A decade ago++ I modified my norinco 45acp 5” barrel. I fitted a surplus USGI barrel and a NM barrel bushing. It has a 100% lockup. At 25 yards using Russian wolf ball ammo she shoots cloverleafs and clusters off hand. The slide to frame fit I didn’t touch. I notice the frame rails measures the same front and back. I have a little looseness in the slide in the front section. So the slide is worn a tad. I’m on the fence now to upgrade the slide to a new slide. Should I bother or start a whole new project?

Cloverleafs and clusters offhand at 25 yards with cheap Wolf ball................ Sounds worn out to me. Time to start messin' with it.

Unless you're looking to improve the Norinco from what it is i.e. a solid
basic no frills 1911 why bother? Other than ambidexextrious safety, trigger job and a better fitting bushing I had a box stock Norinco for years. There were times it was the only 1911 I owned. No intent to improve it or trade it. Solid keeper 1911.

Then a good buddy retired from a PD and started gunsmithing. He wanted to do a gun for me. Ok now it is a bobtail, AO Big Dot night sights, ceracoated etc. Still a solid 1911 just fancier than it was. Why that pistol? My buddy was just starting gunsmithing professionally. While he has learned a lot and I'm very happy w the work he did I also remember reassembling some things he took apart many years ago and I'm no gunsmith. So if one of my 1911s was going to be at risk it was the most basic one I owned. He is one of my best friends but if one of my 1911 had to undergo experimental surgery it was gonna be the least expensive one I owned.

They are solid 1911s though and if you want something to build on it will work. It won't get wows from the guys who fawn on custom 1911s nor will it increase in value much. If you are learning smithing you aren't going to ruin a hi dollar handgun if you slip up. If there is something you have always wanted to see if you like on a 1911 but aren't sure you will like it, give it a go. The flip side is you have a solid shooter. It may not be pricey but it sounds like a pistol you could bet on.

Your choice!

The first job I did on it,,,

Purchase norinco $300
USGI surplus barrel $59. Sportsmanguide
Full length guide rod kit. $9 sportsmansguide
National match barrel bushing, cdnnsports $12
Full wrap around rubber grips $15 cdnnsports
Adjustable trigger $15 cdnnsports

I purchased every how to dvd, vhs video on the 1911. Plus the Jerry K book. I did all the fitting myself. I put in a disconnector ramp too.

I wanted to do a cheap build using bargain basement parts. Just to see how accurate it could be. Now I’m wondering how much better could it improve with a better frame rail to slide fit. She’s awesome at 25yds now. But haven’t tried it any farther.

I guess if you want to see what CAN be done it might be a fun project. I have a more practical approach to weapons, so I'm asking how much deader would anything be with tighter groups.

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Release the Kraken

I have a pair of Norinco 1911A1s that I bought on the cheap 25 years ago. I tricked them out as I like and they are crazy accurate.
The legend is:
They are made from old railroad rails, so the steel is hammered and compressed to a higher density. After 25 years mine show no wear, YMMV.

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I'm with her

The Kuhnhausen manuals are a set of two aren't they with how to info
on tightening slide fit?

Certainly nothing wrong with using a Norinco 1911 as the basis for a custom build. It is my understanding that the steel used by Norinco is a hard steel and that it is more difficult to machine cuts for sights. I expect that would also mean that tightening the slide and frame fit would also be more difficult.

BigBill, if your Norc is still producing excellent accuracy, I'd leave it alone other than possibly fitting it with better sights.

Don’t think you will see any better accuracy but you may make it more finicky on what it will feed etc. In my experience a little looseness is not a bad thing if it is not affecting accuracy. How does it do with premium ammunition? Think you might see more improvement playing with ammunition than slide fit that gives the level of accuracy you have now.

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Hue 68 noli me tangere

Out of all the how to videos on the 1911 the one that covers some fo the frame rail tightening is the AGI videos. I have the Wilson combat, Jerry k, ect. I just about purchased ever 1911 tool and fixture from brownells. Being a retired machine erector, builder and lead engineering tech in the lab I figure I could build anything.

