Thank you for sharing your experience with this. It has been incredibly challenging to find any sort of tutorial on servicing these drum chippers. Exactly what I needed. Not sure if you can tag Vermeer, Bandit ect. to help get this video to the right viewers. Thanks again
The socket bolt is called a jacking bolt and wedge block. You are damaging the threads by punching that screwdriver(use a soft metal punch) in those threaded holes, as milwrights we find out the thread size whether american standard or metric and use a starter tap and chase the threaded holes.
You're welcome. Thanks for posting the video. I've been meaning, for years, to put one out there myself. I've been working on these old chippers for 30 years now. Lots of little tricks.
The distance from the edge of the anvil to the surface of the drum should be .218" (7/32", which is conveniently the thickness of a large chain saw file). Then adjust the blades to the anvil .030 to .035". I use to set mine so to .007". Made nice chips but at that clearance there is no margin of error. Once as the blades heated up with use they started to contact the anvil so now I just set them to the proper spec. Each turn of the adjusting nut moves the blades 1/16". The wedge bar bolts, some people use a mallet and drift to hit the wedge bar to seat it, then re-tighten. Then, using a 3/8" allen, tighten the adjuster bolt from behind, into the blades to put some force on them, 50lbs or so (just guess).
Also, Bandit, Asplundh and some early Altecs all use this same system. Woodchuck, newer Altecs, Vermeer, Wayne and old Chipmores (i think) use a completely different system.
Yeah,the bed knife/anvil/wear bar(every manufacturer lists it as a different name,for example, Vermeer calls it a wear bar) ...also,depending on which brand/model,some units have a chamfer on all 4 sides,some are just a piece of square stock, like yours..they can be flipped several times too,for a new edge,if one side starts to wear..they're a real pain in the ass to move/adjust, if it hasn't been either maintained or no one put never seize on the hardware,but it makes a huge difference on a manual feed unit..only downside to the square anvil,is you can't run your knives far out enough, so it'll give you a hard time trying to feed some hardwoods..the chamfered anvil allows you to adjust the blades that little 3/32-1/8 outward,which helps grab the material without having to force it...just had a customer with an old Vermeer BC1600A,that was way out of adjustment on both...fipped and dropped the knives and anvil a few hairs and its now a beast...adjust is everything on these chuck n ducks... roller fed units can get away with longer service intervals on the knives and anvil,cause the rollers are controlling the material.whispers,woodsmans,asphunds,need constant knife maintenance, but they're much faster,if you're just doing small material and palms vs,using an 18" morbark.....Great Video...and accurately done👍
Hey Mike, So what you're saying is to not set the anvil at 7/32 ? Drop it down another 1/8" +/- ? Then put the blades at .030 from cutting bar/anvil. I have an old 16" whisper chipper from the 80"s. New blades and cutting bar but it won"t grab and self feed. When i throw the branches in it cuts a foot or 2 then stops. Does this on all thickness of branches. looking at a cut piece of branch you can see that it hits the cutting bar and seems to stop it. The blades then cuts the branch to almost a flat point. The pressure bar that holds the cutting bar has about a 1/4" step in it. Is that normal? Should it all be flush inside? What about the removable floor plate. Is that adjustable and should it match the anvil/cutting bar height? Any help would be appreciated . Thanks Edward
@@edhendries4618 precisely....I'd even go as far as dropping the bed knife/anvil anywhere from a 1/8 to a 1/4,give or take...then adjust blade clearance from there...the more blade exposure, the better it'll "grab" the material...also,edge orientation plays a major role for self feeders to chip properly...some units call for chamfer out,some call for chamfer in,so make sure you have your blades mounted properly...I've also found that using a 1/2" flat washer is the perfect thickness for setting up your gap clearance between the blades and anvil
I couldn't tell you actually because either don't know the ratio of the pulleys. It's just engine rpm x the pulley ratio. These machines are rated in feet per minute and I think 100 feet per minute is typical.
Thank you for sharing your experience with this. It has been incredibly challenging to find any sort of tutorial on servicing these drum chippers. Exactly what I needed.
Not sure if you can tag Vermeer, Bandit ect. to help get this video to the right viewers. Thanks again
The socket bolt is called a jacking bolt and wedge block. You are damaging the threads by punching that screwdriver(use a soft metal punch) in those threaded holes, as milwrights we find out the thread size whether american standard or metric and use a starter tap and chase the threaded holes.
