Kellog Impact Splitter Update

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kellog

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This is an update for some of you and for some it will be new. Attached are URLs for pictures of the Kellog Impact Splitter both with and without the protective cover.

http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u230/kelsmi/IMG_1202.jpg
http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u230/kelsmi/IMG_1206.jpg
http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u230/kelsmi/IMG_1208.jpg
http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u230/kelsmi/IMG_1209.jpg

Improvements made since you last saw the design are:
- flywheels are now mounted symmetrically to the I-beam and the motor is mounted off center.
- forward drive belt is now using a ball bearing belt tensioner instead of being attached to the main shaft pulley (this improves the life of the belt)
- new metal cover was made improving the safety, noise level and appearance of the unit

For those new to this concept below is a description of the advantages, disadvantages, principle (how it works), and safety features. I would appreciate any comments, pro or con, to help improve this machine.

Why an Impact Splitter?
If you want to break something effectively, you HIT it. You break a window with a hammer, you knock down a building with a wrecking ball, you break up concrete with a jackhammer, and so on. Splitting wood is breaking wood. Splitting by hand you would either use a maul or a sledge & wedges which both rely on impact.

Think of putting a nail into a piece of wood. You either hammer it in or you use a nail gun which uses impact. You would never even think to PUSH the nail into a piece of wood. Why push a wedge into wood to split it?

If someone were to set up the rounds, most healthy men could split a cord an hour with a maul. A man cannot develop more than half a horsepower. Why does a splitter need much more power? The answer is, it doesn’t.

Advantages of the Impact Splitter.
- Almost no maintenance (clean & grease and very occasional belt and chain tightening)
- No fluids of any kind needed (zero leaks, no engine oil, no hydraulic fluid)
- Starts first time, every time in any weather (must have a 110 volt 15 amp circuit)
- You don’t have to stop to gas up (saves time and $$$)
- You can split in the garage or barn (no cold wind, rain or snow in there)
- Large forces do not build up in the machine (avoids kick outs & violent breaks and the structure of the machine can be lighter)
- Very quiet except when actually splitting (a few seconds per log)
- Speed can be changed to suit the user (change one sprocket and the length of a roller chain)
- Maintenance and Repairs are very intuitive for the “backyard mechanic” (most people cannot effectively troubleshoot hydraulics)
- Safe (as safe as any splitter can be)

Disadvantages of the Impact Splitter.
- Splitting in the woods or away from electrical power requires a gasoline engine which negates a few of the advantages of the electric version of the splitter
- Splitting a very, very knotty piece of wood may require more energy than the flywheels and electric motor can supply at one time meaning that more than one shot at the log will be needed (a 1 to 4 second pause to bring the flywheels back up to speed is needed on a low percentage of rounds)
- When actually splitting, the noise level is relatively high. There is almost no noise when not actually splitting. The sudden change in noise level disturbs some people. (Hearing protection such as chain saw ear muffs should be used to mitigate this problem)

How does it work?
The principle is very much like a jackhammer however the machine is much simpler without the need for a large energy-hogging compressor.

A shaft supported on two bearings with a flywheel at each end is rotated by a small gasoline or electric motor at 600+ RPM. Eccentrically mounted on the shaft in the middle is a needle roller type cam follower. As the shaft rotates, the cam follower strikes the wedge giving a very powerful, short stroke, pulse to the wedge. This happens every revolution of the shaft, 600+ times a minute or 10+ times a second. The shaft and its housing along with the wedge move together down the I-beam and the wedge is pounded through the log.

The “impact” is what breaks the log. Because of the stored energy in the flywheels and the use of the very efficient impact principle, a very small motor can power this machine and get the same effectiveness as a much larger horsepower hydraulic unit. The low power requirement creates more flexibility in powering the unit. A 110 volt fractional horsepower electric motor becomes a very practical power source. The pictured splitter uses a 3/4 horsepower electric motor. Prototypes have effectively split with as little as 1/3 horsepower. A small gasoline engine could also be used.

To the operator, the impact splitter works just like a hydraulic splitter. Place the log on it, pull the handle forward, the large screw turns and moves the whole mechanism along the I-beam. The wedge gets successively hammered through the log. Let go of the handle and it stops moving. Push back on the handle and the screw turns in the other direction moving the whole mechanism back along the I-beam. The large screw needs very little torque driving it as it is only moving the mechanism which is on rollers. You can turn the screw easily by hand to split wood.

