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Woodmizer computer problems

Started by petefrom bearswamp, January 15, 2009, 06:06:53 PM

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petefrom bearswamp

Has anyone out there had problems with the computer malfunctioning on a Woodmizer?
Every once in a while, when I reach the end of the cut, and hit the up switch, it doesn't raise the head and the program I am using is lost.
This is a pain in the posterior. The folks at Woodmizer northeast had me clean the contacts on both the drum switch and the transducer cable.
Still the problem exists and i get various error messages (I can't remember right now what they are, cause I don't saw in the cold weather as I am retired and only saw for a hobby and it has been frigid here in central NY since mid December).


Kubota 8540 tractor, FEL bucket and forks, Farmi winch
Kubota 900 RTV
Polaris 570 Sportsman ATV
3 Huskies 1 gas Echo 1 cordless Echo vintage Homelite super xl12
57 acres of woodland

farmerdoug

What year is your mill?  Check the battery connections too.
Doug
Truck Farmer/Greenhouse grower
2001 LT40HDD42 Super with Command Control and AccuSet, 42 hp Kubota diesel
Fargo, MI

petefrom bearswamp

Hi doug
It is a 2008 lt40shd, accuset 2 about 75 hrs.
Have received one upgrade from WM last summer.

Pete
Kubota 8540 tractor, FEL bucket and forks, Farmi winch
Kubota 900 RTV
Polaris 570 Sportsman ATV
3 Huskies 1 gas Echo 1 cordless Echo vintage Homelite super xl12
57 acres of woodland

Peakebrook

I updated to  Accuset II this past spring.  What you describe, happens most often using the Pattern program.  It will occasionally happen using Auto-down.
WM LT40SH with Cat 51, JD 210, JD 280, JD 450G, Cat 311

petefrom bearswamp

Thanks, does WM  have a cure for this?
Pete
Kubota 8540 tractor, FEL bucket and forks, Farmi winch
Kubota 900 RTV
Polaris 570 Sportsman ATV
3 Huskies 1 gas Echo 1 cordless Echo vintage Homelite super xl12
57 acres of woodland

Bibbyman

You need to get on the phone with "Sparks" (Rick Lauman) at Wood-Mizer headquarters in Indy.  He'll stay with you until the problem is solved.   

Could be too that you need to oil the head slide pads on the mast where the head goes up and down.  I find it I neglect this maintenance chore,  I may start to get failures. The tension of the double chain drive also has an effect on the head up/down tension.  The chain may be breaking in and looser than when it was new and need to be adjusted.  Check your manual for the proper tension amount. 

Also, gear boxes, sprocket bearing wear will cause higher head drag.   But you have a new mill so that shouldn't be a problem – unless one of the components may be prematurely failing.  That would be unlikely but sometimes it happens.

There are a couple of program settings that may need to be "twinked" to improve the performance of the Accuset II on your specific mill.  But I couldn't and won't begin to advise you on how to make these adjustments.  As I say,  talk to Sparks at Wood-Mizer in Indy and he'll advised you.
Wood-Mizer LT40HDE25 Super 25hp 3ph with Command Control and Accuset.
Sawing since '94

Tom

Not really important, perhaps, to the problem at hand, but I was wondering if you could turn the computer off and run the mill manually if the computer was acting up?

customdave

Bibbyman, what do you use to oil mast slides for head up &down , a dry slide lub or some oil of some sort ?      thanks dave
Love the smell of sawdust

Bibbyman

Quote from: customdave on January 15, 2009, 11:55:14 PM
Bibbyman, what do you use to oil mast slides for head up &down , a dry slide lub or some oil of some sort ?      thanks dave

ATF oil.
Wood-Mizer LT40HDE25 Super 25hp 3ph with Command Control and Accuset.
Sawing since '94

Chuck White

Hi Pete;
Welcome to the Forestry Forum!

I've been wondering if you were on here under a name I didn't recognize,  but I recognized "petefrombearswamp"!

Your old mill did just fine, we sawed almost every "nice" day, right up through to November, then parked it for the winter.
We sawed a little over 70,000 bf and the hour meter is almost double, 836.

