Some Splitter engineering thoughts

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preventec47

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I've had my Northern Tools 20 ton for 15 years and never a hicup in operation
except when I've tried some too tough stuff to split. The ole Briggs I/C engine
I feel is better than what they sell today.
Anyway I always thought there is a lot or fuel wasted and excess heat dissapated
because between wedge movement the motor is running faster than needed.
Sometimes you know you have to run off and fetch some wood or move it
all around to get the next piece to split and I think the engine ought to go down
to minimum idle until you lay your hand on the up down valve lever.

I guess the governors really cannot handle that much of a change in rpms so
I was thinking something like a motorcycle twist grip on the valve lever or
something even easier ... maybe electric with a solenoid so that when you
touch the lever it goes to hi throttle and then backs down when the
splitter wedge is sitting still.

I do all my splitting while sitting in front of the splitter in the vertical position
and was even thinking maybe I could rig up a foot pedal accelerator.
Just thinking out loud.

Also, considering my 20 ton stalls on some tough stuff, I have pondered the
idea where I could weld an extra heavy duty steel shelf somewhere near
the bottom of the cylinder so that when the wedge stalls out, I could grab
my trusty 20 ton bottle jack and insert it under the shelf and on top of
the stalled wedge for a little assistance.
... Maybe even fix the bottle jack on some kind of swivel
so it would swing up out of the way when not needed.

Right now if I need to assist my splitter , I have two steel wedges
and the head off a 16 pounds sledge hammer. Holding the sledge head
with both hands while seated I can hammer the wedge into the round
that is stalling the splitter. Action similar to a caveman splitting open
a coconut with a rock. I found accidentally it works better without the
handle after I broke the handle... I say works better only in the sense I
dont have to get off my stool to split the wood.

Of course I can deliver much large blows with handled sledge with
a great big swing and for that I can grab my other 8 pound sledge.
( with handle)
 
a year or so ago we talked about the throttle thing. some one suggested maybe a throttle hooked up to the control lever so that when you went to split, it would increase the RPM's. only problem is on the return stroke it would slow down.

most of the gas engines are designed to run at full throttle anyways and you won't be saving that much in gas. besides, the up and down RPM's would probably drive you nuts after a while.

if your splitter is stalling out, maybe more HP from the engine would help? maybe a different pump? maybe a bigger splitter?
 
Sharpen the wedge?

Maybe get some fast easy improvements just by taking a grinder to it.

I agree on the briggs I/C, serious long lasting power, very robust and cheap at the same time engines.
 
Well let me tell you how my splitter works.

Engine starts and runs at idle. Throw the lever forward (you don’t have to hold it), engine automatically accelerates and ram extends. When ram reaches the end of its stroke the lever automatically flops to the retract position and ram automatically retracts. When the ram stops moving the lever automatically returns to neutral position and the engine automatically returns to idle speed. How far the ram retracts is set by simply loosening a thumb screw and sliding the little lock collar to the desired position on a rod that follows the ram. So if I’m splitting 16-inch rounds I just set the ram to only return about 18-inches instead of the full retract distance.

So to recap…
1) I set a round on the idling splitter.
2) I push the lever forward and let go of the lever.
3) I turn away to grab another round.
3) The engine automatically accelerates and splits the round.
4) Ram automatically retracts, but only as far as I have preset it.
5) Engine automatically returns to idle.
6) By now I have the next round ready to set on the splitter.
7) Repeat 1 through 6.

I seriously don't understand why anyone would want a splitter that requires holding a lever to split, or required manual retraction of the ram, or one that wouldn't return to idle when the ram was at rest.
 
Well let me tell you how my splitter works.

So to recap…
1) I set a round on the idling splitter.
2) I push the lever forward and let go of the lever.
3) I turn away to grab another round.
3) The engine automatically accelerates and splits the round.
4) Ram automatically retracts, but only as far as I have preset it.
5) Engine automatically returns to idle.
6) By now I have the next round ready to set on the splitter.
7) Repeat 1 through 6.

Wow! That sounds ideal. Is this one you build/modified to run this way or can one be bought set up like this? I have a Huskey 22 Ton, just wondering if I can mod it to run like this.
 
Well let me tell you how my splitter works.

Engine starts and runs at idle. Throw the lever forward (you don’t have to hold it), engine automatically accelerates and ram extends. When ram reaches the end of its stroke the lever automatically flops to the retract position and ram automatically retracts. When the ram stops moving the lever automatically returns to neutral position and the engine automatically returns to idle speed. How far the ram retracts is set by simply loosening a thumb screw and sliding the little lock collar to the desired position on a rod that follows the ram. So if I’m splitting 16-inch rounds I just set the ram to only return about 18-inches instead of the full retract distance.

