Chipper Wallenstein BX40 Chipper Trouble - Shear Bolts, Clogged Chute, Rejected Feed

[mroberts5]

Last year I bought a used Wallenstein BX40, a little surface rust, but overall in good shape. Without doing much, I hooked it up and started chipping. Other than the fact that I thought the chips were a bit large (approx 1/2" slices) this thing worked great and would eat anything I could fit into the inlet.

Pulled it back out this year for winter clean up and its been nothing but trouble. Started with shear bolts - I would break them on anything. Figured it was time for a full once over. Cleaned and greased, bought new shear bolts (M8x45 grade 8.8), flipped all the knives (other edged looked factory new), and set them per the manual - blades to 1/2" past rotor and stationary blade for 1/16 to 1/8 gap.

Rat it yesterday - new but different problems. Running 1" stuff, works ok, but it looks like its breaking it off more than cutting it off. Real small stuff is clogging the chute (never had this problem before) and 3+ plus stuff is rejecting back out. I tried to more steadily feed a 3.5" pine in and broke the shear bolt. Something isn't right.

My first thought is the spacing is too tight. I'm sure I went overboard to make sure each blade was at exactly 1/16". Also, I adjusted the blades so the spacing is consistent across the face. I didn't sharpen the blades, but as I said, they were in really good shape. Not chisel edge sharp, but clean (factory from what I could tell).

My next step is to regap to 1/8", but I thought I'd check here first. If that doesn't work, I'm dumping this thing and renting a 9" Vermeer for a weekend a year.



Thoughts? Thanks.

 

[s219]

I am guessing that the knives really aren't sharp but maybe just look sharp. That can happen if perhaps the previous owner "sharpened" them -- chipper knives are very tricky to sharpen and generally should be mailed in to a pro sharpener or just buy new ones.

Type and age of wood can affect how the chipper performs. Green wood chips the easiest. Feed in old dry wood and performance drops significantly.

And since this is a chipper and not a shredder, it isn't great with small twiggy stuff, or lots of leaves or needles. Be sure to feed in thicker woody limbs periodically to blow the chute clear of smaller debris.

BTW, I have a BX-42, and the stationary knife clearance is to be set at 1/32". There is no adjustment for the rotor knives -- they bolt in at one position only, and are not adjustable.

 

[Jack Yuan]

Last year I bought a used Wallenstein BX40, a little surface rust, but overall in good shape. Without doing much, I hooked it up and started chipping. Other than the fact that I thought the chips were a bit large (approx 1/2" slices) this thing worked great and would eat anything I could fit into the inlet.

Pulled it back out this year for winter clean up and its been nothing but trouble. Started with shear bolts - I would break them on anything. Figured it was time for a full once over. Cleaned and greased, bought new shear bolts (M8x45 grade 8.8), flipped all the knives (other edged looked factory new), and set them per the manual - blades to 1/2" past rotor and stationary blade for 1/16 to 1/8 gap.

Rat it yesterday - new but different problems. Running 1" stuff, works ok, but it looks like its breaking it off more than cutting it off. Real small stuff is clogging the chute (never had this problem before) and 3+ plus stuff is rejecting back out. I tried to more steadily feed a 3.5" pine in and broke the shear bolt. Something isn't right.

My first thought is the spacing is too tight. I'm sure I went overboard to make sure each blade was at exactly 1/16". Also, I adjusted the blades so the spacing is consistent across the face. I didn't sharpen the blades, but as I said, they were in really good shape. Not chisel edge sharp, but clean (factory from what I could tell).

My next step is to regap to 1/8", but I thought I'd check here first. If that doesn't work, I'm dumping this thing and renting a 9" Vermeer for a weekend a year.

View attachment 457824

Thoughts? Thanks.

Sharpen your knives, than everything will be ok again. And don't forget to wear your eye protection when chipping something. I used to see trees and dirt fly out from feeding chute like bullet, and if knives is not sharp, this will happen more often.

 

[Gordon Gould]

Like s219 mentioned chipping wood with a small chipper is best when it is green - unless it is frozen. Then it is significantly harder with a small chipper. Just like when it is dry. But usually the problem is dull or incorrectly mounted knives like they are telling you. Strange that things could change so much over the winter though.

gg

 

[yankeerider]

Chippers generally have two chipping components: the knife and the anvil. If the anvil edge is worn so that it is rounded, sharp knives can't do their job. What does the anvil look like?

 

[oosik]

I had a BX42S on my previous Ford 1700 for many years and it worked great. The solution is - sharp knives, square anvil and correct clearance. I always had my knives resharpened professionally.

I've since moved up to a BX62S on my Kubota. I thin my stands of young P. pine and will chip 750-900 young trees every year. Only problem - I get "arm weary" long before the job is completed. I always figure on a week, in the spring, for cutting, hauling & chipping.

 

[mroberts5]

Chippers generally have two chipping components: the knife and the anvil. If the anvil edge is worn so that it is rounded, sharp knives can't do their job. What does the anvil look like?

The anvil still had paint on it, so I'm assuming its new. I really do think the knives are sharp, but should they be pocket knife / cut your finger sharp? They definitely aren't that sharp, but they are nice, clean edges.

One thing I forgot to mention before, was that the gap was close to 3/8" prior to my adjustment - which is where they were when this was cutting nice. However the blades were pretty nicked up - one was missing a chuck, little less than the size of a dime.

I guess, I'll resharpen, and readjust. First dealer said - "sure, we can hit them with an angle grinder" - no thanks. Second says they have a machine. I'll confirm they're doing it to the proper angles before dropping them off.

 

[oosik]

mroberts5,

After I posted - #6 - I checked my owners manual....... They recommend the anvil/knife gap to be 1/32 to 1/16. Unless you have a sharpening tool/jig it might be best to get them professionally sharpened. Blade angle is critical. My knives are always sharp enough that a piece of notebook paper drug across the blade will easily be sliced.
BTW - it appears that that the owners manual is the same for all Wallenstein chippers. Mine covers all the 3-point hitch wood chipper models.

IMHO - the problems you have experienced are - the wood is not being chipped so much as being broken. Sharp knives and correct anvil/knife clearance is critical. The "broken" chunks will not discharge from the unit as chips will. This will cause clogging.

Also - in the fall when the chipper is put up for the season - I always liberally cover the knife edges with heavy grease. This keeps the raw, exposed edge from rusting and becoming dull.

 

[mroberts5]

Answered - I goofed real good and put the blades backwards. Easy fix, HOWEVER, on closer inspection my flywheel is warped. Don't know if it happened earlier (I dug into this in the first place because of repeated broken sheer bolt) or because of this.

Not happy right now.

Anyway, I'm moving my discussion over here: http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/attachments/353088-bent-warped-chipper-rotor-repair.html

Thanks.

 

[s219]

OUCH!