Wow - My AK47 Jammed! - Page 2

NRAJOE · 01-16-2008, 02:56 PM

K-VAR Corporation :: Spare Parts & Accessories :: Bolt Carriers and Gas Pistons

Herman · 01-19-2008, 01:51 PM

Hey guys,

I got my camera to work again, so I thought I'd enclose some pictures to better explain what I'm talking about as far as the gas tube not seeming like it's aligned perfectly well. At first, I thought it was the new handguard I had installed, but now I see that even without the handguard, it's still not perfectly straight. It's hard for me to explain, so here you go:

Is it possible that this misalignment is what caused the piston to bend in the first place? Thank you once again for your help, and I hope I'm not beating a dead horse here!

Mooseman684 · 01-19-2008, 02:00 PM

Rotation of the gas tube along the Axis has no affect on the piston !
Lets see pics of the bolt carrier and piston assembly from a couple angles...
Tapco should have pistons....
Rich

Herman · 01-19-2008, 05:45 PM

Here's the Piston and Bolt Carrier. Hope this helps! (I took some pictures from other angles, but they're not uploading for some reason. I can try again if you need them.)

Thanks

Mooseman684 · 01-19-2008, 06:11 PM

Other than the crack, it looks straight enough to function...Hmm...I wonder if your bolt carrier had jumped out of the rails during firing or something...
I wish I could help ya more...
Rich

Here is a good deal on a piston...
AK-47 Gas Piston [315 / AK-47 Gas Piston] : BlackJack Buffers LLC

evilblackrifle · 01-20-2008, 03:00 AM

I'd look for a burr or such like SwedeSteve suggested before I'd start spending money on bolts and other stuff.

Herman · 01-20-2008, 11:05 AM

Well, I ordered a gas piston I found on that KVAR site for 10 dollars. I was finally able to remove the gas tube, and I didn't feel anything funny in there. By the way, what should I use to clean the gas tube? I have some gun cleaner and lubricant, but I'm not really sure what can and can't go into the gas tube.

Oh, and one more thing - People will often tell me to clean and inspect the "chamber." Now, when someone simply says "chamber," are they referring to the gas chamber or some other part that I'm unaware of?

Thanks.

Mooseman684 · 01-20-2008, 12:13 PM

Use any good cleaner to clean the gas tube, even spray brake cleaner , or windex ,and mop it followed by a light wipe of oil. The "chamber " is the barrel chamber that the cartridges enter...You should be able to insert a live round fully in to position and pull it out with your fingers freely..the rear of the shell will protrude out a bit.
Rich

Herman · 01-23-2008, 04:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mooseman684

Use any good cleaner to clean the gas tube, even spray brake cleaner , or windex ,and mop it followed by a light wipe of oil. The "chamber " is the barrel chamber that the cartridges enter...You should be able to insert a live round fully in to position and pull it out with your fingers freely..the rear of the shell will protrude out a bit.
Rich

The piston's here, but I'm not quite sure how I get it out of the bolt carrier. Can anyone enlighten me?

just_a_car · 01-23-2008, 06:23 PM

It should be threaded into the bolt. There should be a hole on the same side of the bolt as the charging handle where you can see the threads of the piston.

As for removing it, I would say try to get it out by hand. I wouldn't recommend tools unless it's something like a rubber-wrench (yano, those strap-wrenches that you tighten around stuff to turn them).

I also recall that some of these were welded onto the bolt and had the weld ground down flush with the surface. Be sure to check for that since you won't get anywhere without removing the weld if it is.

Mooseman684 · 01-23-2008, 09:17 PM

Most are just threaded in and then Staked in one or 2 spots, so it may unscrew with some difficulty...A small pipe wrench should do it...Carefully ! clamp the front "Tube" of the carrier Tightly in a vise with Lead or aluminum protected jaws, leaving the last inch protruding where the threads would be.
Rich

Herman · 01-23-2008, 11:16 PM

Well, I've determined that this thing is going to be impossible to unscrew without some heat. Even with a pretty large clamp and a wrench, I couldn't get the thing to budge at all. There must be some glue or something where the piston threads into the bolt carrier. I'll update again when I finally get the thing out - it's really stubborn!

Herman · 01-27-2008, 10:10 AM

I finally got a torch, heated it up, tried to unscrew it, and the piston actually snapped inside of the bolt carrier! Looks like I'm going in for a new bolt carrier.

Mooseman684 · 01-27-2008, 01:48 PM

THat happens sometimes...A new bolt carrier runs about 30 bucks...
Rich

knightRider · 01-27-2008, 01:58 PM

dang theirs always a lemon , i feel sorry for ya man.

just_a_car · 01-28-2008, 01:45 AM

Yuck... Sorry to hear it didn't work out for ya.

Hope ya get 'er up and runnin' soon.

01-16-2008, 02:56 PM	#21
NRAJOE Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Toledo,OH Posts: 19,052 Images: 3	K-VAR Corporation :: Spare Parts & Accessories :: Bolt Carriers and Gas Pistons __________________ U.S. Army 1976-1979 237th Combat Engineers Heilbronn, Germany

01-19-2008, 02:00 PM	#23
Mooseman684 Super Moderator Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Alaska Wilderness Posts: 9,691 Images: 2	Rotation of the gas tube along the Axis has no affect on the piston ! Lets see pics of the bolt carrier and piston assembly from a couple angles... Tapco should have pistons.... Rich __________________ You know you might be facing your doom,when all you get is a click when you're expecting a BOOM!

