Okay, with the help of my 300lb biker friend, some Kroil, and the action block, I got the barrel nut loose from the upper I ruined, and I got the barrel off as well.  I got the float tube out, and thought..."hmmmm...gonna have to cut the barrel nut off"...no problem, the dremel is standing by.  Then I get the barrel nut part of the float tube out, and then it hit me....IT'S GOT TO GO ON FROM THE FRONT!!!!  Imagine my shock and horror as I realized I ruined the damn upper for nothing, and if I want this friggin' float tube on there, I'm STILL gonna have to get that damn muzzle brake off.  

So, now I must admit to God and my ARFCOM brothers...I'M A TOTAL MORON!  But, I GUARANTEE you I'll never make THIS mistake again.  

Now, I will admit defeat...I'm gonna go ahead and put the barrel back the way it was on the new receiver.  So, to make sure I don't screw anything else up, AFTER I put the upper in the action block, and the block into the vise, I'm going to:
a) grease the receiver threads with tetra grease
b)torque the barrel nut to 35 lbs, then crank it a tad more if needed to align for has tube
c)put gas tube in, make sure it's all the way into the upper
d)align and tighten gas block.  
e)check headspace.  

Does that cover everything, or am I forgetting something crucial?  

edit...yes, I'm forgetting the friggin' delta ring, etc...you know, the one I cut off and mangled, along with the spring and the clip...yeah, THAT one hehehe.  Ask me how I know

I'll admit that when I decided to try to Dremel my barrel nut off, it took me a while to figure-out how it all fits together.  If you haven't had a chance to look at an AR barrel, nut, and upper when apart, it isn't obvious how it goes together.  Unlike you, I haven't got my barrel off yet.  I cut all I felt comfortable with on the nut, and I still haven't been able to get the barrel off.  

I haven't actually put a barrel on yet (since I can't get mine off!), but your procedure looks correct to me.z

heh!  I wonder how many guns home workshop gods have ruined as the entrance fee to learning gunsmithing?

I admit to a "couple" and I am no gunsmith yet.

Well, I can thank my lucky stars that I noticed all of this BEFORE I got the dremel out...'cos now I need the barrel nut since I've decided to give up on the damn float tube for now.  Once I got the barrel nut off, though, I could look at how it fits together.  My only thought at this point is I'll bet getting that damn delta spring retainer clip on is gonna be a bitch.  I don't have any sort of tool to compress it.  I guess they probably have some sort of tool for that...have to try and find one.  

Well, I just ordered the delta ring assembly from ADCO...$10 plus $4 for shipping.  I was gonna get it from J&T, but they wanted $12.95 for the kit, and $13.95 for UPS GROUND SHIPPING!!!  Glad I remembered ADCO's $4 shipping hehehe.  I'm beginning to like that place.  

It takes a big man to admit such things...

...and a bigger one to laugh at him. Well, with God as my witness, [i]I[/i] am that man!!

[nana]  [jump]

[size=1]no hurt intended. I would cry if I mangled my upper.[/size=1]

-Lee

Damn-it man  [stick]  Don't you know just
1."take" the muzzle brake off.    2.Remove the front sights.   3. Slip the float tube over the barrel.   4. Secure the float tube with duct tape or maybe some pieces of rope.  5. Reattach the front sights.   6. Super glue the brake back on the end of the barrel.      Hmmmmm...on second thought I would by-pass the rope and just use the duct tape.  Oh just so you know I've never done this before just thought it might make more sense.    [beer]

gas tube pin.

I suggest you to buy either the Marines corps technical manual for the M16 or any AR15 book fro Duncan Long they will take you step by step.

And yes takes a big man to admit mistakes publicly, you get a plus mark on my book, but don't do it 'gain.

BR

go here:
[url]http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0873646878/qid%3D1056633528/sr%3D11-1/ref%3Dsr%5F11%5F1/002-0791799-2159204[/url]

Edited because I can't spell

Well, of course the problem is that damn "permanantly attached" muzzle brake.  At the very least, it's gonna take a MAPP gas torch, which I don't have.  I have a gas block, not a front sight, so it would just loosen up with the screws, then slide off...butI can't get anything off or on from the front 'til the brake is gone...and I just don't feel that comfortable doing it.  So, I may call in the professionals lol.  At this point, the PIAT factor of this off the scale...and I'd rather pay someone who knows what they're doing a couple of bucks to make it right, rather than spending money on equipment with no gauranty I'll be able to do it myself.  

I do have the TM, but they don't have to deal with permanently attached brakes lol.  Life would be MUCH easier in a pre ban/no AWB world!

Ain't it the truth Brother! But just think of how many lives have been saved because the damned muzzle brakes are pinned in place!  The damned government needs to find something worthwhile to do.

Welcome to the WECSOG club!

[url="http://www.hunt101.com/?p=49806&c=529&z=1"][img]http://www.hunt101.com/img/049806.gif[/img][/url]
you gota learn somehow......I vote for the duct tape...

The final chapter on this episode is upon me...spoke to Compass Lake...for a very nominal fee, the'll cut the muzzle brake off, recrown the barrel, and send me back a complete, shootable upper lol.  I'll get it in the mail to them in the next day or 2.  

It was about 2:00 this morning when I realized I'm not gonna be able to get the delta ring assembly on from the back either hehehe...I may be slow, but it sinks in eventually!  

Fenian, don't feel too bad. I once ran some conduit up a pole to feed a light. Got everything hooked up, turned the light on to see if it worked. It worked fine but I couldn't remove the ladder. I had run the conduit through a ladder rung going up the pole!!! I looked like an idiot and at the time I was one hell of a good electrician. Just got in a hurry!
You sometimes make mistakes, no matter how good you are. That is how you "relearn" the easy and right way to do a job.
Just lay off the suds next time you work on a gun! LOL

Panzerboy's Cheap-Ass technique for removing delta ring group (Delta Ring, snap ring, spring weld):

1) Use large flathead screwdriver to spread the snapring to the point where you can use a smaller flathead screwdriver to pry it up out of its channel (This is with the barrel OFF of the receiver)

2) Un-channel the entire snap-ring.  The spring weld should help you do this.

3) Parts will come off.  If done correctly, only three parts will do this.  The snap ring, the spring-weld (three wavy rings welded together at their contact points with a space cut through all of them for the gas tube), and the Delta ring.

Yes, it's messy.  Yes, it could screw up your finish.

But remember, when you don't do it right, it doesn't take as long.

And when you're cheap, sometimes you don't do it right.

Panz
[bounce]

This is very true.