Service on a Wood Mizer mill.

[MartyParsons]

Hello,
I did a service on a 2006 LT40 hydraulic mil last evening. I thought it would be good to share information on what the manual is talking about.
This mill has 222 hours, been out side and was not used for over one year. Unfortunately the owner passed away from cancer.

I have pictures and will keep adding to the post as time permits.

I have removed all the covers and washed the mill.
If you have questions post or review your manual.



 

I always start with the battery. Check connections. Clean. There is also a resistor wire going to the solenoid in the fuse box.



 

Clean the fuse box, check connections, proper fuses in location. Spare fuses available?



 

Next remove the control box cover, blow out the bugs, lube drum switch contacts. There should be grease in here from the factory. A little grease goes a long way.



 

Raise the saw head up to top check mast pad as shown. Clearance should be about the thickness of credit card. If mast is rusty clean with wire brush or sand paper.



 


 



 

Here is a picture of the lower adjuster. Lower head to one inch and check clearance before adjusting.



  

 

Check power feed belt and tighten set screw. Note the blue locktite.



Never seize all bolts exposed to sawdust and moisture.



  

 

Auto clutch, check belt tension. Watch out this belt does not need to be real tight! Over tightening will cause gear box failure.
Check wiring. Clean with compressed air.


These bolts break off. Lube with never seize.


  

 
Check upper cam bearings. Remove weight and turn. If they are apple core a little that is ok. Shiny spots or flat spots replace.



I did not take a picture if checking lower bearings. Lower the saw head onto can't hook handle at rest pin  area this will remove weight from lower bearings.



  

 
Check idle side bearing, remove the B-57 belt and check belt grove. Remove any build up. Replace the belt with a new one if doing alignment.

 


Drive side bearing change oil and replace with new tube. Dextron oil.


Document hours and date oil was changed.

Install new B-57 belts and new blade. Tighten blade, check tracking and adjust if needed.



 

Ok now we get to the alignment of the head to bed. I always say the only bed rails I adjust are the mills that owners adjust to solve a problem. Not exactly true but close.
Before you do this the frame supports must all have pressure to ground or floor . Front and rear leg must be tight, you should not be able to pull the pin by hand.
If you can read the rulers one on the left ( drive side) is at 18" The one on the rights ( idle side) at 17 15/16".  This says the idle side is lower. Manual states that the blade to bed should be 1/16" higher on the idle side.



 
Under the battery box there are two 1/2" bolts back them away from the lower rail before adjusting the head.



 

Ok now turn the inner nut ( two flats away from the meats) turn the outer nut two flats or tighten more if needed. Do this on all four nuts. This will raise the idle side of the saw head. On this mill I did this three times.
Every time you change this adjustment both lower cam bearing must have bearing weight on them. If you can turn one and not the other you need to adjust one to make them even. Neither one should turn with your fingers.



  

 

Now after the adjustment we are 18" on drive side and 18 1/16 " on idle side.



 

Next check all stationary and movable bed rails, document measurement on each. Do not adjust until you check them all. Now go back to the first one you checked. Is it the same measurement? If not the saw head moved when you pushed it. Recheck. Look at all the numbers that you documented. Are they all different? Only one off? Are they within 1/32?
Adjust only the one that is different. I only adjusted one with a loose nut on this mill.

Hope this helps.
Marty
I will post more later if you are interested.

[POSTON WIDEHEAD]

I like threads like this. Thanks Marty. 

[customdave]

Thankyou Sir, & yes interested in the follow up from a pro

           Thanks Dave

[Chuck White]

This post will likely be very helpful for lots of us!

Thanks for posting, Marty.   8)

[Ga Mtn Man]

Yes, we are very interested.  Keep posting.  Please rotate upside-down pics.

[pineywoods]

Thanks Marty. I'm doing a restoration job on an lt40 with 7000+ hours. You covered a few things I had not thought about and I'll need to do before I'm finished.

[MartyParsons]

Hello,
I think all pictures are right side up?  I will check the computer tomorrow. The I pad looks right. All pictures should be ok now?
Marty

[beenthere]

Just that the carts have wheels on the top side ?..  ;D ;D

[hunz]

Thank-you Marty.

