Anyone got an idea for this? I have a bolt whose extractor pin broke, and I’ve been unable to drive it out. As a last resort I can take it to a machine shop and have it drilled out, but I thought I’d check to see if there was something else I could do first.
pics?
What have you already tried?
Umm… putting it in a wooden-jawed vise and firmly hammering away at the pin, mostly. Pics to follow.
tried that from both directions?
Yup, it’s now protruding out from one side about 1/16" but I can’t move it any more - which is what makes me think it’s broken.
I guess, worst case would be to split the extractor down the middle with a cut off wheel.
My guess is that somehow the pin split in half or bent and that’s why you can’t remove it. Can you somehow (clamp or something) apply extra pressure to the extractor and then attempt to get the pin out? Otherwise like Tweak has mentioned you will need to use Dremel and heavy duty cutting disc to split the extractor and remove it.
Breaking the extractor pin while firing would be very hard. Are the brass particles in the receiver or BCG? If so I’ll bet a small piece of nrass or copper has managed to wedge itself inside. As such, I’d suggest siaking it in a solvent designed to consume copper/brass fir at least 24hrs. Then resume your efforts of driving the pin out. If you really want to get midevil, iduce some serious cold to shrink the spaces a bit more after it’s soaked for a while.
This is something I have never heard happening before. I’m looking foward to the pictures & resolution.
It was broken by the hammer and punch, not firing.
The pin is broken. No amount of soaking it in a solvent will help.
Which will damage the bolt.
The solution has been suggested, I will repeat it, cut the extractor through with a Dremel tool.
I have seen this several times over the years. You are hammering a pin and it is moving then it stops. It has cracked diagonally and now is acting as a wedge against a wedge and expanding against itself more with every hammer blow. When this happens you are not going to beat the pin out from either end unless you can somehow liberate one end of the pin.
I’ve seen a couple break in classes, can’t say that a heavy hand might not have cracked them previously tho. The extractor is under a lot of stress, not unreasonable that the weaker of the two parts will give way.
It would be interesting to collect all of the broken ones and see if they are S2 or S7 steel.
I might still have one in my tool box, wasn’t so long ago so it might not have been cleaned out.
ETA: my bad, the not so long ago one was a trigger pin, snapped on the center annular groove. No sign of the extractor pin.
Whatever happened with this deal here?
Haven’t cut it up yet.
This place can ID the alloy:
Is it possible to grab the free end with straight pull shim pliers or vice grips?
Just throw that bolt away and install one of your spare bolts from your replacement / spare parts that you have because you are aware that parts do wear out and or break with use.
That never occurred to me!
This is educational, not because I have to have this bolt fixed or I won’t have another one.