Author Topic: Sawing VERY hard wood (Read 2542 times)

Fla._Deadheader · « **on:** September 22, 2006, 09:25:27 pm »

Actually, it's petrified. Got any ideas

Furby · « **Reply #1 on:** September 22, 2006, 09:35:38 pm »

There was a thread around here someplace...........
Might be worth more in one piece though.

fstedy · « **Reply #2 on:** September 22, 2006, 09:44:49 pm »

You might have to go to carbide tipped blades if the wood is that hard. Expensive but worth it in the right application. Just my 2 cents worth!

Fla._Deadheader · « **Reply #3 on:** September 22, 2006, 09:46:14 pm »

Too big and heavy to move. Might get 24"+ table rounds from it.

USE Carbide blades. This stuff has turned to STONE.

fstedy · « **Reply #4 on:** September 22, 2006, 09:50:50 pm »

Remington also makes Diamond edge grit blade that will cut stone but it might not work in your application.

Furby · « **Reply #5 on:** September 22, 2006, 10:09:20 pm »

Ooh, ooh, I want one! I want one!
Got a chunk about 3' long left as a log?
Any idea about shipping it up my way?

Here's the link I was thinking of, you had the answer before you had the question!

http://www.forestryforum.com/board/index.php?topic=13813.0

limbrat · « **Reply #6 on:** September 22, 2006, 11:40:45 pm »

A diamond chain saw blade. Its a friction blade that is water cooled. Saw one once that a sub used as a wall saw, but i never saw it used. They might make them that will dry cut.

Dan_Shade · « **Reply #7 on:** September 23, 2006, 01:04:17 am »

if it is truly petrified, find somebody who knows something about cutting granite... wonder if petrified wood moves as it dries

Kcwoodbutcher · « **Reply #8 on:** September 23, 2006, 01:53:10 am »

I think Duall sells a diamond grit edge bandsaw blade. I've used one to cut rock and they work great, but very slow. The blade speed is more in tune with metal cutting than wood cutting and a lot of water is used to cool/lube. The blades aren't cheap so you might be better of taking it to a marble shop.

UNCLEBUCK · « **Reply #9 on:** September 23, 2006, 01:59:03 am »

I am going to win the dumbest answer of the year award for this but how about having metal cutting bandsaw blades on your bandsaw mill . I mean if its as hard as steel just pretend its steel . I bet the metal cutting type is of higher tensile ? My cousin is always cutting metal and wood on his bandsaw . Why dont somebody make a bandsaw blade that will cut metal and wood ? Never have to worry about tramp metal ever again. I suppose it would cut down on the selling of blades ?

derhntr · « **Reply #10 on:** September 23, 2006, 05:28:46 am »

We went through $600 worth of masonary blades trying to cut some for my fireplace. Finally gave up.

Brian

SwampDonkey · « **Reply #11 on:** September 23, 2006, 06:46:28 am »

I thought you was in CR, not up on Axel Heiberg Island at the fossilized redwood Metasequoia glyptostroboides forest.

Fossilized forest

Article on the fossilized forest

Cedarman · « **Reply #12 on:** September 23, 2006, 07:34:29 am »

You get a piece of rawhide strip, kinda like a shoestring. Pound a bunch of sand into it. Pull the strip back and forth across the big rock. Add sand as needed.

Fla._Deadheader · « **Reply #13 on:** September 23, 2006, 08:34:51 am »

The mill I am building would be able to handle the piece, I think. I'm going on 2nd hand info as to the size of the piece.

It is a Bandmill, soooooo, A band of some sort would work.

Guess my first question shoulda been, what's Table slabs or Table "cookies" worth from petrified wood ??

Nobody ever find the info on the guy with the WM, sawing rock

??

