Spencer logging tape repair service?

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newforest

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I used to work with a Spencer tape on my hip every day that got so much use it would wear through the belt attachment loop thing and fall off eventually. (Running planting crews).

The guy I worked for would gather up all our abused tapes every 3 years or so and send them off somewhere for refurbishment. I thought he sent them to Spencer.

Now, I can’t discover any online evidence of such a service. Pacforest Supply has never heard of one either. Spencer doesn’t seem to be a company that wants contact from the public.

But I would like to send out a box of tapes for parts replacement and repair, all in one go, by someone who does it routinely. Does anyone still offer such a service?

I could probably get through tape replacement with YouTube holding my hand. But I’m not too fired up to try spring replacement.
 
I used to work with a Spencer tape on my hip every day that got so much use it would wear through the belt attachment loop thing and fall off eventually. (Running planting crews).

The guy I worked for would gather up all our abused tapes every 3 years or so and send them off somewhere for refurbishment. I thought he sent them to Spencer.

Now, I can’t discover any online evidence of such a service. Pacforest Supply has never heard of one either. Spencer doesn’t seem to be a company that wants contact from the public.

But I would like to send out a box of tapes for parts replacement and repair, all in one go, by someone who does it routinely. Does anyone still offer such a service?

I could probably get through tape replacement with YouTube holding my hand. But I’m not too fired up to try spring replacement.
I do most of my own repairs, but I get the parts from our local Saw shop, and they do a hand full every year for other folks.

as for online sources try Madsens.com, if anything they can get you parts, not much to em as for repairs, set of planetary gears, big whopping spring, tape refills, and various screws and stand offs, last I checked all the parts are available individually.

most difficult part to work on is the spring, just cause its kind of a bear to wind back up and put back in its place, more often then not someone walks off the end and bends the anealed end so it doesn't hook the shaft anymore... which if your careful is fairly easy to reshape so it works again, that or the gears get stripped

bout the only tool needed is a standard flat screw driver, same one for adjusting carburetors, maybe some needle nosed pliers

Madhat has done considerably more rebuilds on these then I have and is probably a better source for parts.
 
Now if you just need a new tape, its pretty easy,

pull out old tape until end is visible, secure the bobbin (a spring type clamp is handy, but fingers will do) loosen the retaining screw and wiggle the dead tape off (do no remove the screw all the way, its a real bastard to put back in)

leaving one band of tape on the new refill (you'll see) free the end up and work it onto the retaining screw (takes some patience and skill) tighten retaining screw

slip the replacement tape in yer pocket, and undo the last bit of tape securing it, let the spencer suck in as much as it will. make sure to line it up with the rubbery bushing so it feeds nicely while hanging on yer belt, or 180deg from the belt hook.

loosen the screws around the blue (or embossed on older tapes) side only, tighten it clock wise until the refill sucks all the back in on its own. tighten the screws around the perimeter.

may take a couple tries to get the tape to retract all the way, and still have enough come out, but its not difficult.

as for the "shoe nail", clamp pointy end in a vice, slip the tape ring over the hood in the premade nail, whack with a hammer until its all smashed down... pliers for this operation are pointless, a good bench vise and a hammer are the only way lol
 
I don't recall ever sending them away for repair. There was usually somebody around who could try to fix them if we couldn't do our own. The worst thing is having the spring sprong off, 'specially when you are out in the woods. Or losing the tiny screw. If you do find somebody to work on it, you might want to see if you can buy some spare parts like that screw, and the screws that hold the sides together at tension.

Dunno if you use the horseshoe nail, but that's another part to have if you do. Then of course, a spare tape. The tape likes to be wiped down with WD40 every once in a while. That will clean off the pitch as well as keep the tape happy.

We used to race our tapes on those days when a unit was finished and we had a little bit of spare time. Don't put your eye out!
 
