Norinco 1911A1

I asked this question along with another one in the Rifle Forum, but wanted to see how many people have had experience or insight on the Norinco 1911A1 45 ACP.
I realize it is quite inexpensive compared to the any of the other 45's, even the base model Colts, etc., so if the fit and finish is a bit 'lesser', it would make sense. I don't really care how it looks, as long as it functions reliably and shoots reasonably accurate. It isn't going to be for self-defense, and my life won't depend on it feeding and firing 100 percent (although it sure would be nice if it does!!!)
I have read in other Forums, on other sites, that it is a good base to build a gun on....but if you buy one brand new for $425, and then have to dump another $500 into it to make it 'racier', one might be better off in the first place spending the extra money and getting a more expensive gun in the first place. Insights...

 

Hi there. A friend of mine has a Norinco 1911. It is a good gun for the money. When he got it we changed out the recoil spring, and bought 2 7round Wilson mags. At $28 each they are the best there is for 1911 mags. I think so anyway. The Norinco's arent as nicely finished as the Colt's but they are damn nice if all you want is a shooter/self defense 1911. The metal is of good quality from what I understand. It eats everything we fire through it. FMJ and HP's. You can do a lot worse in a 1911. Also $425 is a bit too much IMO for a Norinco since they havent imported them in a while. 1995???
At any rate I see them around for $300-350, if you look around a bit. Or find a reasonable seller. Some people seem to think that their used gun is worth more than a new one All kidding aside they are good guns.
A lot of 1911 problems come from 3 things. Bad/CHEAP mags."Home Gunsmiths" Or trying to ram a fancy HP into a chamber meant to feed FMJ ammo. Not all 1911's need to be worked on to be reliable. This is a myth. I have Glocks and if i put a $15 17round PRO-MAG in it, guess what? It jams. With factory Glock mags there is never a jam or a problem. I own S&W's Colt's as well. All guns have bad examples. Get one for less if you can. Get good mags and you should be fine. Also Norinco's are used as base guns for build ups quite a bit. This tells me they are made of good metals. No reputable gunsmith would build on a gun made of cheap metals. Hope this helps. Good Luck.

 

Hello.

Several months ago, I got a like-new Norinco 1911 at the upper end of what I would pay, but I've not regretted that purchase. In an earlier post,elsewhere, I described the things I did with the pistol. After finally getting the fixed sights regulated, I took the pistol out today for a check and to move the fixed sights if necessary.

The Pistol: This pistol came stock. Nothing's been done in terms of accuracy, but it does have some add-ons that I did myself.

Kimber blk rubber stocks
Colt hardchromed grip screws
Stainless Colt thumb safety
Chip McCormick trigger
Ed Brown sear and hammer
Flat, 20LPI-checkered, M/S housing
Wolff 18.5lb conventional recoil spring
Wilson Shock Buff in place
Colt E-nickled magazine release
Colt E-nickled slide stop lever
Wilson "drop in" Grip Safety (It did!)
Skateboard Tape on front grip strap

Gunsmith, Scott Mays, added the fixed sights. The rear sight is a King's hardballer and I flat don't remember what the front sight he silver-soldered on is! He then applied a matte finish to the top of the slide and polished the flats before bluing.



Ammunition: Today, the pistol was fired with the following rounds and an 8-round Wilson magazine was used:

Winchester USA 230 gr FMJ
Federal 230 gr Classic JHP
Corbon 200 gr +P JHP (Old, pre-Gold Dot bullet)
Handload:
200 gr Rucker CSWC
5.0 gr Bullseye
WLP primer
Starline Cases
LOA: 1.27"

For what it's worth, which ain't much, it'd rained up here today. Just for grins I fired a round of each JHP into some mud and pulled out the expanded bullets to see. Not a scientific test a tall and likely meaningless, but interesting, at least.

The bullet, round on the left is Corbon, while the other's the Federal.


Distances & Testing: Today, all firing was slow-fire with the 15 yard groups being fired standing, w/2-hand hold. No fifty-yard stuff today; I was running short of time and didn't care to trapse through the mud all that much. Also, twenty-five yard groups were fired from seated with my arms rested on my range box and a coat rather than standing.

15 Yards:

Each of these 10-shot groups were fired with the handload described above. When I'd do my part, it did its.



