Saw doctor has me shut down. Anyone know a good one for swingmills

Part_Timer · February 25, 2006, 06:53:34 PM

Boy oh boy am I mad at my saw doctor. Let me tell ya story.

When I got my swinger back in August I warped a blade right off the bat by running my water tank out. Ok no problem call a saw doctor and ask about shipping it to them. They tell me to put it in a plywood sleeve to protect it from UPS and ship it to them. Ok I go buy some thin ply and make a sleeve and ship it out.
In the mean time I get the micro kerf and start to saw away. I get the hard wood blade back in CARDBOARD and COD. What happened to plywood to protect it and why did I give you my CC # if your shipping it back COD? I call them and they say that they can't find the plywood and next time they will charge the CC so that there is no COD charge. Ok fine it goes in my shop since I have the micro and don't need it.

I hit a wire with the micro and send it to them IN CARDBOARD and call to make sure that there is no COD this time. They say no problem.

In the mean time I'm cutting softwoods with the 8 tooth.

4 weeks later I call the saw shop to figure out where my micro is. They say it just shipped and will be there in a week. OK no problem except that on Friday I get a call that my micro is at the UPS drop point???????? Why is my blade there and not at the house? SO I go to get my blade and the UPS guy is sitting there and tells me that it is a COD!!!! UUUUUUUGH now I'm just mad, but the UPS guy will bring it back Monday and I can have it then.

Today I have some ash to cut so I take off the 8 tooth and go to put the 6 tooth on and start to cut. Man it is a crappy cut but we are making studs so no big deal. I shut down to sharpen the blade and realize that I can't even get the sharpener to line up on the tooth. I 'm sitting there trying to figure out what is wrong when it hits me; they ground it at a zero degree angle and ground half the carbide off on all 6 teeth. If I try to fix the angle I'll have to grind into the blade it's self to get there, now the carbides need replaced. WHAT A JOKE. What chaps me the most is that I sent them the spec sheet that comes with the blades.

So tonight I sit here with a blade that needs sharpened but can't be done. It will need new carbides. I have another blade that was sent to the wrong place and is more than likely ground wrong and will need new carbides as well and I'm out a bunch of money on poor jobs and a bunch of no reason COD charges and I'm gong to be out the money it will cost to get the blades fixed right. Man what a horrible day.

On Monday I'm going to get my micro and see if it is screwed up as bad as the 6 tooth then I'm going to call and tell them what I think of the crappy workmanship and inability to keep any kind of records, then I'm calling another company and see how much they will charge me to fix this mess.

I was going to call and make the first company fix this mess but if they can't even follow the spec sheet the first time I don't figure they will be able to fix it the second time and there is no way to know how long it will take them.

Craig what do I have to watch for if I cut the Ash with the 8 tooth or can I even do it?

Oh well tomorrow is another day maybe I'll just go cut firewood.
Tom

SwampDonkey · February 25, 2006, 07:19:09 PM

Part_timer, I don't want to wade into the middle of this. I was just curious about the UPS delivery. The last couple of times I got stuff through UPS was COD, but it was for fuel sircharges after already paying for the product and shipping state side. It was like I never even paid the shipping in the first place, actually the Canadian UPS shipping (interpret this as fuel sircharge) was costing more than the stateside shipping. I was treated first rate with the folks I ordered the stuff from, my beef was with the shipping outfit. Kind of a shock when the delivery boy has his bare hand outstretched to be filled. :D

Buzz-sawyer · February 25, 2006, 07:28:59 PM

I understand why you would be angry...........my experience with these guys has been good, and I wonder if they cant work it out with you so so are satisfied, evenif you take your business else were...I would like to know if they were willing too.

Troy · February 25, 2006, 07:41:52 PM

Wow Tom, I got a headache just reading your post! Hope you get it worked out. Have at it with the firewood. Split it by hand and you can work your frustrations out!