Side note....where is a sticky thread for the FF. This needs to be one of many threads that needs to be added.

[mikeb1079]

marty you are top shelf brother.

[ScottInCabot]

Not too bad looking for an 'old-ish' mill, especially one that hasn't seen use for a year AND was sitting outside!  Or were all of the photo's taken after clean-up?


Scott in Cabot

[terrifictimbersllc]

Hello,
I think all pictures are right side up?  I will check the computer tomorrow. The I pad looks right.
Marty

Some of them are upside down.

You have the guide rollers off in making the head and rail adjustments, right?

[Ga Mtn Man]

Yesterday I adjusted the vertical tilt of the blade guide arm for the first time on my mill.  My patience was "challenged"  smiley_ignore , to put it mildly, because the measurements change when the jamb nuts are re-tightened.  Marty, I hope you will go over this procedure in detail and add any tips you have to make it easier.  Also, how do you determine when the v-rollers are tight enough but not too tight?

[Andries]

Marty - great post.
When I've helped friends with their mills, they had avoided the manual because it's text heavy.
The way you've laid it out with photo and caption is wunnerful. The picture is worth 1000 words and the caption sums it up.
I'd like to encourage you to keep at this thread, hoping you have the time and patience. 
      smiley_applause

[MartyParsons]

Hello,
Yes I remove all covers and use compressed air to remove all sawdust, then I use a pressure washer to clean, last step is to blow the water away.
I have more pictures to post.
Just a reminder to read your manual. I am missing some of the spec. This is for a LT40 and should be the same for the LT40 Super and LT50. The LT15 - LT35 will be a little different.

Yes when doing an alignment you remove the blade guide rollers.  I am not sure how many pictures I have of this but I can take more and add. If you think I missed something you would like to know then let me know and I will expand the explanation of that step.

Keep checking back as I get time I will post some more.

Marty

Well I see the modify button is missing on the original post. Now what do I do?  Do you have any suggestions? It would be nice to keep it all together.

[Nomad]

     Personally Marty, I think it's better if you add as you go.  Otherwise people have to go back to the OP and try to figure out what's new. 
     This is a great thread, and helping lots of people!  Keep it up!

[Jeff]

     Personally Marty, I think it's better if you add as you go.  Otherwise people have to go back to the OP and try to figure out what's new. 
     This is a great thread, and helping lots of people!  Keep it up!

I concur.

[MartyParsons]

Hello,

We will move on.
Here is a picture of the Aux bed rail with the nut that came loose. You need to check all of these on all the bed rails.



 

We also have all the bed rails adjusted to the blade and the blade guide rollers are removed from the blade. I remove the assemblies but you can just raise them depending on what level adjustment you are doing.

Next is the blade guide arm adjustment. I use a steel ruler shown.



 

Move the blade guide arm to the furthers point out and check, then move the blade guide arm in and document the measurement.



 



 

This picture shows ( hard to see) that the measurement is 1/32 more when the blade guide arm is in. That is how I do it. I feel that the blade pressure pulls up the blade guide arm just a little. If this adjustment is not correct you will get a lazy roller when the blade guide arm is in. ( blade guide roller stops)
You must check the rollers that hold the blade guide arm in place. If you pull up on the blade guide arm when it is in and can move the inside roller, then it needs to be adjusted. Do the same when the blade guide arm is out. The lower roller should not turn.
The blade guide arm MUST be tight between the rollers!

These bolts that hold the rollers are on cams as you turn the bolt on the inside the roller moves up then down.  If you find that both cams are up and the rollers are still loose then the metal that holds the bolt/cams are bent. This adjustment is not for the faint of heart. You may need to take a brake before during and after this adjustment.

I remove the roller, put the nut back on there should be a total of three nuts on the stud. 15/16' socket deep well on the bolt. Then bend the bolt with the metal. ( the bolt is not bent)


 

As you see here I could not find a long enough pipe to bend the bolt.  The last customer who saw me get the pipe out of the truck asked me three times if I know what I am doing!



