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M4 Mag Tube Removal Fail


MNtadpole

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Well I finally got around to attempt what I thought would be an easy mag tube removal.  Well long story short, the project didn't go as planned. As stated in some of the installation tutorials, the red thread locker is no joke.  I tightened the M4's received to one of those Black and Decker work benches (crap idea btw) and used a heat gun.  I applied heat primarily to the mag tube, which obviously transferred up the receiver, which got equally hot as well. I tried working it for an hour with this setup and only managed to loosen the OEM tube maybe half a turn to 3/4ths. My plan today is to pickup a bench vise, which should hold  the receiver more firmly. Hopefully that is the key to victory! I feel like the crap B&D workbench didn't offer me a stable and solid enough platform to make all efforts in my favor.  I'm thinking of grabbing an infrared thermometer too. Wish me luck lol!

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It’s not just the vise. Benelli put a shit-ton of red thread locker on there. I had to heat mine several times because I’d get half a turn here, 3/4 turn there. Eventually I just said screw it and focused the heat on the inner part of the receiver where the threads screw into. Headed it up until there was a decent amount of smoke coming out of the tube then I was able to spin it out. Just be patient then you’ll get it out without damaging your finish. 

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31 minutes ago, ClackClackBAM said:

It’s not just the vise. Benelli put a shit-ton of red thread locker on there. I had to heat mine several times because I’d get half a turn here, 3/4 turn there. Eventually I just said screw it and focused the heat on the inner part of the receiver where the threads screw into. Headed it up until there was a decent amount of smoke coming out of the tube then I was able to spin it out. Just be patient then you’ll get it out without damaging your finish. 

Well that's good to hear! I started to see mine smoking too. LOL I still have red marks on my palm from how hard I was gripping the tube last night. yikes!

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1 hour ago, MNtadpole said:

Well that's good to hear! I started to see mine smoking too. LOL I still have red marks on my palm from how hard I was gripping the tube last night. yikes!

Yup, sounds like yours is sealed on there as hard as mine was. Just be patient with the heat gun and focus on that spot I told you about. About two minutes of direct heat should be enough to loosen it up. 

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Look at buying a MAPP torch. I bought mine at Home Depot. They’re cheap and pretty safe. They deliver a lot more heat quickly than a heat gun. It’s no acetylene torch, so you don’t have to worry about melting metal. The faster you heat the magazine tube, the less heat will wick into the receiver. It has an igniter in the trigger so it’s easy to ignite and shut off. No mixture knobs to mess with or anything. If you can operate a BBQ igniter, you can operate this torch.  Apply the heat to the base of the steel magazine tube and rotate it around the tube evenly. Apply heat for 20 seconds, try to unscrew the tube. Apply more as needed. 
 

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Bernzomatic-BZ8250HTKC-MAP-Pro-Hose-Torch-Kit-BZ8250KC/203391035

Same one I have. After 6 years or so, I’m still using the same bottle. 
 

Getting a vise is a good idea. Get some padded jaws to avoid marring your work. Check where you’re clamping carefully. You don’t want things like the trigger pin under the clamping area. 

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2 minutes ago, StrangerDanger said:

Look at buying a MAPP torch. I bought mine at Home Depot. They’re cheap and pretty safe. They deliver a lot more heat quickly than a heat gun. It’s no acetylene torch, so you don’t have to worry about melting metal. The faster you heat the magazine tube, the less heat will wick into the receiver. It has an igniter in the trigger so it’s easy to ignite and shut off. No mixture knobs to mess with or anything. If you can operate a BBQ igniter, you can operate this torch.  Apply the heat to the base of the steel magazine tube and rotate it around the tube evenly. Apply heat for 20 seconds, try to unscrew the tube. Apply more as needed. 
 

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Bernzomatic-BZ8250HTKC-MAP-Pro-Hose-Torch-Kit-BZ8250KC/203391035

Same one I have. After 6 years or so, I’m still using the same bottle. 
 

Getting a vise is a good idea. Get some padded jaws to avoid marring your work. Check where you’re clamping carefully. You don’t want things like the trigger pin under the clamping area. 

Thanks Stranger Danger, valuable ideas right there, especially with trigger pins.  LOL I'm tempted to look at the MAPP torch, but its like 70 bucks, plus the cost of a Craigslist Wilton vise...ugh!

