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Unable to remove old heel tip


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I was trying to replace the old worn heel tips on a pair of boots. They are plastic tips. The plastic part was easily removed using a pair of pliers. But the metal pins left me stranded.:) They were stuck in the heels and I couldn't get a good grip on them because the part outside the heel is hollow and not robust. After a few unsuccessful attempts of pulling, there is not much metal left outside the heel, which is even harder to get grip on. Any ideas? Thanks!

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If you are skilled enough you can (as I do) drill them out, otherwise off to the repairers. Start with a small size 1.5mm to centre drill and step up to about 2.5 most tip pin sizes I believe are 2.9. Often with this size unless you are perfect you will catch the tube wall and leave a crescent that may almost fall out. If any doubt with a good pair you've got to get them done properly. See also the thread "new heel tips" in this forum Al

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I see. Thanks! Time to get the drill battery recharged. It's my first time to replace the tips and both pins are stuck. I'm curious is it common to have stuck metal pins and need drilling...

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STK439 If they have been in a while and worn hard onto the metal pin or dealt with the wet, very. One pair of boots (5th set of tips) even pulled the tube out. My wife doesn't listen to her heels and I have ended up with many a pair being drilled out and some choice comments. Coincidently she points the blame on me yet she has the damaged tip and has left the trail she has blamed me for:cry1:. Small tips - 1/4" are difficult and easy to damage the heel shaft, beware. Al

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I'm sure Al has far more expereince than me, but from personal experience I'd recommned to be VERY careful trying to drill out heel pins. I tried once and ended up melting the plastic heel body due to the heat generated from the drilling process. Instead I ended up buying a good pair of pliers / tongs for the purpose which work well. Spray a little penetrating oil (WD40) on the pin to free up any corrosion inside the tube. I'm sure you still have a lump in the heel pin wider than the splined section of the pin going inside the heel tube. With the right pliers you can get a grip in the almost non existant space between the heel pin and the end of the plastic heel. With enough pulling (can be a lot sometimes) and a slight back and forth twisting action the pin should come free.

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Take it to a Shoe Repairer. They will have a proper last to mount the shoe - and proper grips or pliers to remove the pin. Doing it yourself you'll run the risk of damaging the heel shaft.

"Good Girls keep diaries....Bad Girls just don't have the time...!:icon_twisted:"

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  • 6 months later...

This may be too late to help but before that little pin gets chewed up grab it with the drillchuck get a really good grip and twist and tug. If the hole in the heel is already messed up just drill it out bigger and take a piece of black Nylon or possibly Delrin from some supplier of industrial plastic. This material can be cut with a saw and shapped with a grinder. And I do believe Nylon comes in rod.

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This may be too late to help but before that little pin gets chewed up grab it with the drillchuck get a really good grip and twist and tug. If the hole in the heel is already messed up just drill it out bigger and take a piece of black Nylon or possibly Delrin from some supplier of industrial plastic. This material can be cut with a saw and shapped with a grinder. And I do believe Nylon comes in rod.

DO NOT TWIST THE TIP TO REMOVE! It is splined and will damage the spike inside the heel. Then the heel will require a larger pin. The pin must be extracted straight.

Shafted, the boots that is! View my gallery here http://www.hhplace.o...afteds-gallery/ or view my heeling thread here http://www.hhplace.org/topic/3850-new-pair-of-boots-starts-me-serious-street-heeling/ - Pm me if you want fashion advice or just need someone to talk to.

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  • 1 month later...

I had some success with a couple things that might be helpful for others: Use oil or some type of lubricant like WD40 to help counteract the rust and corrosion that will make removal difficult. Also, try to get pliers as close as possible to the type commonly used by shoe cobblers. I found that regular needlenose pliers tend to have this sharp part away from the tip, closer to the handle. Position the pliers so the thinnest part is on the junction between the heel tip and the actual heel. One thing I did was peel back my covering on the heel after damaging part on one heel (I may recover these as I have been toying with the idea). The main thing is wiggle or "shimmy" the bit upward instead of expecting it to come off by pulling straight up as I found I chopped metal splinters off with the later technique. Thank you to Shoerepairer, Pussyinboots, Dr. Shoe, Shafted, and everyone who has contributed to these shoe repair forums!

Peeptoe heels are my passion... and flexibility: www.Flexines.net

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  • 3 months later...

When I used to try to repair my own tips, I spent hours trying to get the old tip out. And I usually ended up with sore forearms/hands and being able to remove the old tip from only 1 shoe! I never tried drilling it out though. Here's a trick I heard about to get the old nail out: Grab the nail with pliers while the shoe is sitting upright (so the shoe is balancing on the pliers). Then, tap the plier jaws with a hammer. The nail should slip out. If you're looking for a quick fix for your worn heel tips, check out Quick Tips (gogoheel.com). They have a temporary heel tip that goes over your worn one, and best of all, you don't need any tools. It's a good solution so you can wear your heels without damaging it until you get to a shoe repair shop.

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