’t make it back to the factory floor, the cost of halting production and backpedaling to refinish and repair something, it would be cheaper to just pick another stock out of the bin.
 
I'm not butthurt, it just seemed weird for new production (like you say, more trouble than it's worth) hence the question about refurbs. Does anyone know what this wood is? Seems pretty spongey.

That’s what I meant about the refurb notion, I can’t see something failing QC or being returned, having to be sent back, sanded, filled, sanded again, and refinished on a note of cost effectiveness. I can’t prove it but im sure they pay pennies on the dollar for the stocks, it’s just as easy to throw a bad one away. As for why yours made it through, it doesn’t look like there was a crack or a hole filled, it just looks like maybe a chip or some soft spot in the grain sanded out too quickly.

I wouldn’t say Catalpa, the original early production type 81s were, and they suffered bad cases of cracking. This looks like a birch or a maple to me, of course whatever the Chinese equivalent of that is.
 
Completely normal for hardwood these days. The days of big strait clear hardwood is dying fast, so especially for a manufacturer such as this at a gun this price, that’s going to be common. I had a Ruger stock with a blatantly filled knot hole, walnut too.

The other side of that coin is I don’t see the profitability of “refurbishing” a stock, if it was pulled or returned it wouldn’t make it back to the factory floor, the cost of halting production and backpedaling to refinish and repair something, it would be cheaper to just pick another stock out of the bin.

At this price? They're $1200. That should get a you a much higher quality firearm. Unfortunately in Canada, this is what we get.
 
The pins are on on the other side of the stock, that photo is just an example. They look similar to what I've seen done on old shotguns. Whatever kind of wood it is, the hardness is similar to the poplar I use for making decoys, so Catalpa would be in the ballpark on the Janka scale
 
I think still much better value than the Valmets. And look what these rifles (and the Type 56) go for in the states...

Well unfortunately this isn’t, never has been, and will never be the United States in that sense, but go ahead for entertainment sake and convert the dollar to Canadian, and add the cost of importing them, even if you could you’d be spending a lot more, and you’d still have a surplus rifle. You can’t compare the price of anything down there, be it a car or a rifle. $1200 for a brand new semi automatic centre fire rifle in a rifle caliber, is par.

You can’t compare shotguns, used rifles, or anything south of the border.

$1200 here gets you a WK180, which I’ve owned, and I’ve shot two other, they were all piles of garbage.

I’ve spent twice that on a Ruger, and seen many nicer rifles out of my bracket.

So yes $1200 for a factory fresh faux-ak from China is cheap. For Christ sake the last two bolt actions I’ve picked up were more than that and by no means are they show grade.
 
I'm pretty sure it is Catalpa wood.

I wouldn’t say Catalpa, the original early production type 81s were, and they suffered bad cases of cracking. This looks like a birch or a maple to me, of course whatever the Chinese equivalent of that is.

Whatever kind of wood it is, the hardness is similar to the poplar I use for making decoys, so Catalpa would be in the ballpark on the Janka scale

not catalpa, birch or maple. catalpa are on SKS. on the LMG are beech wood. i looked under the red HG and it looks like beech wood also.
 
That's my exact point - the Chinese rifles are Hella expensive in the states because of the rarity. The higher price for a particular rifle doesn't necessarily imply a quality or a lack thereof.

Anyway, I still enjoy the gun and compared to my other recent gun purchases these are cheap. I don't give a hoot about the value vs the mosin or sks, though I wish i had an SVD to match. YMMV.
 
Honestly, 'defects' that have been mended or refinished properly kinda give character. Like trench-art, but minter.
I've seen some godawful wood come on firearms from china, but I haven't seen much in that sense with any Type81s so far.
 
Anyone who has a problem with the upper hand guard is loose. Here is a solution to solve. Put a LITTLE BIT gorilla super glue on the surface of the both foot stands of the upper hand guard and wait until it fully dry. DO NOT PUT TOO MUCH GLUE, otherwise it will be super tight and you won’t disassemble it easily.

Here is a link to picture might helpful.

https://ibb.co/qg9M9vB
 
Anyone who has a problem with the upper hand guard is loose. Here is a solution to solve. Put a LITTLE BIT gorilla super glue on the surface of the both foot stands of the upper hand guard and wait until it fully dry. DO NOT PUT TOO MUCH GLUE, otherwise it will be super tight and you won’t disassemble it easily.

Here is a link to picture might helpful.

https://ibb.co/qg9M9vB

so the problem is loose rivet?
 
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