Buildup on blade from wheel belts

Noobsawyer · December 22, 2013, 08:14:23 PM

Wondering if anyone else has had this problem, some pictures below.
WM LT40 , the buildup on the blade from the wheel belts is pretty severe would like to know the cause and the cure.
We use water with dish detergent as lube/blade cleaner.
Also from all I have read in the manual I believe the roller guides need to be at 1/4 " deflection ( we do not have the block guides, just the rollers) so this means the blade rides in contact with the rollers ? Seems like when we were trying to figure out the buildup issue we looked and the moveable roller guide was not moving. We checked and both rollers turn freely with no blade on.
Thanks for any help/input in advance.

Pat

POSTON WIDEHEAD · December 22, 2013, 08:53:41 PM

Welcome to the forum Pat. This build up happens to all blades. Even when I put Cascade in my water, Dish washing soap, Pinesole or what ever you use....from time to time pitch will build up on your blade.
I just keep a spray bottle of Diesel on hand. I turn the lube off, run the blade and spray it with Diesel.....the pitch disappears. Turn the lube back on......and go to sawing. It only takes a few seconds.

thecfarm · December 22, 2013, 09:03:09 PM

Noobsawyer,welcome to the forum. Been sawing long?

Chuck White · December 22, 2013, 09:09:55 PM

Welcome to the Forestry Forum, Pat!

Magicman · December 22, 2013, 09:24:36 PM

First, Welcome to the Forestry Forum, Noobsawyer.

I am not seeing a large buildup of anything on the blade or blade guide in your pictures ??

I hope that I am correctly understanding your question(s). Yes, the roller blade guide should deflect the blade ¼" below the band wheels. You should always see them rolling/turning as the blade passes underneath.

Realizing that some sawdust is squished between the blade and the bandwheel belts, then buildup on the blade and belts can and does happen. Running the blade with the lube opened for a few seconds will normally clear the buildup.

Also, every time that I change blades, I always use a wire brush and remove the sawdust that is built up on the bandwheel belts.

How about adding your sawmill brand/model and your location to your profile which will aid with answering questions. Also, what species were you sawing?

Noobsawyer · December 22, 2013, 10:22:09 PM

POSTONLT40HD , Thank you. The buildup you see is belt residue not pitch thats why I am concerned.

thecfarm Thank you. Only a couple years but I am retired from 35+ years in saw mills.

Chuck White Thank you.

Magicman Thank you. The black you see on the blade is belt residue and I am concerned as to why the belts are leaving this on the blade seems like it will wear out the belts very quick like this, the belts are from woodmizer. We saw mostly dough fir, some cedar and a little oak.

Chuck White · December 22, 2013, 10:33:02 PM

I've found that just varying the amount of lube, coolant, mix on the blade can make a difference!

A little more, a little less!

5quarter · December 23, 2013, 12:44:12 AM

Hard to say. what's your lumber looking like? cutting straight? any QC trouble? Your roller guides must deflect the blade down between a 1/8" and 1/4" to obtain proper control of it. If that is belt residue on your blade, I would think that your blade is heating up the bandwheel belts and perhaps picking up residue that way. have you found yourself having to bump up the tension change blades more often or reduce your feed speed to get a decent cut? adjustable roller guide not rolling while the blade is in the cut is a good sign that the blade is taking a slight dive, which will heat the blade, which will lower the tension, which will lead to waves and perhaps enough heat to soften the belts.

jcbrotz · December 23, 2013, 04:46:15 AM

I have seen that before but only when the blade is getting warm/hot. Is this the only blade its happened with also what's the blade cutting like?

DR Buck · December 23, 2013, 06:29:02 AM

If you've got build up of the belt wear on the blade and not sap, the only way this can happen is if the drive wheel belt is slipping. This would lead to more serious problems like wandering blade and wavy lumber. Is you band wheel tension high enough? Another possibility is the idle band wheel has a bad bearing and the blade is slipping on that belt. With the mill turned off and the covers removed can you manually rotate the band by turning the spokes of the idle band wheel?

Peter Drouin · December 23, 2013, 06:30:06 AM

Wellcome Noobsawer, I cut dry and use water for a cut or two to clean the blade of Pich, I think with the lube on all the time the sawdust will be sticky and be more of a problem. If the blade gets hot it's dull. Sometimes the sawdust will build up on the wheel so I made a thing for it.

Just a piece of bondo spreader. In the pic the blade is loose when it's tight it's up to the plate. The other thing how tight is the blade. I wind mine right up to 2500+ on the gage. In the #1 pic it looks like the b57 belt is worn out and the blade is riding on steel, the belt should keep the blade off the weal 1/8" or so.

Nomad · December 23, 2013, 07:10:22 AM

In the first pic the drive wheel belt is completely free of sawdust, so that really would be belt residue on the blade. The only way I can see that happening is if the drive wheel is turning faster than it's pulling the blade through the wood. Meaning not enough band tension or a problem on the idle side, as mentioned above. My guess would be tension way too low.

Magicman · December 23, 2013, 07:25:45 AM

Have you been using Diesel, etc. as a blade lube that could be softening/melting the belt?

The top picture shows the belt being very black as if the outside "cording" is gone and you are running on the inner rubber core.

I would think that if the blade slipped on the belt, it would throw.

Whatever, without actually seeing the belts, I would suggest starting with new belts.

Chuck White · December 23, 2013, 08:40:04 AM

I took another look at your pics and have to agree with Lynn, it doesn't look like much of that B57 belt left above the band wheel!

A new pair of belts will most likely make a difference!

Rockn H · December 23, 2013, 08:46:14 AM

Could you post another pic of the drive belt? And what type of belt it is maybe?

5quarter · December 23, 2013, 10:21:58 AM

Another thing...When your adjustable roller guide is not moving, is it contacting the blade? If so, you probably have a bad bearing in the roller guide and likely a flat spot on the roller...not good. That's a good way to pick up heat and transfer it to the bandwheel belt. you'll definitely need new belts after you pin down the cause of the trouble. It's entirely possible that the guide spins freely with no side load, but with sufficient tension and downbearing, binds or seizes up.

pineywoods · December 23, 2013, 10:58:11 AM

That's what lots of diesel will do to belts. If you gotta use diesel, do so sparingly, just a few drops. Looks to me like way too much lube, the sawdust is sticking to everything.

5quarter · December 24, 2013, 01:12:38 AM

Quote from: Noobsawyer on December 22, 2013, 08:14:23 PM

We use water with dish detergent as lube/blade cleaner.

backwoods sawyer · December 24, 2013, 10:56:02 PM

Welcome noobsawyer

Doug fir!!!
Adjust the guides by the book, decrease the water flow, clean the belts, drissle a little deisel and bar oil mix on the saw and it should minimize the doug fir saw dust build up, and get back to making saw dust.
As you notice the build up, drissle some more mix on the blade from the back side at full rpm. I also use a screw driver like a lathe tool when the build up dose not clear up.
As a side note having spare belts and guides is not a bad thing.