So to recap…
1) I set a round on the idling splitter.
2) I push the lever forward and let go of the lever.
3) I turn away to grab another round.
3) The engine automatically accelerates and splits the round.
4) Ram automatically retracts, but only as far as I have preset it.
5) Engine automatically returns to idle.
6) By now I have the next round ready to set on the splitter.
7) Repeat 1 through 6.

I seriously don't understand why anyone would want a splitter that requires holding a lever to split, or required manual retraction of the ram, or one that wouldn't return to idle when the ram was at rest.

nice set up.

was this bought or made?
 
Well that is the way splitters should work. On my Northern Tool splitter
I was thinking the quickest easiest fix might be some way to block the
return of the wedge all the way when I am splitting 16 inch logs and
the ram is retracting the full 24 inches. Since I can stop the retraction
midway and push down again, I assume it is not necessary for the
ram to be fully retracted before the extension action is invoked.

I was thinking of some kind of steel plate that I could drill a hole and bolt
onto the I beam perhaps to create a slight return restriction. Could save
10 or 12 seconds maybe on every split where I fail to halt the full retraction
of the wedge.
 
The splitter is 20+ years old, not homemade or modified in any way. They still make them in a little town about 30 miles from me in Marble Rock, Iowa. They call them Log Boss Wood Splitters. They don't look anything like splitters you're used to seeing; almost everything is fabricated, including the valve. There isn't an exterior hydraulic tank, "the beam" is tubular and doubles as the tank. All the hydraulic lines are steel welded... welded to the valve, welded to the cylinder... there's only one short (maybe 8-inches) pressure hose from the pump to one of the steel lines going to the valve. They claim to use all aluminum alloy seals in the cylinder that allows pressures as high as 8000 lbs., which means a small diameter cylinder can be used (the outside diameter of mine is a mere 3-inches). The ram has a 25-inch stroke, but the beam is only 42-inches... just the front 6-8 inches of the cylinder is attached the the beam, the rest just hangs in mid air. At the time I bought mine they made a (rated) 15-ton with a 5 HP engine and a (rated) 18-ton with a 7 HP engine, mine is the 18-ton... I don't know what their specs are now. The thing about their rated tonnage is it isn't done with mathematics, it was actually measured. I've watched my splitter power through stuff that a 22-ton "big box store" splitter could not handle. I split "standing dead" elm all winter, rounds as large as 24-inches and a lot of crotches... only one crotch stalled the motor, but restarting the engine finished the job. For really large rounds you just loosen a wing nut and the whole beam, cylinder and valve tip to the side (so the wedge is horizontal instead of vertical) and you just roll the round up against the beam. In over 20-years and (guessing) some 2000 cords of firewood, the only thing I've needed to do is replace the o-rings in the valve once and just change the engine oil occasionally. And this spring I put a carb kit and a head gasket in the engine, but it was still running and splitting wood. I didn't get the high-speed tires option because I do all near all my splitting in my wood lot here at home... but at only 200-lbs, both Dad and I have loaded it in the back of a pickup by ourselves many times... you just stand it up on the wedge and set the wheels in the box. My 3-year-old can roll it around in the garage without a grunt.

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If you look at those pictures again you notice two unique things.

1) The wedge has a slight flare-out on the top. The flare holds the wood down against the beam.

2) That tiny circular push plate is cast aluminum and has ridges cast into it, it also floats. Rounds do not have to be cut square, the plate bites into even severely angled cuts and pushes the wood straight through.

I should also mention that the full 25-inch cycle time is about 10 seconds.
 
As far as the engine control if you look at the newer northern splitters some of the models have a throttle linkage that kicks the engine rpm down when the wedge is all the way in the retract position...
 
Well that is the way splitters should work. On my Northern Tool splitter
I was thinking the quickest easiest fix might be some way to block the
return of the wedge all the way when I am splitting 16 inch logs
and
the ram is retracting the full 24 inches. Since I can stop the retraction
midway and push down again, I assume it is not necessary for the
ram to be fully retracted before the extension action is invoked.

I was thinking of some kind of steel plate that I could drill a hole and bolt
onto the I beam perhaps to create a slight return restriction. Could save
10 or 12 seconds maybe on every split where I fail to halt the full retraction
of the wedge.

Here's what ya need, Grip-Rite | Cylinder Depth Stop | Stroke Control for Farm Equipment Any farm equipment dealer should have them or a similar style in stock. You just need to know the rod size of your cylinder when buying.
 
It's kind'a hard to see in the cropped and modified picture but, the black arrow is pointing to the thumb screw and collar that adjust how far the ram retracts and the white arrow is pointing to the wing nut that allows the beam and cylinder to lay over on its side for large rounds.

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