Not pertinent to this thread, but, I was just perusing some Classifeds last night, and noticed our favorite Dentista now has the biggest and best collection of WALNUT in the World, all for sale

Duncan · « **Reply #14 on:** September 23, 2006, 11:09:01 am »

I had a friend that had a petrified log that was uncovered in a large flood about 2 years ago. We looked into it and found that there was a supplier of diamond bandsaw blades and we were planning on using the woodmizer on idle with the blade engaged and massive water cooling. (garden hose)

However due to funds and some other complications this plan never materialized and the log is still sitting next to the river. If you try it I will be very interested in the results.

DanG · « **Reply #15 on:** September 23, 2006, 09:30:19 pm »

Throw the DanG thing in the rock pile and cut something you can make some money on.

Furby · « **Reply #16 on:** September 23, 2006, 09:36:47 pm »

Send it to me!

UNCLEBUCK · « **Reply #17 on:** September 23, 2006, 09:56:22 pm »

There is a place I trucked by south of Holbrook ,Arizona and it may have been located on the Holbrook Indian Reservation but it had truck parking and was quite a big facility and all they did was saw petrified wood , they had petrified wood crafts and gifts and they had petrified wood laying and hanging everywhere . If someone googled it I am sure as large a place as it was they must still be in business. It was on the highway straight south of Holbrook going down towards the salt river canyon ,the old back way into phoenix . It was north of the salt river canyon and south of holbrook , only place I have ever seen anything like that . Petrified City ?

Butch · « **Reply #18 on:** September 23, 2006, 10:05:07 pm »

Petrified wood is cut with diamond blade saws. Gem and mineral clubs usually have them.

Furby · « **Reply #19 on:** September 23, 2006, 10:09:19 pm »

This place UB?
Link

Harold, check out this one:Link

UNCLEBUCK · « **Reply #20 on:** September 23, 2006, 10:36:32 pm »

Good job Furby !

Looks like no shortage of bids for the stuff too

Furby · « **Reply #21 on:** September 23, 2006, 10:38:56 pm »

All small stuff on ebay though. Really want something bigger and Harold has the right idea.

Kcwoodbutcher · « **Reply #22 on:** September 23, 2006, 10:43:05 pm »

Forget about using a bandmill with any kind of metal or diamond blade. Even at idle the blade speed would be to high. I think a good speed is in the 100 fpm range.

Fla._Deadheader · « **Reply #23 on:** September 24, 2006, 09:11:08 am »

Got any 'sperence to go with that info, Kcwoodbutcher

Can't believe this would not bring some big bucks from these pieces???

SwampDonkey · « **Reply #24 on:** September 24, 2006, 11:59:35 am »

Harold, maybe our new member Gustavo from Argentina has some idea. Here is a post where he mentions cutting some hard woods in Argentina.

http://www.forestryforum.com/board/index.php?topic=21290.msg303453#msg303453

Fla._Deadheader · « **Reply #25 on:** September 24, 2006, 12:08:33 pm »

I don't think everyone is reading the post and THINKING. This is garranteed PETRIFIED STONE WOOD. Millions and millions of years old.

getoverit · « **Reply #26 on:** September 24, 2006, 12:30:00 pm »

Harold,
I spent years in the North Georgia area and sold tons of computers to companies that mined and sold granite. What they used for cutting it was a steel wire about 1/4" thick, coated with an abrasive and cooled with water. It was slow cutting, but was very effective and the cuts were straight. I could see where this would work for cutting the petrified wood as well, but would just be extremely slow cutting.

There are also circular cutting blades for cutting stone, and I would think that one could either modify one to fit a Peterson swinger or have one specially made. Try THIS LINK for a little more info on how to cut stone and the blades and abrasive wire available. I dont see why one of these abrasive wire cutters couldnt be run on a bandmill. It might take modifying the band wheel tires or running it without any tires on the sheaves, but I bet it could be done.

SwampDonkey · « **Reply #27 on:** September 24, 2006, 12:30:33 pm »

I was thinking, maybe not comprehending.

But, maybe it's a lead (previous post) to a solution.

