Has anyone had any hands on time with one of these or heard anything?  Are they decent or reliable at all?  I know it is blasphemous to think of buying an M14 made by Norinco, but the price is right and my soul is cheap.  Russ

Wait, is this a new Nori? I thought they were banned from importation?

Yes they are banned now.  It is a pre ban one.

From what I've heard and seen is that they run and gun just like our M1a's

The only thing you might have to get checked out is bolt.  There has been alot of talk about the bolts being "soft" as in either they were not heat treated right or the metal not being up to snuff.  

other than that.  The recievers are forged not cast.  and most of the parts are interchangeable with mil-spec parts.  But check around.

I believe that a good place to start is on a M14/M1a specific forum.  


There are places that will refit your rifle with US parts.  But it is not cheap.  So your call

If I was able to come across a Norinco M14 in good condition and price.

You be I would get it.

Buzz.

The only area to watch is what Buzzstrike said-the bolts. The metal used wasn't the greatest and they were soft.
I had a PolyTech years ago and loved it. I checked the headspace every 1000rnds or so and had no signs of the headspace growing.

The only issues that I have seen with the Norinco's is that the engraving is really rough and doesn't look that great.

-Don't plan on swapping the bolt for a USGI bolt without modification/work-usually best left to someone who knows what they are doing (Smith Enterprise/Fulton Armory). Even though my headspace didn't grow-if yours does this is a $400+ modification which all told will put you into an M1A, etc.
-The barrels are interchangable between the US and Chinese.
-The Flash Suppressor Castle Nut is Chinese specific (USGI won't work)
-The Gas Cylinder Lock is Chinese specific (USGI won't work)
-Parts within the Gas Cylinder (Gas Plug, Piston) are Chinese specific (USGI won't work). If you want the use the NM gas pistons available, then you'll need to buy a complete USGI Gas Cylinder Assembly.
-The Hammer isn't good for NM mods-something about the engagement points being off or soft. If you want a NM trigger, just buy a complete USGI unit and replace the Chinese one.


The other small parts are swappable between the USGI parts and Chinese.

I picked up 3 Norinco M14s over the past 2 years.
The first one was transformed into a MK14 SEI with all TRW parts by Ron Smith - it is my favorite shooter.
Ron knows the ChiCom receiver better than the Chinese...
The other two are all ChiCom.

HTH ~

I have one and haven't had any problems with it.

for anyone old enough to remember, one of the gun magazines did an article on the chinese M14, something like a torture test firing hundreds of rounds rapidly and supposedly some of the parts melted or something.  anyway lots of guys have them and shoot them without melting them.

shame gunandknife.com is gone......battlerifles.com, jouster.com

if i had the chance to buy the norinco right iwould get it

The Norincos and Polytechs have forged recievers unlike some domestic brands.

I picked up my Polytech M14S a few months ago.  It's a damn nice rifle.



The Polys and Norincos are basically the same rifle.

Thanks guys for the good info.  Some of my initial concerns have been put to rest, but i will definitely pay extra attention to the bolt.

Russ

I have a friend that has one it and it runs flawlessly.  Like any of these guns they are USGI spec parts so if you can get your hands on a USGI bolt and a few other parts that would be a plus.

I bought a Norinco a few years back. I will back up everything thats already been posted. Mine was unfired or atleast seemed to be.  But it was already at the very end limit on the field guage.I checked the contact surface of the bolt vs reciever lugs with layout blueing. There was minimun contact. Which isn't good.Im no expert.But have one and delt with a few of there flaws. I tested the bolt and reciver 's rockwell hardness at the machine shop I was working at. Both was considerablely off the USGI specs.I got the specs from Jerry K's M14 service manuel. Good read and a must have for a novice builders as well as someone who's works on them ingeneral.  I decided to just make it into a Norinco/USGI rifle. I sent it to Smith enterprise ( Ron Smith ) and let them do the conversion and heat treat. It was pricey $$ I had then repark the complete rifle also. But she is rock solid and sweet. There are some rifle that are within spec on the Rockwell scale. Some are some ain't. If the price was right I would get it reguardless. One thing I did notice on mine, the fit was sloppy on everything. While it would have praboly functioned fine, it's nice to have a oprod fit snug and have no slop in a rifle that I believed to be New. I got it at an Atlanta gunshow for $500 a couple of years ago. They are good builders anyway you look at it. Oprods are normally considered good but trigger groups are considered not as well as USGI same with the gas system being  not up to USGI quality. But non the less serviceable. Good luck Wardawg