iDRY Vacuum Kilns

Sponsors:

Saw head dropping

Started by delvis, March 30, 2014, 02:48:39 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

delvis

I fired the LT40 up yesterday for the first time since the late fall and started a sawing job.  As the day went on I noticed I was having trouble with the Accuset or at least I thought I was.  After finishing several cuts on each cant, I noticed the sawhead didn't want to raise unless I put it in manual first.  I would then bring it back to the start of the cut, put it back in pattern mode, and get down to where the next cut needed to be.  This worked okay but it seemed to happen more and more toward the end of the job. 

I finally realized that the sawhead was trying to drop on its own slowly and because it was in pattern mode, the computer was constantly trying to make sure that it stayed where it was supposed to.  That's about the time I realized it was slipping in manual mode at times as well. 

From what I just read on the forum it sounds like I may need to grease the contacts on the up/down switch.  I would like to know if anyone here has had this same thing happen to them and if the problem was limited to the switch or if there was a problem in the lifting motor itself.  I haven't taken any covers off yet to see if there is anything obvious sticking out, but wanted to know what experiences other people have had. 

Thanks as always.
If I never saw another board I will at least die happy having spent the last few years working with my dad!

drobertson

Are you getting any error codes? 
only have a few chain saws I'm not suppose to use, but will at times, one dog Dolly, pretty good dog, just not sure what for yet,  working on getting the gardening back in order, and kinda thinking on maybe a small bbq bizz,  thinking about it,

backwoods sawyer

in my manual there is an upgrade for a brake on the up down system, never had any isssuse with it not holding.
Backwoods Custom Milling Inc.
100% portable. . Oregons largest portable sawmill service, serving all of Oregon, from our Backwoods to yours..sawing since 1991

delvis

Not getting any error codes but I did think it was an issue with the computer at first.  That is, until it started giving me a problem in manual mode.  It seems to be only when the head is moved down that it wants to keep going that way.  The last cut I made the other night, the head dropped enough that I almost sawed into my first log post.  I stopped the cut and because of the angle downward had to remove the blade in place and slide the head back.  I won't be able to really get into it until after mud season now because everything is just getting too wet and muddy now. 
If I never saw another board I will at least die happy having spent the last few years working with my dad!

backwoods sawyer

check the conections on the transducer cable,
Backwoods Custom Milling Inc.
100% portable. . Oregons largest portable sawmill service, serving all of Oregon, from our Backwoods to yours..sawing since 1991

delvis

Will do.  The other day was the first time the mill had been fired up since the late fall so there may be a few gremlins but this hasn't been the case in the past.
If I never saw another board I will at least die happy having spent the last few years working with my dad!

jcbrotz

Is the motor actually driving it down? or is it drifting
2004 woodmizer lt40hd 33hp kubota, Cat 262B skidsteer and way to many tractors to list. www.Brotzmanswoodworks.com and www.Brotzmanscenturyfarm.com

petefrom bearswamp

Try cleaning the transducer connections.
WM tech suggested this.
This worked for me when I had the same problem
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

delvis

I didn't take the cover off to see if the motor was driving the gear box or not JC. 

Pete, I will definitely do this.  Thanks.
If I never saw another board I will at least die happy having spent the last few years working with my dad!

delvis

Update:  We're still looking for a solution to the head dropping problem.  I called WM today and spoke with Mike in the electrical department and he gave us some ideas to look at but we couldn't get back up there because of the weather. 

I did notice the head only seems to drift when trying to set it at 12".  It will dip down 1/32" and then come back up and then repeat over and over.  It doesn't do it at any other height. 

Any more suggestions from anyone who may have run into this same thing would be greatly appreciated.  I will be glad when we get this figured out.

Thanks,

Mike
If I never saw another board I will at least die happy having spent the last few years working with my dad!

POSTON WIDEHEAD

Mike....call me . David
The older I get I wish my body could Re-Gen.