 

I cant stress enough if the blade guide arm is tight, make small adjustments and recheck often. It takes me time to do this adjustment if the blade guide arm bolt mounting metal got bent from the saw head and blade coming in contact with the cant or log. Get your manual out and study draw pictures what ever you need to do to "think". It is common sense. If you adjust this and the blade guide arm comes loose you need to re tighten and start over.

You should also check the blade guide arm for forward and backward adjustment.  No pictures here. Move the rollers out an in on the adjustment bolts with the nuts forward and back of the rollers.

Once we have this done we will move to the deflection adjustment.



 

Raise the blade 1/4" from the bed rail. This picture shows we are 18 1/4"



  

This picture show the idle side is 18 5/16" measuring from the stationary bed rail to the blade.

Blade guide rollers assemblies. This mill had the 3/8" bolts for the adjustment. I up graded to the 7/16 bolts. I almost always dissemble the roller assemblies after I wash with the pressure washer. The pictures below are from a different mill. I think I may have used them on another post.



  

# 1 is the spacers on the roller. These wear! and can make your day bad. They are only a few $ so I replace them with roller change.
# 2 the shaft can also get worn if you get a bearing that fails and spins on the axle or shaft. Watch out.

White felt and gray felt. Lube with ATF. I feel if you would lube these once a week the bearing would last longer. If the mill sits for a long time you will see more bearing failures because of internal bearing rust.   




  

Here is the assembly assembled. I like to check the lube mizer fittings and clean all the holes from soap, rust or what ever crud gets in there.




  

Idle side assembled. You can see the larger bolts for the deflection adjustment.

You will need to set the blade height at 18 1/4 and 18 5/16"  Remove the blade tension and install the blade guide rollers. Install the blade and tighten to 2800. Track the blade. Set the shoulder clearance 1/16 " on drive side and 1/8" on the idle side. With the rollers touching the blade measurement from bed to blade should be 18" on the drive side and 18 1/16" on the idle side. If not adjust the roller assembly to pull the blade down ( or up) Check the blade tilt with the LTBGAT Blade guide alignment tool. ( Sorry no picture)  adjust the blade so it it the same measurement from front to back. If the deflection changes then you need to keep adjusting so you are at 18" on the drive side and 18 1/16 on the idle side. The blade tilt should be the same with the tool LTBGAT.

Last thing measure from the drive side of the blade to the bed rail. Check the bottom tooth. Then check the scale pointer. You can now adjust the pointer so it reads the same as the measurement.


I have a few more pictures of maintenance items performed on this mill. More to come.

If you have questions please ask. I will fill in the blanks.






Marty

[redprospector]

Now that's what I call a cheater pipe!  :D

[dustintheblood]

Excellent post  8) 8)

You did however forget to post details of how to adjust the "Anti-Saw-Into-The-Vertical-Post-After-12hour-Days" system  ;)

[MartyParsons]

[quoteYou did however forget to post details of how to adjust the "Anti-Saw-Into-The-Vertical-Post-After-12hour-Days" system ][/quote]


Bright Lights! I bet it is Dark up North this time of year.

I just put away a mill and had the tractor lights on the " Vertical-Posts" The last cut was at 10" . I did not see any sparks.

M

[AnthonyW]

Will you have a series on adjusting the backstops?

I went through the adjustments on my LT35. At the suggestion of my father, I tried using the Wixey digital angle gauge from my tablesaw. It seems to have worked. I will find out Friday. The advantage was that I could leave the gauge on the backstop and adjust the vertical pivot until it read 90 degrees. Even though the backstop was not perfectly vertical, after I tightened the bolt and moved it to vertical, it was still at 90 degrees.

[MartyParsons]

Hello,
  I will get some pictures of the side supports. I am not sure what the angle gauge you are referring to. Just a reminder that the side supports are tilted in at the top about 1/16".

The forward feed chain on this mill needed a little adjustment.



 

As you see below you can take a link out so the adjuster does not stick out. This mill did not need any links removed but here is the tool I keep with me just in case.



