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Thanx to Forum!

Started by Kurt, January 27, 2004, 05:06:01 AM

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Kurt

First I would like to say that I really enjoy the Forum you all have created, I have been reading for a little over two years and truly look forward to reading it everyday.
I am not from a long line of sawyers but was introduced to it by my father in law.  He had a woodmizer some years ago, #38 I believe and I was bit by the bug the first time I saw it. (no pun intended)
I hope to get my own woodmizer later this year after I retire from the USN.  I have been doing the Navy thing for about 24 years now and am looking forward to doing some sawing.
This weekend I had the opportunity to meet one of the forum members face to face and see his sawmill in action.  I thought I would post some pics of his operation and say thanx.
VA-Sawyer was quite the host and a true gentleman.  He did a fine job of showing my wife and I his sawmill. 8)
Thanx for everything Rick!!!  For everyone else, enjoy the pics ;D



Tom

Welcome to the forum, Kurt.  You're making old Va-sawyer famous, eh? :D

Too bad you got the sawmill bug.  You're doomed. :D

Frank_Pender

Welcome a board, Kurt.  So you have the sawdust fever, ya. ;D  Well do not feel alone here, you are in good company.  Thanks for makeing VA so good looking. :D  Those are some nice thick boards he was cutting.   What species was that?
Frank Pender

Kurt

The log was a white oak, had a real hard spot about 8 inches up from the end, was giving VA-Sawyer a real fit trying to keep the blade from wandering in the first foot.

Kurt

OneWithWood

Welcome Kurt.  I hope you realize your dream real soon.
One With Wood
LT40HDG25, Woodmizer DH4000 Kiln

Kirk_Allen

Kurt,
Thank you for your service to our county!
God Bless You and your family.

Welcome to the most addicting site and occupation known to man 8) 8)

Frickman

Welcome Kurt! I hope your wife will like working at the mill, as that might be the only chance she has to see you.
If you're not broke down once in a while, you're not working hard enough

I'm not a hillbilly. I'm an "Appalachian American"

Retired  Conventional hand-felling logging operation with cable skidder and forwarder, Frick 01 handset sawmill

Pretend farmer when I have the time

ronwood

Kurt,

Welcome to the forum. Hope you will enjoy participating in the discussions.

 8) 8)
Sawing part time mostly urban logs -St. Louis/Warrenton, Mo.
LT40HG25 Woodmizer Sawmill
LX885 New Holland Skidsteer

Bibbyman

Welcome to the Forum!

There may be a couple of things VA can check that may help him with sawing the oak.

For one,  the logs that's being sawed sure is a nice one.  But it looks dry and probably frozen.  Maybe try the new 4-degree blades for frozen and hard wood if he's not already. For sure, the blade has to be sharp-sharp.

For two,  check the main drive belt tension and condition.  Lots of times I've found that drive belt slippage will cause the blade speed to drop (the engine will sound fine or even sound like it's not under full load) and the ability to handle wide cuts in hard wood without waving off is greatly reduced.

If the above two don't produce positive results, then for sure check the blade guides for wear and adjustment and all the other "usual suspects".
Wood-Mizer LT40HDE25 Super 25hp 3ph with Command Control and Accuset.
Sawing since '94

VA-Sawyer

First, let me say thanks to Kurt for the kind words and nice pictures. The log was a large White Oak that went down during Isabel. It was cut from the stump shortly after the storm and no end coat of any kind was applied. The log owner finally brought them here at New Years.  The blade was a brand new 9 degree Double Hard from Wood-Mizer. Belt slip is not a problem, I can easily kill the engine dead if I attack the log too fast. Alignment and guides are ok. The only problem was the first 8 inches or so. After that, I could double the feed speed and make the rest of the cut with no problems.  After cutting some boards from the problem side, I flipped the cant 180 degrees ( to even out the stress) and cut the other side with much less trouble. We then stacked 8 of the boards on edge and cut them into 2 X 6's and 2 X 4's with no more troubles. I've come across this in other large oaks that went down in the hurricane, even in temps well above freezing.
I suspect that the sun is drying out one side of the log at the end most pointed towards South. The dry area is harder, and  is causing the cutting problem.
Bibby, was that a typo or does WM have a 4 degree blade? I havent heard anything about it.
VA-Sawyer

