Bobson
Member
I've had an AR with A2 front sight and clamshell handguard for a few years, and finally decided to convert it to a free float rail.
I had a heck of a time removing the gas block taper pins. I'm talkin two hours of trying to gently grind the heads of the pins and then tapping (read: banging the hell out of) the pins with zero movement whatsoever. I finally gave up and said I'll cut the gas block off completely, and if I damage the integrity of the barrel, I'll replace it with the appreciation for not trying to repeat this procedure in the future, but I’d already passed the point of no return.
So I got it the A2 front sight/gb off, and found that the taper pins were bored pretty deeply (at least a lot deeper than I expected) into the barrel.
Is it safe to just replace the gas block and keep using this barrel? It's a factory barreled upper from a well known company, and I've never had any issue with it or my other uppers by the same co, but this is the first time I've ever seen a barreled upper with the A2 front sight removed. Are they all like this?
Tried searching the net and couldn't find anything. Maybe I'm not using the correct terms.
I appreciate any help. And yes, I did scratch the barrel with my Dremel like an idiot, but now that I’ve seen the depth these pins were cut in at, I'm thinking those marks I made are inconsequential in terms of structural integrity.
I had a heck of a time removing the gas block taper pins. I'm talkin two hours of trying to gently grind the heads of the pins and then tapping (read: banging the hell out of) the pins with zero movement whatsoever. I finally gave up and said I'll cut the gas block off completely, and if I damage the integrity of the barrel, I'll replace it with the appreciation for not trying to repeat this procedure in the future, but I’d already passed the point of no return.
So I got it the A2 front sight/gb off, and found that the taper pins were bored pretty deeply (at least a lot deeper than I expected) into the barrel.
Is it safe to just replace the gas block and keep using this barrel? It's a factory barreled upper from a well known company, and I've never had any issue with it or my other uppers by the same co, but this is the first time I've ever seen a barreled upper with the A2 front sight removed. Are they all like this?
Tried searching the net and couldn't find anything. Maybe I'm not using the correct terms.
I appreciate any help. And yes, I did scratch the barrel with my Dremel like an idiot, but now that I’ve seen the depth these pins were cut in at, I'm thinking those marks I made are inconsequential in terms of structural integrity.
