The Bush Ranger Project
 | About This SiteHaving recently purchased a Norinco JW103 7.62x39 Bush Ranger rifle I noticed a distinct lack of information about them on the internet. My reasons for buying this, apart from it being on sale at half price was to get my hands on something I could turn into a tidy "bush rifle" primarily for shooting feral goats and for general range shooting. These rifles are a budget gun no question but they are based on proven designs and are essentially good, accurate rifles. Now of course in order to sell for the price they do you would expect the finish to be a little basic... and you won't be disappointed but I think they make a great platform for a fun "project" gun that doesn't empty your bank account! I hope you find the following information of some help or use. |
History
(from wikipedia)
The Norinco JW-103 'Bush Ranger' is a centrefire bolt action hunting rifle developed and exported by China North Industries Corporation of the People's Republic of China. The rifles are manufactured at Norinco's Hebei Plains Machinery Factory (No. 396 State Factory).
The Norinco JW-103 is part of Norinco's 'Jian Wei' (Chinese: 健卫; pinyin: Jiàn Wèi; literally "Healthy Guard") series of sporting rifles which began in 1955.[4] The JW-103s development began in 1993 to create a rifle for the lucrative foreign hunting market. The design for this new rifle was finalized in June 1995 with mass production put underway by the end of the same year. The rifle's design is based around the Norinco JW-15A, a Chinese produced copy of the Czech .22 LR Brno ZKM-451, itself a modernized variant of the popular CZ 452 rimfire rifle. The JW-103 uses a Mauser bolt action system and the receiver is made from both milled and forged steel while the barrel has a heavy blued finish. The rifle uses Russian designed 7.62×39mm cartridges which are fed from a detachable 5 round box magazine and has integral weaver scope ring bases which can be used to mount various types of scopes. The JW-103 itself, has no sights while the JW-105 has a front sight. The Norinco JW-103 and JW-105 are commercially available in many countries such as Australia, Canada, France, Germany and New Zealand.
The sole variant of the JW-103 is the Norinco JW-105 'Bush Ranger' rifle which is chambered for the .223 Remington cartridge. The JW-105 rifle is slightly longer a heavier than the JW-103. The JW-105 also has a front sight but is otherwise physically identical to the JW-103, but the JW-105 has a higher muzzle velocity than the JW-103. The JW-105 began development in 1999 with the target of expanding into the overseas hunting market by designing a rifle that would better appeal to shooters who may prefer the .223 Remington over the 7.62×39mm round. The JW-105's design was approved in March 2001 and with mass production starting immediately afterwards. The JW-103 and 105 are often advertised as light and reliable hunting rifles available at a lower price that similar rifles. The JW-103 is unrelated to the "Norinco JW-101" rifle which was a copy of the Zastava M48 bolt action rifle and which never entered mass production.
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