Cleaning Glue-On Field Points

[Grey Taylor]

Has anyone tried a vibratory tumbler with corncob media for cleaning glue-on field points?
I've got about 5 dz to clean tomorrow and jamming a cotton swab with solvent down into each one isn't feeling very appealing. I haven't used my tumbler since I put down my reloading gear in exchange for arrows and I'm wondering how it would work for this.

Thanks,  Guy

[Green]

I usually just pour some alcohol into a container and drop the points in for about 10 minutes prior to glue up....agitate them a couple of times in the container and put em out on my workbench.  You can dry them if you want, but the torch will usually take care of that.  Not sure if the tumbler/corn cob media will work but it's sure worth a try...you'll just have to check to see if the media adheres to the residue inside the points.  Try it and let us know.

[Grey Taylor]

Rob, I use epoxy rather than hot melt so there is no torch or heat involved.
I currently soak the tips in denatured alcohol or another solvent and then clean the inside with cotton swabs. The residue on the swabs shows me that the solvent may soften the oils but it doesn't remove them.
Swabs aren't too bad with a dozen tips, but these larger batches are really getting to be a pain in the rear.

Guy

[Green]

Gotcha.  You definitely have nothing to lose tumbling a batch that's for sure.  I'd be very interested in the results.

[lpcjon2]

I take a wire bore brush for a 38 cal cleaning kit. You can by them separate at a gun shop.I take the brush and put it in the chuck of my drill and stick it in the head(hold the head with pliers ) and let the drill do the work.Get two of them and wrap a cloth around the other to dip it in alcohol and give it a final wipe out(works good on new heads also).

[Ranger58]

Just be ready to pick out the media!  Tried that and they loaded up with media.  I was using crushed walnut shells and it packed in pretty tight!  Just a heads up.

[Eric Krewson]

I have posted this many times but it is the best way to clean the inside of field points.

Use a tapered wood arrow, wrap a small piece of sand paper around the taper, insert in point and turn a few times, you are down to bare metal, nothing cleaner. Tap out the sanding dust and you are good to go, total time about 10 seconds a point. It is also good to use 5 min epoxy instead of hot melt. You can still remove them with heat but they won't ever come off while in use.

[djohnson]

I have always had good luck with denatured alcohol.

[Grey Taylor]

Thanks everyone for your responses.
I'm trying to avoid handling each and every tip, hence my looking for more of a "batch" cleaning method than what I have been doing.
Ranger58, I didn't used to have an issue with cleaning media packing into pistol cases so it's interesting that you experienced that. It's certainly something to watch for, thanks for the observation.
It's looking like I'm just going to have to try the tumbler to see what kind of results I get. As soon as I can dig it out of the garage I'll toss in a handful of points and see what happens. I'll post results here.

Thanks,  Guy

[Bernie B.]

Eric, I really like your sandpaper method.  I'm going to try that next time.  Seems like a lot less mess.

Bernie Bjorklund
NC Iowa/SW Wisconsin

[huntingarcher]

The tumbler is worth a try ,man I try different things all the time.Even if I know its not going to work.That makes it more fun...

[The Whittler]

I don't bother. When I get ready to glue some points on I just hold the point over torch until it's really hot then push down over the shaft.