 

Kind of sloppy with the never seize. I did wipe it after I took the picture.  I think this was about 10 pm and I was running out of energy.

If you see the chain also has some rust. I see some of the chains in the field are real bad. The manual says use ATF. I use some type of penetrant  to loosen it up then use the ATF.



 

Hydraulic contact strip. This one needs attention!

 

  

Here is after some TLC.




 

DONT for get the bottom rail while you are here! ( above picture.) There is a ground brush that make a connection here this must be clean and shiny. You should also check the ground brush under the battery for good connection and clean the bracket that holds it. Sometimes there is bark or sawdust there preventing it from contacting the rail.


Here are some tools used to make it easier. I also have a small wire brush in the tool box that works well.



 

M

[beenthere]

The manual says use ATF. I use some type of penetrant  to loosen it up then use the ATF.

Seems a perfect place for Blue Creeper to reap its benefits.

[POSTON WIDEHEAD]

I'll say it again, I likes the pictures Marty. This whole thread will be a "saver". 

[Ironmower]

This is great info, I took in all I could at the open house you all had a couple weeks ago. Thanks

[AnthonyW]

Hello,
  I will get some pictures of the side supports. I am not sure what the angle gauge you are referring to. Just a reminder that the side supports are tilted in at the top about 1/16".

M

Marty,

Instead of using a square to align the backstops, this time I tried using my Wixey Digital Angle gauge.

http://www.wixey.com/anglegauge/#wr300

Have you or anyone else used this for the backstops? I thought it worked terrifically. It seems to me it takes three hands to adjust the angle if you try to kep the stop vertical while you do it. Since the adjustment is so small, I could move the stop towards the down position until it read 90 degrees and then tighten the adjuster. When raised to vertical, it was still reading 90 degrees.

[MartyParsons]

Hello,
   Anthony I did check out the link and I am not sure exactly how it works. The next one I do I will take pictures of the process as the manual states.

Here are some other things we have learned. Wood Mizer changed this in late 2004. This mill in the picture is a 2001 LT40. In 9/2004 WM made a cover to prevent access for small creatures.



 

Rodents enter the control box here where the wires come out of the tube. As you can see if you stuff the hole with Steel Wool they can not enter and if you need to get back in to remove the wires you just remove the stuffing.



 



 

Pretty simple fix.
It is not real fun opening up the control box and have eyes looking back at you and more than that lots of bare wires. The last one ( in the picture) smelled so bad I sprayed etching acid all over the wires and the control box then washed it with hot water. It did help. I also spent about 3 hours repairing the wires and replacing the conduit.
There is also a bacteria carried by rodents that could make you real sick.

Hope this helps.

Not sure if you want to keep this thread going or start a new one. I was working a a Lube Mizer system and have some tips and tricks with pictures. What do you think? Start a new thread or keep this going?


Marty

[beenthere]

Because steel wool rusts away, I'd go with copper wool instead. Might be less temporary.

[Woodey]

Thanks for sharing all the pictures and information Marty.

My thoughts, keep everything in this thread that pertains to servicing the Wood Mizer Mill.

I will be Bookmarking this one.

[Peter Drouin]

Thanks for sharing all the pictures and information Marty.

My thoughts, keep everything in this thread that pertains to servicing the Wood Mizer Mill.

I will be Bookmarking this one.

x2

[Ga Mtn Man]

I'd use 100% stainless-steel wool.  It's often marketed for pest-proofing use.

[MartyParsons]

Hello,
   Here is a Lube Mizer option that was needing some help. The owner did attempt to repair some leaks with some epoxy. I would guess it froze, -20 degree windshield washer fluid helps prevent damage. There is some washer fluid that is blue and only good for cleaning windows. Read the label if you are in an area prone to freezing.



 

There are only two nuts holding the assembly on. Some times it is much easier to work with off the mill.

There are two check valves in this system. The one at the left shown is a 6 psi check valve, ( Barbed Ends) this is there in case there is a plugged nozzle or a kink in the line. There are arrows on the check valves and they are hard to see. Make sure if you are working on this you take a picture or document the arrow direction.
If you take these apart there are o-rings inside and you can turn the valve and the arrow showing the direction will not help if you get the valve in the incorrect way.




