losing carbide teeth in hard knots

[mad murdock]

a question for the knowledgebase: what can be done to mitigate carbide teeth getting knocked off when sawing hard knots with a circle saw (turbosaw M6, 3 and 4 tooth blades)? Other than slowing feed rate, which obviously helps, what else can be done other than not sawing knotty wood? are insert tooth blades tougher than brazed tooth blades?  I need some input, to solve this issue asap.  thanks!!

[mad murdock]

Well, I did a little more research and made a few phone calls, for anyone else who may have an issue similar to mine.  There are carbide teeth that area not quite as hard, or brittle, called "nail buster" teeth. They are affixed to the disc via silver solder, which in my experience on aircraft maintenance is much more resilient, and is a stronger bond than just brazing. I will be taking my blades to a local saw shop and having the change made, I shall report on this modification here so others can have the results as well.

[Bradm]

I don't know what grade of carbide Turbosaw uses, but nail biter/nail buster teeth will work in the hard knots, minor yard debris, staples, ice, and a few other things.  Ironically, they don't take nails (at least the ones I've seen) all that well.  If they're running harder than a C2 grade, try having your local saw shop drop to that first.

One thing to remember when dropping to a softer carbide - although your blade can handle the impacts better, it will get duller faster.

[mad murdock]

One thing to remember when dropping to a softer carbide - although your blade can handle the impacts better, it will get duller faster.

Copy that! I am having the local saw shop do the change over.  The teeth Turbosaw uses, are the same as the ones used by peterson and Lucas, they all come from the same manufacturer in Australia.  That is the same thing that the saw doc said, they will handle the impacts better, but will need to be touched up more often.  Given the track record so far, 30 seconds sharpening here and there is better than having to take 20-30 min and retool every time I shed a tooth or one cracks and breaks. 
Thanks for the input!!

[longtime lurker]

I had that problem at one point. (Tooth separation from the pocket ).

Toss your soldering flux away and get a new bottle. It goes off: probably wouldn't notice it for most applications but with saw teeth it matters.

[Ianab]

Loosing the complete tooth, you need to look at your soldering.

Being left with 1/2 a tooth means the carbide failed before your solder joint, and in that case a less brittle material is the way to go. (and sharpen more often)

[mad murdock]

Loosing the complete tooth, you need to look at your soldering.

Being left with 1/2 a tooth means the carbide failed before your solder joint, and in that case a less brittle material is the way to go. (and sharpen more often)

I had both these things happening. On some it was 1/2 tooth gone on others it was whole tooth gone from the toothbed. I shall post results of the mods done for all to see.

[woodyone.john]

Some times a tooth comes loose and then it gets hit by the next tooth coming around and that tooth then fractures.When I found a good saw doctor I didnt have the problem so much.

[plantman]

http://www.menomineesaw.com/

found this link in another thread.

[mad murdock]

After action report: got the blades back from the saw shop, wow! What a difference 8) milled about 1000 bd ft yesterday and the teeth still have a decent edge, no chipping or breaking and no lost teeth. The silversolder in conjunction with the tad softer carbide have paid major dividends! The mill cuts better than when all was new  8)