Shots fired

So, I managed to put the AUG back together without too many problems. Since I ruined the set screw securing the outer barrel, and the threads went along with it, I had to look into some alternatives.

First of all, since the outer barrel was originally somewhat wobbly, I decided to pad it a bit. Duct tape was my material of choice.

Some layers of duct tape later the outer barrel fits snugly into its housing

I added one layer at a time and tested until I reached a good fit

I also took care of the flash hider not sitting straight. As you can see above, the outer barrel does not have any sort of alignment notches or the like, so you're free to spin it any way you want. The flash hider has a retaining set screw (see, I'm learning), which I loosened and then screwed the flash hider on properly tight. It has a 14 mm anticlockwise thread (usually referred to as counterclockwise, or CCW on shop descriptions), as do apparently most other airsoft guns. Why the unusual left-hand thread, I don't know. In short though, the flash hider was now tightly on the barrel and I secured it with the set screw.

Flash hider installed properly

I was now free to install the barrel into its housing. The final stumbling block was the ruined thread.

Yup, it's gone

As I had noticed earlier that the metal was not of the toughest quality and I had loads of short, small wood screws on hand, I decided to give it a go.

Helping the screw into its tight spot with some tweezers

A bit of force and some twists of the screwdriver, and I had re-tapped the set screw hole with a completely different thread. Shows you how sturdy the metal is, I guess. I don't really mind, though, because now the outer barrel could be tightened back on again.

The final simple step was to align the barrel so that the flash hider was in right and then tighten the screw.

Finished

Afterwards I took some shots with both the AUG and the P226. Both are performing well in my opinion. The pistol especially was very fun to shoot and had some serious kick. I even invited my SO to join me in the study for some shooting practice. She's not admitting anything, but I have a sneaking suspicion my exuberance regarding all things airsoft, every waking moment, might start to be rather annoying for her.