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Posted: 9/18/2025 4:00:51 PM EDT
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So, after a few builds, it finally happened to me. Barrel pin press out from the trunnion went easily, then the first 1/2" of the barrel came out really easily. Then it stuck. Heat, hammer, penetrating oil basically seemed to do nothing. Then it decided to move. Everything seemed fine until I could see the barrel journal. Bleck. Old AK forum posts seem to think this isn't a big deal. My plan is to smooth it all out, grease it up, and send it once the new 80% is completed. Of course, it happened on an original RPK Yugo barrel on a matching kit with a lot of trench art. Thoughts?  |
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AR builders use a torque wrench in inch pounds while AK builders use a mini sledge hammer in kilograms.  It will be just fine. If you do clean it up, I would not be real aggressive with it. |
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Yugo barrels are notorious for galling when other country’s kits don’t have that issue so much. Best way to handle it I believe is kind of two fold- lots of grease, but also knocking down the sharp edges when initially pressing out the barrel. Press out the pin, grease the pin hole, and then press the barrel just a small distance. Then clean out the grease, and hit the sharp edges of the trunnion and barrel inside the pin hole with a file. Clean it, then grease it again, and continue pressing out the barrel. By knocking down some of those sharp contact points it can make a difference. I generally follow that method when removing any barrel regardless of country of origin, but yugos most of all. Your plan to smooth it and reinstall should work fine though, hardly the first one to have that problem. |
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| Yer plan's good. Knock down any edges/texture, and use a healthy amount of your favorite grease. |
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Rumor is that the Yugo barrel pins were drilled from the opposite side/direction and that’s what causes the galling. I don’t think I have ever encountered a removed factory barrel that didn’t have it. Hit it with a file and clean up whatever is exposed, if you’re into appearances. I never worried about it, as they weren’t coming apart again. |
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Originally Posted By Dakota_Don: Rumor is that the Yugo barrel pins were drilled from the opposite side/direction and that’s what causes the galling. I don’t think I have ever encountered a removed factory barrel that didn’t have it. Hit it with a file and clean up whatever is exposed, if you’re into appearances. I never worried about it, as they weren’t coming apart again. Could be it causes a little more tendency to catch and cut the softer barrel material, but most removed barrels are terrible because no care was given when being removed. I think a lot of it is a hardness difference between the trunnion and barrel. |
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Originally Posted By tac556: Could be it causes a little more tendency to catch and cut the softer barrel material, but most removed barrels are terrible because no care was given when being removed. I think a lot of it is a hardness difference between the trunnion and barrel. That’s how it was explained. I think it was drilling the pin from the right side instead of the left. I’ve never had it with any euro-pattern, rooskie or chinese barrels. I had it with the Yugos though and they weren’t galled before pressing them out. |
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I'm sure its already been mentioned but make sure you use anti-seize not grease on barrel journals. Personally i would LIGHTLY knock down any burrs, lube it up with Permatex 81343, and press it back in. Don't go crazy on smoothing it all back out. It will be fine Pro tips: -Measure your journal sizes with calipers to make sure everything is in spec -put the barrel in a chest freezer for few hours before you populate it and press it in. -use anti-seize !!! I've built a many this way and always had good luck. |
| If you care about it being cleaned up to new dimensions, a welder can clean it up and have someone turn it on a lathe to clean it up to like new again. I've seen lots of builds with worse galling as others say, clean it up and press it in as normal - but it looks annoying if you have a nice kit. |
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