(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsbrokenut20121201c.jpg)
Over 5500 hours, 10 years and a couple million board feet sawn, something has to give out. This adjustment bolt broke because nut in bed rail was pushed in.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsbrokenut20121201a.jpg)
This was the major damage – nut weld cracked and nut pushed in.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsbrokenut20121201b.jpg)
I straightened up the nut and welded it back in and repaired the cracks and puddled the dent full – thinking it would re-enforce it. New bolt was made by taking a standard hex head bolt and welding two heavy washers on the head.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsbigredoak2011127b.jpg)
I discovered the damage a day or two after sawing this big red oak log. It was 10' long and some 30" dia.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsbigredoak2011127a.jpg)
Pretty nice log. Squared down to 18"x18".
If the repair lasts another 10 years and two more million board feet, I won't complain.
Wow, what a cheap piece of garbage....WM should be ashamed :D ;D
I am still amazed at how much punishment a mill can take and still cut perfect boards :)
QuoteIf the repair lasts another 10 years and two more million board feet, I won't complain.
If it don't we'll know who to blame. ;)
Now you're gonna have me looking at my little bolts. :)
Good thing you could fix it in-house. Probably not much down time.
Good job Bib and Mary! smiley_thumbsup
I don't want to brag on it because you know what happens. But I'm constantly impressed at the use, abuse,neglect and punishment this mill has taken over the years.
The souped up hydraulics has to push everything harder.
It seems when you turn the big cants, the back end pushes up high and then drops hard. Back in my younger days I could figure the impact of a cant dropped from a foot off the bed.
How big is your electric motor? I'm assuming 240 service. Is it running the blade as well as your hydaulics? Do you feel it is too small, just right or over sized?
Thanks,
Bibbyman,
Is there a bolt missing in the first picture Upper right hand corner?
Ron
Bibby I am with you. The fact that I overload my mill every day and that it holds together simply amazes me.
Quote from: ronwood on December 03, 2012, 06:41:47 PM
Bibbyman,
Is there a bolt missing in the first picture Upper right hand corner?
Ron
I'd already taken it out before taking the picture.
Quote from: ljohnsaw on December 03, 2012, 05:50:27 PM
How big is your electric motor? I'm assuming 240 service. Is it running the blade as well as your hydaulics? Do you feel it is too small, just right or over sized?
Thanks,
25 HP 3ph. 220v single phase running a Ronk phase converter. Big enough.
Power pack hydraulic pump has 7.5 HP 3ph motor and produces 6 gpm @ 2000 paid. Moves things right along.
Thought you busted it. Looks like a maintenance item to me. :) Nice work with the repair.
-Matt
bibby, as a show me kinda guy, I am real proud of you! thanks for the post. david
You should be OK. When I bought my sawmill, it had been used sawing cants at a commercial sawmill. They regularly loaded it with the sawmill loaders, sometimes dropping the logs on the bed. The swing arms and bolt underneath had really taken a beating, and some welding and building up was necessary.
Judging by your pictures Bibby, its time to start shoveling some saw dust. smiley_inspector
There's probably Hundred Dollar Bills mixed in that sawdust. :D
Quote from: Magicman on December 03, 2012, 08:43:45 PM
You should be OK. When I bought my sawmill, it had been used sawing cants at a commercial sawmill. They regularly loaded it with the sawmill loaders, sometimes dropping the logs on the bed. The swing arms and bolt underneath had really taken a beating, and some welding and building up was necessary.
There is nothing harder on equipment than letting someone run it that doesn't own it.
Glad to see you got her fixed up quickly, in-house, Bibby. You'll have to keep Mary from abusing the equipment so much. :D
Bibby, what are you using the phase converter for?
Quote from: waho on December 03, 2012, 09:19:05 PM
Bibby, what are you using the phase converter for?
We only have single phase electric service. The motor on the mill is three phase. The phase converter takes in single phase power and produces three phase.
Thanks, that's what I thought. A few post's up you said 25HP 3 ph. Had me confused.
Never mind the last post. Can't read.
Good fix Bib!
Another couple of million bf and you'll probably have to do it again! ;D
Quote from: Solomon on December 03, 2012, 08:54:39 PM
Judging by your pictures Bibby, its time to start shoveling some saw dust. smiley_inspector
I kinda think he is ok for a while.
You should see the mess under my lt40. I have had to rake out from underneath the turner and clamp and bottom rail near the axle 3 times just to keep going. I probably have a 15yard dump truck full of bark and sawdust under and around my mill. Yep I need to clean it out, but anyone can look at it and see it works. ;D
Bibbyman,
Glad ya got it fixed. PC
Twentyfive three phase is considerable overkill. [no harm though]I've got a 15hp three phase running the band and hydraulic pump.The motor never gets more than warm.If I recall the LT-70 ,I ran, also had 25hp.Woodmizer engineering is a cut above most,if you break something blame the guy that watches you shave in the morning.Bibbs is right an owner/operator is the best sawyer. Frank C.
Bibby, is that sag in your live chain just from wear or did something happen to it? Is there any problem with it binding like that?
mh
Quote from: moosehunter on December 04, 2012, 03:03:58 PM
Bibby, is that sag in your live chain just from wear or did something happen to it? Is there any problem with it binding like that?
mh
You mean the chain the head uses to pull back and forward? Maybe slacker than factory spec but I've not had a problem. But Now that you've brought it up, I probably will have.