01-19-2008, 06:11 PM	#25
Mooseman684 Super Moderator Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Alaska Wilderness Posts: 9,691 Images: 2	Other than the crack, it looks straight enough to function...Hmm...I wonder if your bolt carrier had jumped out of the rails during firing or something... I wish I could help ya more... Rich Here is a good deal on a piston... AK-47 Gas Piston [315 / AK-47 Gas Piston] : BlackJack Buffers LLC __________________ You know you might be facing your doom,when all you get is a click when you're expecting a BOOM! Last edited by Mooseman684; 01-19-2008 at 06:17 PM. Reason: Automerged Doublepost

01-20-2008, 11:05 AM	#27
Herman Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Posts: 32	Well, I ordered a gas piston I found on that KVAR site for 10 dollars. I was finally able to remove the gas tube, and I didn't feel anything funny in there. By the way, what should I use to clean the gas tube? I have some gun cleaner and lubricant, but I'm not really sure what can and can't go into the gas tube. Oh, and one more thing - People will often tell me to clean and inspect the "chamber." Now, when someone simply says "chamber," are they referring to the gas chamber or some other part that I'm unaware of? Thanks. Last edited by Herman; 01-20-2008 at 11:21 AM.

01-20-2008, 12:13 PM	#28
Mooseman684 Super Moderator Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Alaska Wilderness Posts: 9,691 Images: 2	Use any good cleaner to clean the gas tube, even spray brake cleaner , or windex ,and mop it followed by a light wipe of oil. The "chamber " is the barrel chamber that the cartridges enter...You should be able to insert a live round fully in to position and pull it out with your fingers freely..the rear of the shell will protrude out a bit. Rich __________________ You know you might be facing your doom,when all you get is a click when you're expecting a BOOM!

01-19-2008, 01:51 PM	#22
Herman Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Posts: 32	Hey guys, I got my camera to work again, so I thought I'd enclose some pictures to better explain what I'm talking about as far as the gas tube not seeming like it's aligned perfectly well. At first, I thought it was the new handguard I had installed, but now I see that even without the handguard, it's still not perfectly straight. It's hard for me to explain, so here you go: Is it possible that this misalignment is what caused the piston to bend in the first place? Thank you once again for your help, and I hope I'm not beating a dead horse here!

01-19-2008, 05:45 PM	#24
Herman Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Posts: 32	Here's the Piston and Bolt Carrier. Hope this helps! (I took some pictures from other angles, but they're not uploading for some reason. I can try again if you need them.) Thanks

01-20-2008, 03:00 AM	#26
evilblackrifle Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Posts: 194	I'd look for a burr or such like SwedeSteve suggested before I'd start spending money on bolts and other stuff.

01-23-2008, 06:23 PM	#30
just_a_car Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Edmonds, WA Posts: 3,522	It should be threaded into the bolt. There should be a hole on the same side of the bolt as the charging handle where you can see the threads of the piston. As for removing it, I would say try to get it out by hand. I wouldn't recommend tools unless it's something like a rubber-wrench (yano, those strap-wrenches that you tighten around stuff to turn them). I also recall that some of these were welded onto the bolt and had the weld ground down flush with the surface. Be sure to check for that since you won't get anywhere without removing the weld if it is. __________________ Last edited by just_a_car; 01-23-2008 at 11:49 PM.

01-23-2008, 09:17 PM	#31
Mooseman684 Super Moderator Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Alaska Wilderness Posts: 9,691 Images: 2	Most are just threaded in and then Staked in one or 2 spots, so it may unscrew with some difficulty...A small pipe wrench should do it...Carefully ! clamp the front "Tube" of the carrier Tightly in a vise with Lead or aluminum protected jaws, leaving the last inch protruding where the threads would be. Rich __________________ You know you might be facing your doom,when all you get is a click when you're expecting a BOOM!

01-23-2008, 11:16 PM	#32
Herman Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Posts: 32	Well, I've determined that this thing is going to be impossible to unscrew without some heat. Even with a pretty large clamp and a wrench, I couldn't get the thing to budge at all. There must be some glue or something where the piston threads into the bolt carrier. I'll update again when I finally get the thing out - it's really stubborn!

01-27-2008, 10:10 AM	#33
Herman Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Posts: 32	I finally got a torch, heated it up, tried to unscrew it, and the piston actually snapped inside of the bolt carrier! Looks like I'm going in for a new bolt carrier.

01-27-2008, 01:48 PM	#34
Mooseman684 Super Moderator Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Alaska Wilderness Posts: 9,691 Images: 2	THat happens sometimes...A new bolt carrier runs about 30 bucks... Rich __________________ You know you might be facing your doom,when all you get is a click when you're expecting a BOOM!

01-27-2008, 01:58 PM	#35
knightRider Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: you know where Posts: 2,683 Images: 19 Blog Entries: 11	dang theirs always a lemon , i feel sorry for ya man. __________________ I'm part kalishnakov, part heckler and Koch.

01-28-2008, 01:45 AM	#36
just_a_car Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Edmonds, WA Posts: 3,522	Yuck... Sorry to hear it didn't work out for ya. Hope ya get 'er up and runnin' soon. __________________