Buzz saw conversion

[mart]

I have an opportunity to pick up a three point hitch belt driven 32" buzz saw for a very reasonable price. I'm looking at it as a tool to reduce my slabs to firewood. I haven't found a good way to do it that works well for me. I've tried cribs and ratchet strapping a pile of it and none of it works as well as I'd like. I have a 5hp B&S motor hanging around doing nothing. Would it be enough to run the buzz saw for cutting slabs? I'm looking for a simple way to get this up and running should I decide to buy it. I have considered doing a PTO conversion but I have the motor and it seems like a simple matter to do a conversion with the appropriate size pulleys.

Sorry if this is the wrong section to post this.

[sawguy21]

I doubt if a 5hp would be enough to maintain the required speed in the cut but others with more experience may chime in. I have watched buzz saws being operated and quite frankly I would be uncomfortable.

[mart]

I grew up around the old belt driven buzz saws but never used a rear PTO or engine driven one.

[beenthere]

Pic of it would help, and for sure would need a heavy flywheel on the arbor opposite the blade.

Blade sharpened well, and you should be ok but hp marginal at best.  Dull blade, not so good.
Width and thickness of your slabs will control success. All enter into the equation.

Post a pic.

[47sawdust]

I've used a 3 pt. pto buzz saw a lot.A 5hp motor will not work.It doesn't have the necessary flywheel effect that a tractor has.

[Spike60]

Cast iron flywheel, maybe. Aluminum flywheel definitely not. Either way, you'd need some kind of gear/pulley recuction set up to get the RPM's where you need them.

[DMcCoy]

I have tried cribs and tying slabs for cutting as well, and didn't like the results(saw binding).  I now have a table with 4x4 every 13" on C and lay the slabs on top in an organized loose pile.  24" bar.  Surprisingly it works well enough that it's now the method I use.

[moodnacreek]

I was fortunate to find an old Cornell slab saw years ago and I rebuilt it. It is essentially a swing saw at the end of a conveyer belt. When the saw swings back it pulls the slab 15" ahead for the next cut. I have also seen manual slab saws made like a giant chop saw. You need a 30" saw and 15+ h.p.  A roller table would work on this. The problem on the buzz saw is the short table that has to move for each cut where with the others the saw moves and that is faster. At least with the buzz saw you can stack up thin slabs. More h.p. is always better.

[mike_belben]

I dont think its worth building around a 5hp motor.  

I would set it up around a heavy roller rack like doug says, or a scrapped supermarket belt register.  Jackshaft along the bottom rear.  5 bolt hub for a tire full of builders sand as a flyweight and a speed reducer to bring a 3600 rpm motor down to the saws hammered speed using a friction drive on the tread. This also gives you a clutch and an off switch.  Just rock the engine back off the tire.  Garage door springs might work well for the traction control.

The saw arbor would be held captive in a twin beam swingarm like a dirtbike etc.  center pivot for the blade arbor, belt drive and hand pulled through the wood from below so the user can modulate load and keep it singing.  At the end of the jackshaft is a right angle gearbox that powers the off bearing conveyor to dump the cuts in the hopper or truck etc.  Dead deck would be offset enough for long slabs to clear the saw.    

A big single cylinder gasser might do it but a yaris or civic front half would do it better  ;D

[Corley5]

  A buddy had a buzz rig he powered with a 640 Rotax snowmobile engine.  Kinda cool.  It worked.  I preferred the one we had on our 37 A JD.  Way cooler.  Grandpa had one on the F-12 Farmall.  It did well.  Both were mounted on the front of the tractors and ran via flat belt.  Five HP wouldn't get much done.

[Woodside Kai]

I've got a 30" buzz saw with a 12 hp Honda engine driving it to saw my slabs and firewood. Wouldn't want much less than that for power. 

[47sawdust]

I agree. Somewhere it was mentioned 13hp being minimum.
I had mine running on a small Kubota B,about 17hp. That was a nice match

RPM for cordwood saw

Lafont buzz saw with 16 hp B&S

[1countryboy]

Years ag, dad ran a front mounted buss saw with flat belt powered by MM UTU tractor.  Lots of torque(45hp).   I redid the buss saw on 3 pt and powered by AC D14 (33hp).  V belts and a Trany out of a NH field chopper.  Both worked well.  Buss saws are dangerous and worked best with 3 persons.  One feeding, a sawman, and the 3rd guy removing the cut wood.  My preference is to run my slabs from the sawmill to my Blockbuster processor.   Much safer.

