How to remove taps.

[KenWP]

How pray tell do you guys pull the spiles back out. I had to remove a couple off a dud tree and I had to invent a way to do it. I cut a side out of a big washer and put it behind the head of the spile and used two smaller pry bars to pull them out. man do they go crack when they let loose. Is the a simple way to do it.

[ackerman75]

I just lightly tap them side to side and they come right out.

[markct]

what kinda spiles are these sounds like ya drove them is too hard, my plastic tubing ones i usualy take out by hand or with a tiny bit of help from a claw hammer. the cast bucket ones come right out with a pry of a claw hammer too and none have ever went crack, sounds like ya drove em in way too hard!

[maplekid]

i use a screwdriver. my bucket spouts have hole where cover slide on just slide it in and twist

[emo]

It sounds like you may have driven the taps in a little too hard. When I used aluminum taps, I set by using the bottom of the battery drill. I was able to get them loose with a quick twist/pull with a pair of pliers. The platic taps I used this year, I inserted by twisting them in by hand and they came out the same.

[BC Birch Tapper]

Ken
I find one of the biggest impact comes form the size of the drill bit that you are using & the type of spiles.
They should be the same size as the spiles.
I use the 19/64 health spiles & a 19/64 bit . They fit snug & I use a pry bar to remove. Usually not a problem to come out with a quick pry or even just twist with your fingers.
If I use a different size bit then they often are very tight & take more effort to remove.

[KenWP]

The 5/16 spiles remove easy its those blue 7/16 ones that are hard to pull out. I tried pliers and could not budge them. No wonder they are only 10 cents a peice. Haven't had to remove a metal one yet but I have very few of them in anyways.

[Thompson's Tree Farm]

Ken,
Try finding a metal rod, we use a tooth from an old pitch fork, put it into the end of the spout and wiggle it in a circular motion while pulling it toward you. Used this method for 50+ years on about everything. Fork tine is about 8" long.

[Russell Lampron]

I bought a spout removal tool, 3 of them actually. Its like a pry bar with a forked end. The taps don't get as beat up and the job goes much faster. They work good on the tubing spouts and adapters. They will work on some but not all bucket spouts.

Ken did you split the tree driving the tap in? Use a light driving force with the hammer and listen for the "tunk" when the spout is seated.

[KenWP]

No splitting just hard to remove. I only managed to split one tree and its a small boxelder and it didn't split all that hard. Got lots of fork tines around here will have to try that.

[Groves]

auto parts store - buy pickle fork (tool for helping with ball joints) - perfect

[Haynes Forest Products]

I have made all sorts of tap removal tools even had a slam hammer converted with a forked hook on the end and all you did was hook on the back of a tap and pull the slide handle back and off it poped 2 hands forget it.

The best cheapest spout puller is at HOME DEPOT flat pry bar and on the hooked end I ground out the nail puller area so a tap would fit in the grove 1" deep and a s wide as the tap spout and you have the cheapest most effective tap puller for $7.00 and you can lose it and not cry about it. Made 5 down to 3 but who cares they come in 3 lengths paint yellow.

[3rdgen.maple]

I have two that I use one is a ladies finger. It is a round peice of metal rod. One end comes to a point and the other has a 90 tapered peice of metal welded to it. It is used in the machinery world for aligning equipment. The other is a cats claw. It is pretty much the same but the 90 end has a nail puller on it that I just put on the grinder and make that bigger to fit around a tap. Simple light and works great. And Like haynes said paint them bright. Kinda hard to find when you drop them otherwise. Like that camo painted gps unit that is in the woods some where that I dropped.

[maple flats]

I do most by hand, just twist. If more is needed I also carry a cheap knock off ($1.00 at local $ store, 5-6 yrs ago) of a Stanley Wonder Bar, a wide but not very thich pry bar for nails. One end is bent about 90 degrees. On that end I took my dremmel tool and while cooling the steel aften in water I ground a 1/2" semi circle cutout into the short end of the bar. This fits under the spout head on my health spouts and pulls them easily.

[KenWP]

I figured out a couple of ways from this. I found useing a cresent wrench works well . I do not have a tie rod tool like was suggested and thought of the cresent wrench idea to do the same thing. I guess I could grind the end of one of my magic bars but seems like a waste of a good bar atthe moment. When I am garage saleing this year will find a short goose neck and grind the end of that for the future. Thanks for all the help.

[Haynes Forest Products]

The problem with twisting the tap out is the side torque you put on the barb fitting. Most of the taps that get changed in my wood are because the leak at the tap and tube.