Bandit
29
MODEL 12X
MAINTENANCE
Chipper knives must be kept sharp at all times for
the ultimate chipper and knife performance. The main
cause of poor cutting performance is dull knives.
Many times a chipper knives cutting edge/point
can be brought back to a good edge with a #10 Flat
Bastard Mill File. This can reduce the amount of
resharpening.
Do not sharpen the knives in a direction which
produces a radius, or hollow grind, on the surface
of the knife. Strength and life of the cutting edge is
reduced.
- Keep knives sharp.
- Keep knife angle correct when sharpening.
- Do not over sharpen so knife is narrower than
allowed width, or you will pack wood and break
knives.
- Use correct knife size, knife quality, knife mounting
hardware, and torque knife mounting hardware to
the specified torque.
- Replace knife mounting hardware after (5) times
of tightening.
KNIFE SHARPENING
Only Bandit knives and hardware are
recommended for use in your Bandit chippers. Only
then can you be assured of a quality product that fits
and performs the best to the standards of excellence
that is expected from the machine.
Chipper knives are sharp and can be dangerous.
It is always necessary for your protection to be
extra careful and wear proper hand protection when
handling knives.
- For maximum chipper efficiency, the original
cutting angle must be maintained when the knives
are sharpened. The knives should be machine
ground to produce a flat, straight edge.
- Do not sharpen the knives with a hand held power
grinder. The knife angle can’t be held and heat will
distort the metal.
- Sharpening techniques should be the same as
those employed for any high carbon steel cutting
edge. Use a coolant and exercise care not to draw
temper or crack the cutting edges by excessive
heating.
- Knives may be sharpened repeatedly as long as
their original width is not reduced to less than the
specified minimum width. If a knife measures less
than the specified minimum width after sharpening,
it must be discarded.
- Inspect the knives after sharpening to ensure the
knives are free of cracks.
- Maintain spare sharpened knives to avoid
downtime for knife sharpening.
- Poor quality knives
- Improper anvil to knife clearance
- Force feeding wood faster than chipper will accept
- Dirt, grit, or foreign material on the wood
- Chipper knives sharpened at wrong angle
- Improper care of knives and knife hardware
These are just a few factors, there are other
situations that can lead to the dulling of chipper knives.
The Dulling Of Chipper Knives Is Caused By:
- Excessive waste of engine horsepower
- Bad quality chips; chunks, slivers, etc.
- Excessive strain on knives and mounting hardware
- Excessive strain on chipper drum bearings and
total machine
- Excessive chipping vibration damaging the machine
- Excessive strain on drives, PTO’s, engines, etc.
- Increase the probability of the discharge plugging
and decreases the throwing distance
- Loss of time and money
Dull Knives Cause:
NOTICE
NOTICE
Knives should be replaced in sets. These sets
are determined by the amount of resharpening done
to the knives (knife width). Resharpening knives
reduces the width of the knife. Knife replacement
should be done in sets of the same width knives. That
will reduce chipping vibration and increase chipping
performance.
Typical Knife Sharpening Angles:
“Bolt-In” Knives = 30° to 30 1/2° Angle
DANGER
USE CORRECT KNIFE & HARDWARE
- Do not use a size or style chipper knife, bolt or
nut other than factory approved for this chipper.
- Do not over torque or under torque knife bolts
and nuts.
- Do not resharpen knife more than minimum
width.
- Do not use knife bolt or nut which has been
tightened over five (5) times ‑ replace.
- Check the chipper drum daily for secure
welds, cracks, excessive wear, torqued bolts,
elongated bolt holes and/or good bolt hole
threads. If a problem is found contact the chipper
manufacturer or authorized dealer.
