WASR-10 Front sight -- windage, can't move it!

[CNYCacher]

The front sight on my wasr-10 is stuck and won't move left-right. I even have one of those sight adjustment tools from AIM:



Friends, I bent that thing open trying to get the front sight to budge on my WASR. After removing the tool from the gun, the threaded bolt doesn't even line up with the hole on the opposite side anymore, and sight never even budged.

What gives? Should I try penetrating oil? BFH?

Currently the plan is to spray it with some kroil or pbblaster and then try a BFH with a large drift punch. Hopefully that adjustment tool will work better once the thing has been broken free.

Any advice?

 

[Firehand]

Support the sight fixture with a sandbag or something else solid. And it shouldn't take too big a hammer; helped a guy do this at the range one day, my 2oz. and a suitable punch did it.

He'd bent his sight adjusting tool, too. Some of these and some SKS rifles, the damn things are incredibly tight.

 

[default]

And it shouldn't take too big a hammer

Classic AK advice.

http://www.gunsnet.net/Linx310/ is a great resource for WASR questions and issues.

 

[MechAg94]

Hit is harder.

 

[xsquidgator]

Just to ask, did you have the hole on the sight adjustment tool perfectly lined up with the sight? I also bought one of these tools a week ago and used it for the first time the other day, and the first time I put it on I didn't have it lined up right- this meant the sight adjustment tool was blocking the path of the part of the sight you're trying to push left or right.

On my WASR the hole in the sight adjustment tool is *just barely* big enough to allow the sight to go through the hole in the tool, in fact I had to press-fit it on before starting to crank down on the screw adjustment tool. It was still very tight, and I had to use a closed-end wrench on the screw lever to get enough leverage to push the sight, but it did move. But, had I not checked whether the tool was lined up correctly, I might have bent up the sight adjustment tool the way you're describing.

 

[MartinS]

File out the hole in the tool if it is too small or close to too small, give it some breathing room.

 

[Dave R]

I used the hammer technique with fine results.

Supported the front sight base well, used a 9mm shell casing as a punch, and whacked it pretty good a coupla times.

Windage wound up perfect.