Jump to content
TESTERS WANTED! ×

Methods to pull iron shafts?


Recommended Posts

Hello all,

Just wanted to get some idea as to how you guys are pulling your shaft.

 

I don't have the shaft puller, and wondering if that could be done even without the shaft puller.

 

If you are using a shaft puller, what do you recommend?

 

I would probably get one, however want to get some idea as to which one to get and how much $$$ it will cost.

 

Thanks.

Driver: Snake Eye 9.5* Python XLD w/ AXE FW Regular, tipped 1"

4 Wood: Bridgestone J40 with AXE FW Stiff

Hybrid 19*, Acer XF, FST 115 Pro, stiff

Hybrid 25*, Bobby Jones, stock shaft, stiff

Irons 4-6: Tommy Armour, 845c silverback forged, R300

Irons 7-P: Tommy Armour, 845m Silverback forged, S300

Wedges: 56* Eidolon; 60* Mizuno

Putter: SC - Monterey 35", stock weight

Balls: B-Stone B330RX-S

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On a steel shaft you can just heat it up to melt the glue and grab it with a glove or towel and pull it off. You can twist the head. On a graphite shaft you need a vise and a bar at least if you want to save the shaft. Any twisting on a graphite shaft will ruin it. Of course if you do not care about the shaft, you can do it just like a steel shaft or cut it off and drill it out.

 

You can use either a blue bottle propane torch or I use one of those butane torches. $20 at Lowe's. I am an expert at ruining graphite shafts. Even with a vise and a puller, you have to be very careful and not apply too much heat or the graphite will ruin. You have to be worse than me to ruin steal shafts. However, if you use a propane torch you can discolor the hosel, but you only want to heat it up enough to melt glue. 150 degrees or so. To discolor the steel you need to be in the 300 range I think.

:ping-small:G430LST 10.5° on     T P T    POWER 18 Hi Driver 

:ping-small:G430MAX 3w  on     T P T    POWER 18 Hi Fairway 

:ping-small:G425 3H on     T P T    POWER 18 Hi Hybrid 

:taylormade-small:P790 Black 4-A 
on :kbs: TGI 80S
 

:mizuno-small: ES21 54-8° & 58-12° on :kbs: Hi Rev

:L.A.B.:DF2.1 on :accra: White

:titelist-small: ProV1  

:918457628_PrecisionPro: Precision Pro  NX7 Pro

All Iron grips are BestGrips Micro-Perforated Mid

Driver, 3w, 3H are JumboMax JMX UltraLite XS 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

You can use either a blue bottle propane torch or I use one of those butane torches. $20 at Lowe's. I am an expert at ruining graphite shafts. Even with a vise and a puller, you have to be very careful and not apply too much heat or the graphite will ruin. You have to be worse than me to ruin steal shafts. However, if you use a propane torch you can discolor the hosel, but you only want to heat it up enough to melt glue. 150 degrees or so. To discolor the steel you need to be in the 300 range I think.

 

 

Not that high, but definitely over heated. The trick is to measure the amount of time you are applying heat and pull the shaft just as the epoxy loses it's bond. Unfortunately the needed amount of time varies with the epoxy used, and the heat source because different heat guns give different amounts of heat. These days I bring my clubs to be pulled by a trusted club maker. I've discolored more than enough hosels so I only pull my older clubs.

 

You need to be very precise with graphite shafts. The difference between melting the epoxy and melting or causing other damage to the shaft is small.

 

I prefer the torch as I can see the heat being applied and where. The heat gun covers a larger area. It's not a big deal but I'm more comfortable seeing where I am applying heat than estimating.

 

 

Shambles

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'll preface by saying I haven't done it yet, but I've researched this quite a bit. Here is a list of what I've found. Hopefully other members can add their comments to the article and various products below:

 

I trust pretty much everything written by Jeff Summit. Here's an article he wrote, which goes over using a torch and heat gun for graphite shaft removal (with steel shafts you don't need a puller, but the heating concepts still apply): http://www.hirekogolf.com/hireko/graphics/orderportal/articles/graphiteremoval.html

 

