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Posted: 3/18/2007 7:49:53 AM EDT
| is there any other way to cut off the delta ring then with a dremel? im away at college and my tools are limited. thanks. |
| The satisfaction of saving a buck cutting off the delta ring fades fast when you cost yourself the surrounding parts damage. Get the right tools for the job. Hammer, punch for the gas tube roll pin, barrel wrench, upper vise block. Or chance it with the cutting idea, and maybe regret it. |
| You might want to check in the HTF. Depending on what school you are at, there might be a fairly large Arfcom group in the area, and you might be able to meet up with somebody that has the tools/know-how to get the job done. I know there are strong groups in the Austin, College Station, and Houston areas, and we have a pretty large group in here in DFW as well. West Texas and the Panhandle might be a little more sparse, along with South Texas. Lots of East Texas shooters too. |
I'm sure he's installing a free float hanguard set. Or, maybe he wants to shave some weight off his rifle and he's going to shoot with an oven mitt. 
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Yes this used to be fairly common, I've done it myself in the past. All it takes is a dremel with a cutting wheel (the ceramic disks), a careful hand, and 10-15 minutes. If you do it right you won't damage anything else. Then using a pair of pliers or vice grips you can pull off the retaining ring and spring. You destroy $15 in parts in the process but it is a valid WECSOG method. Remoing the barrel is preffered, but if you can't, well then I hope your hand is steady. |
Still sounds un-workable. In order for it to be free-floated, that is. If not, I'm wondering how he's going to attach the new handguard(s) w/o having to take the current barrel nut off. |
He's probably installing the Troy/MI/Samson type handguards. At least I hope.
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+1 If you get the right tools now, you can use them in the future. ZM |
Here is a portion of a review for the Troy free float rail from Military Morons that should paint a better picture. "The forend came with clear, illustrated instructions which were a breeze to follow. Installing the forend first requires removal of the delta ring components - delta ring, spring and c-ring. These can be cut off with a dremel or slid off after removing the front sight base. The top rail is then installed over the top half of the barrel nut, and the clamp installed on the lower half. The clamp has two anti-rotation tabs on either side which center it on the lower sides of the upper receiver. This prevents rotation of the upper rail or barrel nut (which it clamps to) relative to the receiver. The fit of the tabs to the receiver depends on which end of the tolerance the receiver was made at. Any play (if any) will be very small. Just as a secondary measure the ensure that the top rail was perfectly aligned to the flat top rail, I used a spare weaver rail mount to bridge the two rails and tightened it down, clamping them in line with each other. Before installing the lower clamp, a stainless steel detent and spring is placed into the detent hole, which later serves to lock the lower rail in place. 4 screws secure the lower clamp to the upper rail and when these are tightened, the rail system is locked on place. All parts went together without a hitch - this was a very simple installation. The lower rail/handguard has tabs that slide into corresponding slots in the top rail. The tabs are lined up, and the rail is slid back until the spring loaded detent locks it in place. I could feel absolutely no movement of the lower rail, either fore/aft, or side/side. To remove the rail, the detent is pressed and the lower rail slides forward and off. The forend does not touch the handguard cap, there is a very small gap there - it is completely free floating." Hope that clears it up a little. 
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You can quit wondering. It won't change the fact that I never looked into buying or researching any of them. I suppose that after 4 years here, I'm supposed to be an expert on AR platform accessory manufacturers and what they offer and how they install. Now I'm aware. Are you happy?  I'm wondering how a person can be here for 6 years with over 11,000 posts and be completely unaware that 2 others have already noticed my ignorance and pointed out that such things exist in a much more polite way. You can go back to your AR-15 accessories encyclopedia now.  |
Let me know how it works out, I recently bought some MI FF rail HG's myself. I'm thinking I'll just pull the FSB off and strip out the parts rather than try to cut out the delta ring. Last thing I want to do is mess up the surrounding bits and pieces. I wish it came with better instructions maybe even a few pictures of the process. C'mon MI how tough could that be? 
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I have the proper tools to remove a barrel, and have done it several times. So I cut off the delta ring off my wifes new build last night. Why? Well it's a new Stag upper, and if I have sighting in issues like others have had lately, I don't want them blaming me for removig the barrel. We used a dremel. Installed a MI free floating HC. Not one mark on the receiver, barrel or barrel nut. Just be careful. |
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OK, I see, I see. Like I said this is all new to me. So in reality, you wouldn't have to cut the delta ring to install one of these FF rails? You could remove the gas tube, then loosen the barrel nut, remove the barrel, then disassemble and remove the delta ring. Then reassemble everything minus the delta ring? Is this correct? Granted it's alot more work to do this, just to save a $12 part, but since I'm about to install one of these rails soon, I was just wondering. Not so much about saving the delta ring now, but more about being able to reinstall one later without having to remove the FSB or FH, if I decide to "go back to stock". |
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Perhaps nobody at MI would actually cut the delta ring off either so they have never taken pictures of the process. I'll bet that if you asked them all individually how THEY do it, that they would all tell you that they just pull the barrel nut and slide the delta ring off from the rear. |
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I used a single handled hacksaw tool similar to this one:  Mine didn't have the arm going over the top, so my blade was bent awhile ago. I didn't have a new blade or it probably would have went a lot quicker. I was afraid of a Dremel slipping and I don't have a tiny punch yet to remove the gas tube, so I decide to just cut my delta ring off. It took 5 minutes with the hacksaw. eta: if you cut it off, mask off the upper and barrel area so that the shavings don't get all over it. I forgot to do this in all of my excitement and it was a little harder to get clean. |
Even though the instructions say that, I would bet that the guys working at MI would not actually DO it that way. You see, they all likely have access to real tools like barrel nut wrenches and receiver blocks and would KNOW that it's always better to use the right tool for the job... 
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I installed a Troy a few weeks ago by cutting the delta ring with a Dremel w/o any problems. Just take your time, wrap the rest of your rifle in a towel and WEAR EYE PROTECTION!!! You are guaranteed to blow up at least one cutting wheel in the process, and metal filings go everywhere. |
I recently chopped(removed) a 5.5" FH from an XM177 clone to SBR it. I didnt even use 1 full cutting disc and that was my 1st pinned FH removal job. That FH is alot thicker and harder than a delta ring assembly. I just went slow and careful while wearing eye protection 
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Don't know about that, if you've never done it before, or don't have the tools. You'll need a vise, an action block, a barrel nut wrench, a pin punch, a hammer, some moly lube or an assortment of acceptable alternatives to the above items. I spent 30 minutes and $5 driving to the auto parts store to get a tub of moly lube. Not worth my time, I should have cut the delta ring off. Last upper I cut the ring off it took me a total of 10 minutes and I only made a small nick in the barrel nut. |
A simple triangle shaped file and a padded vice in 5 mins I can have a delta ring off. How many posts you see on trouble getting off the barrel nut, removing the gas tube pin, gas tube stuck in the FSB, cant line up the gas tube w/ carrier, or help I stripped all my teeth on the barrel nut. |
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