Pulled the barrel on one of my GEW88's

[Smokehouse69]

by accident, sort of. I had one the for some reason I could not get the barrel shroud off. It started turning easily then go really tough. I tried soaking it in Kroil for days, I tried heat, finally I gave up an put it in a barrel vise and started trying to turn the receiver with a receiver wrench. That didn't work either, I ended up crushing the tube. That didn't bother me too much, I know where I can get another one.
Finally I said, the hell with it, I'm gonna have to replace the tube anyway, so I put the tube in the pipe jaws on my vise and put my full 265 lbs. behind the wrench. POP! I knew what that sound was... the receiver just broke loose from the barrel.
I finished screwing the receiver off and tried to shake the barrel out of the tube. It wouldn't budge, finally slamming the muzzle down a block of wood popped it loose.
There was a bulge in the barrel about an inch from the end of the muzzle. Apparently the bulge was locked into the end of the barrel tube. and prevented the barrel from turning inside the tube.
Oh, well I guess I'll have to find a barrel someplace, it's a shame too, because it has the best looking bore I've seen on any of junker GEW88s, it was filled with grease from the chamber to the tip of the muzzle when I got it, and cleaned up like a champ. :cuss:

[MicroPilot]

... I tried soaking it in Kroil for days, I tried heat, finally I gave up an put it in a barrel vise and started trying to turn the receiver with a receiver wrench....

On a board I frequent dedicated to tractors there was a long discussion about loosening tight/stuck/corroded nuts and bolts. One of the suggestions was to slightly heat the parts and melt parrafin wax on it. Don't heat too much, just enough to melt the wax. This is supposed to work better than any penetrating oil as the wax wicks in, sorta like sweating solder on pipes. Several people subsequently posted that this method worked GREAT.

Would this have applied to your situation?

[Smokehouse69]

I tried that, but the truth was there was never a problem unscrewing the tube from the receiver. My stupidity failed to recognize that the tube threads weren't buggered up or frozen, it was the barrel itself that was jammed inside the muzzle opening of the tube because the barrel was bulged.

[drine]

Or was it dangerously bulged as in damaged? Hopefully this turns out good for you.

[Smokehouse69]

I don't know how much of a bulge is too much, does anyone here know?
It's not much, the barrel tapers down to .53 inches then back up to .54 then back down to .53. It starts about an 1-1/2 inches from the end of the barrel.
Maybe I'll trim it off and make a carbine out of it, or just put it back together and leave it alone, make it a wall hanger.