skidsteer log splitter

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Evan

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im thinking about building one of these. i have axces to i beams and all the steel to fab up a similar set up. i also have bobcat with hi flow hydro, i think if i can a get ram and valve ill be set. hoses will probly cost the most out of everything.
 
I had a buddy who had one but it was upside down and could be run from inside the cab with the AC or heat going, it worked great but I would rather put the hours on a $400 engine than a $4000 engine. :)
 
Evan,You likely won't need the hi flow.If I were you,I'd build it,and if you decide later you want to make it a fully self contained unit,you can cut the beam off the SS mounting plate,add an axle,honda knock off engine,and pump/tank,and free it from the machine.I built mine for a specific purpose of splitting large rounds that couldn't be handled by one person or with out a machine ,into sizes that would fit in my OWB.Most times, I'm able to split over the dump trailer,and the pieces drop right in,saving another step. I wouldn't use mine to split normal sized wood,like was mentioned it simply costs too much per hour to operate,service,and maintain a skid steer to make it worth it.
I'll tell you one other thing I learned, overbuild the beam BIG time. I used a 6x8", 28lbs per foot,and reinforced it heavily.The beam shown in the pic,my cyl would bend that thing like a pretzel first big knot it hit.I still tweaked it splitting a 48" round of oak,I had to use the porta power,and heat to get it back,then add even more bracing.My Cat SS puts out 3400PSI,coupled with a 5" cylinder,it will literally sheer most trees of you want too. My brother owns a custom cycle shop,andh as a flowjet and CNC machinery,so he cut out all the cylinder mounts,and beam plates for me.If you want any pics of what I did,pm me.
If you build it as well as you port a 359,it should split wood like crazy!:greenchainsaw:
 
hey thanks for the 359 complement, i realy dont know how well my 359 runs i havent had anything to compare it to. blsnelling , timberwolf and others here should get the credit for my 359 i didnt know what i was doing and they helped alot.

i was thinkn to use the skidsteer because it save money in the short run on a pump and engine to run the pump. ive noticed some big excavator rams for sale localy and i was eyeing them. the beam i was wondering about how big to make it as strong as possible.

thanks for the heads up, any yeah i hate maintence but i have to do it. i do all the work from running our equipment to maintence and repairs theres been quite few nights where i stay up all night so that the dump truck can go to work in the morning. aswell as the backhoe, stuff just breaks often in this line of work. well when were worknin its breakn and we havent realy worked in few months.

i want to be able to split realy big stuff
 
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i want to be able to split realy big stuff

So why dont you build it so you can use it from the seat,so you can break up the big rounds down to managable sizes,then you can hop out,and do the rest by hand.I was going to do this to mine,but got short on time,and needed to split my wood more than I needed to be able to run it from outside.
Mine is set up so, i can easily bolt a hinge between the beam,and main connectoing bar,and flip it up,so its at normal height.An additional set of lines,with the splitter valve on them would be all thats needed.If you copy the one in the picture,put a 180 swivel on it,so it can face down or up,depending on how your using it.If you use a 2" receiver,it will work as well,but you will have to remove it,handle the weight of it flipping it,and reinstall it.
Ive found i use mine as intended,and no more,once the wood is down to size where i can handle it,I drop it in the trailer w the splitter.Once its stacked in my wood pile, i keep an axe there, i can cut it smaller by hand if needed from there.
 

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