Sight tower sturdiness?

[Uncle Alvah]

My experience with the AR platform is limited.
Recently I installed a FF handguard on my rifle and was surprised at the relative ease with which the front sight tower/gas black was removed. I had bought the taper pin starter punch, and had applied PB Blaster to the whole thing beforehand, but still, the pins were out easily and the tower came off with just a slight tap or two as well.
This was all great, but it got me to wondering just how tightly those taper pins hold. Seems it would not take much of a blow to the side of the sight to mis-align the gas ports, or even from hanging a sling off them as I've seen done.
Is this a viable concern or is it just conjecture due to my lake of AR experience? Can't say I've ever heard of any problems in this area, so maybe them ;ins cinch thing down a lot tighter than I might expect?

[zachsm]

My experience with the AR platform is limited.
Recently I installed a FF handguard on my rifle and was surprised at the relative ease with which the front sight tower/gas black was removed. I had bought the taper pin starter punch, and had applied PB Blaster to the whole thing beforehand, but still, the pins were out easily and the tower came off with just a slight tap or two as well.
This was all great, but it got me to wondering just how tightly those taper pins hold. Seems it would not take much of a blow to the side of the sight to mis-align the gas ports, or even from hanging a sling off them as I've seen done.
Is this a viable concern or is it just conjecture due to my lake of AR experience? Can't say I've ever heard of any problems in this area, so maybe them ;ins cinch thing down a lot tighter than I might expect?

You would break the index pin on the barrel before you would break the pins/fsb. In order to do that it would take alot of torque.

My taper pins always took a good whack to get out.

[ST911]

Forged front sight towers, tapered pinned in place are GTG. Heck, even those straight-pinned are likely to sustain incidental impacts and stress without ill effects. How many umpteen thousand cops, GIs, and gomers have hit their sight towers on objects, door frames, etc?

All bets are off with cast uprights, and those held in place by screws.

[deuce9166]

After removing a BCM fsb I can tell you they are tough.

[Uncle Alvah]

Forged front sight towers,


Is there an easy way to tell if it's forged or cast? I'm assuming the finish is considerably different, but I don't have the AR with me to look at it right now. It's a Del-Ton upper.......

[Iraqgunz]

My next suggestion would be to do a search for Del-Ton. In my experience the pins shouldn't just punch out. Unless they pre punched them for you in the event they knew you were going to be installing a rail or something else.


Is there an easy way to tell if it's forged or cast? I'm assuming the finish is considerably different, but I don't have the AR with me to look at it right now. It's a Del-Ton upper.......

[Uncle Alvah]

In my experience the pins shouldn't just punch out.

I'm confused. If not by punch, how do you remove them?

I don't mean to infer that they were loose by any means, but I had heard horror stories about tight pins and the grief they can cause. As said, I took the trouble to get a taper pin starter punch, and to apply PB Blaster, and I'm of the opinion that helped a lot. It took a couple fair wacks with a ball-peen hammer to GET them to move, but once they moved at all, it was cake.

[Robb Jensen]

From manufacturer to manufacturer the quality of the taper pins vary greatly. CMMG uses some very soft pins which will deform if you don't get them lose in the first couple of hits.

I only use straight 1/8 dowel pins from Fastenal. And for taper pins only pins from BCM or Colt. I've very suspect of everything else.

[Don Robison]

I'm confused. If not by punch, how do you remove them?

I don't mean to infer that they were loose by any means, but I had heard horror stories about tight pins and the grief they can cause. As said, I took the trouble to get a taper pin starter punch, and to apply PB Blaster, and I'm of the opinion that helped a lot. It took a couple fair wacks with a ball-peen hammer to GET them to move, but once they moved at all, it was cake.


What he's saying is that it typically takes a fair amount of force to remove taper pins. It sounds like you did everything correct and the PB blaster helped. I use kroil the night before I remove taper pins and haven't had too much trouble getting them out. In my experience BCM pins seem to be the most difficult to remove.
I wouldn't worry about canting your FSB from a hit. You'll break something else before you cant the FSB.

[four]

Not for nothing but my experience with PB Blaster is that it loosens things that absolutely do not want to be loosened. If I had to put money down I would say that the PB Blaster helped a lot more than you're counting on.

I wouldn't sweat it too much.