Vermeer BC1000XL Chipper-broken drum shaft

[challenger]

I am looking for input on a situation with a Vermeer BC1000XL chipper I am working on for a friend. He has always taken it too a Vermeer service shop for scheduled service and in Aug had it serviced BUT the shop also found a problem with the drum and my friend paid $1000.00+ for, what they called, a "drum repair". The dealer is a 2 hour drive one way. He recently was using it and the belt tension lever linkage broke. He asked me to fix it and I told him that typically a link just does not break on it's own and that it usually breaks as a result of something else failing such as a bearing etc.. He said it was running fine before the link broke so I took the linkage off, ordered a new ball joint LH thread link end from Vermeer (no source locally for this part), got it the next day and put it together. As soon as I put a little tension on the belt I could see the drum shaft was not running anywhere close to true. I called the service manager at the Vermeer dealer and he said he had never heard of a bent shaft and he said that it is most likely the bearings. I knew the drum side bearing was shot because it had come apart to a degree. I got this bearing off and once I did I could see a huge crack in the shaft. The crack was only visible after I removed the bearing block.
Has anyone heard of a 2" shaft breaking on a chipper? It seems crazy to me that an otherwise sound shaft should form a giant crack. Anyone hear of any recalled Vermeer chippers?
Thanks-Howard
Hampstead, NC

 

[VA-Sawyer]

I find it hard to believe that Vermeer would do a $1000 repair to the drum. If you actually have that on a work order, I would be talking to the factory. I'll bet they tell you there are no major repairs allowed on the drum, it has to be replaced.
If it has been run with a known bad drum bearing, then all bets are off. Vibrations can be very destructive quite quickly.
Rick

 

[challenger]

The owner took the chipper to the dealer/service center today and I don't know the outcome of the visit. I know that the invoice they got for a ."drum repair" done in Aug states only "drum repair" which I found very lacking in details. Mainly the owners Dad takes care of bringing the chipper to Vermeer and he likes the people there but does not know the right questions to ask. I too think this would need a drum replacement. It is a single piece drum/shaft but I understand there were some models that had a drum and shaft as separate parts.
I can say with a great deal of confidence that the bearing(s) didn't cause the shaft to crack and the cracked shaft cause the sheeve side pulley bearing to go bad. The bearing was not torn up badly or seized in any way. It was at the point that it was just starting to come apart. These are duplex bearings with oblong cylindrical bearings that ride on tapered races and are adjusted at the bearing supplier and are not supposed to be touched. In looking at a good bearing I can see how they are designed to allow the drum shaft to float around without bearing failure.
Thanks-Howard

 

[equipmentguru]

Ouch

I know some inside info, but you are not going to like it. Typically when the drum bearings go out they damage the shaft. If you have a one piece drum and shaft you have 2 options. Replace the drum or repair it. To buy a new drum from Vermeer and have it installed you are looking at over $4,000. The new drum is very expensive. A cheaper alternative is to repair the drum. the drum shaft repairs I have had done typically cost about $1,000. The drum is taken to a machine shop and the shaft is machine down to a smaller diameter. Then they weld a sleeve over the shaft close to the diameter that it needs to be. Then they machine the shaft down to the proper size. It is recommended that a new bearing be taken to the machine shop so they have a reference. It sounds like that is what happened to you friends machine. It was probably poor machine work. I have seen many drum shaft be repairs that way and most of them have worked out ok. Vermeer does know about the issue and their solution is to replace the drum. The Vermeer dealers are going above and beyond to try and save the customers money by having the drum repaired. If you have the drum repaired again I would recommend installing new beariings at the same time. Good luck

 

[VA-Sawyer]

I am aware of the procedure for sleeving a shaft. There is a reason that Vermeer and the manufactures don't advise doing so. Welding changes the heat treatment of the shaft. They are welding a ring around the shaft next to the drum. Now you have a large rotating mass with a weak spot next to a high stress area. When it fails bad things can happen. You can be very sure that if someone gets killed, Vermeer will not be liable for the improper repair. Good luck trying to find and sue the repair shop. The dealer might be on the hook till they claim you wanted to do the cheap repair rather than a proper one. I've been down this path a few times with aviation. I would still try putting a little pressure on the dealer. Tell Vermeer what the dealer did on the repair. Would try to convert to the 2 part drum and shaft. This is a major safety item, so don't try to fix it with a band aid.
Rick