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How to uncoil saw blades without dying

Started by Redmt, January 20, 2023, 08:01:14 PM

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Redmt

I just got a box of coiled blades it looks more than dangerous to uncoil. Any suggestions?
Those who would disrespect our flag have never been handed a folded one.

Southside

Some are born with a gene that allows them to uncoil those, the rest of us just find a pile of fresh sawdust and enjoy the "sproing" sound.

:D
Franklin buncher and skidder
JD Processor
Woodmizer LT Super 70 and LT35 sawmill, KD250 kiln, BMS 250 sharpener and setter
Riehl Edger
Woodmaster 725 and 4000 planner and moulder
Enough cows to ensure there is no spare time.
White Oak Meadows

terrifictimbersllc

Grab 2 of the 3 loops firmly with heavy gloves on. Let the 3rd loop fall down below you about 45 degrees. If it wont, hold one of the other loops till it does. Then turn your hands outwards looking for the "X' . Slowly opeh your arms holding the blade firmly till the band is wide open. 
DJ Hoover, Terrific Timbers LLC,  Mystic CT Woodmizer Million Board Foot Club member. 2019 LT70 Super Wide 55 Yanmar,  LogRite fetching arch, WM BMS250 sharpener/BMT250 setter.  2001 F350 7.3L PSD 6 spd manual ZF 4x4 Crew Cab Long Bed

Magicman

Here is my Grandson Luke coiling and uncoiling.  Drop the loop that leaves an X behind.
IMG 7510 - YouTube
Knothole Sawmill, LLC     '98 Wood-Mizer LT40SuperHydraulic   WM Million BF Club Member   WM Pro Sawyer Network

It's Weird being the Same Age as Old People

Never allow your "need" to make money to exceed your "desire" to provide quality service.....The Magicman

Redmt

And he's wearing shorts!? I was going for full welding gear. On my metal cutting bandsaw I use the chuck and duck method. The 13' blades are a little more scary. 
Those who would disrespect our flag have never been handed a folded one.

YellowHammer

I can uncoil and coil at will, by hand.  No problem. Trained in person at the WM facility.   :D :D 

Coiling is easy.

Uncoiling by hand takes heavy leather gloves, safety glasses, concentration, the occasional cuss word and drop of blood.  

Or take a sip of coffeee, toss them on the grass and take another sip of coffee while picking it up.  No gloves, safety glasses or concentration needed.

I saw alone, so don't have to worry about anybody seeing me do it.  If someone is watching, I toss the coiled band their way to watch them jump back like a mouse trap was trying to get them. :D :D

 
YellowHammerisms:

Take steps to save steps.

If it won't roll, its not a log; it's still a tree.  Sawmills cut logs, not trees.

Kiln drying wood: When the cookies are burned, they're burned, and you can't fix them.

Sawing is fun for the first couple million boards.

Be smarter than the sawdust

Dan_Shade

Practice with a lawn mower belt.

The mechanics of motion are the same, but a bit less like an angry cat.

Here's a video that I made when I wore a younger man's clothes (actually, my wife could argue that I still wear the same shirt):


band handling - YouTube
Woodmizer LT40HDG25 / Stihl 066 alaskan
lots of dull bands and chains

There's a fine line between turning firewood into beautiful things and beautiful things into firewood.

Jeff

That was back when blades were made from stone!
Just call me the midget doctor.
Forestry Forum Founder and Chief Cook and Bottle Washer.

Commercial circle sawmill sawyer in a past life for 25yrs.
Ezekiel 22:30

JoshNZ

I pull at individual loops until it leaves the other two crossed over as mentioned above, or a figure 8 sort of (the same cross over you see as the loops form when coiling up). I do it while walking from the truck to the mill without gloves which I suppose isnt smart but, it soon becomes a non event

Magicman

@Chuck White has a nice video of him coiling, uncoiling, and turning a blade inside out.
Knothole Sawmill, LLC     '98 Wood-Mizer LT40SuperHydraulic   WM Million BF Club Member   WM Pro Sawyer Network

It's Weird being the Same Age as Old People

Never allow your "need" to make money to exceed your "desire" to provide quality service.....The Magicman

Dan_Shade

I rarely use gloves, but it's a good idea to wear them.

I distinctly remember the first time I tried to uncoil a band.  I got the coils apart and realized that I had no idea what I was doing.  I was stuck with a half uncoiled band, and couldn't coil it back up, or safely uncoil it.  I let it spring hoping for the best.  Ended up with a gouge in my palm. 

Woodmizer LT40HDG25 / Stihl 066 alaskan
lots of dull bands and chains

There's a fine line between turning firewood into beautiful things and beautiful things into firewood.

Magicman

The guy that I bought my sawmill from taught me coiling & uncoiling and I always wear gloves.  I have never thrown a blade on the ground to uncoil.  ::)

Yes, stuff can happen.  This happened this past Summer when I accidentally let a coil slip:


 
Knothole Sawmill, LLC     '98 Wood-Mizer LT40SuperHydraulic   WM Million BF Club Member   WM Pro Sawyer Network

It's Weird being the Same Age as Old People

Never allow your "need" to make money to exceed your "desire" to provide quality service.....The Magicman

SawyerTed

It is important to know when to duck.  This is especially true when the teeth are inevitably pointed at your face as the blade springs open.  

