Last week I picked up my new norinco JW15E 22lr from the LGS. It cost me $270 which included rings (sportmatch by the look of them) and a nikko scope, 6X40AO. I was stoked to finally get it after waiting about 7 months. Handling it, a few things were evident which I really liked.
- The only plastic on the whole gun is the stock. All other parts are steel as far as I can see. This includes the very solid 9 round steel magazine, which also has a steel follower. Most 22’s these days seem to have crappy pressed tin mags with a plastic follower. The open sights were all steel as well – front and back.
- A simple trigger system which I quite like on a working 22lr (not much to go wrong). The trigger pull was suprising. For my tastes it’s an ideal weight. There is a small amount of take-up then a fairly crisp let-off, followed by a lot of over travel, which doesn’t worry me at all.
- It’s a very solid, no frills design, with simple safety, which blocks the sear from moving forward when engaged. At the rear of the bolt, lock-up is provided by a lug integral with the root of the bolt handle, and another opposite, which locks into a recess in the receiver. A pretty solid system for the humble little 22lr. The receiver is generally pretty solidly constructed for a 22 as well.
- An ejection system, which incorporates a lug poking up from the magazine housing (with which it is an integral part). This system is superior IMO to the little steel prongs you see poking out of some US made 22’s to serve the same purpose. Like such prongs, the lug also serves as a guide for a race-way cut in the underside of the bolt.
- Solid, chunky extractor hooks – appears to be millied steel. Much better than the folded sheet-steel types I’ve seen in the mossberg’s for example…
- The nikko scope was a surprise – especially after hearing many horror stories of shite quality with this brand. It’s certainly no loopy or bushnell, let alone anything like the big name euro’s, but for a cheap scope with a cheap reputation I was very impressed. Clearer than I expected, reasonable eye relief and an adjustable objective (which I pretty much just leave on the 50 yard setting). The windage and elevation adjustments seemed to be fine, with good positive clicks, and no wondering zero. I also liked the mildot reticle for mucking around at longer 22 ranges, with known holdover points. It is however a bigger scope than I like on a 22, so it will soon be swapped for a redfield 2-7x33 with the accurange reticle.
On initial inspection, the only things I could find that weren’t a positive (considering the price) was the milling inside the receiver was a bit rough, and bolt travel wasn’t exactly slick. After firing a few bricks of ammo through it over the weekend, the bolt is noticeably smoother. With the amount of use this gun is going to see, that will only get better in the next few months. Also the stock as it comes is great if you want to just use the open sights – but much too low for a scope IMO. Luckily I had a strap-on cheekpiece previously purchased from Nigel (500nitro on here) ready and waiting for the rifle. It worked perfectly and enables a good cheek-weld, and ideal eye-scope alignment. If I ever decide I want to take it of and use the open sights, I can just unstrap it and peel off the 2-sided tape.
Range testing was a pain, as we are getting into the windy season out here, and I was using a sleeping bag and jacket as a rest from my crappy little fold-up camping table. No room for rear sandbags/rest. With winds gusting fairly strongly all day, and a piss-poor excuse for a bench it was not an ideal time to be testing the grouping ability of a 22. Regardless, shooting 5 shot groups at 50 yards revealed that both power points and Winchester subs would shoot just under an inch. The federal champion 40gr solids weren’t great – giving roughly 1.75 inch groups. The federal 36gr bulk-buy hollowpoints managed to group around the 1.5 inch mark. When I get a calm day and the time I plan to also test the CCI velocitors, quickshocks, winny bushmans and Z’s that I have on hand. Luckily the Winchester powerpoints and subs are the 2 loads I want to run in this rig anyway, and I have no doubt the rifle would bring in better results on a calm day with a proper bench set-up.
To blood it I did a bit of drive-around spotlighting. I don’t have a proper vehicle mounted spotty at this stage (soon to be rectified). My wolfeye’s 260 hunter torch had to do the job on it’s own. I managed to find this fella from some distance thanks to his nice reflective eye’s. After closing the gap along the road, I managed to punch a powerpoint through this fellas lungs at around 80 yards. A quick run then nose-dive, and he was mine. Nice winter coat, and since he was headed towards one of the lambing paddocks it was a good result for the cocky, as well myself, however small.
I wish there were some rabbit warrens I could hit with the norinco!
Alas they aren’t that keen on the black-soil out this way…….
I will definitely float the barrel, and possibly bed the action in the near future, as the results can only get better. There were a few failures to extract cases after about 1.5 bricks had been through her, and I have encountered this before in other 22’s – always only happens with the winny subs and powerpoints. I think they are a bit heavy-handed with the wax coating…..
Other than that the rifle was utterly reliable – feeding, extracting and ejecting flawlessly.
The best thing to come out of china in a long time IMO, and certainly one of the bargains of the year on the new gun market.
