Norinco KL-3B .177 Caliber Review

Overall Rating

Low price
Good velocity
Good accuracy
Sturdy construction

Manufacturer lacking in QC
Stock and finish is low quality

I bought my KL-3B on a "whim"...low price made it a tempatation and it seemed like a good project gun. The gun is both of the above but also surprised me with its performance. It came saturated in a thick oil but, unlike many other guns, there was no rusting to contend with. The cleanup was fairly easy and after its bath and relubing was put to the test. It chronied out at under 800FPS but exhibited excellent groupings at 40 yards with a 4x32 scope fitted...it consistently put 5 shot groups into a 2" circle at that distance. With some chamber/piston work I'm sure this gun will achieve 800 FPS in the future.

I'm very pleased with this rifle overall. I've paid much more money for less gun in the past.

Members' Comments onBill.'s Review

• John. on 6th Apr 2003

  No way, no how, will this rifle ever reach 800 fps with the stock spring and piston seal (and without dieseling). 600 to 650 fps is more like it. If you get 700 fps out of yours, you got a good one.
  
  I am NOT knocking the gun, because for $34 USD delivered, you just can't expect too darn much. This IS a good value. My first Norinco KL-3B Fast Deer had a few problems that were easily enough sorted out with a bedding job, deburring, and compression chamber hone. The current owner of that rifle is delighted with it.
  
  My second Fast Deer actually has a beautifully figured stock. The compression chamber is smooth. It is very accurate with Eley Wasps. I'm keeping this one!
  
  For the money, give it a break.

• Bill. on 7th Apr 2003

  My KL-3B is still shooting great without any tear-down to date. The chronies taken back in March of this year were:
  
  High = 770.9 fps
  Low = 731.3 fps
  Avg = 751.5 fps
  
  These chronies were taken at approx. 10 feet from the muzzle. Spring/receiver section lube is Mobil synthetic lithium grease and I'm using Mobil AMOL 525 for seal/chamber lube. No deiseling and very consistent mid to low 700's after 20 shots have been fired. During the same chronie session I shot a B-4-2 (high 800's), a BEC18 (just over 900) and the KL-3B had a better "feel" to it in that there was less "jump and thump"...a much more comfortable gun to handle and fire even though it has a harder trigger pull.

• CVanMeter. on 5th May 2003

  I have read were several people are getting in the area of 720 with theirs. Several have taken the guns apart and done minor tunes to them and are getting that performance without any dieseling. Mine was hitting near 740 though it smoked like a black powder gun so much of that was from the dieseling which I solved by cleaning out all the stock oil in and out and used Molly Lube for the Piston Area. Dropped down to 560 fps but no smoking. I can't say I have heard of anyone getting 800 fps though

• Bill #2. on 9th Jun 2003

  I've just purchased a KL3-B based on the reviews posted, seemingly favor the Norinco over the Hercules B4-245. As you point out, for $25.00 how can you go wrong. Both: Bill fr.Il,and CVanMeter fr.N.W.USA. indicate to get best performance, the stock oil needs to be flushed out and replaced. My question is: without taking apart, how do you flush out the stock oil, And how do you get the new, into seal/chamber. This is my first "Single" pump air-rifle. My multi-pump version needs a "take-apart" breakdown to flush or relube the seal/chamber area. Would like some advise here.

• Bill. on 9th Jun 2003

  The majority of that nasty oil is only on the exterior of the gun and can merely be washed/wiped off. Flushing out the chamber requires disassembly to do a proper job but it can be "cleaned" by repeated flooding/draining of the chamber area with a light air tool oil. The chamber isn't as saturated as the rest of the gun and will eventually "shoot clean" over a period of time. The KL-3B has a leather piston seal so it's important to keep it "moist" with a light lube oil so that the leather remains soft and seals well against the chamber walls. The spring area/receiver should be lubed with some sort of grease so that it clings to the springs surface. Moly paste is good provided you "maintain" its consistency by keeping it "damp". Moly has a tendency to dry out over a period of time. It's a shooters choice on lubes...everyone air gunner has an individual preference mostly due to experimentation/results.
  
  Another area of the KL-3B that, for the most part, gets ignored is its lack of a crown on the barrel. It comes with a "pseudo" target crown but is merely a counterbore and does require some chamfering to improve accuracy. I used a small ball-bearing that I soldered to the head of a socket head cap screw, chucked that into a handdrill and used a fine grit grinding compound (400 grit Clover compound) to rework the muzzle end. You only need to "break" the sharp edge by about .020" or so then do a bluing retouch on that polished surface.
  
  Future questions/comments can be sent to me at:
  
  blklion@delphiforums.com
  
  --- bill