Real happy - the first time I put a mast base on my SUP the f$&%$*^ing insert is stuffed so I can't unscrew the mast base.
Well, the nut actually started turning in the board before I even got the mast base fully screwed in)
Cobra "quality" grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr. 
Of course the board is out of warranty as it is at least 2yrs old, maybe 3?
Anyway it feels like the brass nut is turning in the plastic (?) insert and the actual insert is probably still bonded to the board. If I heard a big crack and suspected the whole insert was loose I could drill from the bottom of the board, grab the insert with pliers and undo the base.
That may not help me here....
There is only a 2-3mm gap under the base so I cant hammer a spike laterally up against the brass centre nut to stop it turning.
Id rather not cut a a 20cm square out of the deck until I really have to.
If I try to rip it out upwards, hoping I only pull a small hole thru the deck it may not work - it could be messy
So far it seems taking my chances coming up from underneath is best. Ideas...?
Or - has anyone got a pic of the insert they use? I imagine it is like a footstrap plug but with the brass nut moulded in?
I would like to see one if possible, so if I do expose it by holesawing thru the bottom, then I can know where to grind away plastic crap to then be able to get locking pliers or something onto the actual brass bit
Have you considered cutting the thread? If you have 2-3mm ,hacksaw the thread(multitool probably won't reach) with a metal shim with a slot to protect the board.
You might be able to replace the thread on the foot depending on the type. Could epoxy the nut and then cut a small slot with a dremel in whats left of the thread to remove it with a screwdriver or better still cut a slot and put in a proper mast track.
^^^ I have ...... but then I will have a stub requiring an eazyout etc, and also having to try and hold that dumb little brass nut somehow as it just spins. It may be an option though, but I am trying to ascertain which is best option hmmmmm
It will be really hard to even get a hacksaw in there....
You are right though Mike, it will be getting a real bloody mast track once it is done, not this poxy little nut thing
If the deck pad covers the area around the insert could cut/scrape out a section of deck pad which would give you more than a 2-3 mm gap between base and deck, plenty of room to get hacksaw blade under, maybe enough to angle over the base to jam the spinning nut while pulling up and unscrewing. if not cut as close to base as possible to allow for a slot to be cut or for it to be grabbed with vice grips. ( which are good for grabbing hack saw blades ). once base is off if you can see spinning nut there may be enough room to drill small hole in top of it to put pressure down on it with small steel rod ( blunt nail or ground screwdriver end) while unscrewing remaining base stud.
that's my 2 cents worth hope it might help
as I have just acquired a sail sup, don't suppose you would advertise which brand you have.
Select to expand quoteMark _australia said..
There is only a 2-3mm gap under the base so I cant hammer a spike laterally up against the brass centre nut to stop it turning.
detcord is your friend
stephen
^^^ oh yeah Stephen, I'm hearin ya
Lungs, I would not cut off the pad yet, done enough board repairs over the years where the pad got a bit munted even when cutting it off under ideal circumstances and with great care. I really don't think it will be able to be cut off under the big mast base circle washer thingo, replaced and be invisible later
I'd also rather not say which brand as I don't see this is the brand's fault - lots of them have a single brass nut inserted in front of the handle and they are all built in same place. I WISH I used a windsurf base on it within the warranty period as I'D LOVE to have a $1500 board replaced for the sake of 2cents worth of goop that the lazy factory worker could not apply correctly. Sick of Cobra's shonky cheapo Friday afternoon boards 
yep mark,
I've encountered a couple of these with different brands and the problem is the brass insert just spins in the plastic plug for ever and ever.
the only way to remove the 8mm mast base thread and brass plug is to hacksaw it flush to the deck pad and router around the 8mm stud with a standard router bit and a steady hand until you hit the brass plug....about 6mm or as required, then screw a nut onto the8mm thread and lever it out with a claw hammer and a flat metal plate under it....hope this helps....have fun! 
^^^ damn was hoping to not have to lever anything upwards, the deck is not that strong on a SUP...... 
But appreciate the advice of a dealer as you'd have seen it all so thanks
could you disassemble the mast base so that its just the bottom piece of the base thread coming out & attach to a cordless drill & run it so it either a comes out or the friction binds it back up sort of like stub welding with plastic ?
Select to expand quoteMark _australia said..
^^^ damn was hoping to not have to lever anything upwards, the deck is not that strong on a SUP......
But appreciate the advice of a dealer as you'd have seen it all so thanks
Considering that the SUP deck isn't that strong, I'd cut the pad around the base plate first, then pry that thing up and out.
You could probably put one foot on either side of the plug and just pull that thing out of there. You could even install a new decent plug or mast box (even better) back in during the repair.
