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11/24/2018 1:48:56 PM

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Section 8: Handguns
Subject: Norinco 1911 Msg# 1029611

From:

Harvey Goldman

Joined 1/9/2001

To:

Mark Freburg (Read) Forum Manager

Joined 4/3/2000

Springfield never stamped their pistols "Model of THE 1911A1.

Well my Springfield had something like that on the slide? I checked my records and sold it in 1999, so details are a bit hazy. Shrug

The Norinco naval steel use came from several sources on the Internet, so it must be true! Wink Laugh

Harvey

For reference, the above message is a reply to a message where:
I had a Springfield, IIRC, Model of the 1911A1?, and it was priced similarly to a little more to the Norinco.

Springfield never stamped their pistols "Model of THE 1911A1." Roll Eyes Laugh That was strictly Chingrish... BigGrin

But the Norinco was made from recycled naval ship steel which was very strong...

I'm not saying you're wrong, but I never heard that. But if it were anyone but you saying it I'd dismiss it as an old wive's tale. Wink "Norinco," or China North Industries, made these pistols in various factories in different Chinese mainland locations just like they made other firearms around that country and stamped them all Norinco. Recycling naval ship steel would be almost more costly than using virgin steel because once they went to all the trouble to dismantle these ships and acquired the steel and turned it into usable size piece it would have to be melted, purified, graded, refined, then re-forged to a usable state. Then the hardness would have to be adjusted for ship steel to become gun steel. Just doesn't track for me. But I'm not an engineer.

...plus it had a chrome lined barrel for those who didn't like to clean 'em very often. Wink Laugh

I hadn't heard that or forgot it but that's not a draw for me in a pistol. Rifle, sure, but pistol, no.

Of course for me, the bottom line is that while the Norinco was a good pistol, I couldn't see pouring a lot of customization money into a what was still a low-end pistol. I'm not a customization guy, never have been, but if I was, I'd start with a little more mid-range base product. It's not quite making a silk purse out of a sow's ear because if it works, it works, but there are a lot of snazzy 1911s out there to this day with slides still reading "Model of The 1911A1." Hard to get around that weirdness.

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