VA-Sawyer

Kurt,
Come back anytime. If you are here over lunch break, I promise you will get more than a can of peas!  :D

Note to all: That wasn't snow and ice in the photos, it's all sawdust!  ;D  Gotta get my daily fiber  :D
VA-Sawyer

woodmills1

I will get a single wave at the beginning of larger old white oak if I start from the butt end first.  If I start opposite, it doesn't happen.
James Mills,Lovely wife,collect old tools,vacuuming fool,36 bdft/hr,oak paper cutter,ebonic yooper rapper nauga seller, Blue Ox? its not fast, 2 cat family, LT70,edger, 375 bd ft/hr, we like Bob,free heat,no oil 12 years,big splitter, baked stuffed lobster, still cuttin the logs dere IAM

Kirk_Allen

VA-Sawyer -  Yes, WM does now make a 4 degree blade for frozen wood.

I havent tried them yet and I pray that I wont need to ;D

Its simply to cold to be cutting wood.  Besides, I couldn't find my log pile if I tried.  The snow has blown so hard and drifted so deep it looks like I have a ramp for snowmobiles 8)

Wes

Welcom Kurt. ;)

 VA-Sawyer, am I seeing things or is there some extra framework on your mill? ???

VA-Sawyer

Wes,
Yes it has extra framing. See this:
https://forestryforum.com/cgi-bin/board/YaBB.pl?board=sawmill;action=display;num=1068007402

Next day of nice weather we get, they are coming off if I don't have to saw. ( I've been saying that since Thanksgiving  ::) )
VA-Sawyer

Bibbyman

The only other thing I can think of that may be contibuting to the wave in the first couple of inches - Are you starting into the butt end of the log or top end?  Often, the butt end is harder and has odd grain pattern that can push the blade off. We tend to saw top to butt whenever possible.
Wood-Mizer LT40HDE25 Super 25hp 3ph with Command Control and Accuset.
Sawing since '94

VA-Sawyer

I may have been entering at the bottom end of the log. We were down to the last two logs of the stack, and I'm not wanting to relocate the mill and move the log with canthooks every time I come across a backwards log. I do not have anything except the mill that can lift a log that big.  Now that I think about it, I have had the problem when entering at the top as well. The top end of that Red Oak ( milled right after the New Year ) log was facing Southwest since the hurricane, and I had a similar but, not as severe problem cutting it.
VA-Sawyer

Tom

Not saying that these are the problems but they are worth looking into.

Blade rising in the cut at the beginning of the log:

put on a sharp blade

check blade guide for too much gap at the back of the blade. (woodmizer check for gap between blade and guide flange)
check for proper downward deflection.

too little set in the blade

Blade tension loose.

Pushoff is caused, generally, by hard wood, dull blade or too much rake.



gmmills

I've been reading the Forum for a couple of months now. I thought it was time to jump in and post.

VA-sawyer ,yes WM does have a 4 deg. blade factory set at 0.21 thou. I've been using 4 deg. 0.45's for three weeks now and had good results. Sawing a mixture of frozen green and well seasoned-dry pin oak and white oak. Found 0.21 set to leave alot of packed saw dust on boards and cant this also causes the blade to get hot. Not good!!!  I have been experimenting with less set 0.10 -0.12 . Very little dust on boards or cant and blade tension very consistent,no heat.  

I hope this helps....


Custom sawing full-time since 2000. 
WM LT70D62 Remote with Accuset
Sawing since 1995

Tom

Welcome, Gmmills

.....and thanks for jumping in.

Bibbyman

Welcome to the FF,  gmmills.

Yea,  these little gremlins pop up from time to time and it's usually the last thing you try that chases him away for awhile.  ;)


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

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