  

The other check valve is at the top of the picture under the flange. This one is not the easiest to work with. If your lube keeps dripping when the pump is not engaged or when the key switch is off. The valve could be stuck, or o-ring may be missing.   



  

There is the filter to keep the water clean, the nozzles will make your day longer if the water gets dirty. Bleach the water bottle if it gets green inside. The bowl is available separate there is also a green o-ring seal inside the bowl. It does not come with the new bowl. Most times you can reuse the o-ring but you got to save it. The bowl will be the first thing to freeze.



 

The check valves are available and I would keep a set in my spare parts box, the T fittings are also had to find and very inexpensive compared to driving around to find something to keep going. The plastic gets hard over time when exposed to the weather and harsh environments.
The left check valve with the 1/8" pipe threads is the 3 psi # 033449
The check valve on the right is barbed ends 6 psi. part # 033448
The T fitting is barbed on three sides. #033441
The T fitting that has one end 1/8" pipe is # 033452
The long hose not shown is # 033456. Some owners will splice a rubber hose into the line to prevent breakage if it catches on a log, it will pull apart instead of damaging the tube.
The braided hose # 033456 and 033455 two different lengths.

The pump is pretty good unit. We do see some failures on a mill that has not been used for sometime. The inside will rust. There is a magnet like any small motor and it welds to the armature to the magnet. SO run the mill and the pump at least once a month.

Hope this helps!!

I have some pictures of the hydraulic pump motors next if you are interested in more.

Marty 

[Magicman]

Oh yes.  You can not stop until you are finished.   :P

No job is complete until the paper work is done.  ;) (old saying) 

[MartyParsons]

Hello,
there has been some discussion about grease fittings. Here is how we take care of this issue.



  

Here is a picture of the loading arm, there are three grease fittings only one needed to be replaced. Sometimes you need to remove the pin to get the old grease out. Sometimes I use a propane torch, and when it gets real bad I use the big heat.



  

Once you get the old fitting drilled out with the 7/32 drill then use the 1/4" 28 tap. I have one tap with the end ground off. I start with the starter tap till the tap hits the pin, then use the modified tap. Ok you see the drill motor with the tap on the end.    If you break off the tap don't call me.  I did not show you this!  I have the drill motor set with the slip set low. If the tap gets tight stop back up and go slowly in again.



 



  

OK hope this helps. Using the grease gun often prevents lots of labor. If you have a tight grease gun end they will also pull out the press in fittings.

[beenthere]

Good, except use a hand-held T handle on the tap...not in a drill.
Going the hand-held route, one has a much better "feel" of resistance and can stop, back out, and continue tapping with less fear of breaking the tap off.

[Ga Mtn Man]

...Ok you see the drill motor with the tap on the end.    If you break off the tap don't call me.  I did not show you this!  I have the drill motor set with the slip set low. If the tap gets tight stop back up and go slowly in again.

[Kbeitz]

Anyone here use a grease hammer ?

[wesdor]

Fantastic resource.  This demonstrates to commitment Woodmizer has to sawing.  Makes me happy I opted to purchase a Woodmizer three years ago.

THANKS

[Magicman]

Sure, and there are threads and links here detailing their use.


 

[Kbeitz]

I've used one for years and i was wondering it people here knew about them.
You can also buy them to fit air chisels.

[MartyParsons]

Hello,
I have one of these tools in my box. I get it out from time to time. I really have not been successful with it. I think by the time I get the equipment it is way beyond any cheap fix.  Frequently we remove the pins and make everything work. Heat works but makes the paint a little black. I am not saying you should not use this tool, if you use the grease gun more frequently you may not need it.  ;)

During the training with a new customer I have this saying. Did you ever see the Wizard of Oz movie? There is a wood cutter ( Tin Man) rusting away in the woods. Dorthy saves him with an oil can, Right? You need to be Dorthy at least once in awhile.

Hope this helps.

Marty

[tnaz]

You need to be Dorthy at least once in a while.
Grease is GOOD.