I have 3 tapes to fix up &/or rebuild completely. I will get around to ordering all the various little parts for each one eventually. I will put a nail on one for pulling log lengths; a loop end on one for pulling off a bolt on the side of a shovel handle (new shovel still needs bolt right now, but my local welder went belly up recently) for doing circle plots on planting sites; and a hook/claw end on one for pure diameter work. So I gotta lotta orderin' to do. These do strike me as an ideal item to have a "core charge" on. Though most people live in a disposable world, I tend to look at that as a last resort.

But then I also currently have to take a headlight out of my truck and rebuild/replace a cracked windshield wiper fluid reservoir underneath that - which I discovered just after replacing the headlight and happening to look in there and see it was empty. The new gallon of fluid promptly all flowed down on to the driveway 15 minutes after I tightened the last bit of hardware on the headlight that controls replacement access to it, and had to have the battery removed to access the headlight. And I have some brush saws to rebuild, and some new racks to build for a second kiln, and some screen scraps to build frames around, and a laptop to clean up and make extra back-ups of, and I am dumb enough to do my own taxes, and.....the snow will be gone before I know it, looks like.
 
I have 3 tapes to fix up &/or rebuild completely. I will get around to ordering all the various little parts for each one eventually. I will put a nail on one for pulling log lengths; a loop end on one for pulling off a bolt on the side of a shovel handle (new shovel still needs bolt right now, but my local welder went belly up recently) for doing circle plots on planting sites; and a hook/claw end on one for pure diameter work. So I gotta lotta orderin' to do. These do strike me as an ideal item to have a "core charge" on. Though most people live in a disposable world, I tend to look at that as a last resort.

But then I also currently have to take a headlight out of my truck and rebuild/replace a cracked windshield wiper fluid reservoir underneath that - which I discovered just after replacing the headlight and happening to look in there and see it was empty. The new gallon of fluid promptly all flowed down on to the driveway 15 minutes after I tightened the last bit of hardware on the headlight that controls replacement access to it, and had to have the battery removed to access the headlight. And I have some brush saws to rebuild, and some new racks to build for a second kiln, and some screen scraps to build frames around, and a laptop to clean up and make extra back-ups of, and I am dumb enough to do my own taxes, and.....the snow will be gone before I know it, looks like.
If you can handle a screw driver, spencer tapes aren't to bad to work on, and the parts are cheap for the most part, unless you start tearing up cases and big internal stuff, think replacemnt tapes are like $10? $15 for the 75'

I do know a guy that still has the rivet tool for replacing just the ends... some day I'll talk him out of it, since I'm about the only one that still replaces ends vs a whole new tape. (to be fair I'm probably the only one around here running a 75' on a regular basis so replacing the ends is cost effective)
 
The most common damage done while timber cruising is running out the tape and ripping the last bit out of the reel. It's a pretty easy fix--later with hammer and something to make a new hole available. I don't think this is such a bad problem anymore what with lasers being used for height measurements.
 
oooh how I want one of those rivet tools. If I buy one though, I will feel compelled to brag on having it and then people will all wanna hand me their tape to fix. but those same people are people that hire me for jobs. hmmmmmm.
 
oooh how I want one of those rivet tools. If I buy one though, I will feel compelled to brag on having it and then people will all wanna hand me their tape to fix. but those same people are people that hire me for jobs. hmmmmmm.
They tain't cheap, or easy to find. Last one I found was over $200 used. and its a one trick pony so?
 
My 2 cents likely 2 bits now days in extending the service life of any steel tape
even new out of the wrapper is to run them out and apply an automotive car wax
Turtle Hard Shell is a favorite. Even new will slick & speed them up, then reapply as needed.
In a welding / fabricating environment or excavating trench depth etc. the grinding
grit, metal shavings, mud, dust ....you get the picture.
 
You can still buy the rivet tool for $55 new, and a bag of 500 rivets to use with it for $12 more. I will probably end up there eventually. A fair bit more, with all the other parts I need right now, than just simply buying one brand new tape and doing everything I need with just that.
 
