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WM felt strip question

Started by Jim_Rogers, December 30, 2013, 06:07:08 PM

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Jim_Rogers

Ok, so you guys who own Woodmizers know of the felt strip that goes under the guard on the top rail. You're suppose to keep it loaded with ATF oil to make the top rail slick and keep the sawdust from building up where the bearings ride on the rail.

On my older 1994 mill the bearings are on the top sides of the rail, not on top like the newer mills. But anyway, about a week or more ago, the felt strip came out of one end of the guard and get jambed between the guard and a bed rail, which stopped the mill from traveling back or forth. So I took the guard off, turned the felt pad over and re-attached it the the guard by bending the four little pointed tabs back straight and then putting the felt strip into the old holes and bending the little pointed tabs back down onto the felt strip as it would normally be held in place.

Well, that lasted about a week or so, and Saturday it happened again. The felt strip came out and I didn't have time to take it all apart and fix it again, proper.
I want to fix it proper but I have the feeling that this may require a new felt strip. I was wondering if any of you guys have figured out a way to hold that felt strip in other then using those little pointed tabs?

I was thinking that maybe I'd try some bolts or something like that with some washers under the head to hold the felt strip to the guard tight enough so that the bolt heads don't rub the rail.
I was even thinking of maybe getting some plastic bolts so that they wouldn't hurt the rail if it rubbed against it.

Any retro fit suggestions?

Any body got any ideas or a different method of holding that strip to the guard?

Thanks

Jim Rogers
Whatever you do, have fun doing it!
Woodmizer 1994 LT30HDG24 with 6' Bed Extension

AdamT

I don't have any suggestions, but my 2011 does the same thing, I just haven't gotten around to ordering a new one. I think the hole is worn to much in the felt, allowing the clip to pull out. It only does it to one clip however.
Maybe I'll just move it over a wee bit..

2017 Wood-Mizer LT40HDD35-RA
2011 Wood-Mizer LT40 HD

It's better to have it and not need it then it is to need it and not have it

T Welsh

Jim, I just ordered a new felt wiper and plastic wipers for mine as I started to noticed a lot more build up on the rail while sawing lately, I have not installed them yet. One thing I have noticed is that the top cover is bent and out of skew that covers the bearings! When I get around to changing them out I will tweak the cover back as best I can. I have never had the felt come off,but mine is worn where the keepers are crimped into the felt,so I ordered one before mine fails! And does as yours did. Tim 

MartyParsons

I have not been real successful getting the felt to stay attached with the original tabs. The best way I have found is with pop rivets.
Make sure the rivet points up.
Marty
"A pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees opportunity in every difficulty." -Winston Churchill

POSTON WIDEHEAD

Jim....I under stand what you are saying. My mill is a 2010 and (knock on wood) never had a problem .....yet. :)

I don't know if bolts would work....it might. Not trying to discourage you.

But I was thinking.....would running a bead of SILICONE between the felt and melt help to hold it? (let it dry to bond). It can be peeled off easily.
I really don't know, never tried it. But I have used Silicone right out of the tube to hold up curtain rods for the wife and it works great. Just be sure to let it dry before using ATF.
The older I get I wish my body could Re-Gen.

Peter Drouin

I had the same thing happen to me, the thing came out and would not stay so I tossed it and never look back. I have no problem with sawdust in there.
A&P saw Mill LLC.
45' of Wood Mizer, cutting since 1987.
License NH softwood grader.

Jim_Rogers

Quote from: MartyParsons on December 30, 2013, 06:28:15 PM
I have not been real successful getting the felt to stay attached with the original tabs. The best way I have found is with pop rivets.
Make sure the rivet points up.
Marty
Thanks Marty, I'll have to look and see if I have some pop rivets on hand.
I will photograph my solution should I come up with one that seems to work.

Thanks for everyones suggestions and comments.

Jim Rogers
Whatever you do, have fun doing it!
Woodmizer 1994 LT30HDG24 with 6' Bed Extension

isawlogs

 Jim, I had to attache mine also, I only had some wire , so that is what I used. I put the wire through the holes in the cover and twisted them over the outside to tighten them, then whacked them with a ball peen hammer on the felt side, so the wire would not touch the rail. I then  ordered a new one. 
A man does not always grow wise as he grows old , but he always grows old as he grows wise .

   Marcel

Papa1stuff

I used some glue on mine and it seems to stay in place ,I add some atf every time I saw !
1987 PB Grader with forks added to bucket
2--2008 455 Rancher Husky
WM CBN Sharpener & Setter

gfadvm

I called WoodMizer today with the same question and they suggested glueing them with Gorilla Glue (the foaming stuff, not their wood glue). Now I need to find a source for the felt.

POSTON WIDEHEAD

Quote from: gfadvm on December 30, 2013, 09:36:04 PM
I called WoodMizer today with the same question and they suggested glueing them with Gorilla Glue (the foaming stuff, not their wood glue). Now I need to find a source for the felt.

You tell Woodmizer not to use Gorilla Glue.....Tell them David Poston said not to.  :D :D :D
That stuff will be a booger to get off the next time you need to change a pad. Go Orange!
The older I get I wish my body could Re-Gen.

