Piston/Technical components

It has been suggested that this page be split into Piston Head and Moving Piston.

 ^[discuss]

If this split affects many pages, or may potentially be controversial, do not split until a consensus has been reached.

Pistons and sticky pistons have 2 technical blocks that cannot be obtained. These include the piston head and moving piston blocks.

Piston Head

Renewable	Yes
Stackable	No
Tool
Blast resistance	1.5
Hardness	1.5
Luminous	No
Transparent	Yes
Flammable	No
Catches fire from lava	No
Map color (JE)	11 STONE

{
    "title": "Piston Head",
    "rows": [
        {
            "field": "Yes",
            "label": "(link to Renewable resource article, displayed as Renewable)"
        },
        {
            "field": "No",
            "label": "Stackable"
        },
        {
            "field": "<span class=\"sprite-file\" style=\"height:32px;width:32px;--vertical-align:middle\">(link to File:SlotSprite Pickaxe Required.png article, displayed as 32x32px|link=Pickaxe|alt=|class=pixel-image|This block can be broken with any tool, but a pickaxe is the quickest)</span>",
            "label": "Tool"
        },
        {
            "field": "1.5",
            "label": "(link to Explosion#Blast resistance article, displayed as Blast resistance)"
        },
        {
            "field": "1.5",
            "label": "(link to Breaking#Blocks by hardness article, displayed as Hardness)"
        },
        {
            "field": "No",
            "label": "(link to Light article, displayed as Luminous)"
        },
        {
            "field": "Yes",
            "label": "(link to Opacity article, displayed as Transparent)"
        },
        {
            "field": "No",
            "label": "(link to Flammable article, displayed as Flammable)"
        },
        {
            "field": "No",
            "label": "Catches fire<br>from (link to lava article, displayed as lava)"
        },
        {
            "field": "<span style=\"display: inline-block; white-space: nowrap;\"><span style=\"display: inline-block; background-color: rgb(112, 112, 112); border: 1px solid #888; border-radius: 0.3em; color: transparent; width: 1em; height: 1em; vertical-align: -0.36em; margin-right: -0.1em\"><br></span> 11 STONE</span>",
            "label": "(link to Map color article, displayed as Map color) <small>((link to Java Edition article, displayed as ''JE''))</small>"
        }
    ],
    "invimages": [
        "Piston Arm Collision",
        "Sticky Piston Arm Collision"
    ],
    "images": [
        "Piston Head.png",
        "Piston Head BE.png",
        "Sticky Piston Head.png",
        "Sticky Piston Head BE.png"
    ]
}

The piston head (in Java Edition) or (sticky) piston arm collision (in Bedrock Edition) is a technical block that appears as the front part of an extended piston. It is not available in the Creative inventory and does not drop anything when removed.

Normally, piston heads are created automatically when a piston extends. However, they can also be placed manually using the /setblock command. Alternatively a debug stick‌^{[Java Edition only]} can be used to change the facing direction of a piston head that's currently attached to a piston base. Piston heads that do not have a valid support block behind them will be removed when receiving a shape update from behind in Java Edition, or when receiving a block update from any direction in Bedrock Edition.

In rare cases, a client-side, duplicate piston head can appear when placing a piston next to a power source in Java Edition, due to client-server desync issues.^[1] These client-side piston heads cannot be broken directly but can be removed by placing another block in the same location.

In Java Edition, normal and sticky piston heads are distinguished by a block state. In Bedrock Edition, they use separate block IDs. The normal and sticky piston heads can be obtained as items in Bedrock Edition with the commands /give @s pistonarmcollision and /give @s stickypistonarmcollision. They face down when placed. The item form of the sticky piston arm collision block is named Sticky Sticky Piston Arm Collision.​^{[until BE 26.10]}

In Bedrock Edition, piston head blocks do not actually have a texture, as the piston arm texture is part of the piston block entity, and piston heads that aren't connected to a piston base have neither collisions nor an interaction box.

Heads of sticky pistons powered with redstone generate in jungle pyramid and ancient city.

