Secret Recipes for Blade Lube

[jacksaws]

thanks Magicman I live in NW ark. I have had a circle mill for about 40 years then got to wanting a bandmill. I have had it for about  2 years. I am not to much on a computer. I can turn one on then I am in trouble.I have been about a year to my first post. I found out it is not impossible.thanks again.

[Magicman]

I noticed that you had been a "silent" member for quite a while.  You have several active FF members close to you in Arkansas as well as in Oklahoma.

[Dave VH]

when you guys say "wick", what kind of material do you use as a wick?  I can easily incorporate one the way that I designed my lube system, I'm just curious as to what to use.

[jacksaws]

sorry I said I did not know what I was doing. I will get better if youall dont throw me off of the Forum.

[jacksaws]

Dave what I used was a piece of felt. I used a felt air filer from an old air compsessor .It works good.

[eastberkshirecustoms]

when you guys say "wick", what kind of material do you use as a wick?  I can easily incorporate one the way that I designed my lube system, I'm just curious as to what to use.

Dave, not any ol' felt will work. It should have some 'body' so the blade rotation won't fold it over, over time. I used extra firm F1 felt, 3/4" thick x 2" wide to build my wick systems (infeed and outfeed) and bought it here: http://www.mcmaster.com/#catalog/118/3504/=g7lx9l. It is pricey, but a 30" length will make many wick pads. What I did was make holders out of 1"x2" rect. tubing, capped off on the top, then installed a spring inside to give it a slight down pressure and to automatically adjust for wear. There is a hose fitting at the top to supply the lube onto the felt.
The felt will soak up and hold an amazing amount of liquid. Printing presses use them on the sides of the cylinders to lube and clean the bearers. Simple but effective.

[eastberkshirecustoms]

Question- has anyone tried to use tire bead compound as a blade lube? I can buy it it in bulk for cheap. It is a biodegradable, soap based product with a rust inhibitor. It comes in a tub as a thick paste, then a very small amount is mixed into a gallon of water. The stuff I buy doesn't contain silicone, the rust inhibitor would be good for the bands, and it definitely wouldn't hurt the bandwheel rubber. It will freeze up though. Any thoughts?

[Magicman]

If it is non-staining then give it a try.   

[sdunston]

Do you guys that saw frozen still use blade lube?, Last winter I sawed maple w/o blade lube,When you pulled off the board just sawn it had a layer of ice/frost on both cant and off loaded board. Blade stayed cool,cuts were straight, blade seemed to stay sharp so is it safe to say that no lube is needed when sawing frozen logs ??? ???. BTW the outside temp was around 10 deg f.

Thanks Sam

[terrifictimbersllc]

Frozen will help with heat but not with buildup of residue on the blade.  Will depend on wood.  In my area maple, hickory, ash, and of course sticky softwoods need a lube to keep the blade clean.

[Bandmill Bandit]

Do you guys that saw frozen still use blade lube?, Last winter I sawed maple w/o blade lube,When you pulled off the board just sawn it had a layer of ice/frost on both cant and off loaded board. Blade stayed cool,cuts were straight, blade seemed to stay sharp so is it safe to say that no lube is needed when sawing frozen logs ??? ???. BTW the outside temp was around 10 deg f.

Thanks Sam

I am sawing mostly frozen Aspen and Black Poplar right now with a few pine and spruce as customers order. Still using some blade lube but very minimal on the aspen and poplar just to help keep the band clean and normal flow with the pine and spruce. On my second batch of my blade lube recipe I used 2 oz of the Murphys  oil soap instead of the Pine Sol. That cuts the price for my mix from $12.27 for 6 ish gallons to $7.12 or about a 1.19 a gallon. Just mixed on the week end so havent tried it yet.

The first batch with the pine sol worked real good. I will try another batch of that as well but with 6 oz of pine sol instead of 2 litres.

[Magicman]

Two ounces of liquid Cascade per gallon cost less than 75 cents for a 5 gallon mixture.

[Bandmill Bandit]

Two ounces of liquid Cascade per gallon cost less than 75 cents for a 5 gallon mixture.

Magic I tried the Cascade but up here it has an abrasive additive that clogged up my nozzles. I liked the way it worked but the clogging was a pain.

The first batch of my mix was very very effective. Best I have ever used and I would say I cut my flow rate at least in half. My goal now is get the price of winter lube to about a $1 gallon. For summer I will just remove the windshield anti freeze concentrate. With out the concentrate my mix should be about $1.92 for the 6 ish gallon mix. That concentrate is $1.04 a litre or about 5.20 a gallon. What I should do is move south far enough so I dont need to use anti freeze at all.
   

[Magicman]

OK.  Maybe the formulation is different.  Liquid Cascade is all that I have used for over 10 years and I have not had the clogging that your describe.  I'm not saying that I have never had to clear a nozzle, because I occasionally do.  We all have to use what works for each of us.   

[terrifictimbersllc]

Wood-Mizer recently suggested for reducing nozzle clogging, that I clean out the block that the nozzles are mounted on, and treat it inside with a rust inhibitor.  Haven't done that yet.   I've been using Cascade gel for the last year or so since I ran out of the WM additive I bought with the mill.  Keeping the tank and the filters clean as I can, but usually every other day of sawing I still have to clear a nozzle with a thin stiff wire.  Cascade and WW fluid has a distinctive taste.  : : :

[bandmiller2]

Wick lubing with diesel/oil is very economical.Wicks can be felt or the old lantern type wicks.Myself I picked up a bunch of the wicks used in the old road pots,before flashing lights.A wick assembly can be mounted on top and one beside the guide to get boath sides of the band. Frank C.