Dave Shepard

I was thinking the same thing as POSTON about the silicone. Gorilla glue can only be removed mechanically once cured, so you would probably have to grind it out. I suppose it would burn, too. :D My felt is in the toolbox. Found it wadded up on the main tube this summer. Other than looking like a dead snake, I think it's still serviceable.
Wood-Mizer LT40HDD51-WR Wireless, Kubota L48, Honda Rincon 650, TJ208 G-S, and a 60"LogRite!

trapper

A new cover with a new felt attached dosn,t cost that much.
stihl ms241cm ms261cm  echo 310 400 suzuki  log arch made by stepson several logrite tools woodmizer LT30

Chuck White

Trapper is correct, but if I just wanted to replace the felt strip and the pointed tabs wouldn't hold, I'd go along with Marty's suggestion with the pop rivets!

Just use small ones so they will not rub on the top rail!
~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!

Delawhere Jack

I just replaced the felt strip a month ago. If you bend the prongs down pointing away from each other I don't see how the felt could come loose unless it got torn...?

logman

I had my mill serviced and the Wood Mizer service rep said to use spray adhesive.
LT40HD, 12' ext, 5105 JD tractor, Genie GTH5519 telehandler
M&K Timber Works

dukndog

Jim,

Mine came off on the LT-15, which is different than the LT-40 of course. I used nylon rivets to hold it on and have not had any further problems.
Nylon rivets are the type used to hold door panels on cars. I was afraid of using anything metallic due to it scraping the frame bed. They can be bought in most auto supply stores.

Rich Miller
WM LT-15G25 w/PwrFeed, Mahindra 3510, Husky 385xp, Stihl MS261 and a wife who supports my hobby!!

gfadvm

My wife checked all the stores she could think of and couldn't find any thick felt. Anyone have a source?

If I can find the felt, I think automotive Goop would be a good glue for this.

beenthere

Maybe WM has the felt.   ::)

What size and thickness is it?
south central Wisconsin
It may be that my sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others

taw6243

Four years ago I eliminated the plastic wipers and made a set of steel ones out of a worn out 12 inch miter saw blade. I took the plastic ones and laid them on the blade so that the center hole of the miter saw blade lined up with the rail shape of the rail wipers, traced their shape on the steel then cut out a set of wipers that are the exact profile of the original rail wipers. These wipers (scrapers I call them now) do not wear out and scrape the rail perfectly clean, just every once in a while adjust them down tight to the rail.( at first when adjusted tight down to the rail they make a sound like fingernails on a chaulk board, it goes away) You may need to adjust profile slightly with a file.
I also eliminated using the felt that came with the mill originally and replaced it with gray colored scrubby pad material it's like what you scrub pots and pans with. I came across the courser gray color pad in the dumpster of the roofing company across the street, they use it when they scrub the seams of the rubber sheets before they glue weld them together. It is extra new pads they throw away. (I admit it I am a dumpster diver) as they say one man's trash is another man's treasure. Anyway, the way I reinstall the scrubby pad is to heat the cover with a propane torch and put a layer of hot melt glue stick on the inside then quickly place three equally spaced pads on the rail and press the hot melt glue coated cover on top then bolt in place. Works like a charm. If you use your sawmill very often you never need to use any lube on your rail and the rail stays polished to a mirror finish. Like I said four years this is what I've used. When you need to replace the worn out scubby pads just take the cover off and heat the top outside of cover with a propane torch and pull the old pads off add more hot melt and install new ones again. they last a really long time. I think you can get the gray pad at an autobody paint supply store. It's a little messing around but I like it a lot better than the felt and oil system, my rail never looks rusty, it stays shinny and clean.

Tim
4500 hours on my 2004 LT40HDG28, CBN sharpener and auto setter, 25" woodmaster planer with 9'auto leveling bed and trac vac chip handling system, 1998 L3010 kubota, 2010 L3200 kubota Festool TS75 rail saw with 42", 75" and 106" rails.

Ga Mtn Man

Quote from: gfadvm on December 31, 2013, 10:23:02 PM
My wife checked all the stores she could think of and couldn't find any thick felt. Anyone have a source?

If I can find the felt, I think automotive Goop would be a good glue for this.

http://www.mcmaster.com/#felt/=q209fw
"If the women don't find you handsome they should at least find you handy." - Red Green


2012 LT40HDG29 with "Superized" hydraulics,  2 LogRite cant hooks, home-built log arch.

gmmills

     WM has replacement felt inserts. The part number for my LT 70 is S09915. The price is $4.10. Not sure if the part number is same for the LT 40.  I use pop rivets, also, to secure the felt to the cover.
Custom sawing full-time since 2000. 
WM LT70D62 Remote with Accuset
Sawing since 1995

Chuck White

Quote from: gmmills on January 01, 2014, 09:54:28 AM
     WM has replacement felt inserts. The part number for my LT 70 is S09915. The price is $4.10. Not sure if the part number is same for the LT 40.  I use pop rivets, also, to secure the felt to the cover.


Same part # for my LT40HDG24.

Sounds cheap enough, plus it's cut to size!  ;)
~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!

POSTON WIDEHEAD

It would help you too if you think about something else you may need from WM also.
The shipping on the felt pad maybe the same price as the pad. Y'all may want to get a couple of belts with the pad or a little something else.
The older I get I wish my body could Re-Gen.

Dave Shepard

I was thinking the same thing regarding the shipping. :)
Wood-Mizer LT40HDD51-WR Wireless, Kubota L48, Honda Rincon 650, TJ208 G-S, and a 60"LogRite!

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