i hate woodmizer rant with questions

[Kansas]

If there is a weak spot in a Woodmizer mill, its the electric components. I don't know, maybe thats endemic of all types of mills. Not a week goes by that we aren't chasing down some errant wire or problem. I think over half the wires in the track, we gave up fighting the ones in the cable, and wired around and ran our own separate wire. If you want production, its a necessary evil.I believe I know of the area you talk about; we fought it on our LT 40. There are a lot of chances of sawdust buildup there and you wind up with a lot of contact problems. Throw weather in there and you are going to have an occasional problem. Also, I believe I found those fuses available locally, if they are the ones I am thinking about (the flat metal ones). Might as well keep some of those in your spare parts bin.

But Hackberry Jake is right. If you are just an occasional sawyer for your own use, and not trying to make a living from it, a manual mill is probably a better choice, unless you are really good with electronics.

[spencerhenry]

i am not a part time sawyer, no i dont run 40 hours a week. i dont have enough sales for that, but the ONLY reason i own the mill is to make money. i have run a non-super woodmizer, glad i didnt buy one of those, if i had i would no longer own it. over the long run, the mill has been good. however, i have had continuous electrical problems from the get go. i was told years ago that i was one of a few people that had problems like that, accuset one died at least 2 times but may have been 3 times i dont remember. accuset 2 was supposed to be the cure all end all. when accuset 1 died you could run the mill, i under the impression that with accuset 2 you could unhook it and still run the mill manually. apparently that wasnt entirely true. believe me, there are plenty of days when i think about getting rid of the mill and edger, i just dont know what else i would do to make money. firewood is good, but not a living, caretaking the neighbors place is a great gig, but not enough to make a living. add them all up and i actually make a living.
 thank you to all who have reported this thread to the moderators, i have been reprimanded. with this last post i have written negative things about woodmizer again so i guess i should be banned.
 i live near a ski town, it was printed in the paper that people in town, and especially employees of the ski company should NOT report on actual ski conditions if the conditions are not good. sounds like what i was told here, do not insult the sponsors.

[Jeff]

It's the nature of the beast when it comes to the sawmill environment and electronics. The CMC mill I used to run had the same issues. It had more electronics then any of the portable mills out there. I was always chasing some sort of electrical problem.   

You want to keep sensitive electrical components away from heat, cold, moisture, vibration, dust, impact shock and probably a whole host of other things.  All of which are present in the sawmill environment. 

The Manufacturers do their dangdest to protect against issues, but it is still like I said, the nature of the beast to defeat everything they do to protect.  Even with the inevitable electrical breakdowns on such machines, the use of the electronics boosts your production and efficiency well past what you would have had without them in the first place.  If you've never spent a good part of your working life around this sort of thing, I guess you wouldn't understand, but stuff breaks when beat about by simply operating in the environment it needs to operate.

I was part of my mill. I looked at myself as just a part. I got to the point where I was breaking all the time due to the environment I had to function in. I'm sure the owner saw that as a reason to rant as well. In fact he did, but it got him nowhere.

[Jeff]

I posted the post I just posted before I read your latest post.

Spencer Henry, you have not listened to a thing I said privately, so you are owed this,. You are completely self centered and only care about your own needs and could care less how your actions effect others. That is obvious to every one that reads this topic, and even more so to me from your replies to my messages.. They try to be supportive, they try to help, and you don't even bother to thank them for that, only continue to bitch.'

Bitch no more sir, or you wont get any help here.

[zopi]

This thread soundd like me and Harley Davidson...am done with Harley.
Big difference is..Wm gives a *DanG about their customers. Harley, apparently does not.

[Texas Ranger]

I see a door knob in the future.  But that's just me.

[porcupine]

I have worked on many things out in the weather, hot and cold. Sometimes very cold. It's no fun and it provides a fertile environment for a bad attitude and nasty language. It you can get your mill  out of the weather to work on it, the good things in life will reappear. It's cold in Michigan today too. Rats!

