Hi everyone,

Working on my first AK project. Fairly straight forward, but have a question on one thing.

This is an SLR 107UR that I just purchased and am converting to an SBR. I was hoping to just chop off the barrel but apparently Arsenal puts gas plugs in these so that they'll cycle before the barrel is cut. Which means removing the gas block and removing the plug. Ugh.

I was able to get the pins out with a punch and hammer. It marred up the gas block and pins a tiny bit (they were a lot tighter than any AR pins I've done) but not too bad and I should be able to cover it up with some paint.

I get the concept of pressing off the gas block. I bought a Harbor Freight 20 ton press and it should be straight forward.

My main concern is getting the gas block back on. I'm not sure I understand the best practice of pressing this back on. It seems I might need some kind of jib to support the barrel/receiver so that I'm not putting pressure on the receiver right? And do place that jig on the plates and somehow use the press on the gas block itself? Or am I placing the gas block on the plates and pressing on the barrel jig? And does anyone have any photos / videos of what this jig might look like? Just looking for some best practice here so I don't mess things up.

I could potentially cut the barrel while the gas block is off so that when I go to put it back on it doesn't have as much barrel to press on to and I could use an easier tool like a socket on the gas block under the press to press it on (hoping that makes sense). But I had planned not to cut the barrel until after everything was reassembled.

Thanks for your help!

I took a gas block off a romanian AK because it was crooked, and put it back on.

I just twisted it back and forth to do it. Just like an AR gas block.

I have a HF shop press and did not need to use it.

The gas block should require the press if the tolerances are correct. Forbus makes a good tool for supporting and pressing parts on with. AKbuilders also has what you need. It easier and less stressful when you use the correct tools.

I use a cut-off 12g barrel section welded to  an air hammer bit for some.  Others that are more fragile like the unitized ones, I use a section of black iron pipe with a sacrificial brass collar screwed on the end.

Awesome, thanks. I was hoping there were standard jigs that I could buy for this but it seems like everyone just kind of has their own home-built solutions.

RobertForbus.com has everything you need!!! Great tools. I believe you need the AKM press plate and the barrel assembly tube set. Mr. Forbus will answer your questions. Just let him know what rifle you have and what you want to do with it and he will help you choose the best tools for the job. Check out his website, there is alot of good info. You should be able to use the press plate to remove the front sight, gas block combo with it. I don't know if there is a spacer block needed for a combo block. Mr. Forbus can help you there. Use the plate to hold the rife and use the tubes to push the block back on.