Java Edition:

Bedrock Edition:
Piston Head:

Sticky Piston Head:

Moving Piston

Renewable	Yes
Stackable	No
Tool	None
Blast resistance	0
Hardness	-1
Luminous	No
Transparent	Yes
Flammable	No
Catches fire from lava	No

{
    "title": "Moving Piston",
    "rows": [
        {
            "field": "Yes",
            "label": "(link to Renewable resource article, displayed as Renewable)"
        },
        {
            "field": "No",
            "label": "Stackable"
        },
        {
            "field": "None",
            "label": "Tool"
        },
        {
            "field": "0",
            "label": "(link to Explosion#Blast resistance article, displayed as Blast resistance)"
        },
        {
            "field": "-1",
            "label": "(link to Breaking#Blocks by hardness article, displayed as Hardness)"
        },
        {
            "field": "No",
            "label": "(link to Light article, displayed as Luminous)"
        },
        {
            "field": "Yes",
            "label": "(link to Opacity article, displayed as Transparent)"
        },
        {
            "field": "No",
            "label": "(link to Flammable article, displayed as Flammable)"
        },
        {
            "field": "No",
            "label": "Catches fire<br>from (link to lava article, displayed as lava)"
        }
    ],
    "invimages": [
        "movingBlock"
    ],
    "images": []
}

The moving piston (in Java Edition) or moving block (in Bedrock Edition), also known as block 36 due to its pre-flattening block ID, is an unobtainable technical block that holds a block entity (unless it was placed with a command) which contains the block the piston is currently moving. Since moving blocks vary in how much of each grid cell they occupy, they can't be stored as normal blocks and are instead stored as block entity data. Multiple moving piston blocks may be used during the extension/retraction process, depending on how many blocks the piston is moving. At the end of the piston stroke, the moving piston blocks are replaced with either the carried block, the piston head (during extensions), or the piston itself (during retractions); but if it is placed with the use of commands it remains indefinitely.‌^{[Java Edition only]}

When placed by commands, the game does not assign a block entity to the moving piston block,^[verify] therefore its properties are different than usual: it's invisible, has no collisions, and cannot be broken without the use of TNT, commands, or a structure generating over it (such as the end platform). Although it is non-solid, fluids cannot pass through it. It also prevents players from building at its location. Mobs can see through it, but cannot walk through it. The game treats the block as a stone block when it comes to the player's footstep sounds. It is similar to invisible bedrock in properties with the exception that the player can walk through the moving piston but not invisible bedrock.

Java Edition:

The moving piston has a block entity associated with it that holds additional data about the block.

Java Edition:

Bedrock Edition:

See Bedrock Edition level format/Block entity format.

Java Edition:

Name	Identifier	Form	Block tags	Translation key
Piston Head	piston_head	Block	None	block.minecraft.piston_head
Moving Piston	moving_piston	Block	dragon_immune wither_immune	block.minecraft.moving_piston

Name	Identifier
Block entity	piston

Bedrock Edition:

Name	Identifier	Alias ID	Numeric ID	Form	Item ID[i 1]	Translation key
Piston Arm Collision	piston_arm_collision	pistonArmCollision	34	Block & Ungiveable Item[i 2]	Identical[i 3]	tile.piston_arm_collision.name
Sticky Sticky Piston Arm Collision​[until BE 26.10] Sticky Piston Arm Collision​[upcoming BE 26.10]	sticky_piston_arm_collision	stickyPistonArmCollision	472	Block & Ungiveable Item[i 2]	Identical[i 3] (Numeric: -217)	tile.sticky_piston_arm_collision.name
Moving Block	moving_block	movingBlock	250	Block & Ungiveable Item[i 2]	Identical[i 3]	—

Name	Savegame ID
Block entity	MovingBlock

This section would benefit from the addition of isometric renders.

 

Please remove this notice once you have added suitable isometric renders to the article.
The specific instructions are: 1.19 piston changes

Java Edition Beta
1.7							Added piston head and moving piston blocks.
Java Edition
1.8			14w17a				The models for piston and related blocks when facing up and down have been changed.
			14w27b				The moving piston block no longer has a selection outline.
			14w29a				There are now "short" piston heads. Their model is used during a piston's extension/retraction to avoid having part of the head's texture poke out of the back of the piston.
1.14			18w43a				The textures associated with piston heads have been changed.
							While the texture for oak planks was later updated in subsequent snapshots, the piston texture is yet to be changed to reflect this.[2]
1.19			22w17a				Changed piston textures, to match the color of the oak planks on the piston head.

• Mobs can spawn inside the piston head block.
• In Bedrock Edition, the piston head is invisible and non-solid when placed with commands. The moving piston disappears shortly after being placed with commands in this edition.
• The moving_piston is transparent and does not emit light.
  • If a light-emitting block is moved, the player can see it turn dark briefly. If an opaque block is moved, the player may see light passing through it.

