I found a little about these Sharpeners and setters in the archives.
https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php/topic,55223.msg801414.html#msg801414
And there are a couple of videos on you tube.
A couple of people had mentioned they were going to get one.
Has anyone got any advice, good or bad?
Is anyone using one to sharpen wood-mizer bands, 1ΒΌ 7/8ths
I am trying to narrow down the choices.
Thanks.
There are a couple on here that have one and should reply. From the vid it looks like it has a lot of adjustment for gullet dept rather than just different cams which should work with almost any profile. My older Wright from TK also has some gullet dept adjustments built in and with a coulpe of spacers I can fine tune it. Steve
I bought a tk1600 with their sharpener and setter last winter. Had never used either before. a retired machnist friend and i worked on setting them up. Lots of adjustment on the sharpener and after much trial and error got it so it did what we felt was agood job. Setter was abit different. Again lots of adjustment, but so far we haven't got it to a point where we get consistent results. You think you have it set, but then the next blade will come up witha different reading. Maybe its just inexperience, but I haven' been happy with the setter.
I think every blade sets a little different even if thier the same hieght, no such thing as leaving the setter set the same for all blades. Steve
I agree with Steve 100%.
I find that I need to adjust my setter several times on each blade I do.
There's really no way around it.
Thanks for the replies.
I talked with TK on the phone, the sales man also said that there are lots of adjustments, so it should work with any profile.
I was at the Wood-mizer, Vancouver Island, open house this morning. They had a CBN sharpener set up ( as well as lots of saw mills). The concept is easy to accept, however, the price tag is a little hard to justify for a hobby sawyer. By the time you add in the wheel and some oil, then give the government their cut, its close to $4000 with a manual setter. That's about what my mill cost me.
It costs me $13 to get a blade sharpened so I know what ever I buy will pay for its self eventually.
Also the CBN sharpener will not deal with different profiles. Steve
Its helpfull once you determin your favorite band to stick with it and don't intermix brands and styles.Same lot and several bands in rotation limits the adjustmements to your setter and grinder. Frank C.
I searched a couple of threads related to the TK sharpener and setter and this was the most recent one I found. From reading the threads the only members I found who actually had the two-handled TK setter are TimGA, Doug Wis and xlogger. I bought one and can not get it to work consistently. I have yet to set a single band without breaking teeth. :(
I bought the sharpener and setter, 'new in the box', from someone who got them as a bonus when he bought a new mill. He said he was selling them because he had a local service that would sharpen his blades very cheaply. When they arrived they were indeed in the original boxes but they had been set up and used although they were certainly in 'like new' condition. I suspect that he couldn't get it to work either. The sharpener was up and running within an hour with no problem. The setter..., no such luck. :(
I have contacted TK and they have gone above and beyond in trying to help me get the setter working but it is getting very frustrating, and expensive. Is there anyone out there who has one of these newer design, two-handled, Timberking setters? I'm interested in contacting either someone who has it working consistently or someone, like me, who can't get it to work properly. >:(
Tom
Tom, if you are using TK's new ultra blade you will have problems with broken teeth when you set heavy. I had that problem when I set them. I talked to them and they said try setting the top half of the tooth instead of the top third. It worked for me, no more broken teeth.
check out the pineywoods tooth setter mods
an older style single wm single tooth setter modified.most people dress their sawn timber so a slightly 'rougher'sawn roughsawn board is not a problem. i have made the same mod and dont use the dail gauge to prove the set and am VERY happy with the speed of process and the resulting cut. cheers john
I bought a 2000 Timberking last year and it came with the sharpener and setter. If you bought yours last winter it should have come with one as well. I really like the sharpener I can hit a nail take the blade off and bring it in and sharpen it and I'm up and running again in 10 minutes. As for the setter I have not yet figured it out yet but I will say I called and asked about it and I was talking to the man who wrote the instruction manual so that was really helpful. My sharpener paid for itself in 2 months cutting reclaimed lumber.
Just going through some blades tonight, between the high school game, of course, I have a Baker simple sharpener, and setter. Love the sharpener, but the setter is a bit of a challenge as well. the moveable side of the clamp is the issue. just a bit of flex causes the variance in the set on that side of the blade. I have made tools for a living and can fix, but dag gone it, they have done the work, just wish it were a bit more rigid. good luck in yours, patience is a virtue for sure.
I like the sharpener, takes a minute ,, many minutes to get the hang of it. As for the setter not so sure like Tom said and others tooth breaking, frustrating to say the least, have not used it to much. I hate to say it but for a little more money I would look real hard at a COOKS.
Tim
The cooks are on for a pretty good price so I spent a little more and got the cat claw sharpener.
The single tooth setter is a very good price also, so I got the pair.
According to the UPS tracker it should be in town on Tuesday. :)
Quote from: Kcwoodbutcher on September 14, 2012, 07:00:36 PM
Tom, if you are using TK's new ultra blade you will have problems with broken teeth when you set heavy. I had that problem when I set them. I talked to them and they said try setting the top half of the tooth instead of the top third. It worked for me, no more broken teeth.