I have tried throwing a blade somehow uphill.  I felt like I was in a cartoon as it rolled downhill towards me.  It fell over before it go to me.  I don't throw blades anymore
Woodmizer LT50, WM BMS 250, WM BMT 250, Kubota MX5100, IH McCormick Farmall 140, Husqvarna 372XP, Husqvarna 455 Rancher

Chuck White

Coiling, uncoiling and inverting blades can be hazardous.

The accompanying video is how I handle them.

See post #42.

Saw Mill Video-Blade Direction?? in Sawmills and Milling (forestryforum.com)

I'm hoping this helps you out.
Band Saw Blade Handling on Vimeo
~Chuck~  Cooks Cat Claw sharpener and single tooth setter.  2018 Chevy Silverado and 2021 Subaru Ascent.
With basic mechanical skills and the ability to read you can maintain a Woodmizer  LT40!

firefighter ontheside

My front yard is mostly zoysia grass.  It makes a great spot to let the blades uncoil on their own.  I don't throw them exactly.  I pull it open a little bit and then gently toss it to the ground for the rest to happen on its own.  I would like to learn to do it without the grasss though, now that I am sharpening my own blades.  I will watch some of these videos today and report back after I've tried it, hopefully with no blood leaking.
Woodmizer LT15
Kubota Grand L4200
Stihl 025, MS261 and MS362
2017 F350 Diesel 4WD
Kawasaki Mule 4010
1998 Dodge 3500 Flatbed

doc henderson

I did one and had it rotate in my hand and make a puncture that felt a bit like a fish hook in my palm.  I had to look at it and think a bit to get it out of my hand without making it worse.  only once!  the tricky part is when it is half open and under some spring forces and needing to change hands on the the loops!
Timber king 2000, 277c track loader, PJ 32 foot gooseneck, 1976 F700 state dump truck, JD 850 tractor.  2007 Chevy 3500HD dually, home built log splitter 18 horse 28 gpm with 5 inch cylinder and 32 inch split range with conveyor powered by a 12 volt tarp motor

terrifictimbersllc

Yes, look for the X where the blade crosses over itself. You can easily hold that X with one hand while you get your composure back.
DJ Hoover, Terrific Timbers LLC,  Mystic CT Woodmizer Million Board Foot Club member. 2019 LT70 Super Wide 55 Yanmar,  LogRite fetching arch, WM BMS250 sharpener/BMT250 setter.  2001 F350 7.3L PSD 6 spd manual ZF 4x4 Crew Cab Long Bed

Southside

Nothing to it, just like putting the pin back in a grenade.  :D
Franklin buncher and skidder
JD Processor
Woodmizer LT Super 70 and LT35 sawmill, KD250 kiln, BMS 250 sharpener and setter
Riehl Edger
Woodmaster 725 and 4000 planner and moulder
Enough cows to ensure there is no spare time.
White Oak Meadows

Crossroads

I simply except the fact that I am about to bleed 
With the right fulcrum and enough leverage, you can move the world!

2017 LT40 wide, BMS250 and BMT250,036 stihl, 2001 Dodge 3500 5.9 Cummins, l8000 Ford dump truck, hr16 Terex excavator, Valley je 2x24 edger, Gehl ctl65 skid steer, JD350c dozer

Jeff

Just call me the midget doctor.
Forestry Forum Founder and Chief Cook and Bottle Washer.

Commercial circle sawmill sawyer in a past life for 25yrs.
Ezekiel 22:30

barbender

Getting cut handling bands is always a possibility, but I can't remember the last time one got me. Folding them is easy. Uncoiling can be tricky. If I'm sawing every day, it becomes intuitive. But if I don't touch a band for a month, sometimes I'm scratching my head when I try to open one. 

 I really dislike throwing them. I feel like I'm tossing the band and just hoping fir the best that fate hands me. Doing it the other way, I'm in control. 
Too many irons in the fire

longtime lurker

Wait until your bands are 6 inches wide and 27 foot long: you don't even throw them you lay them on the grass and poke them with a stick.😂
The quickest way to make a million dollars with a sawmill is to start with two million.

esteadle

The real trick to uncoiling a sharp band is keeping control of it continuously, and never letting it get out of control.
I spent an entire semester of high school geometry, after they showed us a Mobious strip, turning a flat rubber-band back and forth on itself; that's all I needed to know how to do it instinctively. 
The points of the blade are always pointed away from you, coupled with knowledge of how a 3-d looped surface can loop back on itself is key to this task.
If you can keep the flat body of the blade in continuous contact as you uncoil the band, you will not get cut.
I use my forefingers in unison/together against the flat backstop of my palm and thumb-mound when uncoiling.
Some others encouraged practice with a mower or similar drive belt. Yes. Do this. I can do it by now with out thinking. It just "is" how it works.






barbender

Uh, if I have to think of the simple yet profound concept of the Mobius strip when I'm uncoiling a band, I'm probably on my way to getting cut😁 
Too many irons in the fire

barbender

Here's how I get started. Holding the blade in my right hand, I find where 2 of the coils cross each other at the top. Then take my hand and hold the blade at the X.


Too many irons in the fire

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