v t e Blocks
Structural Wood/Hypha Logs Stripped Wood Stripped Stems Stripped Hyphae Stripped Block of Bamboo Stripped Bamboo Mosaic Planks Stone-based Stone Cobblestone Mossy Smooth Stone Stone Bricks Chiseled Cracked Mossy Granite Polished Diorite Polished Andesite Polished Deepslate Chiseled Cobbled Polished Deepslate Bricks Cracked Deepslate Tiles Cracked Tuff Chiseled Polished Tuff Bricks Chiseled Overworld Bricks Packed Mud Mud Bricks Block of Resin Resin Bricks Chiseled Sandstone Chiseled Cut Smooth Red Sandstone Chiseled Cut Smooth Prismarine Bricks Dark The Nether Netherrack Nether Bricks Chiseled Cracked Red Blackstone Polished Blackstone Chiseled Polished Blackstone Bricks Cracked Basalt Polished Smooth The End End Stone Bricks Purpur Block Pillar Ore/Mineral Block of Quartz Bricks Chiseled Pillar Smooth Block of Copper Chiseled Cut Grate Block of Iron Block of Gold Block of Amethyst Block of Coal Block of Diamond Block of Emerald Block of Lapis Lazuli Block of Netherite Block of Redstone
Ornamental Decorative Crying Obsidian Gilded Blackstone Honeycomb Block Reinforced Deepslate Partial Blocks Bars Iron Copper Chains Iron Copper Dirt Path Fences Wooden Nether Brick Slabs Cut Copper Wooden Stairs Cut Copper Wooden Walls Dyeable/Dyed Wool Carpets Terracotta Stained Glazed Concrete Powder Glass Pane Tinted Stained Glass Pane Lighting Candle Dyed End Rod Froglight Glowstone Jack o'Lantern Lantern Copper Soul Sea Lantern Torch Copper Soul BE & edu only Colored Torches Elements Hardened Glass Pane Hardened Stained Glass Pane
Natural Sediment/Soil Clay Dirt Coarse Grass Block Mycelium Podzol Rooted Gravel Mud Nylium Crimson Warped Sand Red Soul Sand Soil Misc. rock Bedrock Magma Block Obsidian Calcite Pointed Dripstone Block Ore/Mineral Amethyst Bud Cluster Budding Amethyst Ancient Debris Coal Ore Deepslate Copper Ore Deepslate Raw Block Diamond Ore Deepslate Emerald Ore Deepslate Gold Ore Deepslate Nether Raw Block Iron Ore Deepslate Raw Block Lapis Lazuli Ore Deepslate Nether Quartz Ore Redstone Ore Deepslate Plant Azalea Flowering Bamboo Shoot Beetroots Big Dripleaf Small Bush Cactus Carrots Cave Vines Chorus Plant Flower Cocoa Creaking Heart Dead Bush Fern Large Firefly Bush Hanging Roots Leaf Litter Leaves Lily Pad Mangrove Propagule Mangrove Roots Muddy Melon Stem Moss Block Carpet Pale Hanging Moss Pale Moss Block Carpet Potatoes Pumpkin Carved Stem Resin Clump Saplings Seagrass Tall Short Dry Grass Tall Short Grass Tall Sugar Cane Sweet Berry Bush Vines Wheat Crops Hay Bale Flower Allium Azure Bluet Blue Orchid Cactus Flower Cornflower Dandelion Golden​[upcoming First Drop 2026] Eyeblossom Closed Open Lilac Lily of the Valley Oxeye Daisy Peony Pink Petals Pitcher Plant Crop Poppy Rose Bush Spore Blossom Sunflower Torchflower Crop Tulips Wildflowers Wither Rose Fungus & Related Nether Fungi Crimson Warped Glow Lichen Mushrooms Brown Red Blocks Stem Nether Sprouts Nether Wart Wart Block Nether Warped Crimson Roots Warped Roots Shroomlight Twisting Vines Weeping Vines Fauna & algae Coral Dead Coral Blocks Dead Coral Fans Dead Dried Ghast Kelp Dried Block Sea Pickle Fauna/Related Bee Nest Bone Block Cobweb Dragon Egg Frogspawn Infested Blocks Sniffer Egg Turtle Egg Sculk Sculk Sculk Catalyst Sculk Sensor Calibrated Sculk Shrieker Sculk Vein Fluid & Related Lava Water Bubble Column Ice Blue Packed Snow Powder Block Non-physical Air Cave‌[JE only] Void‌[JE only] Invisible Bedrock‌[BE & edu only] Fire Soul
