They said it could happen......

backwoods sawyer · January 12, 2009, 12:01:11 AM

The pieces of metal that hang down in the dust chute slow the saw down and help contain most of them. Reinforcing the area around the dust chute will also help. Ever now and then, a saw will twist and get past these and stick out a ways. They also plug up with sawdust. I thin stick cleans them out easy enough, this should be done when the saw is off.

Cedarman · January 12, 2009, 08:16:54 AM

Walking by the sawdust chute with the mill running is like buying a lottery ticket, except in this case you don't want to win.

Jim_Rogers · January 12, 2009, 10:05:01 AM

Wow, I'm really surprised that some more of you guys have had the blade completely exit the mill.

If I ever have helpers again I'll make sure that they stand behind me until it's safe.....

Jim Rogers

Wudman · January 12, 2009, 05:51:01 PM

Quote from: slowzuki on April 03, 2007, 08:59:31 AM
I lost a blade at full speed before I had guards on the mill. It simply rode off the front of the bandwheels, dropped onto the rails while spinning full speed, spun a few rotations until a tooth hooked up them threw itself sideways faster than I could blink and tore into the side of the garage leaving a nice mess like a cat had been clawing it for the last 5 years.

I think this is a right of passage for the home built guys. I did the same thing myself. You want to make that first test run to see how everything is going to work. One minor malfunction later and there is a band running around the shop. I'm glad I only had one spectator at the time.

Wudman

DR Buck · January 12, 2009, 07:24:35 PM

Quote from: Cedarman on January 12, 2009, 08:16:54 AM
Walking by the sawdust chute with the mill running is like buying a lottery ticket, except in this case you don't want to win.

First thing I tell ALL my customers is stay away from the sawdust side of the mill! Second thing I tell them is if they reach in front of the mill head when the blade is running I'm going to wack them on the head with my Blue LogRite Mill Special. ;D

woodrat · January 15, 2009, 06:55:59 PM

I've never had one come all the way out, but I've had a couple wad themselves up pretty good in those little fingers that are blocking the sawdust chute. Seems like a piece of expanded metal welded across there would be a better guard.

Most of the time, a broken blade just stops. I've only had a couple break when they weren't in the cut.

WH_Conley · January 15, 2009, 08:26:21 PM

The expanded metal would be nice, except for the clogs. Wood-Mizer tries to make them safe. Mine came out with the catch fingers. I use mine to commercial cut, the old saying, time is money. I cut the fingers out because of the time spent cleaning them, expanded metal would be worse. In my own defense I was not sharpening blades in those days, was trying to get a bunch built up ahead to justify a sharpener, not a good idea, another story, had never had one break. I never asked WM why they were there and I didin't know about the FF then.

backwoods sawyer · January 16, 2009, 12:29:21 AM

I found out what those fingers were for the first day I got my mill. The mill was used and abused and came with 13 junk bands. All 13 broke with in the time it took woodmizer to ship me a box. Even with the new bands, the mill was not cutting straight and required a complete over haul before it started cutting straight and true in all types of wood. The up side is now I know what makes everything tick and I keep it in top shape. The saws that I have had make it past the fingers were broke in more then one spot. The fingers are out in the dust shut far enough that even if they plug up the sawdust can come out the bottom, however it dose fill up the rest of the housing around the saw if the shut is not kept clear.

woodrat · January 16, 2009, 12:42:40 PM

I've had less problem with clogging since I stopped running water on the blades.

One of the times I had a blade hit those fingers it broke one of them.

treenail · January 17, 2009, 08:22:24 AM

By the sounds of things, blades exiting is quite a common experience. Have had it happen a couple of times on my Norwood since it was new eight years ago. Sort of thing that can make you break into a good sweat, when you realize what has happened. Did have one come out the entire lenght of the broken blade. The golden rule when my mill is running , is that no one gets anywhere near the sawdust side of the mill, or it gets shut down. People are way too curious for my comfort level.

moonhill · January 21, 2009, 06:37:38 AM

I also run a Breezewood like Brian Rhoad, I watch the band from the front of the head on a chair. I can see the band wiggle and know it is time to change it out, befor it breaks. I have knocked them off whole and it is always a discouragement. Very few have ever broken and when that happend they just stopped moving with not much affair.