Much better fixing a hole in the deck which would be covered up with padding later, than drilling hole in the bottom of the board, I'd leave the bottom alone.
Would it be possible to apply heat from an oxy or MAP torch to the screw so as to heat the brass insert and pull it slowly through the plastic?
The plastic is probably a thermo plastic and if it could be heated some way it would get soft enough to drag the fitting through it,.. maybe.
Keep the torch blowing sideways so it doesn't blow over the board. Maybe cover the area around with some wet rags or something.
Keep a bucket of water on standby.
Below is a step by step instructions to repair your sup.
1. Pick sup up with both hands using proper lifting technique.
2. Take sup to nearest rubbish receptacle and dispose of immediately.
3. Go to the beach like a normal person with an appropriate sized board.
4. Im not sorry about there being one less sup 
When u see the size of the insert you will be glad it failed as it did and not on the water, hacksaw it, get a mast track and drop it in, the last one i saw ripped out was a cube about 50mm square????
Actiomax wins!!!!!!
Before any cutting and definitely before any levering against the deck, I rthought why not.
I had already disassembled the base so I could see the centre bolt was turning and thus I knew it was the board insert not the base. So I am looking at the base with a socket head countersunk bolt..... and thought that drill will spin it easy.
(this is afterwards of course hahaha)
So cut down an allen key and bunged it in the drill....
Spun the bugger in reverse at low speed (1500rpm ish?) and it got hot as blazes in about 10sec max, pulled out pizza p!ss
^^^ It got proper hot though, I reckon a good 100deg plus. I had water in hand and threw it down the hole as soon as I ripped it out (as I could see the core was not exposed). That's enough to soften epoxy so I'd not want to spin it longer.
Main thing I noted - that the plug is totally insufficient. So much so, I wonder what idiot designed that. It is a brass threaded tube with a hex on one end, moulded into thermoplastic - melted drink bottles. NOT anything like the fibre reinforced plastics used for footstrap inserts or mast boxes etc.
Bearing in mind this failed when screwing the base in !! there is no way it could handle a proper windsurfing rig for any length of time.
If I was to windSUP at any level more than teaching kids with a 2m sail I'd use a real mast box routed into the board.
The dinky little brass inserts are a joke. In fact the more I think about it, this is just asking for somebody to get a separation at an offshore break and drown. 
Not to be confused with what my old Starboard has though, 3 real threads in a track about 8"long so there is some actual integrity in the rail type setup under the skin.
Ingenious fix, hats off for lateral thinking. This should be posted somewhere permanent, for the rest of the people caught by this trap.
I think part of the problem I've seen in the past (beside a sh1tty insert) is that the uni base bolt is to long and bottoms out on the blind insert.
In the past Ive used a couple of extra shims as I'm tooo lazy to trim the thread.
Nice work getting it out
that is a great outcome with some lateral thinking, still the inserts should be better engineered so you can windsurf forever on your expensive sup!
So, you were using a SUP for windsurfing??? What's that saying you've got whenever someone posts a question about surfing the web on their phones Mark? "Puterz be for putin'"? Sounds like SUPs be for SUPin'!
Question, I've got a Starboard Wide Point 2011 w/ two brass lined threaded holes in it for a mast base, but I've never used it for WS'ing, I've got boards for that.
Is that what it looked like before you tried to use it?
Select to expand quotedirtyharry said..
So, you were using a SUP for windsurfing??? What's that saying you've got whenever someone posts a question about surfing the web on their phones Mark? "Puterz be for putin'"? Sounds like SUPs be for SUPin'!
Ahhh, with a 2m sail for the kids to learn on so they DON'T become SUP'ers hahahaha
Mastbender, this only had the one. If yours has two it might be like the old Starboard system with 3 and they were all in a rail and thus a damn sight stronger but I dunno.
Elmo, the insert was plenty long enough, but I do wonder if with some boards there is sand, salt, bit of corrosion so the bolt stops say 10mm before getting all the way in and feels like it has bottomed out....? I made sure this was clean and deep enough first, so thus my annoyance at it breaking so easily when not even screwed all the way in.
Cool . . Glad that worked seemed logical to me at the time .
Its nice to know I'm not totally crazy as well. 
good to see its out with out damage to board. not good to see what is holding the mast base on to the board. do you know how big the plastic plug is that it came out of.
put a sail on mine the other day just to see how it sails and it did bind a little but did eventually screw in ok and out ok, I filled the hole with silicon spray first though.
think I might get a plug tap and gently clean it out. then get a plastic grub screw for it while not in use.
^^^ yes well it is still made by Cobra with what I imagine is an insert common to many brands........ :)