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7 hours ago, ClackClackBAM said:

It’s not just the vise. Benelli put a shit-ton of red thread locker on there. I had to heat mine several times because I’d get half a turn here, 3/4 turn there. Eventually I just said screw it and focused the heat on the inner part of the receiver where the threads screw into. Headed it up until there was a decent amount of smoke coming out of the tube then I was able to spin it out. Just be patient then you’ll get it out without damaging your finish. 

Yup, when you see some smoke plumes come out that usually indicates the thread locker has been defeated.

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3 hours ago, MNtadpole said:

Thanks Stranger Danger, valuable ideas right there, especially with trigger pins.  LOL I'm tempted to look at the MAPP torch, but its like 70 bucks, plus the cost of a Craigslist Wilton vise...ugh!

You can always go this route.  You don't have to get the one with the extended hose.  Although nice, not necessary.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Bernzomatic-TS4000KC-Trigger-Start-Torch-Kit-TS4000KC/203368730

 

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13 hours ago, StrangerDanger said:

Talked myself into it and ordered one up for the H2O. 

I have that tube and a couple things I didn't like about it... Looks to be layered CF strips instead of a full CF sheet. Also isn't UV treated so will golden over time. I had my local auto shop spray some UV clear on it to protect the tube.

 

Also that tube is cheapest here: https://www.performanceshootinghq.com/fulllengthbenellim4carbonfibermagazine.aspx

15% off with code summer15off and free shipping.

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22 hours ago, StrangerDanger said:

Good job!

I’m trying to convince myself to spend the money and buy one of those Briley carbon fiber magazine tubes. I think that will look awesome on my H2O build. Plus cut a little more weight off the front. 

I'm local to them. Dont wanna fk with the labor & torch. 

How much labor do y'all think they will hit me up for? Hour?

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3 minutes ago, filthy phil said:

I'm local to them. Dont wanna fk with the labor & torch. 

How much labor do y'all think they will hit me up for? Hour?

I've never hired a gunsmith to do any extensive work...so I couldn't say accurately. What I can say is that it took my mechanically inclined self to hit it with a MAPP torch and got it off in under 5 minutes.

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3 hours ago, StrangerDanger said:

Good deal. I already placed the order. Interesting about the UV burn. 

If you don't leave your gun out in the sun for extensive periods of time or shoot mostly indoors, it won't be a problem, but coming from the aftermarket auto industry, we see a lot of cheaper CF parts turn gold over time from UV. Won't have any performance problems and weight savings is easily worth on the M4, but aesthetics will suffer. Getting a UV treated clear coat will help and also smooth out some of the roughness with CF strips. 

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I have been reading this forum for years - finally decided to join.

Thank you all to the wealth of information you have provided. Watched a lot of Stranger Danger videos on this site and others.

I put the question regarding manufacturing process on the CF tube to Briley. 

It was mentioned above about cf production especially on automotive parts - especially an issue regarding engine parts and intakes; putting cf into BMW's is like putting them into a pizza oven, and how this would pertain to magazine tube.

Link regarding manufacturing/producing composite tubing:

https://www.rockwestcomposites.com/blog/4-methods-for-producing-composite-tub

I bought the Briley CF tube a few months ago and have run about 200rds through the shotgun. So far no discoloration or hangups. I ran snap caps through for awhile before actually using live rounds. 

I had to set my heatgun to 1100f to get the threadlocker to break. when i use red a single a single bead does it.

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1 hour ago, Knonaime said:

I have been reading this forum for years - finally decided to join.

Thank you all to the wealth of information you have provided. Watched a lot of Stranger Danger videos on this site and others.

I put the question regarding manufacturing process on the CF tube to Briley. 

It was mentioned above about cf production especially on automotive parts - especially an issue regarding engine parts and intakes; putting cf into BMW's is like putting them into a pizza oven, and how this would pertain to magazine tube.

Link regarding manufacturing/producing composite tubing:

https://www.rockwestcomposites.com/blog/4-methods-for-producing-composite-tub

I bought the Briley CF tube a few months ago and have run about 200rds through the shotgun. So far no discoloration or hangups. I ran snap caps through for awhile before actually using live rounds. 

I had to set my heatgun to 1100f to get the threadlocker to break. when i use red a single a single bead does it.

If they were videos, they weren’t mine!

Hopefully it wasn’t the 45 minute, ‘Smokin’ like a chmney,’ video!


I’d probably stick with Blue Loctite for a carbon fiber magazine tube. I wouldn’t want to have to apply heat to it if I ever needed it apart.

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