Utility Interactable Anvil Chipped Damaged Barrel Beacon Brewing Stand Cartography Table Chest Ender Copper Crafting Table Enchanting Table Furnace Blast Smoker Grindstone Lectern Loom Shulker Box Dyed Sign Hanging Smithing Table Stonecutter Utilizable Banners Ominous Beehive Beds Bell Bookshelf Cake with Candle Campfire Soul Cauldron Chiseled Bookshelf Composter Conduit Copper Golem Statue Decorated Pot End Gateway End Portal End Portal Frame Farmland Fletching Table Flower Pot Frosted Ice Heads Skeleton Wither Skeleton Zombie Creeper Piglin Dragon Heavy Core Jukebox Ladder Lodestone Monster Spawner Nether Portal Respawn Anchor Scaffolding Shelf Sponge Wet Suspicious Gravel Suspicious Sand TNT Trial Spawner Ominous Vault Ominous Redstone/ Mechanical Buttons Wooden Stone Polished Blackstone Copper Bulb Crafter Daylight Detector Dispenser Dropper Doors Copper Iron Wooden Honey Block Hopper Lever Lightning Rod Note Block Observer Piston Sticky Pressure Plates Wooden Stone Polished Blackstone Heavy Weighted Light Weighted Rail Activator Detector Powered Redstone Lamp Redstone Wire Comparator Repeater Torch Slime Block Target Trapped Chest Trapdoors Copper Iron Wooden Fence Gates Tripwire Hook Tripwire BE & edu only Allow Border Chalkboards Compound Creator Deny Element Constructor Heat Block Item Frame Glow Lab Table Material Reducer Underwater TNT Underwater Torch
Creative or commands only All editions Barrier Command Block Chain Repeating Jigsaw Block Light Petrified Oak Slab Player Head Structure Block Void Java Edition only Test Block Test Instance Block China Edition only mod_ore micro_block
Removed All editions Grassless Dirt Seamless Stone Slab Java Edition only Cloth Dead Coral Block Gear Lava Spawner Locked chest Rose Potted Shrub Water Spawner Bedrock Edition only Blue Rose grass_carried leaves_carried Fern Fern Smooth Stone Bricks Structure Air mysterious_frame_slot MinecraftEdu only Big Sign Border block Build allow block Build disallow block Foundation block Home Block Information block Information Sign Number Block Spawn Block Steppe sand Steppe dirt Teleport Block Quiz block Minecraft 4k only ID 9 Dirt XOR Block
Unused Bedrock Edition only Chalkboard BE & edu only Camera Block Chiseled Purpur tile.client_request_placeholder_block.name Deprecated Anvil tile.deprecated_purpur_block_2.name Glowing Obsidian tile.info_update.name tile.info_update2.name Nether Reactor Core tile.reserved6.name Stonecutter (old) Unknown
Unimplemented All editions Blue Berries Branches Copper Button Colored Planks Coral Slab Dead Dirt Slab Empty Barrel Fish Barrel Furniture Paeonia Sand Layer Sculk Jaw Spike Block Wax Block
Joke April Fools 2013 Block of Coal Etho Slab Tinted Glass Torch (Burnt-out) April Fools 2016 USB Charger Block April Fools 2020 An Ant Box of Infinite Books Cursor Funky Portal Leftover Swaggiest stairs ever April Fools 2022 How did we get here? April Fools 2023 Cheese Copper Sink Filled Copper Spleaves Golden Chest Other Portal Packed Air Pickaxe Block Place Block April Fools 2024 Baked Potato Bricks Expired Charred Big Brain Block of Amber Block of Potato Peels Corrupted Floatater Floatato Frying Table Gravtater Pedestal Peelgrass Block Corrupted Poison Farmland Poison Path Poisonous Mashed Potato Poisonous Potato Block Compressed Double Compressed Triple Compressed Quadruple Compressed Poisonous Potato Cutter Poisonous Potato Head Block Poisonous Potato Headpiece Poisonous Potato Ore Deepslate Potato Battery Potato Bud Potato flower Potato Fruit Potato Leaves Potato Pedicule Potato Portal Potato Refinery Potato Sprouts Potato Stem Planks Slab Stairs Door Trapdoor Button Pressure Plate Sign Hanging Sign Fence Fence Gate Potone Copper Ore Diamond Ore Gold Ore Iron Ore Lapis Lazuli Ore Redstone Ore Resin Ore Powerful Potato Strong Roots Taterstone Terre de Pomme Vicious Potato Weak Roots April Fools 2025 Dimension Control Mine Travelling Block Mine Revisitor Mine Crafter Mob Trophy Shimmering Door Sky Trophy
Extreme metadata variants All editions Directionless Hopper Seamless Stone Slab Six-sided Hay Bale Six-sided Piston Java Edition only Faceless Furnace Faceless Jack o'Lantern Green Shrub Potted Invisible stairs Misaligned torch Redstone Nether portal post Overripe Melon Stem Attached Overripe Pumpkin Stem Attached Overgrown Cocoa Overeaten Cake Overgrown Wheat Crops Potted non-flower block Snowy Dirt Coarse Strange buttons Others Bedrock Edition only Bell Stand Diorite Bell Granite Bell Polished Six-sided Bone Block Six-sided Purpur Pillar Six-sided Quartz Pillar Smokeless Campfire