Muzzle Brake Removal, Arsenal AK47

[kkayser]

corrosive NOT!

Most of the ammo has been Wolf: Military Classic and Performance. I have also used PPU and Fiocchi. Wolf is the most accurate.

I have applied about 80 ft-lbs torque. I am hesitant to go higher because this amount puts at least 800 pounds on the sight and at least 4 times that much on the openings I put the bar through.

I think what I'm going to do while I let it soak in the Hoppes is get a steel bar about the size of the sight. I will drill a hole to simulate the threaded hole for the sight post. Then, put it in a vise and see how much torque it can take before it bends. If I use only half of that, I should be ok.

As for being pinned, I think I can get it x-rayed for a nominal charge. That should show a pin if there is one.

I have pounded on it with a plastic tipped hammer. But, it is a small hammer. I think I will buy a cheap 2# plastic tipped hammer and give hammering another try.

 

[BBBBill]

I took brakes off two ban era Armalites, and I had a hell of a time finding the welded pin in both.

I had to file the finish off, all the way around the brake, until I found the end of the pin...

Same here. There are apparently some manufacturers who did their best to conceal the pin/weld.

kkayser, unless you really have to have the brake undamaged/in one piece, you're wasting your time fighting it. Just grind it until you find the pin. Once you get past the weld, you should be able to get it out and get the brake off with no damage to the barrel.

 

[AK103K]

kkayser,

Have you contacted Arsenal and asked them if it is, or isnt pinned?

At the very least, they should be able to tell you whats up.

 

[kkayser]

Hoope's removed black

I soaked it in Hoppe's 9 for a few days. The Hoppe's removed whatever was making the brake black. I am down to bare metal now. I can see the machining mark from the lathe which turned the brake. Therefore, if the brake is pinned, it was machined in a lathe after pinning. This could be done by mounting the sight assy. (with brake threaded on) on a steel rod the size of the barrel and chucking it in a lathe.

I'll try calling Arsenal again; the last time was a total waste of time. This time I will be insistent on talking to someone who knows about brake removal. Lots a luck on that.

 

[kkayser]

I finally got it off by heating to about 450 deg. F and applying 30-40 ft-lbs torque. I then replaced the brake with Teflon tape in the threads. After just a a hundred rounds, the brake was again frozen on. This time I was able to remove it with 40 ft-lbs torque or so. The teflon was totally missing. At first I thought that the gasses blew it out. But, upon further examination, I found that the notches in the brake acted like a thread chasing die, and scraped all of the Teflon out before the first shot was fired.

Gasses are driven into the thread because of the high pressures inside the brake. The way to stop this is to seal the threads on the muzzle end. For me, it is moot. I see no reason to use a brake. Brakes, in general double the sound pressure on the eardrum. I now use barrel nuts which, so far, remain loose.

 

[1KPerDay]

Anti-seize lube/grease, not teflon tape.

 

[kkayser]

Maybe

Any grease will be scraped out by the notches in the brake. Anti seize might work, but I doubt. What seems to happen is that the threads become filled with a black substance, probably carbon. The pressure inside the brake drives this into the threads. The threads, being very loose, allow a lot of this ugly stuff to pack the space between the male and female threads. This substance locks the thread at least as well as Loctite Red.

In any event, I recommend that everyone remove the brakes from AR's and AK's. They serve no purpose but to double the noise (unless, of course, you shoot fully auto).