The speed of the movement can be varied by changing one sprocket and its roller chain length. Since the splitting mechanism runs at 10+ “hits” per second, the unit can run quite fast. Running any splitter very fast can, however, be dangerous as you have no room for error.

Safety.
This machine has a full cover over all the rotating/moving parts except the wedge (for obvious reasons the wedge must be exposed). There is little chance of getting into the rotating parts of the equipment and being injured.

Log splitters create a large number of pinching accidents each year where a poorly placed finger or hand is pinched between the log and the wedge or the log and the pusher/stop.

A unique safety feature is built into this machine. The wedge is spring loaded away from the main housing and the cam follower such that it has to move some distance before the cam follower contacts the wedge. If you have a poorly placed finger or hand, it will get pinched by the spring force which gives 20 to 40 lbs of force. This hurts and you pull the offending appendage out of harms way “automatically” prior to the full impact (many tons).

A patent could have been applied for on this spring loaded wedge safety device but it was not. I believe any safety device should not be patented but rather left in the public domain for all to use. I hope log splitter manufacturers incorporate this safety device into their machinery to protect all of us.
 
Sometimes a piece of wood will "stick" to the wedge on my splitter. Does not split all the way, is half split. I need to retract the wedge and the wood then hits guards on the ram end of the splitter which separates the wood from the wedge.

This might be with a 24" diameter (or larger) piece of wood. It will split 1/2, then I need to rotate it to get the other side.

Then I was splitting some cut many years ago very dried out maple. It would tend to crack and the pieces go flying. I learned to slowly advance the wedge so the pieces would not go flying.
 
Sure they would.:laugh:




All the operator would have to do is place the hydraulic valve in neutral for a little bit letting the angular momentum build up in the flywheel and then hit the handle again. Hydraulic splitters only need peak power for short periods of time. One disadvantage would be that the operator would have to be in tune with the engine and not hold the pressure on until engine stall. In other words the operator would need to learn how to 'pump' the handle. Of course an automatic circuit that would 'unload' the engine as RPM dropped and load it again as RPM was gained would be better than pumping the handle.

and that would require a frigging huge flywheel to keep the momemtum for single split or fapping the splitter all day long... i vote for no

:buttkick:
 
Looks like a super splitter design just more complicated. If it works as a good as a super splitter it will be a great machine.

Scott
 
Billy Bob,

You have some good points.

The point on the 24" and larger rounds that can stick on the wedge because they are only split half way thru is certainly a good one. On a round of that size I usually do not go right down the middle but rather take pieces off the sides until the piece is small enough to split down the middle without sticking. This avoids getting stuck on the wedge. It takes more strokes but the strokes can be faster. I may need to design something to handle this situation if people were to be unhappy with the method I use.

As far as the very dry old maple issue, a hydraulic splitter tends to let the pressure build up until the wood pops which can be at a very high pressure. This gives a violent break.

The Impact Splitter pops it a small amount at a time (10+ hits /min) then relieves the pressure so there is less of a tendency to make a big pop. A little be safer for these kinds of rounds.
 
STLfirewood,

The super splitter is a very good design. I think the guy who designed did a very good job balancing all the competing criteria from an engineering standpoint. If I had not made the Impact Splitter I might have bought a super splitter. However it has few drawbacks.

First it has to run fast. The pinion can only be so small and you have to have enough shaft RPM to keep the flywheels moving. The result is the rack has to move relativley fast. This may be good for productivity but not for safety. Most rental companies will not rent out a super splitter because they are too dangerous for the average person. There is no way to slow it down enough.

Secondly, I recently went to review a super splitter and found that the machine has a unusually large amount of "kick outs" from rounds that were not straight or not cut at a 90 deg angle (out of square ends). Thisis an unsafe conditon. I believe it was because the pusher is very small however I am not sure. There should be a way to design this issue out of the machine.

Thirdly the super splitter I reviewed was unsafe mechanically. It was an older machine and maybe they have updated the cover and these issues. Anyway the machine I reviewed actually had the flywheels sticking out of the cover an inch or two. There are many areas where you could get a hand or finger into the mechanism. OSHA would have had a field day with that machine. A better cover would likely fix this issue.

Finally, although the super splitter uses the momentum of the flywheels it does not use impact along with it. It is still PUSHING the wedge thru the log.