Google search for the Cool Gel product mentioned in the article: http://www.google.com/search?q=cool+gel&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=com.yahoo:en-US:official&client=firefox#hl=en&gs_nf=1&ds=pr&pq=%22cool+gel%22+&cp=16&gs_id=5u&xhr=t&q=%22cool+gel%22+spray&pf=p&client=firefox&hs=6i1&rls=com.yahoo:en-US%3Aofficial&tbm=shop&sclient=psy-ab&oq=%22cool+gel%22+spray&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&gs_sm=&gs_upl=&gs_l=&pbx=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_qf.,cf.osb&fp=5415f42459ad74ec&biw=1440&bih=748

 

Here's a product to remove heat marks: http://www.golfsmith.com/product/30039581/golfsmith-black-blue-remover?cm_mmc=bv-_-RLP-_-30039581-_-productname_link&tcode=bvreviewsite

 

 

I haven't bought a shaft puller yet, but here are the two I'm looking at:

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/ROBERTS-PRO-GOLF-CLUB-SHAFT-PULLER-GRIP-STATION-plus-vice-adapter-/120873451366?pt=Golf_Clubmaking_Products_US&hash=item1c249e7f66

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Anodized-Aluminum-Anywhere-Puller-Golf-Club-Shaft-Extractor-w-Hosel-Protector-/270930283416?pt=Golf_Clubmaking_Products_US&hash=item3f14b40b98

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'll preface by saying I haven't done it yet, but I've researched this quite a bit. Here is a list of what I've found. Hopefully other members can add their comments to the article and various products below:

 

I trust pretty much everything written by Jeff Summit. Here's an article he wrote, which goes over using a torch and heat gun for graphite shaft removal (with steel shafts you don't need a puller, but the heating concepts still apply): http://www.hirekogolf.com/hireko/graphics/orderportal/articles/graphiteremoval.html

 

Google search for the Cool Gel product mentioned in the article: http://www.google.com/search?q=cool+gel&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=com.yahoo:en-US:official&client=firefox#hl=en&gs_nf=1&ds=pr&pq=%22cool+gel%22+&cp=16&gs_id=5u&xhr=t&q=%22cool+gel%22+spray&pf=p&client=firefox&hs=6i1&rls=com.yahoo:en-US%3Aofficial&tbm=shop&sclient=psy-ab&oq=%22cool+gel%22+spray&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&gs_sm=&gs_upl=&gs_l=&pbx=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_qf.,cf.osb&fp=5415f42459ad74ec&biw=1440&bih=748

 

Here's a product to remove heat marks: http://www.golfsmith.com/product/30039581/golfsmith-black-blue-remover?cm_mmc=bv-_-RLP-_-30039581-_-productname_link&tcode=bvreviewsite

 

 

I haven't bought a shaft puller yet, but here are the two I'm looking at:

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/ROBERTS-PRO-GOLF-CLUB-SHAFT-PULLER-GRIP-STATION-plus-vice-adapter-/120873451366?pt=Golf_Clubmaking_Products_US&hash=item1c249e7f66

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Anodized-Aluminum-Anywhere-Puller-Golf-Club-Shaft-Extractor-w-Hosel-Protector-/270930283416?pt=Golf_Clubmaking_Products_US&hash=item3f14b40b98

The hydraulic shaft puller is awesome, but i sometimes wonder if I can justify the cost of $150 or so. Now, if I am pulling $300 shafts from season to season, then yeah.

 

The second one on ebay, I don't like the fact that you have to screw the 2 bolts to pull the shaft.

I might pull a trigger maybe end of this season (when golf related items go on sale) on the one I found from Amazon.com

http://www.amazon.com/UCO-Clubmakers-Golf-Shaft-Extractor/dp/B0009MKI2Y/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1331400725&sr=8-1

 

Looks simple, doesn't cost too much...or maybe I will man up and get the hydraulic unit.

 

Thanks everyone for their input.

 

For now, I think I might try the heat and glove method.

Driver: Snake Eye 9.5* Python XLD w/ AXE FW Regular, tipped 1"

4 Wood: Bridgestone J40 with AXE FW Stiff

Hybrid 19*, Acer XF, FST 115 Pro, stiff

Hybrid 25*, Bobby Jones, stock shaft, stiff

Irons 4-6: Tommy Armour, 845c silverback forged, R300

Irons 7-P: Tommy Armour, 845m Silverback forged, S300

Wedges: 56* Eidolon; 60* Mizuno

Putter: SC - Monterey 35", stock weight

Balls: B-Stone B330RX-S

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The hydraulic shaft puller is awesome, but i sometimes wonder if I can justify the cost of $150 or so. Now, if I am pulling $300 shafts from season to season, then yeah.