Thanks my man, exactly what I got and need to do. We are a small business from New Hampshire and appreciate your video. Thanks again
You're welcome. Thanks for posting the video. I've been meaning, for years, to put one out there myself. I've been working on these old chippers for 30 years now. Lots of little tricks.
The distance from the edge of the anvil to the surface of the drum should be .218" (7/32", which is conveniently the thickness of a large chain saw file). Then adjust the blades to the anvil .030 to .035". I use to set mine so to .007". Made nice chips but at that clearance there is no margin of error. Once as the blades heated up with use they started to contact the anvil so now I just set them to the proper spec. Each turn of the adjusting nut moves the blades 1/16". The wedge bar bolts, some people use a mallet and drift to hit the wedge bar to seat it, then re-tighten. Then, using a 3/8" allen, tighten the adjuster bolt from behind, into the blades to put some force on them, 50lbs or so (just guess).
I appreciate that input thank you
Also, Bandit, Asplundh and some early Altecs all use this same system. Woodchuck, newer Altecs, Vermeer, Wayne and old Chipmores (i think) use a completely different system.
Yeah,the bed knife/anvil/wear bar(every manufacturer lists it as a different name,for example, Vermeer calls it a wear bar) ...also,depending on which brand/model,some units have a chamfer on all 4 sides,some are just a piece of square stock, like yours..they can be flipped several times too,for a new edge,if one side starts to wear..they're a real pain in the ass to move/adjust, if it hasn't been either maintained or no one put never seize on the hardware,but it makes a huge difference on a manual feed unit..only downside to the square anvil,is you can't run your knives far out enough, so it'll give you a hard time trying to feed some hardwoods..the chamfered anvil allows you to adjust the blades that little 3/32-1/8 outward,which helps grab the material without having to force it...just had a customer with an old Vermeer BC1600A,that was way out of adjustment on both...fipped and dropped the knives and anvil a few hairs and its now a beast...adjust is everything on these chuck n ducks...
roller fed units can get away with longer service intervals on the knives and anvil,cause the rollers are controlling the material.whispers,woodsmans,asphunds,need constant knife maintenance, but they're much faster,if you're just doing small material and palms vs,using an 18" morbark.....Great Video...and accurately done👍
Hey Mike,
So what you're saying is to not set the anvil at 7/32 ? Drop it down another 1/8" +/- ? Then put the blades at .030 from cutting bar/anvil.
I have an old 16" whisper chipper from the 80"s. New blades and cutting bar but it won"t grab and self feed. When i throw the branches in it cuts a foot or 2 then stops. Does this on all thickness of branches. looking at a cut piece of branch you can see that it hits the cutting bar and seems to stop it. The blades then cuts the branch to almost a flat point. The pressure bar that holds the cutting bar has about a 1/4" step in it. Is that normal? Should it all be flush inside? What about the removable floor plate. Is that adjustable and should it match the anvil/cutting bar height?
Any help would be appreciated .
Thanks Edward
@@edhendries4618 precisely....I'd even go as far as dropping the bed knife/anvil anywhere from a 1/8 to a 1/4,give or take...then adjust blade clearance from there...the more blade exposure, the better it'll "grab" the material...also,edge orientation plays a major role for self feeders to chip properly...some units call for chamfer out,some call for chamfer in,so make sure you have your blades mounted properly...I've also found that using a 1/2" flat washer is the perfect thickness for setting up your gap clearance between the blades and anvil
Mike. Do you have any more information on the Vermeer 1600a? I need to change and sharpen my blades and I’m have a hard time finding anything on YT
I always used a hacksaw blade to gauge the blades /anvil
Flat ways or up and down
@@johndorazio3759 flat
@@nephilly87 thank you
What do you pay to have chipper knives sharped in you area ? I charge $1.00 per inch , I have a knife grinding shop .
Какой диаметр вала?
how many revolutions per minute (RPM) does it rotate?
I couldn't tell you actually because either don't know the ratio of the pulleys. It's just engine rpm x the pulley ratio. These machines are rated in feet per minute and I think 100 feet per minute is typical.
Put the camera where you can see what your working on not your back