Tension Meter

Simmons suggests setting blade tension with a tension meter each time you put a new blade on or perform machine maintenance. This will reduce your operating costs in several ways: increased blade life, increased production time and reduced machine maintenance costs. Blades that are over tensioned can become stressed and may start showing signs of premature fatigue in the form of cracks on the back edge of the blade or in the gullet area between the teeth. Over tensioning will also start to pull the blade apart and will cause premature wear on the drive wheels and bearings. At the other end of the spectrum, too little tension on a blade can cause cracking along the back edge or a mushrooming effect along the back edge of the blade. This is caused by the blade being pushed back into the blade guide(s) as it is cutting the product.