Brass Inserts

[buckeyebowhunter]

Guys,

I was wanting to put some fifty grain brass inserts in my carbon express Heritage 150's to get a little weight up front. Would I be able to just buy them myself, heat up the inserts that are already in my arrows remove them, put some krazy glue on the brass inserts and put them into my arrows? Or would i have to take them somewhere to have this done? Thanks guys.
Buckeyebowhunter

[Ragnarok Forge]

You can do it.  Screw in a field point and heat the point tip up.  This will transmit to the inserts and loosen the glue.  Be very careful not to over heat the tip or insert as this can damage the carbon in the arrow shaft.

I have done this quite a bit at home.  The key to heat a bit and check if the insert is loose.  Once it wiggles just a bit you can pull the old one out.

[Drew]

depends on what the existing inserts were put in with. I'd skip the krazy glue and epoxy them in.
The extra weight up front will weaken the spine somewhat, so if your flight changes you'll know why..

[buckeyebowhunter]

Thank you, Would Krazy glue be ok to glue the brass inserts in?

[ShadeMt]

You have to be very careful heating inserts in carbon as it can damage the shaft which could result in injury.  Certainly do not use direct heat on the shaft itself. I have installed a field point and then heated the field point just to the point it allowed the insert to move.  After removal I immediately cooled the shaft in water to prevent damage.  If you don't feel comfortable doing this you might want to contact a shop.

[Chris Surtees]

I have been using Gorilla Super Glue and it works great.

Also have some green hot melt that is fantastic.

C

[Friend]

1. Heating up an insert for removal from a carbon shaft will most likely crack the shaft.

2. Heating up the point for insert removal from a carbon shaft is quite risky.

3. Taking a drill bit, as in my case a drill blank, remove nock insert bit(flat side toward insert)then re-install nock. You then need to position the arrow over heads say 10:00 then quickly swing from above staight to the ground. the drills centrifical force is used to dislodge the insert. Sometimes it takes several attempts. It will be wise to have some kind back stop to catch the dislodged insert and bit.

I suggest re-installing the nock and grasping the arrow including the nock, whiling swinging in order to prevent the bit from cutting you.

Note: I just recently removed a dozen using the ascribed techniqued.

[cacciatore]

Hot melt,barely lost any insert and I can change weith in seconds dozens of times a day,never looked back to any superglue.

[Chris Shelton]

I just recently spilled 40 bucks for 3 dozen brass inserts!  And I spent some time removing the old aluminum ones!  It is a pain, but it is pretty easy.

The methods above are basically describing the way I do it, I just use a vice and pull the arrow . . .

Hot melt is kinda a pain, it really sticks to everything, but it also works pretty well. A&E epoxy works really well too!!

good luck

[Hookeye]

Hot and then cold, depending on materials and adhesives, may not be a good thing (thermoshock).

You might be damaging the material and/or adhesive bonds you want.

I steer clear of crazy glue and other cyanoacrilates on carbons, run glue sticks that require a torch to melt (NOT the stuff by trade name "Hotmelt"). The stuff I use is whitish, never fully sets up super hard. It's tends to hold even after substantial impact.

Removal of superglued inserts seems to fall under two catagories: heat up a field tip, or use a drill bit or other weight inside the shaft slung to impact/break it free.

As far as unitizing the weights to the insert- no need to glue each weight to each other as an assembly. Just screw them all together and a smear of the molten gluestick along the outside works.

[RM81]

Have you tried Gold Tips inserts?  I can install and remove brass weights from the back of the arrow using a long allen wrench.  It was nice being able to swap weights so easy to find the right combo.

[Hookeye]

FWIW I've heated up hundreds (probably a couple K) of carbon arrows.

Heat the field tip for inserts held by superglue, gluestick and other epoxies.

I've trashed maybe a half dozen arrows doing it.

I know four of them were GT weights in non Goldtip shafts and the owner could only shove them in 4 arrows (couldn't on his other 2). Removal of those inserts with heat indeed damaged the shaft (damaged before insert removal?).

Using a propane torch it seems that gluestick adhesive takes about 10 seconds, low flame.

Other stuff can take longer, and it's best to sneak up on the break free time/temp. Test as you go, don't get distracted and leave the fieldtip in the flame too long (as can happen when people are jawjacking in the shop).

I just pay attention and count as I heat, try to do everything to the same process. That way when i find the correct heating time I can then just duplicate it over and over in a run.

[buckeyebowhunter]

So you guys are saying that heating up the field point can damage the shaft? I did not know this, I recently glued a half dozen broadheads with a propane torch on to adapters while they were screwed into one of my carbon arrows. I had no idea the shaft could be damaged. I wonder if my arrow i was using is damaged in any way, i didnt notice anything while doing it.

[Shawn Leonard]

Hookeye is correct, just screw in a field point and heat it up, and apply steady pressure. Most come right out unless JB weld or something was used. I have done a ton this way and damage maybe a couple. Just do not overheat it and you will be fine. Shawn

you might just do one, and check arrow flight with hevier insert . you might have to cut your arrows down anyway, so you might be able to just cut them off.

[buckeyebowhunter]

Arrow I have already shot an arrow of the same lenght and spine with the brass inserts this is why i want to change more of my arrows to 50 grain brass inserts.. And i will just try what you guys have said.

be carefull heating up the carbon shafts.  

[buckeyebowhunter]

Thanks man, I didnt realize it was dangerous. Thanks for the insight.

if you got an old arrow laying around, heat it up youll see what happens, it looses it integrety.and just comes apart.

[Smallwood]

I have installed / removed inserts from hundreds of shafts and it's really not a big deal, just heat the field point a little at a time and then grab it with a pair of pliers and try twisting/tightening it. If it doesn't move, heat a little more and repeat until the insert  starts twisting then pull it out.
It ain't rocket science. you can do it. I have faith in ya!