what significance does this have....i am looking at an ak to buy and the seller told me that the bolts firing pin retaining pin is canted and runs through the ejector rail channel.

what would i need to do to fix this or do i have to buy a new bolt?

It sounds pretty strange.. Are you sure that he's not referring to the extractor rather than the ejector? In a normal AK-47 bolt, the firing pin retainer *does* run through the same hole that also holds the retainer for the extractor.. it's just a feature of the design. The pin that retains the firing pin also retains the pin that retains the extractor, if that makes any sense to you.

In any event, both the firing pin retainer and extractor retainer pins should be flush with or below the surface of the bolt - they should not cause any kind of interference.

Hope that helps,

-L

ok im confused.....have yall ever heard of a canted firing pin retaining pin? forget the rest, and what effect would that have on function??

The only thing I can think of that would be "canted" would be the gas block, or front site block.

The white line (paint worn out) in the extractor ejector channel is actually small bulge where the pin is running through on this Bulgarian bolt. This bulge is very small and is hardly visible in this pohoto.
On Romanian bolts, bulges are more pronounced.
They are caused by drilling very close to the sidewall.
This is OK. Yugo and Polish bolts also have these almost-break-through bulges.
East German bolts have superior machining and lack these.

This is what the seller meant when he said: "bolts firing pin retaining pin is canted and runs through the ejector rail channel."

As long as the pin itself does not stick out in the channel, the bolt is good to go.

ETA: correct terminology ... ejector channel, not extrator.

ok so if it does come out into the channel then would i need to get a new bolt, which leads to my next question, since its a romanian "G" kit will i have to get a nother bolt and carrier froma romy or just a romy bolt or can i get any kind of bolt??

Replacing the bolt on an AK requires that the headspace be checked and, most likely, adjusted.

Romy bolt






Romy bolt








Romy bolt








Polish bolt








E German bolt








Yugo bolt





Filing or stoning the bulge (whatever-you-call-it) may expose the pin.

As long as the pin itself is flush or below the channel surface, the bolt is good.

Earlier I stated that Polish bolts have the bulge in the channel ... I was wrong ... cannot remember what every bolt looks like.

ok thanks yall for the information

Richard257,

Thanks, that's really interesting info.. now that I examine a couple of my bolts, I do see the small bulge where the pinhole is almost broken through to the ejector (not extractor) channel.

Details, details..

-L

ya i just checked my romy and it has the same thing, i guess t is common with the romys, so can i replace it with a better one like a polish or russian or will it not work?

Shoot it.

You are absolutely correct, ejector channel.
Ah ...slip of the tounge, rather mind.


You will not find Polish or Russian bolts for sale.
E German stripped bolts are available and have better machining and finish than Bulgarian.

On E. German bolts the distance from the bolt face to the back of locking lugs is about
.015" greater than the distance on Yugo, Polish or Romanian bolts.
Of course they can be heaspaced by moving the barrel forward.
Also, cam surfaces have to be ground at proper compound angle and timed correctly with the cam surfaces of the bullet guide.

Below: cam surface that initiates rotation of the bolt (circled).


German bolts are new and do not have these surfaces.
If the cam of the bolt is not timed correctly, the bolt will not close, or if it closes (forcefully), it will sustain damage (severe gouging of the driving cam) similar to this:



and, the corresponding area of carrier will sustain similar gouging.

If you decide to replace Romy bolt with German bolt, have it done professionally.

ok thats alittle harder then i though, well i guess im just going to get the kit with out the canted pin