Ak-47 Barrel Crack

[GunFanatic37]

Ok so I finally got my new WASR-10 from Classic Arms and was very happy with it. When I first got it I field stripped it to check everything and cleaned the cosmo. When I looked down the barrel I noticed something that looked odd, but I thought that, hey since it's a new gun, it can't possibly be a crack. I figured it was some cotton fibers stuck on the rifling from my patches. I took it to the range today and put about 100 rnds through it and it never missed a beat and was pretty accurate for an AK. When I got home I took it apart again to clean it, and I saw the same dark line that is not apart of the rifling. I am sure this is a crack now. What are some of the potential catastrophes that can result from a cracked barrel? Do you think I should send it back and ask them to send me a new one? Some help would be appreciated. The crack is approximately 13 inches down the end of the barrel, about under the gas tube. The crack itself is minute, being I would say 3cm in length.

 

[Sam1911]

Sounds a lot more like a scratch to me, but you certainly can, and should, have them look it over and repair or replace it. No reason to purchase a "new" gun and get a damaged or scratched barrel.

-Sam

 

[GunFanatic37]

It is a crack I am sure. It may not be all that deep, but I can tell you it is not a scratch. I am not worried about the guns performance as long as this thing will not grow with more rounds through it as I have read. It shoos great right now for an AK rifle, I am just worried about catastrophic failure with the gun. Even if it is a just possibility after 10,000 rounds, I do not want the risk.

 

[dfariswheel]

If it is actually a crack in the barrel, it's suicidal to fire another shot out of it.

I strongly doubt is a crack, more likely a machine mark or a fault in the chrome lining of the barrel.

Send it back to the company DON'T FIRE IT AGAIN.

 

[The Lone Haranguer]

After a hundred rounds, if it were truly cracked, it would surely have come apart by now. But without being there to examine it there is no way to be sure.

 

[ncc1701a]

Just my 2 cents, but I have been looking to get a WASR-10 and have looked down several barrels and they all have a dark spot, blemish, oval shaped mark on the inside top of the barrel. I got curious and got permission to field strip one I was Looking at. I pulled the gas piston and top hand guard of and looked into the end of the gas block I saw a small hole. I got a thin fiberglass rod and pushed it into the hole and then looked down the barrel. The rod was coming out of the oval shaped blemish. So I am guessing that the blemish, crack, toolmark that you are seeing is the gas port leading up to the gas piston. I can't say for sure without seeing your rifle. Just an idea.

Shoot Safe

 

[GunFanatic37]

Just my 2 cents, but I have been looking to get a WASR-10 and have looked down several barrels and they all have a dark spot, blemish, oval shaped mark on the inside top of the barrel. I got curious and got permission to field strip one I was Looking at. I pulled the gas piston and top hand guard of and looked into the end of the gas block I saw a small hole. I got a thin fiberglass rod and pushed it into the hole and then looked down the barrel. The rod was coming out of the oval shaped blemish. So I am guessing that the blemish, crack, toolmark that you are seeing is the gas port leading up to the gas piston. I can't say for sure without seeing your rifle. Just an idea.

I guess that could be an idea. It looks to me to be more irregular than anything and does not appear to me to actually go through the barrel. But it is kind of hard to tell from the angle. I will try doing what you suggested and see if mine is the same way. My crack also goes sideways, across the barrel, not up and down it.

 

[rcmodel]

10 to 1 it's the gas port hole.

If the barrel were cracked, it would have blown up when you fired it, or during high-pressure proof testing.

rc

 

[GunFanatic37]

So should I send it back or what? I will try to take high resolution pictures but don't know how well they will turn out as it's inside the barrel...but will try.

 

[rcmodel]

It sure sounds like the gas port hole in the barrel, and if it is, it is not a defect.
It has to be there to operate the gas-operated action.

You said:

put about 100 rnds through it and it never missed a beat and was pretty accurate for an AK.

Which leads me to believe there is nothing wrong with it.
If the barrel was defective, it would have blown up when you put 100 rounds through it.

rc

 

[GunFanatic37]

Yea great news. I took off the gas tube to see if the hole came up and I was relieved that it did. Also to confirm my peace of mind, I took fishing line and stuck it through the hole of the gas tube. It came out through the hole in the barrel. I never knew about this before. Thx alot for your help.

 

[gun addict]

Just my 2 cents, but I have been looking to get a WASR-10 and have looked down several barrels and they all have a dark spot, blemish, oval shaped mark on the inside top of the barrel. I got curious and got permission to field strip one I was Looking at. I pulled the gas piston and top hand guard of and looked into the end of the gas block I saw a small hole. I got a thin fiberglass rod and pushed it into the hole and then looked down the barrel. The rod was coming out of the oval shaped blemish. So I am guessing that the blemish, crack, toolmark that you are seeing is the gas port leading up to the gas piston. I can't say for sure without seeing your rifle. Just an idea.

Shoot Safe

umm, that hole is where the gas becomes recycled and pushes off the piston

 

[Almond27]

Its funny when I first got my WASR about two years ago I thought the same thing lol. Then I found out it was the gas port hole.

 

[Jim K]

ROTFLOL! Years ago, I knew a guy who really wanted an M1 rifle. He got a chance at a very nice one, at a decent price, but turned it down, because, he told me, the barrel had a big pit in it an inch or so in from the muzzle!

Jim

 

[Seedtick]

the barrel had a big pit in it an inch or so in from the muzzle!

Dang it. I hate it when that happens.


ST

 

[WardenWolf]

Haha. I noticed this on my AK-type firearms as well, but I at least realized what it was in short order, particularly since I knew how an AK worked ahead of time. To verify what I was seeing, I took my high-powered INOVA flashlight and shined it through the gas port, and saw light coming through that same spot on the barrel. I was also able to visually reference where the spot was, and I placed my hand on the barrel at that point. Sure enough, it was right under the gas block.

 

[rcmodel]

See this cut-away animation to better understand why your barrel has a hole in it!

rc