Think about the barrel bushing as two “C” shapes with the opening offset and facing each other. When in full battery they firmly hold the barrel. I fitted them plus lapped them into each other together. The full lockup we cant push down on the barrel where the link is. Plus it’s within spec. Yet there’s no barrel spring at the end of travel in each direction.

I ended up with a low cost race 1911. Cheap parts does work, but how long will they last. I’ll look for a used 1911 to do the frame rail mods.

Note, I didn’t look closely at the norinco when I purchased it. At home I found the barrel bushing really loose in the slide more than the barrel fit. The NM bushing was over sized so I buffed the slide bore lightly till it took 1/8 of a turn with the bushing wrench to lockup. Next comes fitting the barrel.

By the way, really tight slide to receiver fit does not actually do that much for accuracy in the 1911. A tight fit is desired by those who use them for bullseye matches, but other than that, a little clearance makes the 1911 less prone to stoppages due to dirt, mud, ice, powder fouling, etc.

I remember participating in a USPSA match many, many years ago. It was a horrible day. Below freezing temperatures and a little snow and mist. The guys with the tightly fitted 1911's were experiencing a high number of stoppages. I stepped up to the line with my old military mixmaster 1911-A1. A few other shooters chuckled because my mixmaster, in addition to having a multi-color finish that was challenged in more ways than one, rattled when you shook it. They stopped laughing when I ran the full course with absolutely no stoppages.

Those cheap old Norincos were used as a base for a lot of super accurate custom guns. I think most were sold with the whole idea of customizing them.
I've heard tell that if you have the slide milled for adjustable sights that the gunsmith will charge you for a new cutter as that hard steel will ruin the one he uses.
I stumbled across a box stock Norinco 1911 a few years ago dirt cheap. I considered using it for a custom build, but then realized that you almost never see one that hasn't been customized any more. So I just left it the way it was figuring that these days a stock gun is rarer than a custom. Its actually a good shooter and completely reliable as is.

I never checked the barrel bushing to slide fit when I bought it. I wanted a cheap pinker. But then I thought why not fix it. I fitted the barrel to the nm bushing so the barrel sat horizontal, no hinge. Then I fitted the hinge so it had up and down movement. Then lapped the barrel to the up and down “C”. The C cradles the barrel. After the first test fire she was a tad tight when in full battery. Another lapping session cured that. I was going slow once the barrel spring at the end of each hinge direction I was close. I was happy to find a norinco unmolested.

Now after doing this norinco I had a new 1990 SA series 1911@1 that still was stove piping 1rd per 8rd mag. It is a series 90 in black part, taller sights, tighter slide fit from SA. It was in the safe from 1990. Since I have the 1911 tools I checked the extractor tention. In five minutes I fixed it. She runs ammo flawlessly now.

I don’t like people doing work for me. I’d rather learn.

This 1911 question hasn’t been answered yet.

Why is there more wear at the front rails than the rear?
I measured the frame rails there equal. Is the front of the slide spread?
I notice when I run any 1911 with a empty slide there’s a bump when it goes over the disconnector. I put in a disconnector ramp now that bump is gone. I did notice with a 18# recoil spring I hear the coils binding as I pull the slide rearward. I install the FLGR this coil binding is gone. Any thoughts?

I will point you back to my initial response (number 8). If it is producing excellent accuracy and runs reliably, I think it is fine. Tight slide to frame fit in the 1911 is overrated. It contributes very little to the accuracy of the pistol and a really tight fit can lead to reliability problems.

With reliability and accuracy such as your Norinco 1911 has, I'd leave it alone.

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What would Jim Cirillo do?

Norinco 1911 were a favorite of the 1911's that builders wanted for a custom 1911. I had one made up by Ikey Starks in Denver. He told me to find and buy the Norinco 1911 over a Colt 1911 for the build.

Up here.we can have Norks with adjustable sights for around $400.A few weeks ago,I saw one of my old buddies I was shooting with in the '90s who had stopped shooting but started back again with one such.I had my Gold Cup along...and his $400 steel hung was shooting as tight as my $1600 20 years ago dollars gun.
Anybody wanny buy a Gold cup for a good price?