POSTON WIDEHEAD

It was good to meet you on the phone today and chat awhile delvis ( Mike ).  smiley_thumbsup
The older I get I wish my body could Re-Gen.

MartyParsons

Hello,
I would suggest you change the up down gear box oil. It is not a easy job to get the old oil out. We have a vacuum pump at the shop and that works best.
The gear oil that works the best is 80W 140. This is not what is recommended by WM but it will help to keep the gear box from drifting down.
The next option is to add the electric brake kit.
With out knowing more on hours and what engine year etc. I would bet the gear oil will fix the issue. 
Hope this helps.
Marty
"A pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees opportunity in every difficulty." -Winston Churchill

POSTON WIDEHEAD

Marty.....mine was dropping on and off over a period of 5 months....just every now and again.

They don't have an electric brake yet for my 2010 - 2011.
I changed my gear oil to a 75W-140 and it seems to help so far. WM sent me a new belt to install also,  which I will put on tomorrow.
After 2 days of changing the oil....I ran the fool out of it sawing almost 14 hours with NO sign of it creeping down.
I hope this fixes it and hopefully the oil change is not a temporary fix.

By the way....why is the drain plug 3 inches above the bottom of the gear box?
No big problem as I have a "SUCTION TANK AND HOSE" :D.......but was just wondering.  say_what

Thanks Marty....I appreciate your time and input.
The older I get I wish my body could Re-Gen.

MartyParsons

Hello
The gear box company made the gear box more efficient so they added Synthetic gear oil which helps where the application is a constant run. So adding gear oil that has a higher visc. reduces efficiency and helps hold the saw head from drifting.
The drain is on the back of the gear box but is almost impossible to remove.
Marty
"A pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees opportunity in every difficulty." -Winston Churchill

delvis

We changed the gear oil the other day and the first sawing job after this was good with no head dropping.  Thank you to POSTON for pointing me in this direction.

Woodmizer:  Please have the gear box manufacturer put a drain plug on the side of the gear box that is exposed when the side cover is taken off.  That gear oil was horrible to siphon and did not taste very good.  Lol

If this acts up again, we'll be looking at fabricating a small brake to hold the head once it stops travelling up or down.  It actually looks like it would be fairly straight forward to do. 

Thanks again folks and happy sawing.
If I never saw another board I will at least die happy having spent the last few years working with my dad!

POSTON WIDEHEAD

Thanks for the update Mike......since I changed to a heavier gear oil......my height has been sawing true.....no creeping.
Good luck to ya !
The older I get I wish my body could Re-Gen.

MikeON

My LT40 Super used to drop down during a cut.  It turned out to be the connection where the transducer cable hooks to the back of the setworks.  I replaced the short cable that went from the connection to the circuit board in the setworks and that fixed it for a while but the problem came back.  I finally drilled out the connector, and soldered the wires solid, and epoxied the hole where they passed through the connector.  That was about 8 years ago and the problem never came back.
Woodmizer LT40HD Super.  WM Single Blade Edger,  John Deere 4310 tractor, M35A2C Deuce and a Half truck

Ga Mtn Man

About a six weeks ago I noticed my sawhead was drifting down, sometimes as much as ΒΌ".  This was somewhat disconcerting for both me and my customers. :-\  I was sure it must have something to do with my recently installed remote control but after bypassing the unit the drift problem was still there.  Hmmm... Now what?  I typed in "head drift" in the search form at the top of this page (you do know there is a search form up there, don't you ???), and this topic popped up near the top of the results.  As Marty and PostonLT40HD suggested, I changed the gear oil to 80W-140, filled all the way up to the fill hole to keep the bearing lubed, as recommended in another thread.  Honestly I was doubtful that this could possibly fix the problem but it's been six weeks and...

No head drift since!    smiley_blue_bounce  smiley_bouncing_pinky smiley_blue_bounce

The FF is an awesome resource.


"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.

MartyParsons

Hello,
  glad this solved the issue.
Marty
"A pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees opportunity in every difficulty." -Winston Churchill

Thank You Sponsors!