“Super Nylon” PVM

Posted on September 2, 2014 by admin

Of all the performance plastics to hit the market in recent years, perhaps none has created as much interest as Redco™ PVM nylon. PVM stands for “Pressure-Velocity-Maximum” and is a performance material designed for the most demanding applications. PVM has already proven itself as a replacement in kiln cart bushings. Traditionally, these bushings were made out of blue (high temperature) nylon; however, some sawmills on the U.S. Pacific Coast have been testing some PVM bushings in this application and so far the results are excellent. The bushings are not deforming and have already lasted four times longer than the blue.

Redco™ PVM can simply handle more pressure, more wear and more friction in most applications and can save money over its lifecycle while reducing maintenance downtime. For more information on Redco™ PVM nylon click here.

PVM_Chart

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Product Spotlight – Chain Cap

Posted on August 19, 2014 by admin

Chain is a double-edge sword. Every sawmill needs it, moving chain could be considered the lifeblood of the mill. But chain is abrasive and downtime is costly to replace worn chain or chain beds. One possible solution is Redco™ Chain Cap. Chain-Cap This plastic cap has a low-coefficient of friction and is quite durable.

Because the chain cap is attached directly to the chain it prevents wear to both the chain and the chain bed. The slick plastic cap can reduce electricity costs as it takes less power to pull. There are some side benefits as well – chain cap makes more a quieter process. The cap is also non-marking, meaning it’s not going to mess up your landing or ending tables.

For more information on chain cap contact Redwood Plastics.

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Solutions In Action

Posted on July 30, 2014 by admin

When it comes to thinking of all the successful plastic applications in sawmills, words alone can’t do them justice. A few years ago Redwood Plastics developed a short 3 minute video highlighting various plastic solutions for sawmills.

These products include bushings, bearings, sprockets, chain channel, sorter hooks, lugs and assorted customized plastic solutions. Similar metal components exist, but plastics can reduce power load requirements while decreasing maintenance downtime  resulting in more profitable applications.

Take a look and see some solutions in action!

 

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Nylon Hard At Work

Posted on July 14, 2014 by admin

Cast nylon is a plastic that should not be overlooked in sawmill applications. Nylon is able to bear a large amount of load compared to other plastics, especially UHMW and PTFE but is readily available and reasonably priced. Nylon applications have actually been increasing in the mills over the years, one notable example is nylon sharp chain bed. These beds used to often be made of UHMW but nylon and specifically the higher grades of nylon such as Redco™ PVM nylon perform much better. Nylon can be easily machined and Redco™ nylon in particular is available in small quantities and in uncommon grades. Applications for nylon in the mills include:

-Sprockets

-Chain bed

-Bushings

-Bearings (including hanger bearings)

PVM-sharp-chain-bed

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Polyurethane Saw Blade Carriers

Posted on June 25, 2014 by admin

Redco™ Sawblade carriers made of natural HDPE (high-density polyethylene) have been a proven product for many years. However, HDPE is a commodity-plastic and will wear more quickly than higher performance materials. Redwood Urethane_Saw_Blade_CarrierPlastics has recently introduced the new polyurethane saw blade carriers. Urethane is easily molded, allowing the new carriers to be produced in custom sizes to suit any circular blade. The circular portion of the carrier is made of Redco™ 430, combined with a Redco™ 750 handle. Urethane is a tear-resistant plastic, especially the 430 urethane portion. This makes the new saw blade carrier much more resilient to wear and tear from the saw blades themselves. They will last longer than the original product.

Recently were heard a scary story – a sales representative  was visiting a sawmill and discussing saw blade carriers. There was not much interest in the product, after all, the blades could be carried by hand – so why pay money for a plastic carrier? A few minutes after the discussion had moved to new topics the safety personnel were alerted that a young employee was carrying a 24″ saw blade and slipped on some sawdust. The blade gashed the employee’s side and he broke a couple ribs. Unsurprisingly, an order was quickly placed for several saw blade carriers by the sawmill.

But why leave it until an accident occurs?

Contact Redwood Plastics for more information.

