01-26-2020, 11:27 PM
Herzo Wrote:Having been in the machining/manufacturing arena for over 60 years, I would be astonished if the process were not:
1. chamber the machined barrel
2. Machine the barrel extension
3. Broach the extension
4. Install the index pin in the extension such that it is clocked (or timed) with the broached feature.
5. Torque the extension to the barrel.
6. Verify the headspace.
7. Drill the gas port in alignment with the index pin.
To attempt to rely on a pair of machined threads to reliably establish a radial alignment is something I would expect from a rookie engineer.
Most likely, AA does not want to invest $100 in a new barrel assembly to make it right. The odds of finding another machined extension assembly that will align correctly and maintain headspace are 2 -- slim and none.
Yeah...what you wrote is pretty much exactly what I was thinking. I have had no comms with AA since I pinged them with an email a week and a half ago to see if they'd received the barrel.
I cannot imagine how or why the barrel came out so easily from the extension. This was a moderately expensive build (~$2,500-$3,000, including the glass). I took it to the range less than a dozen times and always babied it. I did nothing to it that introduced ANY kind of torque on the barrel...other than my initial tightening of the barrel nut and installing the muzzle brake, both of which involved TIGHTENING and I used timing shims on both to keep the torque at the low range of normal practice.
I'm confident (and wishful???) that Alexander Arms will make it right.