K43 Gas Piston Removal Issue

I've finally purchased a really nice qve45 K43, and want to put a shooter's kit on it. However, like many of you have found, the gas piston is stuck. I've been trying WD40 penetrating oil over the past week, but I really want to be careful. I'm going to get some Kroil penetrating oil, which is supposed to be about the best out there and try the heat, then cool with Kroil, and repeat a dozen or so times. Any good advice?

Thanks, Ross

G-43 issue

Ross. I am no expert but I have been up against a few tough ones.
I have removed the front sight and then the gas block from the barrel.
This allows you to truly soak it in a break free solution and gives you a lot better angle and clearance with your tools.

Best penetrating oil I’ve use is a home-made mixture of automatic transmission fluid and acetone. Both can be found at your local Walmart. Acetone will be found in the paint related isle.


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Ross,

I’m no expert, by any measure, but you might find the following links helpful. Best of luck.


http://www.k98kforum.com/showthread...er-Comments-Needed&highlight=Stuck+gas+piston


http://www.k98kforum.com/showthread.php?30678-G43-ac44-Restore&highlight=Stuck+gas+piston


KJ

Joseph Burke said:

Best penetrating oil I’ve use is a home-made mixture of automatic transmission fluid and acetone. Both can be found at your local Walmart. Acetone will be found in the paint related isle.


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Click to expand...

Any issues with the mixture harming the metal or bluing?

Kammerjaeger said:

Ross,

I’m no expert, by any measure, but you might find the following links helpful. Best of luck.


http://www.k98kforum.com/showthread...er-Comments-Needed&highlight=Stuck+gas+piston


http://www.k98kforum.com/showthread.php?30678-G43-ac44-Restore&highlight=Stuck+gas+piston


KJ

Click to expand...

Thanks for the links. Somehow I missed these threads.....

The kroil is a good start. Then put the gun together and shoot a round through it. I've used this method on three different rifles and it worked like a charm on each one.

Ross_badger said:

Any issues with the mixture harming the metal or bluing?

Click to expand...

No, acetone will not harm gun blueing. Of course atf won’t either. I use atf as my go-to gun cleaner as well.


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I acquired a G43 with a stuck cylinder (not piston, I know) which I eventually shot loose with a couple of rounds. I had been hitting the region with a lot of kroil beforehand. Anyways, once the cylinder came loose, the piston followed.

I actually have this piston problem with a non-rebuilt SVT-40 now. I would like to shoot the darn thing loose but don't want to risk the early original stock. So there it sits while I think about my next move.

An update on my stuck K43 gas piston issue. I started out soaking in Kroil, and then used a heat gun to apply heat. After I got it hot, I cooled it off with a dose of Kroil, and then tried to unscrew the piston. This didn't work, so I tried this method a half dozen or more times with still no luck.

I then decided to bring it up a notch with some additional heat. I didn't want to hurt or mar the barrel, so I made some heat shields out of thin copper sheet. I then used a MAPP gas torch to heat the piston and gas block for about 30 seconds, followed with cooling using Kroil. After 20 minutes or so of additional cooling, the piston came right off!! There were no other issues and the barrel, piston, and gas block were unscathed.

Thanks for all the great support, help, and comments in this thread!