Thanks for a great thread.
tnaz

[Chuck White]

Welcome to the Forestry Forum, tnaz.

[tnaz]

Thanks, I look and read a lot just don't type well.

[MartyParsons]

Hello,
Lets discuss hydraulic pump motor maintenance. The Wood Mizer manual states that you should check the pump motor brushes every how many hours? Here is a copy of what the manual states.
Maintenance Hydraulic System
Replace the hydraulic system cartridge filter every 500 hours of operation.
Inspect the hydraulic pump motor brushes every 750 hours of operation. Remove brushdust and replace the brushes if they worn to a length of 1/4" (6mm) or shorter. CAUTION!
Do not operate the hydraulic system if the pump motor brushes are worn shorter than 1/4" (6mm). Damage
to the pump motor may result.



 

This mill came to us with 2001 hours.



 

LT40 Super Hydraulic two pumps.
Owner said the hydraulics were slow. It was still working. I asked him when was the last time he checked the pump motor brushes? He had a puzzled look.



 
Here are the motors removed. Some take the motor and pump and tank out as an assembly. It is much easier just to remove the motor. These are the Iskra motors. The early mills have a Monarch motors and brush kits are not available through WM. You can get the Monarch motors rebuilt at a alternator shop. 



  

We have the armature, aluminum end cap, brush holder and the housing with the magnets.
Disassembly of the motor. Step one, loosen the nut on the back of the housing and remove, there should of been a ground wire attached to the nut. next-  Loosen the nut that the positive wire was attached to the stud on the end cap. on the other end pry the armature loose from the end cap, ( there is a o-ring holding the bearing in the end cap), you should now be able to remove the end cap, it may be tight do not pry, a little goes a long way. If you force it you will break the brush holder. WM does have these available.
Next is cleaning. I have used brake clean, pressure washer and we just purchased a hot water parts washer ( Think dish washer on steroids) that works awesome for this job.



 

As you can see here the armature needs a visit to the lathe, this is what may happen if you do not check or change the brushes in a little less time than 2000 hours.



 

Here is a picture of the armature after it was turned on the lathe.



 



 

Ok ready for assembly.

When installing the motor to the pump, you must have the male and female ends aligned. Never ever tighten the bolts to pull the motor into the pump. I have seen a few hydraulic pumps damaged if the lugs are not aliened.

Here is the contact strip mounted to the side of the frame.
The positive wire is soldered to the copper strip. The bolt at the end just keeps the copper strip from sliding. If you install a metal bolt to hold the wire in place you may be changing the fuses in the fuse box.



 

 

 



 

Here is the repaired strip ready to go back on the mill.

These pictures are from more than one mill in the last few months.

Hope this helps.

Marty

[MartyParsons]

Hello,
  Here are some tips on gasoline engine.  The customer dropped this early WM mill off last week. I think it is a 1987 LT40. It looks rough but it has some up grades. He said the engine would not idle with out the choke pulled out half way. His comment was don't do any more repair until you see if the engine is worth while fixing.
I put the battery in the mill and was expecting the worse. Pulled the choke and the engine fired on the first turn. I pushed the choke in and the engine stopped. Removed the top of the carburetor and found water.


 

In this picture I have removed the pilot jet, it would be in the small hole on the left. I would guess this only took a few min to get to this point. Take compressed air and blow out the junk.
Next step is to find out where the water came from. I drained the fuel tank into a white bucket. This is what you may find.



 

That mark at the top of the bucket is not a stain it is the water.

We replaced the original fuel tank with a new one. We had to bend the original bracket a little to make it fit but it looked pretty good.



 

After this we started the engine, ran great. Called the customer and he was expecting the engine to be bad? I said your mill is running good. He then gave me a list of a few other things that need addressed. As you may see the brake strap is a little frayed. The up down motor is a little weak.

Hope this helps.
Have a great day.

Marty

[LoneDuck]

Just wanted to say thank you for this great info. Just started to get my mill ready to start cutting and this helped out a lot. Also opened my eyes to other things that need to be done. I got the mill used and been trying to get a good maintenance schedule for it. This is will help greatly and is greatly appreciated.

