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AK-74 muzzle brake pinning question

pavlin

pavlin

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While being at one of the recent gunshows I heard this very interesting thing that I never thought of before. One of the vendors stated that you don't need to pin the muzzle brake on AK-74 in MA since it's not the barrel that is actually threaded but the front sight attachment. AWB specifically defines threaded barrel as an evil feature, it says nothing whatsoever about threaded front sight. If you punch two pins out and remove the front sight attachment the barrel is completely smooth, no threads there))) By no means I'm suggesting that we all should unpin our AKs but what you folks think? Just want to hear peoples opinion.
doesn't apply to AK-47 rifles since the front sight block is different and it has the actual barrel threaded
 
Edit...I see what you mean about some of the front sight blocks being threaded, that would seem like a no-no to me though.

The MGL states capable of accepting a flash hider doesn't it?
 
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Can anyone else that is well versed in MA laws chime in on this? Something I have wondered for some time now.
The biggest issue is that when shooting corrosive ammo it would be nice to take the brake off the FSB and clean it of any corrosive salts rather than just hoping water will makes its way into it and be able to flush it out.
 
Seems like if a muzzle break on the sight block is legal, an industry of clamp-on muzzle breaks is about to open up. :)
 
Jim85IROC said:
Seems like if a muzzle break on the sight block is legal, an industry of clamp-on muzzle breaks is about to open up. :)
Click to expand...

They have them and they suck for a reason .
Sks, mosin , 10/22 for example you can all but clamp on muzzle devices. There not allways 100% true to the bore.
Really there's only a few states there's a market for them . Or people to cheap to get a barrel threaded .
 
warwickben said:
They have them and they suck for a reason .
Sks, mosin , 10/22 for example you can all but clamp on muzzle devices. There not allways 100% true to the bore.
Really there's only a few states there's a market for them . Or people to cheap to get a barrel threaded .
Click to expand...

When the federal AWB was in effect, some manufacturers came up with an AR muzzle brake that was held in place with 3 setscrews.

Never appealed to me, never ordered one, so I have no idea if or what problems might have existed.

I imagine it was one of those bad ideas that seemed like a good idea at the time.
 
http://www.northeastshooters.com/vbulletin/threads/157704-MA-Assault-Weapons-Ban-quot-AWB-quot-FAQ

How so called "Assault Weapons" are defined by the law:

Rifles:
(B) a semiautomatic rifle that has an ability to accept a detachable magazine and has at least 2 of--
(i) a folding or telescoping stock;
(ii) a pistol grip that protrudes conspicuously beneath the action of the weapon;
(iii) a bayonet mount;
(iv) a flash suppressor or threaded barrel designed to accommodate a flash suppressor; and
(v) a grenade launcher;
Click to expand...

I know it is hard to believe that a vendor at a gun show could be wrong, [laugh] but he is.
 
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If the law states 'Threaded Barrel' then it appears that a threaded front sight block should not have to be perm. attached.
 
I was probably the vendor at the show that said that.
I've said it before and I will say it again, but clearly I am not a lawyer. From what I can find it has not been litigated, so any statement to the contrary is simply another person's interpretation.
The law states: threaded barrel designed to accommodate a flash suppressor.
The barrel on an AK74 is not threaded. The front sight base is.
It may be a parsing of the wording of the law but if you read all of the AWB it also mentions AK74 and AK47 (and plenty others) as banned by name, yet you see them for sale all the time. Ever wonder why? (that discussion can be found elsewhere here)

I also add that I am happy to pin the brake if the buyer so wishes, if they want to play it safe.
Bad enough we still live under the AWB but no need to over-interpret it unless you choose to.
 
It is a good discussion to have: Sometimes we take for granted that the most common interpretation is the correct one and that is not always the case. Questioning authority has a long history in this country.
 
So.........if I want to put a compensator on an ar-15 and ask a gunsmith to thread the barrel, he will tell me it's not legal, yes or no ????
 
Caseyb829 said:
Its not illegal if the comp is pinned and welded to the barrel.
Click to expand...

Winner winner chicken dinner.

But you don't have to weld and pin. You can braze it Also. I prefer brazing since you can heat it up take it off . Run a die and tap to clean up the threads. Vs risking trashing the muzzle device and the barrel trying to remove the pin.
 

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