[POSTONLT40HD]

All this makes me feel better. Now, I hope Jeff has forgot about me deleting my pics in my gallery and throwing a monkey wrench on all my post.

It's Christmas ya'll....let's remember what Christmas is all about. I love all you guys whether your upset at something I said, something I deleted, or anything else like my jokes sometimes.

I appreciate all the times ya'll have helped me and boy I have needed ya'll's input.

I COULD NOT do without the FORESTRY FORUM!

Merry Christmas to all! 

P.S. Any time I have a problem on here, I have always got help. But if you want to joke with me or "rib" me a little.....bring it on. Laughter has ALWAYS made my problems BETTER and my solutions much easier to carry out! Thanks Guys and Gals!

[spencerhenry]

now i am told i need a new transducer as well. another $700.

[beenthere]

Sounds like a mill that was zapped by lightning or was welded upon.
Use to be the bane of installing electronics in a mill environment, as the night crew would go through and repair things. Often with a big stick and send gazillion volts through the poor electronic chips. Stray spikes would wipe out a lot of stuff. Just as Jeff mentioned.

[spencerhenry]

never been welded on. was working a week ago thursday, but not since.

i am the only one that has had problems with their mill? no
i am the only one that thinks spending $1500 on parts for 400 hours of run time is ridiculous? no
people apparently take offense to my thread, so that makes it ok for people to post things and send me pm's that are insulting and snide? i guess it is only a problem to offend someone if they are somehow holier than thou. 
 i asked for answers, and i got them from marty. i specifically replied to that and thanked him for the answers. but now it is posted that i dont appreciate or acknowledge the help, did you read all the posts?
 i have posted many things on this forum over the years, sometimes looking for help, sometimes giving it, but apparently this thread defines me. defining me by this thread is the same as defining woodmizer by the amount of parts my mill has required. ok, now some of you will tell me that i should maintain my mill better. i guess spending a day or so every 80 hours of run time is not enough, not including the daily greasing, checking fluids, cleaning, and such. oh, and yeah i just checked the oil for the first time in 8 years.
 when the mill is working well, it is great. when it is not, it takes lots of money, lots of time and lots of patience. when the balance tips to the latter, i guess you are supposed to keep your mouth shut.

[sparks]

We are dealing with a sawmill that gets pulled down the road and over bumpy terrain. We put heavy weight on the mill and we turn and flip it multiple times with some bone jaring effects. With that said connections can get loose and a periodic inspection should be made.

The issue with this mill is the fuse block area. Nuts were loose and burning of the connection was present. When Accuset 2 was installed this was supposedly checked and verified that the connections were good. Everyone I talk to are told not to check but to remove the fuse block and visually look at all the bolts and connectings. If this was done there would have been no burnt stud.

The fuse block area is the most neglected on the mill with the battery connections comming in a close second and the ground for the hydraulics are third. Erratic voltage is the killer of circuit boards, alternators solenoids etc. Bad grounds are another issue that causes circuit to search for a ground through the power feed chain, cam follower rollers etc. This puts unneccessary wear on these parts. We have thoudsands of mills out there running this same fuse block and Accuset 2 with no issues. So to say it is a faulty components is false. It is just faulty on this mill for lack of verification when the Accuset 2 was installed.

The mix up for the parts is our fault. The down time is because he lives 4 days away for shipping and could have paid NDA to get the parts quicker. He says he lives in an area where deliveries are difficult. Geography is not a Wood-Mizer issue. Where someone choose to live is where someone chooses to live. Delivery issue come with that type of territory and should be planned for.

As far as instructions, you put it one the way it comes off. The bolts are in the correct place and if it will not fit then the bracket it is mounted to was installed in the wrong place or needs to be moved to accomidate the part. We do not send out instructions on an alternator or a starter or a key switch or a battery or a fuse or a drum switch etc etc. You hook it up the way it comes off. If there are changes then we supply instructions reflecting those changes.

The transducer has a circuit board in it and erratic voltage can damage it as well.