[will49766]

This is worth bringing to the top.  Lots of great info here.  Thanks for doing this Marty.

[moodnacreek]

Those battery cable ends are a bad idea, understand if that is what was at hand but should not be pictured.

[LeeB]

Don't just say they are a bad idea. Tell us why you feel that way.

[moodnacreek]

Don't just say they are a bad idea. Tell us why you feel that way.

Feel that way? When you use those repair battery cable ends you create 2 more corrosion prone places. Soldered or at least crimped and sealed is the way. With all the electric problems discussed here , on portable band sawmills, why add 2 more bad connections. You do what you have to to get going but that little detail is not the professional way.

[Southside]

What picture are you referring to? The one with the power strip is heat shrink sealed and soldered in place, per the narrative.

[moodnacreek]

What picture are you referring to? The one with the power strip is heat shrink sealed and soldered in place, per the narrative.

The 12 volt [car] battery.  I really should not condemn this valuable [to wood mizer owners] information that is from a professional. Maybe those aftermarket battery terminals where already there. After a lifetime of maintaining old junk I learned as a teenager on my first car [a 55 chevy] not to use those.

[Magicman]

Much depends upon the application.


 

[barbender]

 I use them all the time. Some guys get in a fuss about it. 

 One day one of the soldered and sealed battery cables on the forwarder game up the ghost, it had corroded through. So I busted out my stash of bolt on cable clamps and found one that fit. I cleaned the cable end and installed that clamp. I wasn't surprised when it worked, as intended. I made a note for Ponsse to replace the cable at the next service, but I really wasn't concerned about it. What's the worst that would happen? It corrodes and fails, like the original factory sealed connection?

 I put one on the positive cable on my dump trailer, too. Works swell. In fact, because I am a bit of a needler, I put those cable clamps on at every opportunity, just because I know some folks are so dead set against them🤷‍♂️😁 

[moodnacreek]

Bar, You would find some here also but they are not the best choice, time has proven. Another way to fix a bad battery end is to cut off the bad one and solder on a lug so you can use the marine style battery terminal, clean and covered with never seize or grease. A new, heavy copper cable with end sweated on is in the long run is the best, I rest my case .

[barbender]

I'm not arguing what is best, but what is completely sufficient😊

[Stephen1]

I am 25 mins to town , I also like the bolt on cable clamps, nope not the best but they work for a good year or two. I add dialectic grease when I put them together and that helps.

[Southside]

There is always the strip more wire and use vice grips to hold it to the post method too.

Gives you more surface area to hook the jumper cables up with as a bonus.
:D

[ladylake]

 
I wont use the bolt on clamps as they lose to much juice.  They sell good crimpers for not too much money.  Steve

[barbender]

 How do they lose juice? If they are the right size so the cable is making full contact, I don't see how a crimp on carries any more amperage. 

 That forwarder I mentioned earlier- my "daily driver" for 5 years, I got into it brand new. So I knew when something was different or changed performance wise. Sometimes the engine preheater wouldn't start on cold mornings, and that engine cranked and started the same with the bolt on connectors as the factory originals. I could give many more examples, but suffice it to say if I saw a performance drop I wouldn't use them. I never have🤷‍♂️

[ladylake]

 I've had them on old tractors that would barely crank over, put crimped cables on and cranked over twice as fast.  Steve

[Walnut Beast]

Exactly. It's all about good contact. A comparison to a crimped connection would be a pair of vise grips. Have a connection that doesn't make good contact. Put a little pressure with vise grips. 

Most all good factory connections are crimped 

[Ben Cut-wright]

I'm in the camp which believes "crimped  connections" provide the most reliability in harsh conditions.

[Magicman]

I have not seen where there was ever a doubt nor argument about the reliability of crimped connections.  The topic here was that there are also reliable alternatives especially where multiple wires/cables are connected to a common point.

All connections regardless of the connecting method should be clean/tight and free of corrosion.

[trimguy]

Yes, thank you for bringing this to the top. I don't need it at the moment, but this information will come in handy.