So I broke my first extractor today

osprey · Feb 17, 2020

I have read the extractors on ar bolts in 7.62x39 are prone to breakage and today at approximately 800 rds I broke one. Gun started to double feed, stove pipe and such. Figured maybe it was getting dirty finally, as this one doesn't get much cleaning other than the bore every 200-300 rds. Nope this is what I found

This build has always been crazy reliable until today. Will call kak tomorrow to see what they say. Might have to get another young manufacturing bolt to replace as I have well North of 1200 rds on one of their 7.62x39 bolts on another build. Stuff happens I guess.

Kruel J · Feb 17, 2020

I had that happen once as well. Really jammed up the BCG in the receiver.

drstrangelove · Feb 17, 2020

Do you suppose that happened because of use of steel cased ammo? Brass vs steel, steel wins. Steel vs steel, the part that stays, breaks.

FullMetalJerk · Feb 17, 2020

Steel expands and contracts slower than brass and is harder on the extractor. Most commie weapons are chrome lined and the chambers are looser which reduces friction. Lots of 4140, 4150 and 416R AR chambers have machining grooves which can 'grab' the laquer or polymer coated steel cases - causing more stress on the extractor. This varies from barrel to barrel depending on when the barrel was made and when the cutting tool was replaced. Some chambers will be slicker than others. If you have a 7.62x39 AR I'd swap in a FN CHF chrome lined barrel.

As for the KAK bolt, I wouldn't buy anything from them other than a flash can or some other unimportant part. No parts that you rely on for your gun to function.

osprey · Feb 18, 2020

Called kak this AM and talked to a human right away

. Told him the deal and he seemed to think it was premature but when I told him I have had it for a couple years he indicated it was too long. I asked too long for as what? the part failed at well short of 1000rds no matter how old it is

. He told me to email my claim to customer service referencing order #. They may just tell me to pound sand. Either way I just need to know which way to proceed. Up to this point this rifle has been fantastic in both reliability and accuracy so I will upgrade the bolt if that is what it takes. On a side note I had a Young manufacturing bcg in a pistol build in 7.62x39 I pulled and put in this rifle and finished off the rest of my reloads I was testing without a hitch. The Young bcg has at least double the round count of the kak with no issues, so there is that.

osprey · Feb 19, 2020

So far radio silence from KAK, so I did the right thing and ordered a Young manufacturing bolt. If KAK indeed tells me to pound sand, I will order an extractor for $18 , install it and put the bolt in the emergency parts kit.

titsonritz · Feb 19, 2020

The 7.62x39 has a bigass squeezing into small pants of the AR bolt.

P7M13 · Feb 19, 2020

Just buy two more extractors, with the spring/pin/O-ring and be done with it. I've had the same happen on 6.8SPC. To me, the extractor is a consumable part, just like a firing pin.

osprey · Feb 21, 2020

Well I have a Young manufacturing bolt on the way and a couple KAK extractors ordered as well thinking they would stiff me . Low and.behold what do I find in the mail today? An extractor free gratis from KAK.

They are now officially on the good guy list. Just in time for the weekends shooting activities :s0010:

Mygrainman · Feb 21, 2020

I called into KAK CS a few years ago... come to think of it it was the second build I ever did... but anyway I bought one of their upper receivers to go with the rifle I was building because at the time they advertised their uppers as being slightly undersized so you had to heat them up to get the barrel extension to go in.... supposedly to make for better accuracy and all that.
I was building this particular AR for accuracy so I paid an extra $20 or so over the other uppers they had in stock...
Long story short.. the $225 BA barrel I bought slid in without heat, and the upper sat crooked on both lowers I had.(yes I only had 2 lowers at that time hard to imagine

)
I called KAK to see about getting a new one.. they were really nice, and I guess didn't have an upper in stock to send me, nor did the retailer...so they and told me to take it back to where I got it and they would call the retailer and authorize an immediate cash return so I could get another upper.
when I got to the shop he was expecting me with my return all drawn up and ready to go. I ended up buying a mega upper instead. Excellent customer service back then.
That said, I don't think they are on the same level quality wise as Young Manufacturing for BCGs... YM chrome BCGs are the standard for National Match, and I would guess KAK sources their bolts from another manufacturer like Toolcraft or some such...
I'd keep the KAK as a spare, and run the Young's for reliability's sake.

osprey · Feb 21, 2020

Mygrainman said:
I called into KAK CS a few years ago... come to think of it it was the second build I ever did... but anyway I bought one of their upper receivers to go with the rifle I was building because at the time they advertised their uppers as being slightly undersized so you had to heat them up to get the barrel extension to go in.... supposedly to make for better accuracy and all that.
I was building this particular AR for accuracy so I paid an extra $20 or so over the other uppers they had in stock...
Long story short.. the $225 BA barrel I bought slid in without heat, and the upper sat crooked on both lowers I had.(yes I only had 2 lowers at that time hard to imagine)
I called KAK to see about getting a new one.. they were really nice, and I guess didn't have an upper in stock to send me, nor did the retailer...so they and told me to take it back to where I got it and they would call the retailer and authorize an immediate cash return so I could get another upper.
when I got to the shop he was expecting me with my return all drawn up and ready to go. I ended up buying a mega upper instead. Excellent customer service back then.
That said, I don't think they are on the same level quality wise as Young Manufacturing for BCGs... YM chrome BCGs are the standard for National Match, and I would guess KAK sources their bolts from another manufacturer like Toolcraft or some such...
I'd keep the KAK as a spare, and run the Young's for reliability's sake.

And that my AR building brother is exactly what I will do when the Young bolt shows up! The KAK was flawless until it broke so we will relegate it to range toy status and with spare extractor the range sessions shall not be shortened.

2A2Dend · Feb 21, 2020

Good to hear that KAK came through to, make good the faulty.
Speaking of x39, I've wanted to do an AR build myself, but too many irons in the fire.
Last i read into x39 builds, many who built them, gave up on them due to too many issues in reliability.
I'd much rather build an AR type, and leave my Saiga alone.

osprey · Feb 21, 2020

2A2Dend said:
Good to hear that KAK came through to, make good the faulty.
Speaking of x39, I've wanted to do an AR build myself, but too many irons in the fire.
Last i read into x39 builds, many who built them, gave up on them due to too many issues in reliability.
I'd much rather build an AR type, and leave my Saiga alone.

While I would never pretend them to be AK reliable, an AR build in 7.62 can be quite reliable as well as very accurate. The key is selecting the right barrel and magazines. Mine goes to the range with me almost every trip. It is just good cheap fun.

2A2Dend · Feb 21, 2020

osprey said:
While I would never pretend them to be AK reliable, an AR build in 7.62 can be quite reliable as well as very accurate. The key is selecting the right barrel and magazines. Mine goes to the range with me almost every trip. It is just good cheap fun.

Cheap fun is what I'm looking for. I like my AK, so much that I'd rather not shoot it all the time. In-fact, it's stayed home more often then not.
I just finished a 7.5" 223 build, and I'm getting geared again. I got an 80% lower with an x39 build in mind. I'm wanting to build a x39 peestola