I believe most Chinese M-1A copies in the U.S. are of Polytech manufacture, but I am not sure. Here in Canada, as mentioned above, we have Norinco M-305/M14-S rifles, which do not have soft bolts, as far as I know.
The stocks are, as you say, garbage. We replace them with USGI Fibreglass stocks (though they are getting more and more expensive because of import difficulties) as well as aftermarket wood and fancy SAGE / JAE-100 type stocks. They are fully compatible with USGI parts, and serious competitors upgrade them to match status for less than it would cost to do with a comparable Springfield.
For $400 CDN they are not bad, but for $750 US, I would buy a Springfield (assuming a Springfield costs about $1250 US. If the Springfield is $1500 or more, it may be better to stick with the Chinese M1A copy.) Mine shoots 2.5 MOA right now, using surplus ammo, and is probably capable of better with a more experienced shooter and better ammo. Reliability is fine as long as your mags are seated properly. The dislikes I have about the Chinese copies are: 1. that the gas cylinder is not chromed, while the USGI is. 2. The barrels are not indexed properly sometimes, and the front sights are therefore not at 90 degrees, sometimes. 3. Rear sight assemblies are sometimes loose, and the peep sight is sometimes crude in manufacture. Some people replaces theirs with M1 Garand or M1A match rear sight assemblies. 4. The stock is crap.
Otherwise, the receiver is fine, the barrel is fine, trigger is nice and crisp, mechanically it is completely sound. It is just those other parts that often need replacing, IMHO. I would say most Chinese M1As are "fixer uppers" ranging from minor (just replace the stock and rear sight) to more serious (as in the case of some reported Polytechs).