Part_Timer · February 25, 2006, 07:57:59 PM

Swamp

It's not the fuel surcharge. WHat happens is normally you give someone your CC# and then when they finish with your blade they just charge the card and send your stuff. Otherwise they send it COD and you write a check to the company and give it to the UPS driver. I can't remenber how much extra it is but if I remember right it is $10 or so. That's what gripes me. I even made a special call just to make sure it wouldn't happen.

Buzz we'll see and I'll let ya know what happens. I have a while to calm down before I make my phone call. I just hope that the micro is done right.. If it is I won't be half as upset. Since there is only 2 of them here in the states I sent all the documentation and notes and I even told them about there only being 2 here and to call with questions. If it's wrong.............................................. >:(

>:(

>:(

Troy sorry about the headache. :( I'm at least going to spend the day cutting stickers with the 8 tooth. The I have 3 truck loads of Osage to split with the maul so I should calm down by then.

Fla._Deadheader · February 25, 2006, 08:07:14 PM

Tom, check you messages. ;)

Part_Timer · February 25, 2006, 08:12:59 PM

You the man deadheader ; you the man

highpockets · February 25, 2006, 08:41:43 PM

Sometimes things just don't seem to work out. Hope tomorrow is better.

Part_Timer · February 25, 2006, 08:51:26 PM

Thanks High Pockets

I'm a glass half full person so as long as I wake up in the morning it will be a good day.

Jeff

Sorry I didn't realise it was such a sore subject. I won't bring it up again. I haven't made it that far back in the archives yet but I'll get there. I'll look it up

Tom

Jeff · February 25, 2006, 08:52:59 PM

I cut off my remarks and I will put them in the members area. Then I'll explain more.

Husband · February 25, 2006, 10:01:19 PM

Go ahead and use the 8 tooth, it wil be fine. It will just create more drag than your 6 tooth thats all.
I hope you get all sorted soon.

Chris

Part_Timer · February 25, 2006, 10:25:48 PM

Thanks Chris

I'll just make sure to use plenty of lube

Tom

Jeff · February 25, 2006, 10:32:46 PM

Thanks from me as well Chris.

I am going to be having a talk with a certain saw shop about attitudes towards swingmills in general. They need to know that they are here and they are going to be seeing more and more and more of them and they need to get a clue about working with that important customer base.

Part_Timer · February 25, 2006, 10:37:31 PM

Thanks Jeff

Tom

jpgreen · February 26, 2006, 12:39:23 AM

Man that sucks Tom.

I would have them retip the blade at their cost, then if they still can't comprehend how your blade is supposed to be sharpened, take it to someone else.

I guess that's the one drawback to a swinger. A good metal detector would be in order also.. ;D

8)

Coon · February 26, 2006, 03:06:50 AM

Sorry to hear about your problems.

I have a Subaru car that I desperately need a head gasket for. I have been to 6 different Subaru dealerships with the old headgasket in hand. None of the dealerships have had this in stock and claimed they would have to order it in. I don't know where they have been ordering it from but everytime they call telling me they got the gasket in, I get there and it's the wrong one. 15 gaskets later and I still have no gasket. I finally spent about three hours on the internet looking for myself through dealers in Canada and the states. Finally found the factories address and I phoned them. We found out what the problem was. The serial number was wrong and wasn't in their database. You see in mid 1975 they added 4 more digits to their serial number. They only had these ones on the computer. They had to dig out the actual manuals and books to find it. Needless to say I ordered three of these gaskets along with a new rebuild kit. The gasket was only $24.68 ea. It has only been about 15 months now since I first started ordering the gaskets. My parts should be here in a week or so, I hope.
Brad.

Captain · February 26, 2006, 06:31:28 AM

More drag...less speed. Use water

Captain

Part_Timer · February 26, 2006, 07:34:39 AM

Thanks Craig

I just wanted to make sure. I figured I could but it's may last blade and I can't affored to make a silly mistake right now. I have 1000 bf of ash to cut and realy don't want to wait. I guess I better call Rex and get a price on a retipping jig and just do it myself.

