Experiences with Norinco Customer Service

[gobsauce]

This is a bit of an odd thread, I'll admit. Another thread, talking about Norinco's oddities in the 90's got me wondering about their customer service.

Suppose you got a Norinco commercial SKS, not surplus, not bring back, not factory 26, but an SKS M or SKS D and it just didn't work. How would they go about this? Does anyone know? Obviously, if you buy a surplus SKS that doesn't work there isn't much you can do about it, but a comercial model?

Maybe someone in Canada can answer?

Y'know what they say, curiosity killed the cat and satisfaction revived it.

 

[burrhead]

Best I know, Clinton stopped importation of Norinco firearms in the 90s. There is no Norinco cooperate presence or importer in the US. What warranty?

 

[PapaG]

You find a good gunsmith and pay for it. I've repaired several of their 1911s. They're no different from other manufacturers products. Most parts for most models can be adapt ed.

 

[gobsauce]

Well, not asking about right now, asking about back when you could import them. Does this mean that if you got a dud, you just got a dud?

 

[NIGHTLORD40K]

Well, not asking about right now, asking about back when you could import them. Does this mean that if you got a dud, you just got a dud?

Back then you were largely dealing with the importers......and there were dozens of them, some pretty fly-by-night outfits. The bigger ones like Navy Arms, Century, Sarco, or Interarms would usually work with you to get the situation resolved, but I dont remember any direct support from Norinco.

I remember Century offering cheap SKS and AK parts kits side by side with the guns, I can only assume they were comprised of bits taken from returned, defective, or damaged guns. The guns themselves were so cheap at the time, especially the $75 SKS, that it was cheaper to simply replace them than try to fix a gun held together largely with welds and rivets.

 

[Speedo66]

I think most SKS's were sold cheap at gun shows by independent dealers, I never heard of Norinco themselves having a presence here.

I was always amazed that you could buy a brand new semi auto battle rifle for under $100. People were getting crates of 10 at @ $69.

That had to include transport from China, and profit for the importers, distributors, and ultimate sellers.

How could any manufacturer compete with those prices, and you wonder what they actually cost to produce?

 

[JohnKSa]

I was always amazed that you could buy a brand new semi auto battle rifle for under $100. People were getting crates of 10 at @ $69.

I've posted this before, but in the early 1990s, there was a pawnshop in the city where I work that was selling new Chinese SKS rifles for $49.95 and Chinese 7.62x39 ammo for 10 cents a round.

For just under $100 before tax, you could buy a new SKS and 500 rounds of ammunition.

And that was retail, not poking around in the Shotgun News trying to buy from a wholesaler/distributor.

I agree with the comments about customer service. If Norinco ever had any signficant presence in the U.S., I never knew about it.

Whoever you bought the gun from would probably replace it if there was a problem--other than that you were out of luck.

 

[Megawatt maker]

Best I know, Clinton stopped importation of Norinco firearms in the 90s. There is no Norinco cooperate presence or importer in the US. What warranty?

I think that was actually HWBush that banned Norico stuff from coming in. Forced labor was the excuse he used? Been a while

 

[Megawatt maker]

Lol...Norinco never had any customer service. Why would they? They stuff they sold was literally dirt cheap. Got a bad SKS? Go buy another one for 49 bucks!

Oh...the good old days!

 

[gobsauce]

Man, as I said, curiosity. I was born in 99, wasn't even a sperm back then.

 

[JohnKSa]

I think that was actually HWBush that banned Norico stuff from coming in.

Clinton.

1994 President's News Conference In Clinton's own words.
https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/the-presidents-news-conference-1085
"In view of the continuing human rights abuses, I am extending the sanctions imposed by the United States as a result of the events in Tiananmen Square, and I am also banning the import of munitions, principally guns and ammunition from China."

 

[DeepSouth]

You also have to remember back then the internet hadn’t killed off all the good mom and pop gun shops. Most of them were good to deal with, and if you bought a bum gun many of them would take it back and give you a new one. Now what they did with it I can’t say.

I just know “back then” it wasn’t terribly uncommon, at least in my area, for people to take a gun back the store they bought it from. Some had minor gun smithing services and would work on it for you, other would just give you a new one. This was obviously for a small window of time after you bought it.

I just wasn’t like today, I guess those smaller B&M’s took pride in what they sold and stood behind it.

 

[Speedo66]

The other thing is, in my limited experience, I've never heard of a Chinese SKS that didn't work right out of the box.

I don't know if they test fired them at the factory, but they all seemed to go bang every time you pulled the trigger.

 

[Megawatt maker]

Man, as I said, curiosity. I was born in 99, wasn't even a sperm back then.

I feel bad for you younger enthusiasts. You really got it busted off in you. Once upon a time..what seems like yesterday to me, but really a long time ago, we could walk into a LGS and buy 1440 round cases of surplus East German 7.62x39 ammo for 60 bucks...or less if you bought 3 or more. Along with those 49 buck SKS (sometimes could even find a used on for even dirt cheaper..lol)...

Ammo was corrosive AF crap...but it always went bang, and if we felt like cleaning the SKS after, we did, but if we didnt...who cared! It still worked if we didnt clean it, and besides, it was almost easier just to buy another one.

Man have things changed.

 

[alsaqr]

The other thing is, in my limited experience, I've never heard of a Chinese SKS that didn't work right out of the box.

Same experience here, they just worked.

 

[NIGHTLORD40K]

The other thing is, in my limited experience, I've never heard of a Chinese SKS that didn't work right out of the box.

I don't know if they test fired them at the factory, but they all seemed to go bang every time you pulled the trigger.

I had one safety lever snap off on a Norinco. Just removed it and that was that.

The Yugo SkS were well known for gas system problems thanks to the grenade launcher shutoff valve leaking, but the Norincos didnt have that problem of course.

 

[mokin]

You also have to remember back then the internet hadn’t killed off all the good mom and pop gun shops. Most of them were good to deal with, and if you bought a bum gun many of them would take it back and give you a new one. Now what they did with it I can’t say.

I just know “back then” it wasn’t terribly uncommon, at least in my area, for people to take a gun back the store they bought it from. Some had minor gun smithing services and would work on it for you, other would just give you a new one. This was obviously for a small window of time after you bought it.

I just wasn’t like today, I guess those smaller B&M’s took pride in what they sold and stood behind it.

Those are good points. If you got in good with the owners, sometimes they'd let you shoot the gun before you bought it.

 

[tark]

How could any manufacturer compete with those prices, and you wonder what they actually cost to produce?

It's called "slave labor."