I'm in love (Norinco JW-21)

[Retro]

Collected my Norinco JW-21 22 levergun yesterday. Went shooting this morning.

Man, I should have had this little gun 30 years ago.

It's got an incredibly complicated two piece bolt assembly, but that enables it to feed anything from a 22LR to an empty shell. Takes 15 LRs in the magazine.

1" at 25 meters with open sights.

Yes, I know, thread useless without pics. Pics are on my camera, USB cable is at work. Will fix this on Monday.

[2ndovc]

I had to look that one up.

Looks neat. Can't wait for a range report.

jb

[Pete44ru]

It's a Chinese copy of the Winchester 9422 Legacy, with a tang safety and a PG stock sans barrel band.



.

[rjohns94]

very kewl. congrats and I'm very pleased for you that its a shooter.

[AJMD429]

That looks like a pile of fun...

[20cows]

I don't guess they make a straight stock version of that do they?

[mescalero1]

I like it, how did you get it?

[Retro]

Thanks Pete44, I checked the Winchester schematic and it does indeed match.

Mescalero, as far as I know a number of them got imported to SA. I bought this one from an auction (well, I asked someone who went to bid on my behalf) about four years ago. So basically bought it sight unseen.

I also had a Norinco Olympia, a copy of the Walther. Sold that, silly me. Also a nice little gun. Finish a bit rough around the edges, but mechanically good.

Norinco 9mm pistols are quite popular here too.

More shooty goodness tomorrow, and pics on Monday, promise.

[TedH]

I've not heard of that one before. Looks like fun.

[gglass]

I'm only seeing that model from Canadian sources... Does anyone know of a U.S. source?

Hmmm... Maybe that's why the OP described the distances in meters... Just a theory.

[Ysabel Kid]

Very cool - looking forward to the pictures!

[Nath]

This must be a first on here, yes?

I have seen them on sale over here but never been up close to one.

How is the forewood held on?

Nath.

[Retro]

gglass, I see my details got lost in one of the moves. Have updated. I'm in Cape Town, South Africa. The Chinese are trying to take over Africa, so no problem getting Chinese... anything, I guess.

So I went to the range again on Sunday. I suck at shooting with open sights (coke bottle glasses, right handed with left eye dominance, and my right eye is the one I went half blind in 10 years ago (never knew a woman can put one under so much stress )

I'll put the small pics here, you can find the big ones at http://www.retro.co.za/gundex/firearms/JW-21/

Anyway, so I stuck a cheap (and I mean, cheap, as in nasty) BSA red dot on -- that BSA is made of fail. Will try with a more decent scope next.

So, open sights, 25 meters, 5 shot groups, off a front rest.



Swartklip "Match Trainer" -- basically the run-of-the-mill locally produced ammo (except they stopped producing it, I stocked up).



Swartklip high velocity. Got 3 boxes at a good price (still quite expensive). It doesn't shoot well out of any of my guns except this one.



Remington sub sonics. Same story as above.

I'll stick to the generic Swartklip for now.

OK, so then I went on to disassemble the JW-21.



(For some reason the server doesn't want to publish the picture of the left hand side).


Forearm is held on with a screw, I assume into a dovetail in the barrel.







One big magic screw...



... and it comes apart.





I mentioned that the bolt is quite complicated.

So there you have it

[mklwhite]

Would love to have one of those. Thank goodness uncle sam is there to protect me from any of those being sold around here.

[dsmith512]

No one in the US can get Norinco guns. They are banned from import do to illegal Norinco missile related arms deals with Iran. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norinco

[J Miller]

Retro,

That's a very interesting rifle. Too bad it's made in commie China.

By your pictures I can tell that with the exception of the tang safety and it's parts the action of that rifle is a copy of the Winchester 9422. The two piece bolt is actually simple if you have an exploded drawing and some instructions.

The only advice I can give is keep the bolt clean under the two extractors.

Joe

[Retro]

That's a very interesting rifle. Too bad it's made in commie China.

You have the opportunity of buying the 9422. That's a win in my books

By your pictures I can tell that with the exception of the tang safety and it's parts

Well, lemme tell ya, that's the only thing on this rifle that's in my opinion no good.

With the hammer down it works like a safety. Fair enough.

If you cock the hammer and engage the safety, then pull the trigger, the hammer doesn't fall. Also, fair enough. But if you then disengage the safety, *bang*, the hammer falls without you touching the trigger.

So get a 9422

OTOH I'm starting to suspect my post-sixty-whatever '94 in 44 Mag is no good. Best groups I've been able to get are around four inches at 25 meters / yards. OK, open sights, so what I've said earlier applies, but still.

Any magic recipes or loads for a '94 in 44 Mag? Or rechamber it in 44-40?

Edit: Laughing my backside off at the censor software that translates the phrase "a Papa Oscar Sierra" to "no good"

[Blaine]

I have one of the last 9422M made before Winchester folded.......I only wish my Marlins cycled as smooth and trouble free and I wish the Winnie had a Marlin trigger

[Rimfire McNutjob]

If you cock the hammer and engage the safety, then pull the trigger, the hammer doesn't fall. Also, fair enough. But if you then disengage the safety, *bang*, the hammer falls without you touching the trigger.

Ouch. I would also have to call that a big minus. Certainly here in the litigation capital of the planet.

[Charles]

Norinco make clones of a number of popular rifles and handguns. I have two of their 1911A1s and they are very good handguns. Sometimes the finish work is not up to US standards, but they have good steel, and are accurate and reliable. You just to swallow hard when you read "Made in China" on the gun. If you can get past that they are some of the great bargains of the gun world.

[Retro]

It's only a minus if you're planning to use the (no good) safety. I carry empty, or hammer down, and this one's safe both ways.

You have to face it, Norinco makes good guns. Yea, the finish is rough, but Winchester themselves made some less than perfect guns. As does a lot of other 'merkin manufacturers, from what I see on forums. I've only ever played with three Norincos, and all three were mechanically great. I've also only ever played with three Winchesters, but two were made in the previous previous century so that don't count, and the other one is mechanically rough and I can't get it to shoot... so...

So far, the only 'merkin rifle I own that shoots well is a fifties Savage 99 in 300 Savage. The Marlin 336 gets 2" at 100 but only with very specific handloads (change the primer and bets are off). The Winchester... *sigh*. But I have hopes for the others I've bought and still have to licence