Thanks again
Tom

Kirk_Allen · February 26, 2006, 10:00:27 AM

Tom, Osage is meant for elaborant turning blanks and lumber, NOT FIREWOOD........................unless its tops to the tree ;D :D

Got a boat load of it to cut again myself. Farmer is going to deck his seed trailer with it so he never has to do it again.

Part_Timer · February 26, 2006, 10:57:52 AM

:D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D

So tell me kirk how big a truck does it take to pull an osage decked trailer empty much less full of grain. :D

Tom

Jeff · February 27, 2006, 03:15:01 PM

I just got off the phone with Menominee saw and Peach. I have been assured that they are know aware of the problem, but they knew nothing of the problem at the point this thread was started They are now trying to figure out where all the problems may be and how to correct them as they find them. Peach is not in the department that would be handling the carbide tipped saws, but any one that knows him knows that he knows saws. Do they get things wrong on occasion? Well you betcha. We all do but there isn't a thing you can do until you know there is a problem.

There were several layers to this problem that made for a bad situation for the customer but they still stem back to before the point that Menominee had any awareness there was a problem. Again, I have been assured that they will do everything they can, to take care of this issue. A company does not stay in business for over 100 years without being great at what they do, but again, sometimes things go wrong.

I want to relate a similar situation our mill was in with a different company, but kinda, sorta, new to us.

We keep 3 very expensive head rig blades at the mill. Several boxes of teeth, shanks, shear pins, everything you need to keep from having extended saw related down time. Down time at a commercial mill attributed to saw problems can be amount to several thousands of dollars per day.

There are still times, even when everything is in place, and all preparations are made things go to hell in a hand basket. We had an event occur when our long time saw shop closed up Lafaves in Saginaw. They were pretty well known all over the Midwest. One of the saw men there started a new shop in Sanford, half the distance that Saginaw was, so we sent our blades to him. I was set up so I have one blade on, one spare, and one if needed at the shop. Well one day I started having saw trouble. We had sent our 3rd saw out to the new fellow after getting the first one back, so we had a spare, so I put it on for the first time since being worked on by the new company. I could not get that saw to cut. I knew as soon as I put it on it was not hanging right, Guess what, hammered for a friggen left hand mill. The blade I took off would not cut any more it was history, and the third was at his shop and after a desperate call we found it had already been hammered for a left hand mill as well. Well, two days down time. We had everything in place and we still failed and was caught with an extremity in the wringer. He was an experienced hand from an experienced shop we had always used but still got it wrong.

As I mentioned to Part-Timer. Its the Sawmill biz. Things will always happen.

Murphy says so, the bad thing about Murphy is you have no one to complain to. The good thing In this case is that Menominee has gotten the word and intend to make the saws right if wrong. They certainly can not undo the whole situation but a good company will learn, and the thing is once they know, they know and you have someone that not only knows what is right, they know what can go wrong and put steps in place to try to prevent it.

Swing Mills are a new phenom to a lot of America. Peach has not even saw one work. If not for the Forestry Forum I would not know about them and neither would a lot of you. There are a lot of saw shops out there that will be getting it wrong at first. Menominee is not the first. I hope that Peterson and Lucas can get to some of the Midwest shows such as the Logging Congress in Green bay this year. Peach and Menominee will be there and from this experience they will be looking for ways to help you guys. They absolutely want to do that and they can.

ellmoe · February 27, 2006, 06:49:42 PM

Good job Boss! Things go wrong with the best of companies, it how they handle the problem that set the great ones a part from the rest. Your correct about the swing mills, I've seen alot of mills, yet to lay eyes on one of those.
Mark

Fla._Deadheader · February 27, 2006, 07:10:01 PM

Ya jest gotta get out more often :

:

:D :D

Max sawdust · February 27, 2006, 07:36:46 PM

Quote from: Jeff B on February 27, 2006, 03:15:01 PM
I hope that Peterson and Lucas can get to some of the Midwest shows such as the Logging Congress in Green bay this year.

Jeff isn't it in Marquette MI in September this year

Max