Finally got my cutterhead timing dialed in after months of guessing

I run a smaller 8-inch cutterhead on the Missouri River near Kansas City, and for the longest time I couldn't get the teeth to line up right with the ladder. I kept getting uneven cutting and the whole thing would vibrate like crazy after about 2 hours of running. Last week I tried a different approach - instead of just eyeballing the timing marks like I always did, I actually used a straight edge across the teeth to check each row before bolting them down. Turns out my marks were off by about 3 degrees from the factory. I realigned everything and ran a full 6 hour shift without any shaking at all. Anyone else ever had factory timing marks that were just plain wrong on their cutterhead?

2 comments

2 Comments

matthewsullivan13h ago

Glad it wasn't just me fighting that battle. Same deal on my 10-inch unit down here near St. Louis - factory marks were off by almost 5 degrees on the last row of teeth. I spent two months chasing vibrations before I broke down and did the straight edge trick too. What really sealed it for me was taking a permanent marker and making my own marks right on the housing after I got it dialed in. Now I always double check factory timing with a straight edge before I even start bolting anything down, saved me hours of headache.

white.seth6h ago

Blew a whole Saturday chasing that ghost myself before I finally figured it out. Felt like a real genius standing in the shop with a straight edge at 9pm on a Sunday.