Right on both counts, some blades will break teeth easy and don't try and set it close to the tip. I run a Dino setter and would think most setters would have the same problems. Steve
Setting is one thing that is difficult to get a handle on. I know some have said that they keep the set with in .001" or less. I don't see how or why you would keep that tight of tolerance. The more times you sharpen a blade the more the teeth will be a little different.
Tom, I was breaking the tips also. I adjusted the blade higher in the setter like Steve said and for now that seem to solve the problem.
I have never seen a Timberking sharpener/setter run. We run Cooks. We like to experiment, in our quest for a better cutting blade. The thing I like about Cooks is, say you want to change from 7/8 to 1" tooth spacing. Change out the cam, one minor adjustment on the tooth pusher, and you are good to go. We even have a cam for our resaw blades. Think they are 3/4 tooth spacing.
I have not seen or used any equipment other than WM. But I can add there is an art and science of sharpening and setting blades. I struggled getting to where I could sharpen blades that would equal ReSharp.
Others will say different, but I've found that the blade has to be clean to get a consistent set.
Thanks for all the hints so far. The manual doesn't mention "top 1/3" or "top 1/2". It has a setting block and you are supposed to keep the tip just below the edge of the block to set the blade height to keep the tips below the 'pinch point'. When I break one it is almost all of the tooth, not just the tip. Perhaps I'll try lowering the blade and moving the set further up the tooth.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/19572/09142012_A.jpg)
The manual recommends using a brand new blade to get the initial set block adjustment. I have broken tips of both new blades and resharpened ones. As long as there is no set, there is no breakage but once I get the adjustments close enough to start affecting the set it will randomly break off teeth. It does seem to always be the same tooth in the pattern (L,R,N).
If they are breaking off the whole tooth, then I'd suspect the blade is too hard or the tooth is hardened too deep.
I have had a few teeth brake off but soon figured out that the blade was too deep and not enough tooth was above the anvil.
Tom,bandsaw teeth are induction hardened that extends down the tooth a ways, on a new band you can see the color change.Its good form to bend in the set just below that hard tip,outherwise the sharks teeth are on the floor.You will go mad trying to get each tooth set just right,get them close then don't worry about it.If the band cuts well you've done your job.Frank C.
When I setting blades, I have the bottom of the gullet even with the top of the anvil or ever so slightly above it.
I set at .024-.026, so ideally .025.
If your set varies too much, you'll have lines across your lumber.
Quote from: Tom the Sawyer on September 15, 2012, 08:56:35 AM
Thanks for all the hints so far. The manual doesn't mention "top 1/3" or "top 1/2". It has a setting block and you are supposed to keep the tip just below the edge of the block to set the blade height to keep the tips below the 'pinch point'. When I break one it is almost all of the tooth, not just the tip. Perhaps I'll try lowering the blade and moving the set further up the tooth.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/19572/09142012_A.jpg)
what brand setter you useing
The manual recommends using a brand new blade to get the initial set block adjustment. I have broken tips of both new blades and resharpened ones. As long as there is no set, there is no breakage but once I get the adjustments close enough to start affecting the set it will randomly break off teeth. It does seem to always be the same tooth in the pattern (L,R,N).
When I got my TK two years ago it came with a box of Ultra's and a box of Ultra Max bands. Their history now, but the only time I broke a tooth was when I tried pushing the set out to .030. I mostly set at .024 for hardwoods and .027 for softwoods.
I'm one of those guys that tries to keep my set accurate to .001. I do have a reason. I think with oak the smoother the board the less surface checks during drying. I can't prove it, but some of the experts believe it to be true. In any case with my old one tooth at a time setter, it doesn't cost extra for me to try for that precision. And it's pretty easy to obtain with a screw setter.
If I did this thing every day for a living, than a dual tooth setter, along with + or - .002 might be become more my standard. :D
Larry,
If you prefer the Ultra blades they are still available. They are available in boxes of 6. The UltraMax is sold in boxes of 10. Call Matt @ Timberking, he can get you set up with either one. ;)
I have been setting the gullet at the bottom of the anvil block which puts the tip of the .25" tooth just below the top of the bending block. The teeth don't break at the edge of the anvil block, its not consistent but most break at the mid point (1/2 tooth).
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/19572/Blade_tip_fracture.jpg)
Tom,it looks like those teeth are hard right down to their root.I can see why those short teeth would tend to snap if you set them over especially if a little too much.Just for chuckles I'd try some different bands with longer more settable teeth.Give Suffolk ,Timberwolf, a call and try a couple of their bands,they have hard tips and softer bandstock and last well. Frank C.
Simonds Redstreak set easy , take a lot of sharpening and cut good also. I've had brands here where the teeth break off easy. Steve
Must be the difference in technique, the Red streak are the worst ones for me to set, they break worse. I would second getting a couple of blades from different manufacture's.