Broken WM Blades new in box? Anyone else?

[Piston]

I was running low on sharp blades for the LT 15 so I figured I'd buy another box and send in the old ones for sharpening, you can't have too many blades right? 

I got the blades in the mail quite a while back, I'd say early summer sometime, but never opened the box as I didn't need them yet.  While recently milling my devilish white oak log into flooring, I needed a new blade and I was on my last freshy.  So I opened up the new box of 15 brand spankin new blades and low and behold, there were already a few broken ones? 
Has this happened to anyone else on here?

I will call Woodmizer and based on my experience, there won't be a problem exchanging them, they've always treated me good in the past with any issues I've had. 

However, are there any special instructions to the blades?  Should I take them out of the box as soon as I get them next time?   It seems like they broke right at the point where they were coiled up the tightest, as if the radius was much to little for them, and the stress of the bending snapped them.  OR, maybe it was just some bad welds? 

 

[Chuck White]

Man, that is really wierd!

I've never heard of such a thing.

I've had blades still in the box and sealed with the strapping for over a year and when I took them out of the box they were perfect!

Definately a wierd situation!

Good Luck;  Chuck

[Bibbyman]

You talking about blades in a flat pack? 

I know we've had blades maybe as long as a year new in a flat pack and never experienced breakage.   We've sent them to Re-Sharp in a flat pack and got them back in a flat pack.  Still not a problem yet..

[POSTONLT40HD]

This is a new one on me. I don't think you will have to open a box of of blades every time you get a box from Woodmizer.

I'd call them and ship them back. They'll be waiting at the door to get these blades back and inspect them.

I've got a box unopened for 2 months.

Let us know what happened to them when you find out.

How many blades were broken out of 15?
Were all the broken blades together or in different places in the bundle?
Was the break in the weld?

Good post. Can't wait to find out.

take care.

[beenthere]

.................  OR, maybe it was just some bad welds? 

 

So are you saying they were broken at the welds?

[DR_Buck]

I just opened a 'new' flat-pack box that I've had laying on the shelf for over a year and didn't have anything wrong with them.

[Piston]

I believe this is the flat pack that you guys are referring to.  This is what they came in, it was a box of 15 and I believe only 2 were broken, but it's been a couple weeks now since I've been up there so I can't say for sure, I'm just going by the pics I took. 

Here they are just after I opened the box....
 

  




And here is a closer shot where you can see the two breaks.  It appears they broke right at the welds. 


 

[timbuck2]

You must have let them freeze!

[Piston]

I did use one of the blades already but there are 14 still in the box.  I will call Woodmizer and see what they say, I'm sure I won't have a problem returning them but I'm glad to see this isn't a known issue. 

I cropped the pic so hopefully this will show the breaks a little better....
 

[Bibbyman]

Is the break at the weld?

That’s the only reasonable explanation I can think of that would cause a blade to break in the box like that.

Out of thousands of WoodMizer blades we’ve used in the past 18 years,  we’ve on had one to break at the weld. And that one was probably back in about 1994 and while we had used it for some time.

I’ve have destroyed some blades and tried to break them up to put in the dumpster to find that they would still bend double and stomp flat and still not break.  (Although one that has been used until it breaks will normally snap easily.)

[Piston]

I'd like to say yes, the break was at the weld, but honestly it looks as if it were never even welded?

I know that can't be the case because it must have at least been tacked together or something in order to get it in the box like that, so something obviously let go once it was in the box.  The ends of the blades (where it is broken) is an extremely clean break, so it makes sense that it is at the weld, although I didn't see any 'remnants' of a weld.  But then again, I have never noticed the welds on the good blades either, so I'm lost.   

It doesn't help that I'm no where near the mill (or blades ) at the moment so I can't go look them over closely. 

[dovetails]

I did use one of the blades already but there are 14 still in the box.  I will call Woodmizer and see what they say, I'm sure I won't have a problem returning them but I'm glad to see this isn't a known issue. 

I cropped the pic so hopefully this will show the breaks a little better....
 (Image hidden from quote, click to view.)

looking at the close up, looks like they broke at weld, and next one is cracked also.The weld is easy to spot,just look for the shiney spot, or where the 2 teeth are a little closer together

[ladylake]

 Most likely a rookie welder or a welding machine malfunction, maybe forgot to temper the weld.    No big deal as it sure doesn't happen often.    Steve

[Riggs]

I worked for years at a bandsaw blade manufacturer, and imagine that the process is the same everywhere. Looks like there was a problem with the welder and the annealing process. I don't think there will be a problem getting replacements. We used to get them all the time.

[Chuck White]

I did use one of the blades already but there are 14 still in the box.  I will call Woodmizer and see what they say, I'm sure I won't have a problem returning them but I'm glad to see this isn't a known issue. 