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One Tuff Wheel

Posted on June 11, 2014 by admin

We had an interesting inquiry a few weeks ago. A sawmill maintenance manager in the U.S. Northeast was using UHMW carriage wheels and they were wearing out extremely fast. We ended up referring them our parent,  Redwood Plastics, to look into a solution – and they didn’t have to look far. Redwood offers a type of plastic developed specifically for sawmill carriage wheels called Tuffkast 020.

What is Tuffkast?

Tuffkast is a proprietary copolymer material that combines the resiliency of polyurethane with the load bearing capability of cast nylon. However, Tuffkast has improved wear capabilities over regular nylon 6, is more resistant to moisture, and performs better in cold temperatures. Tuffkast 020 was designed as a response to the poor performance of other plastics in carriage wheel applications. Nylon did OK, but Tuffkast’s unique properties made it such an attractive choice as a material. In fact, we’re not even sure how long carriage wheels made of Tuffkast 020 will last – the first install has been running for four years without the wheels needing replacement yet! The one “catch” about using the material is that the rails the carriage runs on must be new or machined to eliminate burrs and deformations. Failure to do so would make the wheels fail prematurely, so proper track maintenance is a must.

For more information on Tuffkast click the picture below:

Tuffkast-Logo

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Cold Weather “Bionic Hooks”

Posted on May 28, 2014 by admin

So, how was winter?

Polyurethane sorter hooks are a common application in sawmills. However, depending on the location of the mill the cold weather may cause problems. Especially like what most of North America experienced in 2014! Most hooks are made from 75D urethane and can get brittle in cold weather, which may result in hooks that break prematurely. This causes expensive downtime and the cost of additional hooks and is a serious problem for many sawmills. There is a solution: a J-hook molded from a slightly softer 60D durometer with a specially designed molded (not machined) elbow.

This is an innovative Redwood Plastics solution that has been in operation in Midwestern sawmills for years and was born out of customer’s desperation to find a cold weather solution. These specialty “cold weather” hooks will reduce maintenance downtime and result in your hooks being replaced less often.

For more details contact Redwood Plastics.

j - bar lumber sorter parts

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Urethane vs. Rubber

Posted on May 1, 2014 by admin

Urethane and rubber sometimes are lumped together as materials. This is because the two materials are both elastomers, meaning when compressed they will return to 90% of their original dimensions, though there is often 100% rebound in the rubber scale (shore A) urethanes. This elastomeric property means the materials can handle impact, shock and reduce vibration. However, while polyurethane is has a greater upfront cost-per-part, it will have superior properties and performance in equivalent applications. When the costs of downtime and the benefits of increased productivity and decreased maintenance are factored in – urethane’s lifecycle cost often proves to be lower. From bumpers to rollers to bushings and Deadplate™ – there is a urethane to solve virtually any mill need.

Polyurethanes are classified by the durometer scale. A higher number (approaching 100) refers to a harder material. Many urethanes fall into the “A” rubber scale; however, several do fall into the “D” or plastic part of the scale. See the scale in the picture below and click to expand it.

Polyurethane_Scale

 

 

 

 

 

For more information on the grades of polyurethane available and specific applications, click here.

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Chain Channel Profiles

Posted on April 8, 2014 by admin

UHMW chain channel and channel inserts are one of the most common plastic applications in sawmills. The channelChannel_1 reduces power consumption and chain wear saving money on power use and premature chain replacement. As a proven solution, there are many standard profiles available for H87 and 81x chain. If one of the standard profiles does not work, custom extrusions are available. Channel is available in the standard yellow and also a greyish-black, which is the high-performance Titanium channel.

For a list of standard profiles by Redwood Plastics click here.

 

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UHMW Conveyor Flights

Posted on March 20, 2014 by admin

UHMW-flights-sawmill

One plastic solution in mills that needs to be kept in mind are UHMW conveyor flights. Easily fabricated, these flights  replace cast steel and have numerous advantages over the traditional material. To start, they are 50% of the weight of steel, which offers power saving benefits. The UHMW itself offers a much lower coeffecient of friction than steel and this plays into reduced power consumption as well.

Being plastic, they are easy to install and replace. The flights commonly come in 4-5″ heights with 12-36″ widths. They can be fabricated in-house by many distributors. If your mill is still using cast steel this is a proven plastic solution you really need to think about.

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