Woodmizer Ends Resharp Blade Sharpening - & A Milling Video
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- Опубликовано: 7 сен 2024
- Woodmizer made a big announcement. They have discontinued their Resharp band mill blade sharpening service. This is probably old news to a lot of people, but some Woodmizr users may not know what they are going to do about this.  A lot of us are dependent on Woodmizer Resharp for keeping our blades sharp. The obvious solution is to buy equipment to sharpen our own blades. Some of us would rather not spend our time sharpening blades. But it may be the best solution, and maybe what we will have to do.
First of: thank you for mentioning our channel on yours. Yes Sir. I have the
Cook’s cat claw blade sharpener and the dual tooth setter . I’m very happy with them. I’ve tried a couple resharpening places and wasn’t satisfied with none of them. Me sharpening my own I can judge how much to take off . I sent blades and they come back almost nothing left and teeth not set or not correct . That’s when I decided to do my own. For the price I paid out has more than well been worth it in the savings. And believe me I go threw a lot of blades, I have over 500 on hand right now and about 85 needs sharpened. Them was some nice looking boards you ended up with. Good job there Sir. And also I’ve turned down a lot of people wanting me to sharpen there blades. Would be a nice little hustle for the right person . I ain’t got the time . Thanks for sharing
Sorry so long
Enjoy your videos. It is interesting to see what you do and compare your techniques and conditions to my own here on the opposite side of the country in northern NH. I harvest and mill mostly pine, spruce, fir and larch off my woodlot, but plan on some hardwoods sometime. I do not mill as much as you, so I do not have as many bands; that said, I bought a WM sharpening setup a few years ago. Since I have not run out of sharp bands yet, I have not set it up and used it so far. My rationale is 1) self-reliance, 2) not tied to someone else's schedule, 3) not a lot of others in the area who can sharpen blades correctly so can only blame myself if it is not done right; and 4) the ability to tinker with sets and angles for different tree species; for example, sawing poplar is slow due to the long fibers and high moisture content, so a different set and angle might improve the milling process. I already sharpen my own saw blades in my woodworking shop, and don't mind the work, especially when the shop's stove is going and its minus 20 degrees F outside. I don't sharpen for others though since I do not want the grief if I did not get it right.
Good luck in finding a solution that works for you.
Cooks has a send in sharpening service, they also sell the sharpening rigs. Never used the service but I have used thier blades with good overall success. That mill does an awesome job.
Check with your dealer. the one in PA and the one in TX are keeping their resharpening service.
Brent
I’ve got a Cooks Cats Claw that came with my 1999 LT40 from a previous owner. It takes some space to set up, but it does a really good job.
Many of the other sawer’s in my area buy their blades from Holston Gas (Knoxville TN) who also sell metal cutting bandsaw blades in addition to other cutting gases.
As you may be aware, I had a Norwood HD36 Sawmill and did my own sharpening with the Norwood Blademate Pro sharpener ($1.257.00 Canadian). I sold my Norwood as it is more mill than I need for the next couple or three years, and given the shortage of mills post-Covid, I recovered what I paid for it, so why not.
By way of context - before purchasing my Norwood in 2019, I'd never used a portable mill and had never sharpened anything but a chainsaw. Total novice.
I now have a twin to your mill - a Woodmizer LT15 - albeit 10 years old and in good shape - and it came with the WM BMST50 Sharpener and Setter - which I just got set up.
I'll be doing a video about it - but my first impressions are: "what a pain, and wow! - they did a lot of work to make a machine that is both frustrating to set up and time-consuming in terms of the actual sharpening - and at the end of the day took all the fun out of the sharpening process!"
For reference - here's a link to a video I did in 2020 I think about the Norwood sharpener and process. ruclips.net/video/VmEsDBeja5U/видео.html
Go directly to Minute 26 to see how quick and easy it is to sharpen a blade once one acclimates to the process.
In one of the sawmiller channels I subscribe to, the guy demonstrating the WM sharpener said that he only sharpens three or four blades at a time and that's about all he can handle. I thought to myself 'what's his problem'? That was before I got my BMST50. Now I understand.
And yeah - the WM unit has a built-in setter - which typically I never use (more on that below).
Here's a quick summary of what has always worked for me with my blades:
1) Only three to four blades can be used at one time.
2) Number the blades using a paint pen
3) keep a little log book where you note the blade number, the # of times it has been sharpened and which blade # is on the mill at any given time.
4) Blade Use Guide:
- new blade - 75 minutes cutting time (I'm usually cutting Douglas Fir (harder wood than pine, spruce or other local wood) pine or spruce, and a little bit of Maple or Bull Pine - which is typically riddled with large hard knots).
