Gentlemen-

I have an AK74 on which the gas ports were drilled too large. The result was that the bolt struck the rear stock trunnion rivets so hard that they sheared off. I was about to send it back in for repair when it occurred to me that because I plan to shorten its barrel anyway, it might be better that the gas ports are as they are.

I have two different ideas for how I'd shorten the barrel, both keeping the Soviet muzzle device. One would be to simply cut the barrel and permanently attach the FSB and muzzle brake. The other would be to permanently attach the MB to the FSB, but to allow the actual barrel to reach to the end of the expansion chamber, as I intend to shoot corrosive ammo and this would (maybe?) reduce the concern about fouling in the expansion chamber.

Could one of you more AK-74-experienced fellers tell me:

(1) if you'd guess that a barrel reduction by 2.5" (starting at 16") would normally require opening of gas ports in a way that might make my existing holes ok?

(2) same Q, but with a barrel reduction of only 1-3/8"

Thanks bros

Thanks for responding!

I have read of others drilling & tapping, wasn't sure what the best method is. This guy seems to know what he's talking about, but he makes it sound a bit easier than I'd guess. Looking into the GB from where the tube enters, I'm not seeing how one would go about threading the channel without drilling through the top of the GB. Unless I'm missing something, it's almost a 90 degree angle. EDIT: I asked him, his is a 7.62x39 gas block, but he did have the interesting idea of just drilling and tapping for a set scew into the outside of the GB, even using a punch to mark an index point for field gas adjustability.

Just asking around, it sounds like folks who cut these down 2.5" rarely have to open the gas ports up, such that I may as well have it repaired and then have it cut later.

Then it'll be on to a new worry:

Will the twist in a shorter barrel be too loose to stabilize the long .22 bullet? Anybody know the twist rate in a 5.45 Krink?

Not sure if this will help you or not, but i cut a min14 barrel 2" and it doesn't fling brass 36' anymore. It's more like 8-10' now.
I cut it from 18" to 16". Carrier has much less violent cycling action.
I would imagine that it would help, but not sure cutting barrel 2" would help enough.

Thanks for the input guys.

Jdoming-

What do you think of the set-screw-in gas block regulator setup?

Mouthpiece: I need to cut a mini-14 down by 2" as well. I'd like input if you have any tips. Did you re-thread the barrel? If so, did you do it yourself?

Thanks again

M@A