It becomes clear that the sights need to move a bit to the left.


I wasn't shooting very well here.

At this point, I messed around with the fixed sights and moved to 25 yards. Again, these were fired from a rest and not freehand.

25 Yards: The group fired with the USA ball consisted of 6 shots, all that I had left and as the picture will show, I blew one of them! The handload's group was of 10 shots.





So, the gun's "on" plenty good for me and for the uses I'll put it to.

Observations: I have continued to be pleased with this pistol's reliability. Roughly, 1200 rnds plus have been fired with zero malfunctions. Ejected cases are not dented or bent and ejection remains positive. The home trigger-job which was done on this pistol continues to remain true and crisp. Accuracy has been most surprisingly pleasant for a service grade pistol.

While my personally-owned and tested Norinco 1911s consists of but one, based on my experiences, I highly recommend these pistols for folks wanting a fun-to-shoot, reliable and pretty darned accurate forty-five. I suspect that many buy these as "base guns" for more refinement. This one's "refined" enough and will stay as it is.



Best.

PS: Since I originally posted this as a range report, I've changed the grip safety to an old Pachmayr "drop in" that fit a bit better than did the Wilson, though it worked just fine. I've fired around another 400 to 500 rnds of various bullet styles through the pistol and so far, zero malfunctions.

 

I bought one new in the mid 90s and it functioned perfectly. I'd say I put 2500 rounds through it with all kinds of ammo. It was totally stock except for mags. I should have kept it, if I find one for the right price someday it is on my list to buy......tom

 

I like the Osama targets.

 

I have three of the pistols. The only problems I had with them have been magazine related. I have not had a failure to feed, fire and eject with Wilson, McCormick, Wolff, Randall or USGI magazines. I don't know how many rounds have been fired through the three.

I do think that $450 might be a tad high in price unless it was for one of the 800 or so chromed ones or one of the 500 - 600 Commander(tm) sized ones that were imported before the ban.

 

The 2 I've shot were quite nice & really good shooters. Both were Mil-Spec versions so they were probably going to see some modification. If you find the right price, it probably would be a good base.

 

After a strong recommendation from a gunsmith to do so, about four or five years ago I picked up a Norinco NIB for about $300 at a gun show, with the intent of building it into a competition gun...and then promptly had to put it into storage in Indiana while I went overseas...haven't retrieved it yet.

A couple of years ago I returned to work in California, and, wanting something to shoot, ran across an individual selling one in a Fresno gunshow...grabbed it quickly at $330! It was nearly new, stock except for a Clark trigger and rubber grips.

I took it to the range to see what it needed changed...and haven't changed a thing yet! That gun is extremely accurate, and has digested a wide range of loads and bullet types without a single failure. I handload, and have put probably 4,000 rounds through it.

I've owned and shot a large number of .45 models, and I fire the Norinco more than the others by far...even my Kimber and factory target model EAA Witness, both of which are a bit picky about some loads. If I really had to choose one to keep and not replace, it'd probably be the Norinco.

As to the price, due to Clinton these guns haven't been imported for years, and the price will increase. Parts are completely interchangeable with the original Colt A1. I haven't seen one for sale anywhere, even in Shotgun News, since I bought my last one.

 

I've had good luck with mine, but by the time you pay for the usual add ons, you could have bought a Kimber! The Kimber probably won't shoot any better than the Norinco, but it will be better in the finish department.

 

I have two Norincos. I have put around 8000 rounds through one and about 2500 through the other, mostly GI or GI spec, but some HPs also. I use only the Norinco mags or USGI mags.

I have had NO failures of any kind. That is zero. Zilch. Nada. Except for bluing wear on the slide rails, neither gun looks as if it had ever been fired.

NO modifications of any kind. Very tough guns. Amazing.

Jim

 

Based on the experiences I've seen on this thread, its almost too bad I don't still have an original configuration Norinco. Mine I bought on Ebay while they still allowed gun sales. It was from an IPSC shooter in PA who had already installed a drop in beavertail and had a professional trigger job done. This Norinco still has the sweetest trigger of any of my 7 1911s. Since I bought that gun, I have installed Bomar sights - the original sights really are pretty awful. I also had a Schueman barrel fitted after trying one of the Wilson (Dwer?) group grippers to no avail. Its a pretty sweet in its current configuration. The blueing and finish are still easily the worst of any of my 1911s.

