Woodmizer cantilever head

[Crusarius]

Does the carriage / mast on the woodmizer cantilever mills use linear bearings? (where the carriage is attached to the bed) Can anyone get me some good closeup pictures of it? I am kinda screwing around with an idea in my head for linear bearings on the carriage but not sue how it will work.

[Dave Shepard]

I can get pics later. They are round bearings. Two on top of the rail. Three on the outside of the top rail, and two on the inside of the bottom rail. 

[Dave Shepard]

Here's a sketch from memory. Some earlier mills had the top bearings at 45° to the main tube.

[Magicman]

Here is a topic where I replaced my cam followers:  Sawmill maintenance – how to's and tips. in Sawmills and Milling

[Crusarius]

Thanks dave that is a huge help. I was thinking about linear bearings the full 24' length. but I was having second thoughts. Hard to swallow the cost for 48' worth of rails. Still may use them on the slide for the up and down. But the 3 bearings seem to make more sense just need to have a good stainless rail for them to ride on.

MM thanks for the link that was helpful as well. The bracket that had the 2 bearings was the top? by the picture it looked like the bottom? 

Wonder if I could get away with V-groove roller on top and simple bearing on the bottom?

[Magicman]

That was replacing the bottom cam followers.  The last sentence in my reply stated that I had previously replaced my top units.

[Crusarius]

oh thanks. I missed that. Huge help though. thankyou.

[Stephen1]

The woodmizer mills do not use stainless for the rod. We keep them oiled to hold the rust at bay. Stainless would be expensive for sure.

[Crusarius]

Does that mean there is a scraper / seal on the rail? I would imagine the sawdust buildup would be crazy. rails ever painted or always bare steel?

[Crusarius]

What size is that round bar?

[Magicman]

Yes there is a Teflon? scraper to prevent sawdust buildup between the rod and cam followers.  Just bare metal after the paint wears off, no problem with rust.  The rod is very much hardened to prevent wearing but earlier models were not hardened and did wear down.  I would not even consider using stainless.

[Crusarius]

your probably right. Stainless may be unnecessary. Why wouldn't you use stainless? Just curious.

[Magicman]

Not necessary but also the hardness might be an issue with stainless.

[Crusarius]

I was kinda wondering about that to. Since I am only sawing for a hobby I doubt the hardness will be an issue for quite a while. Good news is cutting that bar off and replacing it is not that difficult.

[Stephen1]

My mill from 1993 had no wear on the bar.Rust yes!, ussually after sitting all winter, even inside. I oil in the fall. In the spring I use a metal brillo pad with TF and scrub the lower rod as it usually has more rust and therefore the electrical contact for the hydraulics can be an issue. Once scrubbed it is good for the season.