 

The second one on ebay, I don't like the fact that you have to screw the 2 bolts to pull the shaft.

I might pull a trigger maybe end of this season (when golf related items go on sale) on the one I found from Amazon.com

http://www.amazon.com/UCO-Clubmakers-Golf-Shaft-Extractor/dp/B0009MKI2Y/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1331400725&sr=8-1

 

Looks simple, doesn't cost too much...or maybe I will man up and get the hydraulic unit.

 

Thanks everyone for their input.

 

For now, I think I might try the heat and glove method.

 

I hadn't seen that one, thanks for the link

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The problem I have run into with graphite shafts is not the actual puller but in applying too much heat. A vise with a pry bar works fine, but too much heat is a deal breaker. What I do, is apply a little heat, try the pry bar, then a little more heat, and try again, and continue until the bond in the epoxy is broken. It take much less heat than i realized when I first started doing it.

 

I have thought about making my own shaft puller, but then again, that is what I do for a living, design equipment, and I am in a relatively new field and most of the things I want to do does not have existing equipment to do it, so for the last 12 years if I want something, I had to design it, build it, test it, then sell it. Oh yeah, patented it, Which is the reason that I get paid while I am playing golf everyday.:D

:ping-small:G430LST 10.5° on     T P T    POWER 18 Hi Driver 

:ping-small:G430MAX 3w  on     T P T    POWER 18 Hi Fairway 

:ping-small:G425 3H on     T P T    POWER 18 Hi Hybrid 

:taylormade-small:P790 Black 4-A 
on :kbs: TGI 80S
 

:mizuno-small: ES21 54-8° & 58-12° on :kbs: Hi Rev

:L.A.B.:DF2.1 on :accra: White

:titelist-small: ProV1  

:918457628_PrecisionPro: Precision Pro  NX7 Pro

All Iron grips are BestGrips Micro-Perforated Mid

Driver, 3w, 3H are JumboMax JMX UltraLite XS 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

RR,

 

 

Seems to me it's the business of heating and reheating that is causing you problems. I've tried that and ended up with melted shaft tips or discolored hosels or both. The business of heating and reheating threw me off the mark in figuring out when the epoxy bond had been broken.

 

If you have a shaft puller, it should be more safe to put a bit of pressure on pulling the shaft while heating. It does not take much, just enough pressure so that the head at least moves a bit at the moment the epoxy bond is broken. It's best to measure the amount of time you have been applying heat, if only for your own knowledge. I myself do not have a shaft puller so I have to do it by experience. I measure the amount of time I have been applying heat and pull the head off with a thick rag. Experience is my only guide here and there is always the risk of overheating this way. However, it's too much trouble getting a shaft puller to my place. I only do my own and only when I'm in the mood. I can take risks with my own equipment.

 

 

Shambles

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I don't have a problem now because I have experience. But I did discolor some hosels 12 years ago and I have over heated some shafts more recently. Mainly on thru bore. They are such a pain in the butt. I am so glad they are mostly history. But dooboo was the one asking about pullers and methods etc.

 

My point is you do not need $200 worth of equipment. If you are doing steel you need a $20 torch and towel. On graphite you need to add a $20 bench vise $5 rubber jaws or use old shafts and a pry bar.

 

The amount of heat is the harder part not any special puller. If you are going to reshaft clubs every day get the right equipment. If you are going to pull a $300 graphite shaft. Take it to someone who knows what they are doing. If you are changing the shafts in your 8 irons then spen twenty bucks and grab a towel.

:ping-small:G430LST 10.5° on     T P T    POWER 18 Hi Driver 

:ping-small:G430MAX 3w  on     T P T    POWER 18 Hi Fairway 

:ping-small:G425 3H on     T P T    POWER 18 Hi Hybrid 

:taylormade-small:P790 Black 4-A 
on :kbs: TGI 80S
 

:mizuno-small: ES21 54-8° & 58-12° on :kbs: Hi Rev

:L.A.B.:DF2.1 on :accra: White

:titelist-small: ProV1  

:918457628_PrecisionPro: Precision Pro  NX7 Pro

All Iron grips are BestGrips Micro-Perforated Mid

Driver, 3w, 3H are JumboMax JMX UltraLite XS 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I don't have a problem now because I have experience. But I did discolor some hosels 12 years ago and I have over heated some shafts more recently. Mainly on thru bore. They are such a pain in the butt. I am so glad they are mostly history. But dooboo was the one asking about pullers and methods etc.