I cropped the pic so hopefully this will show the breaks a little better....
 (Image hidden from quote, click to view.)

looking at the close up, looks like they broke at weld, and next one is cracked also.The weld is easy to spot,just look for the shiney spot, or where the 2 teeth are a little closer together

IMHO, I don't think this would be correct.

Otherwise, when the blade is going through the sharpener, the grinder would come down in the wrong place and ruin the blade.

They would have to be all spaced the same, even the tooth on each side of the weld.

[MartyParsons]

Hello,
Never seen this. If you would call Indy ask for Janet or Randy. They will want to know the serial # of the blade. Etched to one side of the weld. They will take care of you and may ask you to send the blades back.
Marty

[dovetails]

looking at the close up, looks like they broke at weld, and next one is cracked also.The weld is easy to spot,just look for the shiney spot, or where the 2 teeth are a little closer together[/quote]

IMHO, I don't think this would be correct.

Otherwise, when the blade is going through the sharpener, the grinder would come down in the wrong place and ruin the blade.They would have to be all spaced the same, even the tooth on each side of the weld.
[/quote]



 I know on my blades where the weld is, the 2 teeth are closer together,by about 1/8". Thats
where I start to sharpen them.When it gets around to the last tooth, I have to hold the blade back just a bit, or take off half the tooth. This is on a manual sharpener. I think if on an automatic sharpener it would just grind heavy, leaving one short tooth,but setting the spacing all the same after first grinding

I just measured one of my blades, spacing between teeth is 7/8 ", at the weld it's 11/16"
I took photos,but I'll be #$@^% if I can get them to post! Got tired of the error messages, email if you want to see them!

[wormy]

I think I would Send the whole box of 15 back. i dont know if these are welded with a spot welder but if the tips on the welder are bad they will put out bad welds until it is checked. so there may be more in the box that will break

[POSTONLT40HD]

W O W !!!!! I know one guy I hope does not get a box of these blades. 

[barbender]

W O W !!!!! I know one guy I hope does not get a box of these blades. 

 

[ladylake]

I think I would Send the whole box of 15 back. i dont know if these are welded with a spot welder but if the tips on the welder are bad they will put out bad welds until it is checked. so there may be more in the box that will break

  No spot welder.  I've watched them weld at the shop where I get mine. The welder hold both ends of the blade a little bit apart then pushes the ends toeghter running current through the blade at the same time and fuses the ends toeghter, next step is to aneal the weld on the same machine where they reheat the weld to about where it just about turn red and then let it cool. The final step is to gring the weld usind small air belt sander.  Steve

[Piston]

Marty thanks for the contact info.  I will call tomorrow during business hours and I'll let you all know what they say. 

I'll have to give it a few days if they need the serial number though, but either way I'll keep you all filled in. 

[Piston]

I called WM yesterday and talked to Doug in customer service....

He explained that, although rare, sometimes the welding machine's tip get's dirty and can cause poor welds, or possibly they had a new guy running the welder, or possibly the steel roll it came from was bad.  (he said roll is about a mile long  )

I explained my situation, and told him how I ordered the box in the beginning of summer but just now opened it up.  He told me to take the broken blades and cut off about a foot of the blade on each side of the weld, and tape those two sections together and set them aside.  He is mailing me a box to ship them back with to return.  The reason he wants both sides of the weld is because there is a serial number on there, which will tell them what roll the steel came from, who the operator was that made the blade, and when it was made.  He said if I had opened the box immediately after getting it and called then, they would have gone back and inspected every single weld that came off that machine in that roll. 

Since I waited, it's no rush to get the blades back, so if I want I can just set the blades aside and send them in when I send more blades in for resharpening, which I will do. 

He was very nice and extremely accommodating, he started telling me some stories about some of the milling he has done and some of the issues he has had.  He didn't try rushing me off the phone at all. 

I like that the warranty never expires and they will ship me new blades to replace the broken ones, which of course is expected.


I was finished talking with him and asked if he could transfer me to the parts department....he then said "sure hang on a second..."  (short pause, never put me on hold" and said "Hello, this is Doug in parts" 
I like how such a large company is still very personable. 

[bandmiller2]

Years ago I worked making induction furnaces from cement/asbestos 1/2" sheets cut on a big Doall bandsaw needless to say the bands dulled quickly.We bought coils of band and welded them.As Steve says they are butt welded with a purpose built welder annealed to dull red then ground flush at the weld.A percentage of the welds would not be good, if you flexed the welded band, it would snap if not done right.I'am sure today they have more sofisticated[sp]welders with timers and auto cycle.I wonder if it would pay a heavy user to buy that mile of band and do his own??Frank C.

[Buck]

I was finished talking with him and asked if he could transfer me to the parts department....he then said "sure hang on a second..."  (short pause, never put me on hold" and said "Hello, this is Doug in parts" 
I like how such a large company is still very personable.
[/quote]

Yep, That's our Woodmizer!

[Piston]

Frank,
Considering the amount of blades I go through, a mile long band would last me about... ooohhhhhh..

maybeeee.... 122 years or so...