bentbarrel

My dilemma...I ordered a dozen Beman ICS Hunters from a well known archery catalog company and am not satisfied at all. [:@][:@]

I've shot 6 of the 12 and the inserts have come out of 4 of these 6 arrows. Not looking too good at this point. I've talked to the seller and they are sending me new inserts with glue but I'm still a rookie and have never assembled arrows before. What's the best way to do it?

I'm not confident in these arrows any more. Should I assume the whole batch is bad?

More importantly...will taking the original inserts out and gluing in new ones damage the shaft?

I'm thinking of taking them to the local pro shop since they have the right equipment.

Again...I tried to save a buck and it cost me in the long run!![:@][:@]

ldial1973

if younever done it before then it might be best to have the pro shop do it . If you ask they might show you how it is done. Good luck

Washington Hunter

First off, and it may seem like a stupid question, but did you glue the original inserts?

Yes, if you did glue them, chances are that pulling them out will damage the shaft.

slee

If they have been glued in, there is a way to remove the inserts w/o damaging the arrow. Screw a field point into the arrow. Heat the field point with a cigarette lighter or something similar(NOT THE ARROW!!!!!!!). This will usually break the glue bond if they have been glued. Take a pair of pliers, grasp the field point, try to tighten it as you pull pressure, and it should come out. Then you will probably need to clean the inside of the shaft to get a good bond when you put the new inserts in. It's not that hard. I follow this procedure whenever I find an insert that's not square in the arrow, and I've never had a problem.

Arthur P

Be very careful about applying heat to remove inserts from carbon arrows. You heat the field point and allow the heat to flow into the insert. Too much heat and you'll melt the end of the shaft. Heat a little, then grab the point with pliers and pull. Heat a little and pull. Heat a little and pull. Eventually the bond will break and the insert will pull free. If you're lucky, it won't be covered with black resin. If it is, you screwed up.

For the ones that haven't pulled out, I'd leave 'em alone. On the ones that have pulled out, you can easily install the inserts yourself. Run down to the nearest hardware store and get some 24-hour epoxy. Not that 5-minute frogsnot epoxy, the good 24-hour stuff. When you get those new inserts, epoxy them into place. They won't pull out again.

I like taking a toothpick and smearing a thin coat of epoxy inside the shaft, then doing the same on the insert. Then just stick the insert in the shaft, place the face of the insert on a good, flat surface and while holding the arrow as straight as you can, push the arrow straight down on the insert.

I've got a broadhead I KNOW is straight that I put into the insert. So, I put the arrow in my spinner and make sure the insert is straight before the epoxy can set up. Then I cross my fingers, hoping it stays straight while the glue cures.

Aluminum arrows and hot melt glue are SO much easier to work with.

jsasker

I just got some of those beamans myself and have the same trouble--it doesn't looked like they were glued at all.I have a nock insert tool that i use and it works well.I could screw in a field point and by turning with my fingers the insert was turning as well--poor quality control but easy enough to fix.

bentbarrel

Thanks for the tips guys! I'm going to test the rest of them to see which ones need to be reglued. Just a pain in the #%* I only have five more weeks before the opener and I was planning on concentrating on tuning the bow with broadheads not worrying about arrows.

WH...no I didn't glue in the original inserts. Keystone...where I purchased them assembled the arrows.

Thanks again!

reylamb

Like Art, I prefer epoxy for inserts. Make sure prior to installing them that you clean out the inside of the shaft and remove any carbon dust that may still be residing in there. Typically, but not always, inserts coming out is a sign of someone not cleaning the shafts prior to installing the inserts.