Its not that I regret the changes. I have big fleshy hands and I really need a beavertail to prevent hammer bite. The original barrel shot around 3-4" groups at 15 yds, and I now shoot 1-2" groups at the same range. (Yes, I know you can do better - but its a game of personal bests for me). The only reason its not my favorite shooting 1911 is that I installed an Optima on my Kimber Classic and these old eyes really like the dot.

 

Thanks

Thanks for the info.......$425 is CANADIAN pricing for brand-new, unissued, outta the grease. That works out to around $300 or so greenbacks, I believe. I think I'm gonna be the proud new owner of a handgun; just trying my hardest to be a politically incorrect Canuck. Screw the government and their assinine gun laws....

 

If everyone did this, gun control would go under. The government cannot arrest and imprison the whole population.

One serious problem with Norinco 1911's....not enough of them around here!!!! It has been a while since I have seen one at a shop or at a show.

 

BTW, my everyday, keep this tubby person safe from harm carry pistol is one of my Norincos.

 

Here's my Norinco...
Bought it from Milarm a couple of years ago for 325.00 Cdn.

Put a few upgrades on it and I am way pleased with the results.

 

Norinco Model 1911A1 - Firing Pin Block

I have a Norinco 1911A1 that I purchased new in the mid-1990's. Would it have a firing pin block safety? How would you tell? If not, can one be added by a gunsmith?

 

Norinco Model 1911A1 - Conceal Carry

What's the best shoulder holster for conceal carry of a 1911A1, 5 inch?

 

What's the supply for Americans?

Eventually I want to have a 1911A1 style pistol (well, more than one, but that's even more eventually ), and while there are some moderately priced ones that are of decent reputation, the price/performance ratio of the Norincos seems to be even better. (I'm thinking of the Kahr 1911, the RIA, and the slightly-more-expensive Taurus.)

So can Americans get a new Norinco, or only used stock that's been in the country for 30 years, or what?

timothy

 

We're outa luck for new Norinco 1911's

With all the good reviews I've read over the time here, I'm going to be on the lookout for one at the next gunshow. Either that or I'll be picking up a Saiga .308. Decisions, decisions.

 

I've had 2 in the past, a blue and a nickeled version. Both were great guns for the money, sold them both to "move up to" better quality 1911's.

Several 1911's later, I bought another Norinco, modified it a little, and have it at someone's professional refinishing facility now.

Yes, you can spend the bucks on a ready made everything already done for you 1911, but for me, doing it a step at a time is half the fun.

Simply put, the Norinco is great value, but shoot it first before you modify it.

 

Here's my Norinco.


FerFAL

 

HELMMORTGAGE, the Norinco is pretty much an exact clone of the original Colt 1911A1, except for a rougher outside finish...completely interchangeable parts. If the original Colt had the block safety, the Norinco will have one.

Can't help you with your question about the shoulder holster. The best belt holster I've used has been the Fobus adjustable...by loosening the pivot screw you can adjust the holstered gun angle to everything from cross draw to right hip to small of the back...then tighten the screw. Very versatile and durable. The 1911 is rather large for an ankle holster, but I commonly carry my Makarov there.

It's gotten so that the only one of my 1911's I shoot is my Norinco. My Kimber and EAA custom shop guns are annoyingly picky about ammunition...the Norinco digests anything I put in it.

 

FerFAL,

WOW. That's a beautiful Norinco. Is that a high polish blue on the slide?

 

Norincos are awesome!

 

Here is the problem I have with Norincos, they are NOT as cheap as everyone says they are! I have never seen one sell for less than $400 and most go for $450-500. I have bought several SA 1911s for that kind of money and I find it hard to believe that a Norinco is as good as a SA 1911. For $500-600 you are in the used Colt range, see what I am getting at?

If you can find one for $250, snap it up, but those are more myth than truth I think. They sell for $400-500 which puts them smack dab in the "I will never pay that much for one" range. I have no doubt they are decent guns but for the money, I think they are a fool purchase.

Norincos are the kind of pistol that you pay top dollar for but then when you go to sell it, nobody wants it and you end up taking a huge loss. No thank you.