Chuck
~Chuck~  Cooks Cat Claw sharpener and single tooth setter.  2018 Chevy Silverado and 2021 Subaru Ascent.
With basic mechanical skills and the ability to read you can maintain a Woodmizer  LT40!

sparks

The Accuset appears to be going into an abort mode. In pattern you may find that when you try to go down it does not and when you try again it goes twice it is aborting. In auto down, if you do not get completly to the mark and you bump up, it will jump to manual mode bacause it aborted.  You need to verify the mast pads are adjusted correctly and kept wet all day long with transmission fluid. Especially when it is cold out. If the head binds and does not get to its mark it will abort. Thanks
\"America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves.\" Abraham Lincoln

backwoods sawyer

Sparks thanks for the as to why it is happening.
I have seen these symptoms on my mill twice since installing the new accuset 2. The symptoms were brief and quite awhile in between each other. I have the single square mast with the eight 3" rollers so lube was not an issue.(all rollers are new) Before installing the accuset 2, every day was a new set of varying symptoms as we worked the nest of bugs out of the whole system.
This has been a good upgrade to the mill. The lack of down time has helped my production rates. I hope it has helped you bottom line as well.
Backwoods Custom Milling Inc.
100% portable. . Oregons largest portable sawmill service, serving all of Oregon, from our Backwoods to yours..sawing since 1991

petefrom bearswamp

Thanks to all.
I will try all of the suggestions.
To chuck White.
Glad the mill is functioning properly!
I expect to be in DeGrasse next Thursday thru Sunday snowmobiling.
Stop by the club if you get the chance. (in the evening)
Lake george rd., on right, long red building.
Pete

Kubota 8540 tractor, FEL bucket and forks, Farmi winch
Kubota 900 RTV
Polaris 570 Sportsman ATV
3 Huskies 1 gas Echo 1 cordless Echo vintage Homelite super xl12
57 acres of woodland

Chuck White

~Chuck~  Cooks Cat Claw sharpener and single tooth setter.  2018 Chevy Silverado and 2021 Subaru Ascent.
With basic mechanical skills and the ability to read you can maintain a Woodmizer  LT40!

petefrom bearswamp

Hello to all,
Sparks, The problem only occurs when I try to raise the head manually after a cut when I am in pattern.
I don't use auto up very often.
Only use auto down when taking the  slabs and outer boards off.
I spray the mast with a mixture of ATF and WD40 (to help spray with a spray bottle) every morning when  I pull routine maintenance. Should  do this more often? I also spray the chains daily with the same mixture. I'm not sure if I get the entire Head  chain when I do this. I also grease everything a lot more often than recommended.
How should I check the mast pad adjustment? Is it in the manual?
another item, when it is cold the cat doesn't like to start on idle.
I put a small shim under the throttle stop to increase RPM as little, this helps tremendously.
Regards to all, Pete

Kubota 8540 tractor, FEL bucket and forks, Farmi winch
Kubota 900 RTV
Polaris 570 Sportsman ATV
3 Huskies 1 gas Echo 1 cordless Echo vintage Homelite super xl12
57 acres of woodland

Chuck White

Hi Pete;
The adjustment procedure for the mast head pads can be found in the manual.
Real simple check and easy to adjust.

Chuck
~Chuck~  Cooks Cat Claw sharpener and single tooth setter.  2018 Chevy Silverado and 2021 Subaru Ascent.
With basic mechanical skills and the ability to read you can maintain a Woodmizer  LT40!

MartyParsons

 When you are in Pattern cut. Cycle the drum switch. Does the head go past the mark and come back up to the target set?

Abort means that the Accuset does not hit the desired mark. ( Read Sparks Post) This could only be .001 or .002. So it is pretty sensitive. Cold, dirt causung binding on the saw head may cause this. If the saw head is not droping below the mark and coming back up then we can adjust the up min PID # a little. Make Note of the original setting before adjusting!

Mast adjustment this is explained better in the manual! Pad adjustment. Check the upper pads with the saw head up at 35" and check the lower pads at 1". Secure the saw head before performing any repairs or adjustments. :o The clearance on one pad should be about the thickness of a credit card.

Upper pad toward the fuel tank
Lower pad outside above the battery.

Some of these heads have alignement shims so watch they dont fall out if you loosen the adjustment bolts!

Wipe the mast area that rubbs on the pads. Excessive lube is not needed. If there is rust on the pad area clean it with sand paper or steel wool depending on the amount of rust.


"A pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees opportunity in every difficulty." -Winston Churchill

Magic Smoke

Pete,
If you still have an occasional issue with the Accuset 2 as you described above, try this:
- From the manual mode, press the up arrow (this will enter you into the config mode)
- From this menu, press the "Other" key at the bottom of the screen and then press the "PID Values" key
- While in this menu, cycle through the screens (hitting the "Next" Key) until you come to a screen that says "Up Minimum"
- Increase the "Up Minimum" value by 2 (factory default is 50)
- Save and exit the menu

Bibbyman

Welcome to the Forum!   8)

We can always use more helpful help! ;)
Wood-Mizer LT40HDE25 Super 25hp 3ph with Command Control and Accuset.
Sawing since '94

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