- after first and second sharpening 60 minutes cut time
- after 3rd, 4th and 5th sharpening, 45 to 50 minutes of cutting time.
If we do the math on this, I'm getting 6+ hours of cut time out of a single blade - at which point I toss it. Logic being - properly tensioned, it's gone around the wheels enough times that it's going to break at the weld and make a mess - of my equipment and being it will break mid cut, be a total pain to remove and replace.
At 6 hours of cut time (meaning - the very last few minutes that I'm using the blade), I know that there are folks that will argue I should have set the teeth, but I'm still getting straight cuts and the blade is still cruising along and that is the whole point isn't it?
Now - as for the sharpening process - if it takes me more than 5 minutes a blade - then I've been doing something all wrong! With using three blades in rotation, all of which have approximately the same number of sharpenings, there is precious little adjustment to the sharpening equipment when going from blade to blade.
When all three blades need sharpening, it will not take me more than 20 minutes to remove, sharpen and replace the blade on the mill and sharpen the other two. And I'm munching down my sandwich while doing it. Once the blades have been sharpened 5 times (each used for 6 hours of cut time) I break out a new set of three (3).
Now my WM unit has me moving magnets around to trap the iron filings, handling some horribly toxic grinding oil (printed warnings not to expose skin, or clothing that others might be exposed to) and moving this toxic liquid from the drain container back to the filler/supply bucket - risking a spill. And I get what?
A couple more hours out of a blade perhaps that is only costing me $5 Canadian per hour to run anyway. That $5.00/hour is all-in - shipping and handling included.
I just don't get it. Sure - I can go to all sorts of trouble and expense and stretch the use of the blade to, let’s say, 9 hours - requiring me to spend time setting teeth and risking blade breakage and all that ensues when that happens. All so that I drop my hourly blade cost to $3.33 an hour - thus saving $1.57. What’s the point?
The epitome of the saying "Perfect is the enemy of good'.
I loved sharpening blades with my Norwood unit. As a relative novice, due to the overall ease of use and the sheer speed of the sharpening process, I got a better cut at a better price (when one includes loading/unloading and transport or shipping) than when using a sharpening service.
Bonus - The Norwood unit I refer to (and I'm sure that there are other dry sharpeners like it) costs half as much, folds up and out of the way when not in use, and does not require a minimum 3' X 6' workbench (WM recommends 4' X 8').
AND for those operators who move from job site to job site, the Norwood sharpener can be easily transported and set up in the field as it runs off a 12V battery.
IMO it wins the contest with sharpening services and the WM unit both. Gonna get me another.
Woodmizer this is a shock to your community and terrible. This is why I purchased Woodmizer blades. This was also why I was going to make my next sawmill a woodmizer. Please bring this service back. It was your best advertisement.
My dad and I use an old sharpener and setter from woodmizer. It takes a lot of time and there is a learning curve to make sharp blades that cut strait. Another good video, thanks for posting.
We have a guy that picks them up and returns them in a month. All nice and sharp.
If I was to buy a sharpener, it would be a woodmizer. A BMS250 to be exact.
Oregon Industrial Bandsaw in Eugene has confirmed to me they'll do it. $10 a blade. Will try them out when I get to that point.
I get my blades at Oregon industrial in Eugene...they make them on site their and if you ever need to borrow a blade tensiometer they will loan you one
I'm debating about buying sharpener, can't seem to find anyone sharpening them local. Nice video
In my area Hud-Son will sharpen blades but you have to bring them to the shop and last I knew they only did 10 degree blades.
WM in the southeast, Oakboro, NC, said when I bought the mill that they sharpened at their place - betting they didn't stop, though I haven't verified, tbh. Here's to hoping!
I've no idea . I used to buy blades from them and also send them back for resharpen but haven't in a while . If it's a WM thing though , they may be forced to follow suit , in order to sell the equipment instead.
for the amount of sawing i do i think buying a sharpener would not be practical when i can get my blades sharpened by an independant service within a half hours drive for $7 a blade , not to mention the space taken up by the sharpener in my already packed garage , lots of sharpening services out there but shipping could be a bit much for you so check around your area and see if some one nearby does it , good luck
I suspect there are a number of blade sharpening services in your local area. If not, this is an opportunity for those that have the equipment to sharpen bandsaw blades to start a side hustle. (Posted comment before end of video. DOH)
Cool video Wilson. Can’t help you with the saw blade sharpening. But I’m sure you will come up with something.