Dan_Shade · « **Reply #28 on:** September 24, 2006, 12:36:42 pm »

Harold, I have a cousin of some sorts that used to make headstones before he retired, now he just tinkers around with whatever he fancies, you two would really like each other.

I'll have to ask my dad if he knows what he used to cut the stones, but I think he just carved them.... I don't know how to get a hold of him myself, i only see him at reunions and such.

Kcwoodbutcher · « **Reply #29 on:** September 24, 2006, 03:01:50 pm »

Quote from: Fla._Deadheader on September 24, 2006, 09:11:08 am

Got any 'sperence to go with that info, Kcwoodbutcher Can't believe this would not bring some big bucks from these pieces???

Just for fun I cut up some neat looking rock I had at the place I used to work. I ran a machine shop that could do just about anything. I used a roll-in bandsaw with a diamond grit blade. Anything but a very low speed and lot of water would burn up the blade. I think the petrified wood is actually harder than the stone I cut.

Fla._Deadheader · « **Reply #30 on:** September 24, 2006, 03:59:58 pm »

Ah HA. I figgered you had an idea about what I was wantin to know. Thanks. I like to know WHY something will or won't work, before I decide what to do. Appreciate the input.

Don P · « **Reply #31 on:** September 24, 2006, 08:42:24 pm »

We worked for a rockhound a few years back. He took us into Teepee Canyon and we harvested chert nodules from what had been gas bubbles in a limestone face. Most were just solid chert (think arrowheads) a few like these had agatized. We took some back and sawed them on his rock saw. It was a wet diamond tablesaw setup with a sled on a counterweight for feed. I think this is about the same hardness and he did have cut petrified wood as well. I think his was about a 12" blade, not sure how the cost works out for one that could do 24" but have seen up to 10' blades in some quarry pics.

I used to drive by a monument maker's shop. It had a wiresaw setup with the bandwheels mounted on phone poles some distance from the shed and the lower wire going through the shop. I'm not sure why the tremendous length was needed

We've cut some granite on my tilesaw for facing work, you better have some form of counterweight auto feed or the patience of Job. We toasted 2 blades when someone got impatient, it's maddeningly slow to a woodworker

.

edit;
I found this while googling, real similar to the setup we cut the agate on.
http://prospecting.atspace.com/rocksaw.html

Fla._Deadheader · « **Reply #32 on:** September 24, 2006, 09:22:37 pm »

Thanks, Don. Somewhere, I rtead an article aboput a guy using a WM to cut stone or Coral, or sumpin

Wish I could find that article. Might have been a WM magazine from 2001, when we first started building "Homey".

gmmills · « **Reply #33 on:** September 24, 2006, 09:54:42 pm »

Harold,

The article you are lookig for is in the 2003 issue number 65 of the WM news. The article is titled Rock of Ages. The rock he was cutting is called Miami Oolite. It states that he uses a special diamond bandsaw blade.

Fla._Deadheader · « **Reply #34 on:** September 24, 2006, 10:51:28 pm »

Thanks. I knowed I seen it somewheres.

ducknutt · « **Reply #35 on:** September 25, 2006, 06:47:57 pm »

i was watching the show .'dirty jobs' and they were mining marble, or something like that.....they used a wire saw to cut the stone, but it was gonna take 14 hours(i think) to cut a slab 8' tall 4' wide..

rvrdivr · « **Reply #36 on:** September 28, 2006, 09:19:46 am »

I've cut petrified wood before on small scale. I've got a lortone rock saw with a ten inch diamond blade. The piece sits on a jig which hold it firmly and it self feeds into the blade. I use al-mag oil (aluminum-magnesium cutting oil) as a coolant. All the differant wood I cut was very hard.
Rock cutting stuff can be found under Lapidary.

Good luck Harold

Don P · « **Reply #37 on:** September 28, 2006, 01:04:37 pm »

Have y'all seen the lady that makes granite hottubs? One boulder and she whittles it into a tub, talk about dirty jobs

.

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Author Topic: Sawing VERY hard wood (Read 2542 times)