Tracking Problem

Kevin Zito

KNIFE MAKER
I need some help. So my flat platen and the 8 inch contact wheel run perfectly. However, I run into issues when I put on the 12 in. I want to the belt to hand off the left hand side of the wheel say 1/8” to 1/4”. I can get the belt to ride in that spot to say my life. It will ride perfectly on the right hand side. I have tried the following with no luck:

The bearings that I installed were shot so I brought the wheel to a machine shop and had them replace the bearings.

I have tried a ton of different belts with the same result.

Please help me fix this.... it’s driving me crazy. Thank you all!
 
Is the 12" wheel mounted on it's own tool arm? Are you sure the axle is square with tool arm? Can you mount wheel on other side of tool arm and flip tool arm 180? Maybe a photo of the tracking wheel setup?
 
I run the 8 and the 12 on the same arm and axle. I just unscrew one and screw the other on. I have played a lot with the tension to no avail. Could it be that the wheel is unbalanced? Here’s a pic of the tracking mech. On the platen and the 8” wheel everything tracks amazingly. Thanks guys.image.jpg
 
Can you post a pic or two of how the wheels mount?
 
This is probably not what you’re looking for, but I tried to snap a few shots. I’ll get some more tomorrow of the arm attached to the machine as well. F4F34813-55BE-419B-BB8F-2DE8B4E4ADB3.jpegE6BCE07A-522F-4FAD-8FC6-E234955CFD60.jpeg9D0D4CEF-BE77-40A8-8759-F57F7C657766.jpeg
 
That's right Kevin - I remember seeing some photos when you first got the grinder but couldn't remember. That is a tad different than the normal old KMG tracking system. From what I can see, the tracking wheel tilts front to back rather than up and down. Should work just fine. Since the platen and 8" wheel track good I expect it's the way the 12" wheel is mounted to the arm.

When you say the belt won't move to the left side of wheel, is the tracking adjustment adjusted fully to one side?

Try moving the axle to the other side of the tool arm, then flipping the arm 180° to see if that makes any difference.
 
I’m going to try that, Ken, and post some more pics. I’m also gonna try to post a video of what’s happening. There is plenty of room on the tracking device. That is, I can make the belt run totally off the wheel on both sides. I just can’t make the belt stay put when I’m trying to radius the plunge on the no show side.
 
Kevin, I know pics can be diseptive, but the first one of the 12” wheel appears that the bar is slightly twisted. The 12” wheel would magnify this problem and may way to shove your belt in a certain direction. You may want to check the shaft just to rule it out.

Erik
 
You might try using some washers to shim the wheel further away from the tooling arm.

Just seen your last comment. Use a straight edge to see if the wheel is square with the drive wheel. Sounds like it may be off a little.
Kevin, I know pics can be diseptive, but the first one of the 12” wheel appears that the bar is slightly twisted. The 12” wheel would magnify this problem and may way to shove your belt in a certain direction. You may want to check the shaft just to rule it out.

Erik
Thanks guys! I will try these and post updates.
 
Looks like the spring is in the wrong place? They milled a spot for it but you have it between the screw and the outside of the arm. Shouldn't it be between the arm and the pulley bar? Sumpin' looks off there...those should be balancing each other out? Depends on which piece is threaded...
 
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Good video Kevin - I see what you're talking about. As you move the tracking wheel, the belt moves, but keeps moving after the tracking adjustment is finished to more belt hanging off than you wish. You want belt to stop with perhaps 1/4" hanging off, but belt keeps moving so there's 1/2" to 3/4" hanging off.

Question: Did flipping the tooling arm 180° help any?
 
I'd guess it's that the 12" wheel isn't perpendicular to the drive wheel/tracking wheels because your other two wheels work as you want them to.
The bolt maybe bent (but you said you were using the same one so unlikely), the axle hole may not be plumb (probably not likely), one or both bearings are not seated plumb , or the tire outer diameter may not be plumb, how the nuts on either side snug up to the bearing may also be the issue.

try washers next to the bearings.
The outer diameter of the washers can touch the inner but not the outer diameters of the bearings.
try a different bolt.
rotate the bar 180 degrees and bolt it from the other side.

Dressing the tire is dangerous but occasionally has to be done as contact wheels do wear. This is done by running the grinder and placing a flat file against the back of the wheel and filing off rubber/poly - what ever it is. This means your hands and the file are inside the belt loop while running.
 
Good video Kevin - I see what you're talking about. As you move the tracking wheel, the belt moves, but keeps moving after the tracking adjustment is finished to more belt hanging off than you wish. You want belt to stop with perhaps 1/4" hanging off, but belt keeps moving so there's 1/2" to 3/4" hanging off.

Question: Did flipping the tooling arm 180° help any?
That’s exactly the problem. When I flipped it, it didn’t really help. However, the drive wheel and contact wheel are not in alignment. So I scooted the drive wheel over a half inch or so. But, the contact wheel is still twisted a tiny bit. 0A838F9D-B203-4A08-A501-D9DB6AA18B5D.jpeg
 
And......... + 25 bonus points to the Boss Dog! Dude, that’s two and a half letter grades. Filed the rubber part and voila! Thanks so much everyone! This has been slowing me down TREMENDOUSLY.
 
You filed the rubber part and now it works, EVEN with the contact wheel that much out of line? Interesting.

First step should be getting that tracking wheel in alignment. That was my idea of flipping the tooling arm 180°, but since that didn't help. Is the contact wheel out of alignment the way way with tooling arm flipped both ways? If so, that would indicate a bent axle bolt - assuming the 8" wheel is in alignment and you're using different axle bolts. Does both 8" and 12" wheel use the same size axle? If so, swap those around on same tooling arm and axle and check alignment.
 
You filed the rubber part and now it works, EVEN with the contact wheel that much out of line? Interesting.

First step should be getting that tracking wheel in alignment. That was my idea of flipping the tooling arm 180°, but since that didn't help. Is the contact wheel out of alignment the way way with tooling arm flipped both ways? If so, that would indicate a bent axle bolt - assuming the 8" wheel is in alignment and you're using different axle bolts. Does both 8" and 12" wheel use the same size axle? If so, swap those around on same tooling arm and axle and check alignment.
I turned the wheel around and made a few adjustments and checked alignment again. It was pretty darn close. Then ... I filed the the rubber part. So it’s actually I think a combination of the two. I’ll say, though, that I’ve been grinding with it since my last post, and it still wanders a bit but nothing like before. I’m definitely going to true everything up the best I can with washers and a new bolt. I think that will probably help a lot too. I know I probably messed something up when I attached the 12 wheel from the get go lol.
 
Just an observation. From the photos here it looks like there isn't much or any crown to the tracking wheel. Is that just a product of the picture?
I have seen people put tape on them to increase or add to the crown.
More crown could possibly help with the wandering while using the big wheel.
Hope this helps.
Scott
 
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