I was reading that some Wood Mizer locations were going to continue the re-sharp program, Wood Mizer as a company stopped but some of the wood mizer dealers were going to continue the program on their own. I don't know that for a fact. The scarry part is, If a large world wide company could not make money at the re-sharp program I find it hard to believe anyone else can do it for the same price AND the same quality. Sending blades out to someone NEW would be a scary feeling, I would worry about my pocket book and getting a sharp blade back. I own a wood mizer sawmill but I went with the Woodland mills Grindlux sharpener and tooth setter. Tooth setter is manual and takes about 3 min per blade, the sharpener takes 23 min (if you set and watch it) however it will run on its own and it has an automatic shut off, So I just set it and go. After you get the the hang of it (about 4 hours and two trashed blades) then it is really easy and really fast as long as you don't set and watch it sharpen every blade. The blade sharpener is a 12 volt system so it is great for portable milling or off grid type of remote locations and the replacement grinding stones are low cost. Just want to say, I have NEVER tripped over anything ever. When you tripped, you looked back at the camera like, "i hope no one saw that" like it was a live feed. It was very slick LOL
Good information. I will take a look at that, I like the sound of the 12 V system. Our local Woodmizer dealer is quitting re-sharp. Got notification from them before I got one from headquarters. Yeah I looked back at the camera hoping nobody saw that, then posted it on RUclips. Humans are silly.
Did anyone bring this sharpening service issue up at the last Round Table? The Woodmizer Rep was there... Some Pro Shops will sharpen Mill bands, even if they are not Woodmizer.
Just a thought but I think that you can sell shed sized timber frame packages with a hardware list or a hardware kit and sell timbers over boards at a premium. Timber frame green and then sell air dried siding as a second package. With board and batten you can use green wood. You could also offer termite treatment of green lumber as it sucks up the chemicals. With a good manual that makes mysteries such as fasteners to use with green lumber and perhaps a roof board package and take off list for the sheet metal/roofing! Lots of folks need a wood shed, a chicken coop, pig enclosures, generator hut, fuel storage bunker, and the like. Pretty easy to draw up plans. If everything is pre-cut, you will find more customers who do not own a beam saw. If the plans show how to use concrete foundation blocks it is a no-brainer. Cut the package in the forest, band it together and stack on the trailer for roll-off. See ya. Bob in Nevada
I have had several people mention the idea of timber frame packages or log cabin packages. It might be a good idea. But my interest is more in managing the forest, less in trying to sell lumber. That’s mostly why I haven’t been motivated to pursue something like that. But it is an intriguing idea and definitely something to consider. I have a build coming up and we’ll see if I catch the building things bug or not.
I have a woodland mills blade sharpener and setter which works well.A little time consuming but does a good job. Right now they are running a special on free shipping
I also use a woodland Mills sharpener and tooth setter. I haven't had any problems with my resharpened blades, but the wood-mizer and Cat claws sharpeners look to do a better job on the gullet as they do the full profile grind from the start. When the Woodland Mills sharpener starts grinding down to the gullet it's time to retire that blade.
I also have the WM sharpener, one thing I did was to replace the motor with a faster one, what took about 25-30 minutes to sharpen now only take 7- 8 minutes. Got it off Amazon, DC 12V Gear Motor High Torsion Speed Reduce Electric Gearbox Motor Reversible Worm Gear Motor 8mm Shaft (12V 20RPM)
I think the cam used is supposed to solve that but I don't have a setup yet , just research .
@@davidhrutfiord2537
@@bluethunder1951excellent suggestion. I will have to look up that motor. I like my sharpening machine. It does a fine job. It is just slow.
@@12ar34sw It is slow, but since it is automatic I can do other things while my blades sharpen.
I sharpen my own blades for my Woodland Mills band saw, like you I’m only a hobby sawyer and use about 20 blades a month and have about 40-50 on hand. I also sharpen blades for the local saw mill, so it pays for me to do it a couple days per month.
I'm just a hobby sawmill operator. I use the woodland mills sharpener and setter, there is a learning curve so before you jump in with both feet start small. Learn the basics you will wreck a blade or two. Then you will decide if you want to invest in a higher level sharpener.
I'm planning on building my own sharpener and setter. You can find a lot of decent designs on RUclips. They can be simple to more elaborate.
I'd assume someone will step up and fill the gap, if not, I'd probably look locally for others who could possibly chip in and co-own sharpening equipment and maybe even sharpen for a few local people for a small fee.
I've been doing my own for 3 years now with great success, using Woodmizer equipment.
When I heard I purchased another sharpener ( BMS 250) if you so inclined I can help out
Thanks Craig, I would appreciate the help but not sure how to economically get them to you.
You got some nice lumber out of them logs. We are getting a lot of rain today
Every time you reach cruising speed the universe will toss a wrench in your gear box. Well dun!