[mike_belben]

Chainsaw chopsaws are so easy to make that i dont see the point in a buzzsaw anymore. 

[hedgerow]

Chainsaw chopsaws are so easy to make that i dont see the point in a buzzsaw anymore.

I myself get tired of sharping chain saw chains is why I like buzz saws. Don't have to sharpen a buzz saw blade a lot.  I have two both home built one has a 13 HP HF engine and other one has a two cylinder Wisconsin engine. I run a ton of small hedge threw my buzz saws. They are like anything you have to respect them. The  one with the 13 HP engine gets a work out. I don't think a 5 HP would cut it. 

[Jim_Rogers]

Many years ago, we used to cut and stack 4' split firewood. After it aged a while we could cut these 4' pieces into stove lengths. Either 16" or 24". We got a buzz saw (we in new England called them cordwood saws). And I was asking around the chain saw repair shop how to sharpen the blade. The shop owner told me he didn't want to talk to anyone who was going to use a cordwood saw. Of course, I asked why not. He told me of a story where a fellow using one had the piece of wood he was cutting bind up the saw and it bounced off the table and flew up and hit him in the face. That drove his nose bone into his brain and killed him on the spot.

After hearing of this, I continued to use my saw with my chain saw helmet on and face shield down, in front of my face.

I stopped using this saw, when a piece of wood bound up and bounced off the table and hit the face shield right at my nose area.

Never used it again. Recently scrapped it, do to it being old and rusted out.

Jim Rogers

[moodnacreek]

Back in the hand saw and 35 lbs chainsaw days a buzz saw was the thing to have. Today a buzzsaw needs to be something more complicated like with an infeed and outfeed or it is hardly worth running.

[47sawdust]

Some of the European versions are pretty evolved.The price tag matches.
One has a small conveyor attached which greatly improves safety.

[jmur1]

I have been running a Ø26" carbide saw with a 15 hp then a 20hp upgrade.  I found the 15 hp would do it but quickly noticed I could increase the RPM with the 20 hp.  I saw previously the attached speed recommendation and also have a max of 2850 rpm stamped on my blade.


 


Read it here:

https://books.google.ca/books?id=0_IqelmQZCgC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0&fbclid=IwAR0eHjYgKkuoPPO7PXORUQRbraigt05VXs3RqD-J7_aE3ekXzVurhCnISxY#v=onepage&q&f=true

jmur1

[sublime68charger]

You tube video of the buzzz saw setup I have ran for 30 years,  I started when I was 7 or so and was the one handing the sticks to my dad and grandpa to run threw the saw.

It was a 3 point mounted that my dad made a small cart for it and this way any tractor with PTO can run it.  was orginally set up for a Ford Jubliee or 8n to run off the 3 point with a Belt pulley bolted on over the PTO.

buzz sawing - YouTube

[beenthere]

If me, there would be more support for your wood sticks from what the video shows. But if it works for you, all good. 

[sublime68charger]

If me, there would be more support for your wood sticks from what the video shows. But if it works for you, all good.

are you talking about the video I posted with the buzz saw?
I only use it around 5-8 hours each year.  Make sure you have good footing on the day your sawing dont what to have any mis steps.  Have sawed in the snow and after a while you pack the snow down and that gets slippery by then you take some sawdust and spread over the snow to get some traction back but I like sawing on just dry frozen ground the best.  or dry ground don't want to saw when its muddy either.
It works just have to be slow and steady and if the saw binds on the wood you stop and back out and try the cut the other way.  Always saw the big end first so your not having a big pendulm trying to counter act when sawing.

[mike_belben]

if it were mine it would be mounted to the front of the trailer with 3/4 guarding so that the pto shaft runs it and i alone plop limbs up to a mini table with a dangle chain length guage.  the drops land in the dump trailer. 

[mart]

It turns out the seller has a PTO attachment for the buzz saw. I bought it. My nephew will bring it up next month when he comes to Alaska. 

[Jim_Rogers]

It turns out the seller has a PTO attachment for the buzz saw. I bought it. My nephew will bring it up next month when he comes to Alaska.

I would suggest you use standard sawing procedures and not stand in line with the sawblade when cutting wood.
Jim Rogers