Removing brass piles from wooden arrows

Si2

New member
The first set of wooden arrows that I made were 31 inches long. I've since discovered that my draw is only just over 29 inches and made my second set to suit that. So I decided to revisit my first set and cut them down.
I sawed the piles off with about an inch of wooden shaft but couldn't think of a way to remove the piles that were stuck on with araldite.

I tried soaking them but nothing really happened, then I thought I'd heat up the pile and pull it off of the wood when the glue was warm.

It turned out to be much easier than that. If you use a gas flame to heat the brass pile, after around a minute it just pops off of it's own accord. I used the cooker in the kitchen, but the smell was bad and the fumes might be nasty, so I'd recommend using a camp stove or gas torch in the garden.

I just held the wooden stub in some pliers, heated the brass pile and waited for the pop and the pile launched itself off the end. It does fly about a foot, so don't try to catch it and make sure it doesn't land on anything flammable or meltable, as it is still hot. Hence the garden is probably a good idea.

They came off very clean and have since been remounted on the shorter arrows... Saved me a few quid in new piles.

Si
 
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