I sharpen the blades with a n angle grinder while they are still on the saw and every other sharpening i take the blade off and run it through the tooth setter ....it takes maybe 10 minutes to sharpen while still on the saw
Well Mike, that really sucks for those that used that service. The cost of blades have gone up, you would think their blade sharpening service would be over loaded with customers. During covid blades were getting hard to come by and we bought blade re-sharpeners. Tim bought a woodland mills sharpener and I bought the Hud-son blade sharpener. It's another chunk out of your time to sharpen blades. It's an unfortunate dilemma for sure. We have Amish close by and they offer sharpening services as every other Amish family seems to own a sawmill. Any Amish in your area? Might be worth a look. Good luck 🤞
We don’t have Amish on the West Coast that I know of. Their blade service was swamped after the world went all goofy a couple years ago. Just this year they finally got caught up and had a decent turnaround. I am wondering if it’s because of the same problem a lot of businesses are having, hard to find and keep people to do the work.
@@WilsonForestLands that might be a good possibility. Even high paying trade jobs cannot find people that want to work.🤷
Another awesome video!! What do you do with the bark parts of the log?
Good video Michael.
If all goes OK I'll be ordering WMs BMS250 sharpener and a Cooks setter. The Cooks setter is much less than the WM unit and includes 2-setting stations AND 2- gauge stations. With the Cooks you can set the teeth and also check the accuracy of the set with each cycle on the unit.
I prefer the BMS250 because the sharpening wheels (not stones) have the tooth profile already set whereas the Cooks relies on a grinding stone that has to be continually profiled (dressed) to work.
Just one man's opinion.
Dave
fast sawing process
I just found your channel and am catching up on older content. I bought an LT 35 last year, after an 18 month wait for it. Was planning on using the resharp program next month and then saw this video today. Do you know if Woodmizer Portland is going to continue the program? One commenter siggested some dealer locations might. Thanks. Enjoying your content snd your demeanor.
Check Cooks blades, I think they have a service and their blades are very good too!
I have an LX25 manual saw and I just use an electric chainsaw sharpener at 10 degrees and have good results
Right now, sharpening my own blades is just not worth my time. I buy new blades and consider it an expendable thing, like gasoline, at a few cents per board foot. Nevertheless, good but dull blades get hung in the shed. At some point if the cost of blades is more than I can bear, I do have the means to to sharpen them to at least keep sawing. Its a slow sharpening method, using a bench grinder wheel dressed to match the gullet, and a vise jig to set the teeth...but can be done. Like anything else I will probably get a lot faster as I go.
If resharpening gets more difficult/expensive the use of "carbide blades" may grow and the prices might fall a little. I am comparing to blades for circular saws. Milling pine and alike would probably make a carbide blade "last a lifetime"? Wasn't it TC Sawmills who did some hard testing regarding "normal" against carbide?
I bought a sharpener from EZ boardwalk and I really liked it. I could sharpen a band in less than 3 minutes. It was all manual and 110 volt but I know that you could do it well as it is not much different than sharpening your chainsaw in principle.
I also would suggest trying different supplier than WM for your bands. I have bought from a shop in rice mn and one in Georgia . I have had good luck with Lennox, Simonds, Munkforger and Kasco brand blades. And cooks. you may find Kasco or Simmonds to be so cheap that you wont mind throwing them away when dull.
You should mention woodmizer is giving 15% OFF all sharpening equipment until 12 /31 /23.
I believe I mentioned there was a 10 or 15% discount.
I noticed you take a lot of slabs with live edges.
What do you use them for?
I edge them and make regular lumber out of them. The video I put out today shows edging them.
Where are you located?
Southern Oregon.
It’s the lack of trained people
Well maybe WM had a few bad apples in sharpening and they decided to heck with it and just stop offering that service. Just an idea though..
From what info I got on The Forestry Forum, WM stopped sharpening service due to lack of decent employees to continue the service. Like most businesse now-a-days good help is not just hard to find, but nearly impossible! I use Cook's Super Sharp blades and have their sharpener and setter. I find that it does a good job, but does take some time to get blades sharp ans set properly.
@mcpiddler1135 : I can understand that. Some of the new generation of workers are not very good and I will say some of them as most are good decent people they just need a little more guidance than the last generation didn't..
@@DanielAtkinsFirewood And some pay to match the work being done. It's hard to blame people for not wanting to work for a wage they can't live on.
@srankin8022 : Maybe that, too. I know I have stopped making certain parts because some wouldn't follow instructions, and when their engines would be destroyed in the 1st few minutes, I would get blamed for their stupidity and not following instructions.
Unfortunately, those who know what they are doing are who gets the blunt end of the service or parts..
Or, if you had a shed with lighting, you could work all nite
I don’t really want to work after dark. Assuming this was the video where I mentoned the headlamp, (I don’t always remember what I said in which video) that was mostly for the benefit of my friends over on that mentioned channel.
Find someone who can sharpen. The resharp program in ga sucked.