This mill recieved a free Accuset 2 upgrade ($2000.00) for free when the mill was 3 years out of warranty in 2008. Since then a hydraulic micro switch is the only electrical part he has replaced and before 2008 nothing. Lots of electrical issues for day one is always the complaint and most of the time we see nothing to back it up.

He had a package stolen, because of where he lives he buts a box at the end of the road, he calls us and we replace it at NC. His problem, UPS problem not ours yet we took care of it because that is what we do.

Some people expect it and others are gratefull we do it.

There is never a need to exagerate issue to accompish getting repairs and help. Honesty is always the best and gets you the best.

[ChuckinVa]

I am not a Woodmizer owner but hope to be some day. The number of positive things that are said on this site about this company so far out way the negative that it is pretty easy to see that this is an unusual situation. That Woodmizer appears to be trying hard to help with a solution on a mill that is out of warranty proves even more that they care about their customer and their reputation. This is an unusual Forum IMO in that we have access to factory people (sponsors) on a level that you don't ususally see. I for one appreciate the openess with which the sponsors interact with the customer and see them as  valuable assett to this site beyond helping pay for it's existence. I hope that you are able to get back up and running soon and wish you the best of luck.

[Kansas]

I would like to say something that applies to Woodmizer in particular, and I suspect all mills with a fair amount of electronics in general. We have an LT 40 with who knows how many hours; I would guess 10,000 (hour meter quit at 3500 not 3 years in). Without looking, our LT 70 has probably 4500 hours. Our other mill, maybe 7000. Rarely, have we ever had a major electrical component go out. I mean extremely rare. Nearly every time when something stops moving, its possibly mechanical; more likely a connection. The first tools in any Woodmizer's owner's arsenal ought to be emory cloth and sandpaper. A jumper wire works wonders as well. Obviously electrical checking equipment. Nearly every time, its a connection, a bad ground, wire pulled loose, packed wet sawdust causing a short, something like that. One thing we learned a long time ago is its better to check and cross check all connections, bypassing if need be with a jumper wire, cleaning everything up, before new parts are ordered. It can be maddening, frustrating, but its usually simple.

[zopi]

Speaking as a veteran electronics dweeb, who has worked on much more delicate circuitry in a much harsher environment, I would recommend that you guys go in an give each connection a little squirt of corrosion preventative once a year or so, and check each of those for tightness at that time..if you have to pull a plug apart, give it a little dab of dielectric grease to keep moisture and salt out...especially grounds.....
I may not have hydraulics, but I only have five wires too...

[POSTONLT40HD]

Zopi, people tell me I have a loose wire. What I drink does not cause corrosion and I get plenty of grease from all this southern fried chicken I eat. Any suggestions?

[LeeB]

It may not cause corosion, but it sure causes loose connections.   

[Magic Smoke]

Why the Transducer Spencer? Are you getting an error on your Accuset screen?

[moosehunter]

All this talk about wiring/ electrical problems and hard to reach nuts, bolts and components,................. Have you tried working on a modern automobile? Working on my WM after working on cars all day is a picnic! I spend my days dealing with parts that don't show up, are boxed wrong, built wrong or just won't fit. It is part of life. As someone above mentioned, it just makes the good days better.

mh

[MotorSeven]

Speaking as a veteran electronics dweeb, who has worked on much more delicate circuitry in a much harsher environment, I would recommend that you guys go in an give each connection a little squirt of corrosion preventative once a year or so, and check each of those for tightness at that time..if you have to pull a plug apart, give it a little dab of dielectric grease to keep moisture and salt out...especially grounds.....
I may not have hydraulics, but I only have five wires too...

I agree. Any time I take apart any electrical connection on any of my vehicles, tractor, engine, etc, it goes back together with dielectric grease on it. Heck I even put it on trailer light bulb sockets. I wonder why the car companies don't...I have seen corrosion in places it should not appear. I also wonder if WM uses it when assembling their mills? It sure would not hurt & might help longevity.