 

My point is you do not need $200 worth of equipment. If you are doing steel you need a $20 torch and towel. On graphite you need to add a $20 bench vise $5 rubber jaws or use old shafts and a pry bar.

 

The amount of heat is the harder part not any special puller. If you are going to reshaft clubs every day get the right equipment. If you are going to pull a $300 graphite shaft. Take it to someone who knows what they are doing. If you are changing the shafts in your 8 irons then spen twenty bucks and grab a towel.

 

I very much agree. About 30 years ago I put my clubs on the stove to melt the epoxy and in some cases to remove the pins, though I also used a drill on some pins. There was even a time I used a candle as a heat source. Back then only the Americans, as far as I was aware of, had heat guns. It was a bit of a race to buy a second hand heat gun from Clark Air Base when the USA pulled out, and I lost that race. There is more equipment available now but I have also become lazy and prefer to pay someone else to do the job.

 

 

Shambles

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I once used a pan of boiling water, Worked great on steel shafts but not good for graphite, too hard to control the heat

:ping-small:G430LST 10.5° on     T P T    POWER 18 Hi Driver 

:ping-small:G430MAX 3w  on     T P T    POWER 18 Hi Fairway 

:ping-small:G425 3H on     T P T    POWER 18 Hi Hybrid 

:taylormade-small:P790 Black 4-A 
on :kbs: TGI 80S
 

:mizuno-small: ES21 54-8° & 58-12° on :kbs: Hi Rev

:L.A.B.:DF2.1 on :accra: White

:titelist-small: ProV1  

:918457628_PrecisionPro: Precision Pro  NX7 Pro

All Iron grips are BestGrips Micro-Perforated Mid

Driver, 3w, 3H are JumboMax JMX UltraLite XS 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The problem I have run into with graphite shafts is not the actual puller but in applying too much heat. A vise with a pry bar works fine, but too much heat is a deal breaker. What I do, is apply a little heat, try the pry bar, then a little more heat, and try again, and continue until the bond in the epoxy is broken. It take much less heat than i realized when I first started doing it.

 

I have thought about making my own shaft puller, but then again, that is what I do for a living, design equipment, and I am in a relatively new field and most of the things I want to do does not have existing equipment to do it, so for the last 12 years if I want something, I had to design it, build it, test it, then sell it. Oh yeah, patented it, Which is the reason that I get paid while I am playing golf everyday.:D

Rick, check out the economy puller from Golfworks that I posted the link to earlier. You should be able to make one like that fairly easily. I almost made one myself, but I'm lazy.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On a steel shaft you can just heat it up to melt the glue and grab it with a glove or towel and pull it off. You can twist the head. On a graphite shaft you need a vise and a bar at least if you want to save the shaft. Any twisting on a graphite shaft will ruin it. Of course if you do not care about the shaft, you can do it just like a steel shaft or cut it off and drill it out.

 

You can use either a blue bottle propane torch or I use one of those butane torches. $20 at Lowe's. I am an expert at ruining graphite shafts. Even with a vise and a puller, you have to be very careful and not apply too much heat or the graphite will ruin. You have to be worse than me to ruin steal shafts. However, if you use a propane torch you can discolor the hosel, but you only want to heat it up enough to melt glue. 150 degrees or so. To discolor the steel you need to be in the 300 range I think.

 

Mapp gas (the yellow bottle) is easier to ruin hosels with than propane because it burns hotter, butane burns at about the same temp, but if it's a micro torch, it's more controllable. I prefer propane because it burns slower, and when pulling graphite, I use a variable temp heat gun. If you discolor the hosel, don't fret, there's a fix for that. It's a product called Blue Away. It'll remove scorch marks from hosels.

