Norinco 1911 A1 ??

[Sandhog308]

I was gifted this Norinco .45 . As far as I can tell it hasn’t been shot much, if any ??
I swapped the handles for some rubbery ones , that’s all I’ve done. I don’t expect it to shoot like my 70 series Gold Cup of course , just wondering about how reliable it might be ?

What’s the least I could do to make it that way ? Not planning on making it a platform for many improvements , but don’t want to pack anything that will stove pipe every other round I know it’s from China , but I couldn’t beat the price. $0.00
Any ideas appreciated

 

[Ledzep]

I've never been deep in the 1911 community but from what I remember hearing these were actually pretty well received as the base for builds because the frames were made of decent steel.

My experience with Norinco in general is that they usually work OK out of the box but can handle some fit/polish work. I've only handled their SKS and an 1897 trench gun repro.

 

[powdahound76]

Pretty sure these Norinco 1911s are pretty decent for the most part.

@MikeMiller
Tagged because I know you had one FS that had some things done and was a good shooter.

 

[Sandhog308]

Thanks guys !
There was a thread where a hider had one with quite a bit of mods and work done , but I don’t want to get in too deep $$ wise. I’ve had a few SKS’s made by them that functioned well. Had a Poly Tech Legend AK that was nice but let it go.
I’ll grab some .45 ball & other .45 rounds and shoot it and see how she shoots soon.
If it’s a keeper , I’ll have some fit/polish work done.
It’s borderline ignorant hot in my AO , no range today ,

 

[MK20]

I was gifted this Norinco .45 . As far as I can tell it hasn’t been shot much, if any ??
I swapped the handles for some rubbery ones , that’s all I’ve done. I don’t expect it to shoot like my 70 series Gold Cup of course , just wondering about how reliable it might be ?

What’s the least I could do to make it that way ? Not planning on making it a platform for many improvements , but don’t want to pack anything that will stove pipe every other round I know it’s from China , but I couldn’t beat the price. $0.00
Any ideas appreciated

View attachment 8470619

They are not the smoothest finished guns on the inside, but they are actually true GI spec and made from VERY, VERY hard steel. The only occasional problem is the barrels are sometimes soft. Check for locking lug rounding every few hundred rounds for the first 500 rounds.

 

[Modoc]

Mine actually shot better than I do. Not a bad starter for building aon, but some of the slides were hard enough to preclude milling for changing sights. After going through the Lassen College Gunsmithing School in the ‘90’s mine has been an exceptional performer, but that was before we could buy decent 1911’s off the shelf. Like any other pistol, you may need to try different magazines before modifying the gun.

 

[MK20]

The factory where these were made is believed to be the factory right next to China's arty gun barrel ordnance steel production plant, so logic says they were likely made from some version of high grade ordnance steel.

 

[DeathBeforeDismount]

Very good base guns for custom builds.

 

[MarshallDodge]

I have two of them, and they are both reliable with a few upgrades.

#1 was purchased new in the early 90s. I swapped the mags for Chip McCormick shooting stars, and put in a full length guide rod which helped with accuracy. I also swapped the hammer and sear with a drop-in kit. The original was gritty and inconsistent.

#2 was picked up from a local guy about 10 years ago. He had a gunsmith put a new barrel in it as well as some other tasteful upgrades.

 

[MikeMiller]

The Norinco is one of if not the best platform to build off of. The steel is a PIA to work with but tougher than the normal 4140 steel most use. From the factory they are ok but not great

 

[powdahound76]

Sounds like a little project needs to happen……

 

[drglock]

Couple buddies of mine used them for limited 10 base builds back in the late 90’s. Had a local retired Air Force armorer that was the gunsmith for their bullseye team. Upgrades were pretty cheap from him, think they did trigger, sight and Kart barrel upgrades. They ran those guns for a long time with lots of rounds and never a problem.

 

[Sandhog308]

Thanks guys , another rabbit hole and $uch !!
Field stripped it and the finish and edges are relatively smooth
I know a retired Navy GMC ( Gunners Mate Chief) that may be interested in tickling it ??
He was stationed at Crane Island Indiana back in the day. He will either help or not ??
That’s what Chiefs do

 

[Aftermath]

Shoot it a few hundred rounds doing slow cadence and fast. Give it a shake down cruise. You may find things that really do need to be addressed.

Put an empty case in the magazine and live rounds of top. It should feed the empty into the barrel.

You are likely going to need to at least polish the feed ramp. I'd be looking at enlarging the ejection port (towards the barrel, it's common). Polish the trigger parts that rub on each other but be careful that it's just a good shining and not any true material removal. I like a larger thumb safety and smaller magazine release and beveling the magwell.

 

[MarshallDodge]

Be very careful when polishing a feedramp. Taking off too much material can ruin the critical geometry.

My stock Norinco feeds ball, semiwadcutters, and several different hollowpoints without an issue, but I had to change over to the Shooting Star mags.

 

[Sandhog308]

Thanks for the advice and tips
Talked to my former Gunners Mate Chief friend last night. He said he’d be happy to
to help me , will tutor and supervise me. He’s headed to Alaska to fish next week , when he returns we’ll see what it needs His shop is like a small armory.