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Posted: 6/10/2009 10:18:15 AM EDT
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So from what i've read, shortening up the barrel on a PSL to say 20 inches to make it a bit handier will only cut velocity by a marginal amount and may even improve accuracy. ButI what i havent found is a real substantial write up and review on chopping the barrel down, recrowning, reinstalling the front sight and muzzle brake. So what can all you PSL experts out there tell me? Is it worth it for improved performance of the rifle and for the money? Thanks!
-Sefus |
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Shortening the barrel on any rifle will make it stiffer...all else being equal. The expense isn't much if you can tackle it yourself.
I cut mine with a hacksaw, ground it square with a file, then faced it with a 90 degree cutter and did a shallow 45 degree crown just as a clean-up using tools from Brownells. 
My barrel had a pressed-on muzzle brake that I refused to reuse. Instead I purchased a U.S. made Bulgarian FSB copy from akpartskits.com and an AK-74 style 7.62mm muzzle brake from Krebs. A gunsmith opened up the FSB for a .002" interference fit (I felt the std .003-.004" would be too tight to install with what I had to work with). 
The FSB uses a set-screw on the threaded portion. It's useful for indexing it before pinning. I wouldn't trust it to hold things together on it's own. As far as the pins go, the standard pins need 3mm holes drilled. If it used a threaded muzzle brake, the stock hardware would have been re-used and a threading kit purchased instead. Another option was one of the 14mm AK-74 style brakes, but most report that these are not as effective as the true 24mm design. This is due to having little expansion chamber, smaller baffle, a different port arrangement, and allowing more gas to vent through the bottom. Mine's a 21 incher. 
This is stargazer's 20" rifle from the gunboards forum using the stock hardware 
This is Gunplumber's 18 and 19 inch shorties from the AK Files forums using custom SVD-S style flash hiders 
...and lastly my inspiration for the brake, the AK Files Hilljack's stock-tubed PSL with the mentioned 14mm AK-74 style brake: 
I have yet to fire my rifle in it's shortened configuration. It was plenty accurate as was, so as long as it shoots no worse, I'll be content. My reason for doing this is simply that once I get an idea squarely justified and rationalized in my head I have to do or end up stuck on the thought of it. My gain was primarily peace of mind, which is priceless. The cost was only about $165. If you go the threading route, the kits run around $50. The 14mm AK-74 style brakes are only around $20. Other options I considered were the J-Tac47 and FSC47 muzzle brakes from Primary Weapons. Having a handier rifle is nice, as is the fact that it can now fit in a much smaller gun case than the monster it was in, allowing the rifle to fit in the wife's car without having to lose a seat. |
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