 

The thing with it is, you want to keep your heat source moving, and not in one spot, which prevents the scorching. There's also a few products to protect the paint on the crowns of painted clubs, and that's cooling gel (also good for composite heads). All you're doing when heating it is getting the epoxy to it's breakdown temp. Once there, the epoxy's bond turns loose. Different epoxies have different breakdown temps, check with the manufacturer to see what that temp is and then decide on what you'll use for the application of heat.

In The Bag
Driver: TaylorMade M2 (2017) w/ Project X T1100 HZRDUS Handcrafted 65x 
Strong 3 wood: Taylormade M1 15* w/ ProjectX T1100 HZRDUS handcrafted 75x
3 Hybrid: Adams PRO 18* w/ KBS Tour Hybrid S flex tipped 1/2"
4 Hybrid: Adams PRO 20* (bent to 21*) w/ KBS Tour Hybrid S flex tipped 1/2"
4-AW: TaylorMade P770 w/ Dynamic Gold Tour Issue Black Onyx S400

SW: 56* Scratch Tour Dept(CC grooves) w/ Dynamic Gold Spinner
LW: 60* Scratch Tour Department (CC grooves) w/ Dynamic Gold Spinner
XW: 64* Cally XForged Vintage w/ DG X100 8 iron tiger stepped
Putter: Nike Method Prototype 006 at 34"

Have a ton of back-ups in all categories, but there are always 14 clubs in the bag that differ depending on the course and set-up. Bomb and gouge. Yes, I'm a club gigolo.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

To pull a club from a steel shaft requires heat applied in the hosel area of the club head for approximately 45 seconds (woods) to about 60 second (for irons).

Then attempt to twist the club head from the shaft. Move the heat in a back and forth motion while moving around the hosel area to prevent paint scortching(burning). If the first attempt did not work wait about 30 seconds and do it again.

 

Pulling a graphite shaft from a clubhead requires the same heating technique but you must pull the head straight away from the shaftin order to save it. Using a pry bar and disk does do the trick however is not nearly as precise as a puller made to do the job. There are many pullers out there, spring loaded, screw type, hydraulic and combinations of at least two.

 

Golfworks, Golfwmith, EBAY, golf instruments, Billy Bobs, Mitchell and weiss gibson all offer shaft pullers. IMO humble opinion. If you are not pulling every day and have time on your side, then a low cost screw type or inexpensive hydro model are money well spent. However, if you are going fulltime them the hydro models such as the Weis gibson or model from ebay or even python puller (I use) is the best bet.

 

I the past when Titleist were bore thru and the toughest pull out there, the average time to complete the pull as 30 minutes with a screw type puller from Mitchell. I bought my python puller a hydro unit and the next Titleist pull was complete in about 3 minute. That is an obvious plus. Its not that the python is that great but the hydro units make short work of the jobs assuming the clamping mechanism is up to the task. Now that most clubheads are not bore through, a screw type can very efficently pull the heads off shafts, although not as sexy as a puller with a floor jack attached, it stil can be used.

Driver - 44.5" 5.0 flex 10.5 deg Graphite Design XC 6S GP MCC4+ 1 deg closed

Irons - 5-pw, GW stnd length 5.0 flex same grip 1 deg flat. Type low medium offset cavity back, no diggers

Wedges - 56 and 60 tour grind wedge spinner and mcc4+ grip 2 flat 10 and 8 in bounce

Putter - Makefield VS LH

Ball - truvis

Carried in a Sun Mountain C-130 USA bag - BE PROUD.

HC - LH but 85 is a good number, playing in Ohio.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

before I spend the money on the shaft puller, I think I am going to try to manual method which few of your have suggested.

 

Heat, towel, little elbow grease.

 

Just little investment in propane torch.

 

I think I can always wait until end of the season to find better bargains on the used equipment anyways. Thanks so much for the suggestions and this helps a million.

Driver: Snake Eye 9.5* Python XLD w/ AXE FW Regular, tipped 1"

4 Wood: Bridgestone J40 with AXE FW Stiff

Hybrid 19*, Acer XF, FST 115 Pro, stiff

Hybrid 25*, Bobby Jones, stock shaft, stiff

Irons 4-6: Tommy Armour, 845c silverback forged, R300

Irons 7-P: Tommy Armour, 845m Silverback forged, S300

Wedges: 56* Eidolon; 60* Mizuno

Putter: SC - Monterey 35", stock weight

Balls: B-Stone B330RX-S

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

  • Recently Browsing

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...