I am wondering if this is a woodmizer issue? Can you all see the band and the wiggle just befor it breaks? Keeping a eye on helpers around the mill is wise, I would also keep an eye on the band. If this is a problem I would look for problems with sharpening and over use of a dull band causing stress in the gullet leading to the crack. Keeping in mind the band will take only so many turns around the wheels befor breakage. Maybe pushing the band past it's dull point as well, is something to look at. If you are sending the bands out for resharpining are you running them too long?

I at times check if my sawdust is warn or cold or to hot to see how the band is working. I have never see a band do any thing which would say don't walk past the sawdust exit area. If my mill shot the band out like the photos are showing I would perhaps rethink that move.

Tim

woodrat · January 21, 2009, 11:44:31 AM

I did have one whole box of WM blades that all broke at the weld, but all the other breaks I've had have been from them just wearing out. I can often see the blade start to go, and I have stopped and pulled off many a cracked blade before it snapped. I can also see the blade tension drop on the guage when a band heats up or starts to crack. I'm better at catching that now than I used to be.

Chuck White · January 21, 2009, 11:58:28 AM

I would think that if a blade is going to exit the sawdust chute, it can't be sawing (at least nothing more than edging a board of something similar) much! Seems it would be most likely to exit when the blade is going and not sawing at all. :-\

I have had the blade come "into" the sawdust chute, but have never had one come out even as far as the rubber hose!

My sawdust chute has been modified by one of the previous owners and doesn't have the "blade stop fingers", but I'm thinking I will install some. The part that angles the sawdust "down" has been cut out, so now the sawdust goes straight out and lands about 5-6 feet from the mill, which is actually handy. The hinge part of the sawdust chute now controls the angle of the sawdust exiting the mill! I saw this modification on this forum somewhere, but can't seem to find it now!

Another key point is to listen to the sounds that your mill makes, they'll tell you a lot!
When I hear a sound like ttsss ttsss ttsss ttsss (kinda like an air leak) I know that I have a cracked blade and then I just start hoping that I'll make it to the far end of the log before the blade breaks! That noise is the cracked part of the blade either entering or exiting the log.

Chuck

sparky · January 21, 2009, 10:04:22 PM

Most of my experience has been with circular mills. They can spit a tooth on occaision and send it flying. I mounted a 20 " wide, 2-inch plank, vertically, in line with the blade on the sawmill at our antique tractor show. It is intended to stop a tooth before it could hurt someone. A few years back, the guys that placed the barrier fence around the mill ran it inside the plank rather than around the outside. A spectator was standing there leaning back against the plank. I ran up to him and explained the the purpose of the plank was to catch any teeth that might be thrown from the blade. I stated that if he were to remain standing in front of the blade and a tooth were to come loose, the plank could not perform it's intended function. He said "I'm moving, I'm moving".

Sparky

backwoods sawyer · January 22, 2009, 01:05:50 AM

Most saws will give a bit of warning, however I have had saws that were running nice and quite, under light load, brake with out any warning. As to it being a woodmizer problem only, I would highly doubt it. Even the big saws (12"x 42') brake with out warning, and you can hear a crack in one of them as well. Besides over running the saw, alignment issues are a big factor in saws braking, it could be something as simple as a main bearing that is wearing out, and cracks in the wheels will unbalance a wheel creating vibration which will cause cracking issues. If you are experiencing an unusual amount of saws that are cracking, do not blame it all on the saws, as it could very well be a problem with the mill it's self that is causing the saws to develop cracks prematurely.

petefrom bearswamp · January 22, 2009, 07:17:45 AM

Wow! this thread has opened my eyes to a potentially harmful occurrence.
I have had a good number of blades break on my WM mills.
Never had a blade shoot out tho, only break and stay pretty much in place.
sure makes the tail man jump when it happens.
My help never ventures to the discharge side when the blade is running.
I have never taken notice as to which side (drive or idle) it happens.