Ok, I know how dangerous these are. Used to use one on the farm when I was a kid. We ran ours off a hand crank Fordson Tractor. It had a flat belt. The saw I just got has a 36” blade and a 2 v-belt pulley. I have a cast iron 16 horse Briggs that has a cone clutch on it from a 1970s Simplicity garden tractor. I am hoping this would have enough torque to run this saw. The old cast iron Briggs is a tough low speed high torque engine relative to today’s engines. Anyone familiar with doing this type of install?
We ran a similar saw with a 32 HP Cockshutt 30 tractor. An 8" Poplar would get the governor's attention.
I'm sure it will work...worst case scenario you might have to baby it a bit on bigger stuff though...
I don't believe that Briggs is a low speed engine when developing 16 horsepower. The big question is what rpm is the blade tensioned for. 36" is a big saw as most cordwood saws are 30" including mine. The blade should have enough inertia to get through a cut. 9000 FPM rim speed is a good speed for a circular saw. 950 RPM for a 36". Now this is for a good condition blade. I'm guessing the Briggs is a 3600 so I would look at 4:1 as a starting point. You can always try going slower but a wavy saw will heat and crack so it needs to stand up straight. I have repowered a few saws including electrically. And as always I say a circular saw is safer than a chainsaw.
I think these old B&S engines turn to about 1700 rpm? I am thinking I would run it at about 2/3 throttle and let the governor take it up if it has to. I will actually measure the blade it’s big but maybe not 36”. The blade does have some run out. Is that something that can be fixed or should I be looking for another blade?
The blade will definitely have runout when turned by hand. This is the tension that is put in the blade. The rim is stretched so that when up to speed it runs true. This is one of mine and it has about .125" runout if not more. What is the model number of your briggs ?
Thanks for the info. Interesting about the stretch on the rim. Not sure the exact model engine but it came one of these. TractorData.com Simplicity Sovereign 3416H 990871 tractor photos information I guess they do run up to 3600 RPM. I have a few of these garden tractors and they are pretty sturdy for what they are. That is a nice looking saw you have. Is that a new blade? I need to make a guard like you have there. The one I used when I was a kid was flat belt drive and not a guard on it. I can remember being very deliberate moving around that thing.
IIRC the 32 CID Briggs is rated at 16 HP at 3600 RPM. I sold mine and the auger it drove several years ago.
Actually the complete saw isn't that old less than 10 years iirc. The thing is that the blade is always in the same place unlike a chainsaw. You have to go to it for an injury. And DON'T put ANY hook on the teeth as it then gets a mind of its own.
I found an old Briggs brochure, 1990 by the look of it. Model 326400, so 32 Cu.In., don't have a chart for the rest of the numbers. 16 HP at 3600 RPM. The torque curve look fairly flat. 23.7 ft.lb. @ 1800 RPM 25.7 ft.lb. @ 2600 RPM - peak 23.3 ft.lb. @ 3600 RPM
I just went and looked over the saw and blade. It has a double groove 8” pulley that takes 3/4” belts. The blade is 30” and doesn’t have more than 1/8” runout. I am going to send the blade out for sharpening and tooth set etc. I check the relative length of the teeth and found consistently every other tooth was 1/16” to 1/8” shorter. Would this have been done on purpose? Maybe due to having run a small engine on it in the past? I did pick up a Complete Kohler command 20hp that came out of a walker mower. It has about 10 foot pounds torque more than the 16hp at 23 ft pounds. Both of these engines torque peak at 2300 and they run up to 3600 so a little head room for the governor is good.
That might be enough runout but usually it has a little more as the rim needs material available to stand up at speed. 3/4" belt is probably a "c" section and might not like the pitch diameter of the driver. The tooth length variation could be from an incorrectly set grinder favouring one set direction over the other. I think that you'll really like buzzing wood !
That right there is the most important info you’ll get. It’s all about the hook. We’ve had a cordwood saw in the family since before I was born. Somewhere along the line, before my memory of it the blade was replaced with one off a sawmill (a ripping blade). Maybe my grandfather, maybe whoever owned it before my grandfather. I know he got it used. We used it every winter like that. Dad, who knew nothing of sawblades would file it sharp every year. The problem is a ripping blade has a very different tooth configuration. Massive hook designed for ripping not cross cutting. What a dangerous grabby contraption that thing was. No one knew any better. I’ve since used a 4” grinder with a fine sandpaper disc on rubber wheel to knock all the hook back. Not the whole tooth, just the tips of the teeth. What a difference it makes. Tractor can now cut at an idle almost and no more grabbing. I also began adjusting the teeth height. First year I probably sharpened 30% of the teeth. Left the low ones alone. Also set the kerf by eyesight with a vise grip and mapp torch. Believe it or not it actually worked well, I was certainly surprised LOL. While doing that the runout got crazy. Thought I ruined the blade. But by the time I got all the way around the runout disappeared. Course ya gotta remember this blade should be trashed anyway. Doesn’t belong on there. FWIW I picked up a homemade buzzsaw for free. From what I can tell it has an antique Tecumseh 9hp on it. Not in running condition so I have no idea how useful it was. Just like a chainsaw, it’s up to the teeth to get the job done.