I have seen a large amount of busted tape left in the woods. Riveting must not be easy or cheap.

Steel tape doesn't burn up either--just so you know before you throw it in the slash pile and bury it.

Have also seen a major chewing out, including the hardhat flinging tantrum, when a faller with an incorrectly spliced tape screwed up the measurements on some logs that were to be special custom cut and sold. That was not a happy day for those folks.
 
I have seen a large amount of busted tape left in the woods. Riveting must not be easy or cheap.

Steel tape doesn't burn up either--just so you know before you throw it in the slash pile and bury it.

Have also seen a major chewing out, including the hardhat flinging tantrum, when a faller with an incorrectly spliced tape screwed up the measurements on some logs that were to be special custom cut and sold. That was not a happy day for those folks.
Its pretty easy, and the ends and rivets are cheap, but a refill tape is $8 for a 50' so its really not worth it for most folks, so not many are set up to do it.

the 75' tape is like $15 a new end around $5

the rivets are itty bitty little things, and the tool special made for/by Spencer is a 2 in one deal, pokes the holes and squirshes the rivets, Not many rivet tools are set up like that.

Some due diligence is necessary when putting a new end on, as its pretty damned easy to botch it and ruin literally hundreds of logs, and understand that a log tape is by no means an accurate measuring device at the best of times, but you do need to be accurate to within an inch or so

Generally I get one new end and then replace the tape, sometimes if I catch it in time I can reuse the replacement end a few times as the steel part of the tapes will break at the riveted joint, so I leave the new end extra long first time out then keep trimming it a little shorter until its no more. Best to go in 1' or 6" steps though, keeps things simple It starts out at 18" ish

Squirsh (Skwe-ur-sh) to flatten with force, causing much deformation, to force fit a malleable object into a place it should not go, So me and Joby gave Bill a squirsh and got his fat butt to fit in the back of Jan's beetle. See also : Squish and Squash
 
Its pretty easy, and the ends and rivets are cheap, but a refill tape is $8 for a 50' so its really not worth it for most folks, so not many are set up to do it.

the 75' tape is like $15 a new end around $5

the rivets are itty bitty little things, and the tool special made for/by Spencer is a 2 in one deal, pokes the holes and squirshes the rivets, Not many rivet tools are set up like that.

Some due diligence is necessary when putting a new end on, as its pretty damned easy to botch it and ruin literally hundreds of logs, and understand that a log tape is by no means an accurate measuring device at the best of times, but you do need to be accurate to within an inch or so

Generally I get one new end and then replace the tape, sometimes if I catch it in time I can reuse the replacement end a few times as the steel part of the tapes will break at the riveted joint, so I leave the new end extra long first time out then keep trimming it a little shorter until its no more. Best to go in 1' or 6" steps though, keeps things simple It starts out at 18" ish

Squirsh (Skwe-ur-sh) to flatten with force, causing much deformation, to force fit a malleable object into a place it should not go, So me and Joby gave Bill a squirsh and got his fat butt to fit in the back of Jan's beetle. See also : Squish and Squash
This was done after you swarped the unit.
 

Rivet tool is available new from Forestry Suppliers in Mississippi (they merged with Ben Meadows a few years back now; massive catalog).


Have been living with a "minus one foot" on my length tape for quite a while now (or is it 13" - I'll have to grab a yard stick to check), with a variety of MacGuyver type ends on it whenever the chewing gum fails again. Usually forget the missing foot once per morning, but not trying to use it for veneer log lengths, just reforestation plots. But then since none of my customers nor their Foresters nor any NRCS agent understands how or why to do a density plot (or what all the little natural seedlings inside such a plot might mean; those are invisible to everyone but me), I sometimes wonder how much I really need a tape for planting work any more. "Green side up" is all that counts for the vast majority of customers.

A guy I mark Pine for sometimes never takes his diameter tape out of the truck any more either.
 
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