Quote from: Bibbyman on December 04, 2012, 03:33:29 PM
Quote from: moosehunter on December 04, 2012, 03:03:58 PM
Bibby, is that sag in your live chain just from wear or did something happen to it? Is there any problem with it binding like that?
mh
You mean the chain the head uses to pull back and forward? Maybe slacker than factory spec but I've not had a problem. But Now that you've brought it up, I probably will have.
It happens every time. :D
Not to interupt Bib, but I think he's talking about the chain that houses all of the hoses and wiring, not your feed chain!
That is what I am asking about, the plastic chain with the hydraulic hoses/ wires in it. I know it has a name but I guess "live chain" isn't it?
mh
Oh yea, I'm not sure what it's called. Cable track? Anyway, it's seen better days but still works.
Part of the sag is the heavy cables we ran through it. Note no battery under the saw head. We moved the battery to the HD box. Then ran cables through the track to the head. Note too, no contact strip.
I'm surprised you went to all the trouble repairing it Bibby. Looked like a good excuse to go buy a new mill. ;D Maybe if the economy was better. :(
Quote from: DR_Buck on December 04, 2012, 05:54:39 PM
I'm surprised you went to all the trouble repairing it Bibby. Looked like a good excuse to go buy a new mill. ;D Maybe if the economy was better. :(
Funny, that's what ElectricAl said. ::)
I'd buy a new one if they made one better than what I have turn this one into.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsbigburroak20121204b.jpg)
I thought I'd take it easy on the mill so this morning I put on the larges log we had. It was burr oak - 17' with no trim. Here it's squared down to 21" x 21". It made something over 400 bf of 4/4 lumber and a 6"x11" beam out of the center.
I truely love living in mizer land
mill was slow feeding last 2 times used
did a quick check, a phone call, a few bucks and 2 days later
replaced 2 bottem feed rollers and slick smooth back into nice nice
nice fix Bib
What a beautiful log!
Quote from: WDH on December 04, 2012, 10:01:43 PM
What a beautiful log!
Not that beautiful. Typical of burr oak, it had a lot of knots. One face was clear for a while. I would have been better off with two or three smaller logs that would make a beam and less percentage of flooring lumber.
We sawed six more logs after this one that made 8"x8" beams but less flooring lumber in total than this big one.
With thanks to Mooney from WM, it is called a "Cat Track".
There are no hydraulic hoses in it, just wires.
Quote from: moosehunter on December 06, 2012, 04:12:06 PM
With thanks to Mooney from WM, it is called a "Cat Track".
There are no hydraulic hoses in it, just wires.
I believe that the "Bibby" model does have hydraulic hoses in it. ;D
Quote from: DR_Buck on December 06, 2012, 06:49:00 PM
Quote from: moosehunter on December 06, 2012, 04:12:06 PM
With thanks to Mooney from WM, it is called a "Cat Track".
There are no hydraulic hoses in it, just wires.
I believe that the "Bibby" model does have hydraulic hoses in it. ;D
Nope. Just cables.
And 1 of the cables is hooked to Netflicks. :D
QuotePart of the sag is the heavy cables we ran through it. Note no battery under the saw head. We moved the battery to the HD box. Then ran cables through the track to the head. Note too, no contact strip.
Maybe thinking of the battery cables Bibby added to the "cat track". ;)
I'm sure that there are many names across the industry, but we call that stuff 'energy chain' in my neck of the woods, as coined by one of the manufacturers- Igus.
Quote from: beenthere on December 06, 2012, 08:36:08 PM
QuotePart of the sag is the heavy cables we ran through it. Note no battery under the saw head. We moved the battery to the HD box. Then ran cables through the track to the head. Note too, no contact strip.
Maybe thinking of the battery cables Bibby added to the "cat track". ;)
Yep. Had I thought about it before typing I wouldn't have said there were hydraulic hoses in it. smiley_dunce I should have known there is nothing hydraulic in the head. smiley_ignore
The battery cables are what I was thinking of. I remember seeing picture of them, probably in this thread.
I've done a few bed repairs on some mills ,One was on an Lt 70 that was only a couple months old , the surface that the end bedsuports slide on were caved in . I welded 1/4"stainless plate on over the exsisting serface ,I saw the mill being serviced near the end of the summer and the fix was still great. the mill was pounded out prety bad ! They realy droped some big stuff on it for sure . Your repair should work but an 1 1/2 wide strip of steel 1/4" thick welded over the underside of the bed rail before the nut was welded on may have been stronger ,I would also cut the large nut head off the bent bolt and weld a new threaded peice to it . If ya never drop another big cant on it again you will be okay but....... we all know whats gonna happen !LOL
Did you use a nut for locking the adjustment like the original arrangement?
Quote from: Bibbyman on December 03, 2012, 04:58:51 PM
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsbrokenut20121201c.jpg)
Over 5500 hours, 10 years and a couple million board feet sawn, something has to give out. This adjustment bolt broke because nut in bed rail was pushed in.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsbrokenut20121201a.jpg)
This was the major damage – nut weld cracked and nut pushed in.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsbrokenut20121201b.jpg)
I straightened up the nut and welded it back in and repaired the cracks and puddled the dent full – thinking it would re-enforce it. New bolt was made by taking a standard hex head bolt and welding two heavy washers on the head.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsbigredoak2011127b.jpg)
I discovered the damage a day or two after sawing this big red oak log. It was 10' long and some 30" dia.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsbigredoak2011127a.jpg)
Pretty nice log. Squared down to 18"x18".
If the repair lasts another 10 years and two more million board feet, I won't complain.
Grappletractor,what is your avatar??? Is that a factory made tractor???
Quote from: Grappletractor on December 21, 2012, 06:43:33 PM
Did you use a nut for locking the adjustment like the original arrangement?
Yes,