Bought all necessary parts at the Funshow today. Got my drill press up and running and did a little riviting on the trigger guard, and am working on some long rivits to hold the rear trunnion in after I properly drill the reciever out for it (fixed underfolder, GOD I hope the AWB dies next year).

Anyhow, its going togather pretty easily so far, I'll be drilling and tapping the barrel trunnion tommorow using Campy's screw method.

The only issue I've run into is that somewhere I'm off kilter a little bit on my "dry mockup" and I'm a few MM off because my reciever cover does not lock into place properly under the front sight. I think I read somewhere that OOW leaves a few MM of material at the front of the reciever, so I'm thinking I'll just seat the rear trunnion back a tad more, and instead of screwing with grinding the reciver down, I'll just trim my handguards to fit better.

Will post more pix when I'm further along.

You may want to reconsider the issue of removing material from the handguards. Check a few other opinions. I think most folks remove the excess material from the receiver.

With only hand files and a dremil for that kind of operation, I feel funny about grinding on metal. If I ruin the reciever I'm out $60, if I ruin the handguard I'm out $5.

Come to think of it...while I'm looking at the mag well, I dont think I can set the trunnion any further back or else it will crowd the magazine well too much. So that leaves me with trimming the rear of the reciever, but the rear trunnion is right up against the rivit nose for the trigger guard....it looks as if its in the correct place when I compare it to my AK74 as well...argh, whats up with this?

Well, I ended up drilling and setting the whole buisness last night....boy that red loc-tite works well. <crosses finger>. Anyhow, I shaved it a little close and the 7.62 mags are a real squeeze. Time to break out the hand file and do some gentile relief work.

Oh well, if they can build one of these things in Peshwar, I can do it here....I hope....The first mag full will be fired from a vice with a cord and me about 20 feet behind the thing...The screws went in and locked tight before I set them with the loctite. I guess I just need a press one of these days so I can do it right.

I used rivits and a punch on the trigger guard and she went on smooth as silk. The rivit noses arnt pretty, but its tight and set right....

The real excitement will be today....since I dont have a drill bit big enough for the rear trunnion and that big 5/8ths hole for the folder hinge, I'm going to use the old reciever bit as a template and very carefully use a dremel spiral cutter and grinding head to mill the hole out....crude but it aught to work. No realy...it should...

The real excitement will be today....since I dont have a drill bit big enough for the rear trunnion and that big 5/8ths hole for the folder hinge, I'm going to use the old reciever bit as a template and very carefully use a dremel spiral cutter and grinding head to mill the hole out....crude but it aught to work. No realy...it should...

That's how I did my first one. It does work! I now have a print with the dimensions. If I had known you needed it.......


Mike

Use the big sanding drum for the final cut to your line.

SB

Great minds think alike. It works actually pretty well :) The only problem is it pusheds when it folds on the safety lever. Not a big deal with it pinned open but come next year I'll probably see about making a relief cut so the stock folds straight.


All in all I'm pleased with how it turned out. Next one I'll spend a few bucks, rivit it, and have someone press the barrel for me.

Does it require a special press, or would a regular local machinist/gunsmith probably have it if he's got a hydrolic press in his shop?

Regards

RG

Great minds think alike.

God I hope not! If so, I feel sorry for you.

Mike

LOL, well, I'm 25, this AK kit is in honor of the 300th firearm thats resided in my posession, with all but 5 other lucky ones I liked enough not to use for trading fodder. I'm a poor kid with a rich man's hobbies: fast cars, airplanes, and firearms. My wife is the one I feel sorry for :)

I literaly argued with myself for two hours before telling the guy I bought the kit from NOT to send any of the FA parts. I figured that hell, this isnt a range gun, and I sure as hell wont take it to a gunshow (too many folks would run screaming at the words "home built") and outside of a show I've never had any firearm of mine examined by any people who would bat an eye at the words "unregistered machinegun".

If the spirit of the law dont move me, the spirit of the punishment sure does though...I've pissed enough people off as of late to want to keep my nose clean for a bit until a couple of deals gone sour are cleared up and I dont wake up in a cold sweat after watching movies with SWAT teams in them...

Besides, I wont live in Washington forever, and I keep hearing that they might have another Class 3 Amnasty here one of these years...and the way I've tweaked the trigger in her she'll bump just fine until then....God willing my whole forward assembily does not join the bullets down range.

Got a different question, but I'll IM you on it...

Regards,

Ryan

Quoted: The real excitement will be today....since I dont have a drill bit big enough for the rear trunnion and that big 5/8ths hole for the folder hinge, I'm going to use the old reciever bit as a template and very carefully use a dremel spiral cutter and grinding head to mill the hole out....crude but it aught to work. No realy...it should... That's how I did my first one. It does work! I now have a print with the dimensions. If I had known you needed it....... Mike

Well, I have been following the various build threads as I have a Romain AMKS and a Polish PMKMS parts kit (yea two kits) plus a pair of OOW receivers that I want to build.  I have posted that I thought about building one of these as a Bolt Action AK but for now I am sitting on the parts to see what the crime bill does.

Would you mind sending me the prints?

I am also quite curious about Campy's screw method.  One of my two kits, the Romainain AKMS kit from I/O still has the barrel pressed in the front trunion so I assume that all I need to do is grind the old rivets flat, place the trunion in place and drill, tap, and screw her into my receiver.

The second kit, a PMKMS kit from Global trades does not have the trunion attached to the barrel and I am not so sure that I want to invest in a press and headspace gauges to do a single kit...  

Therefore, I think I want to try my luck with the Romanian kit and if I like how it works out I may either decide to buy more tools or perhaps have a barrel pressed by someone else.  

As an aside, did you take any pics of your project?  

I have been busy buying kits and imported mags and parts for the kits as I am woried that these may be something that will not be available in a couple years.  I think I have most everything I wanted to put away so now I can buy the compliance parts and build...

Thanks for sharing your story!