Don't get me wrong, I still think the super splitter is a good machine but it still as some areas for improvement if it is to be used by the general public.
 
STLfirewood,

The super splitter is a very good design. I think the guy who designed did a very good job balancing all the competing criteria from an engineering standpoint. If I had not made the Impact Splitter I might have bought a super splitter. However it has few drawbacks.

First it has to run fast. The pinion can only be so small and you have to have enough shaft RPM to keep the flywheels moving. The result is the rack has to move relativley fast. This may be good for productivity but not for safety. Most rental companies will not rent out a super splitter because they are too dangerous for the average person. There is no way to slow it down enough.

You right I wouldn't want to rent it to the average Joe. I don't think it's dangerous but you do have to pay attention. You can;t use it anddrink beer like you can a Hydrulic splitter. But them again you can rent a chainsaw,bobcat,backhoe,trencher,and so on maybewe just expect o litle from people or everyone is sue happy. I think it's both.

Secondly, I recently went to review a super splitter and found that the machine has a unusually large amount of "kick outs" from rounds that were not straight or not cut at a 90 deg angle (out of square ends). Thisis an unsafe conditon. I believe it was because the pusher is very small however I am not sure. There should be a way to design this issue out of the machine.

You are right again you have to read the wood a little more. After you use the machine a while it becomes second nature to avoid most kick outs. But I have never had a violent kick out. The push pad does need to be bigger.


Thirdly the super splitter I reviewed was unsafe mechanically. It was an older machine and maybe they have updated the cover and these issues. Anyway the machine I reviewed actually had the flywheels sticking out of the cover an inch or two. There are many areas where you could get a hand or finger into the mechanism. OSHA would have had a field day with that machine. A better cover would likely fix this issue.

I see what you mean but I have never even come close to having an issue with this. And you right again that wouldn't be hard to fix

Finally, although the super splitter uses the momentum of the flywheels it does not use impact along with it. It is still PUSHING the wedge thru the log.

Don't get me wrong, I still think the super splitter is a good machine but it still as some areas for improvement if it is to be used by the general public.

I don't think guys cutting 15plus cords a year are the general public. I think that is who the Super Splitter is aimed at. I do this this is hands down the best machine on the market for guys doing 15 plus cords a year. It's cheap and pretty much maintence free. Mine is 5 years old and has just had oil changes. I really hope your machine can prove to be faster and better then the super splitter. I'm always looking for something to help me. Good luck and I like everyone else want to see a video.

Scott
 
very very creative.
turn it around. i want to put logs on and throw them off the end and proceed forward.

your logic is very good. it is really interesting to figure out how often a log splitter engine runs wiht no load. storing the energy is a great idea.
 
Probably a stupid question

Could you expalin why it makes a lot more noise when it is actually under load. What horsepower or more importantly I guess what amperage is that motor? The thing looks very well done and like all of the others, I look forward to the video.
 
I hate to be the guy to bring this up, but I don't see "Arboristsite Sponsor" under your name and this appears to be a commercial post advertising your machine. Maybe I'm missing something.

Ian
 
NWnewguy,

As the cam follower strikes the wedge you hear a loud metal to metal contact. At 10 times a second it is somewhat like a jackhammer. It is not as loud as a jackhammer because the jackhammer is faster and has the addition of compressed air rushing in and out. Of course the noise only happens when actually splitting as there is no contact between he wedge and the cam follower when not splitting.

The 3/4 hp electric motor is 12.5 amps at full load. Of course it is a bit more at start up and a bit less when not splitting.
 
Haywire,

You are right the original post sounds like an advertisement. However you cannot buy one of these splitters. Do I dream of selling some someday? Sure. Is it easy for the average guy to get into the log splitter business? No Way. There are large barriers to entry; manufacturing lines, suppliers, insurance, etc., etc.

I have made 5 machines of this design including concept prototypes mostly by hand in my garage. I still have them all. I am retired so I have the time to do this.

Why do I post about this machine on this forum? You guys are the experts on log splitting and I get really good ideas for improvement of the machine. If I were to start selling them someday, it would be good if it were designed so you guys would buy them (and I would be an Arboristsite sponsor). Secondly, I like to encourage people to think of ways to do things better and SAFER. I think you all know I am a stickler for safety.

Based on the above, if the forum leaders deem this is an inappropriate use of the forum I will stop the discussion.
 
DRmiller100,

Could turn it around: bang a pusher and have the wedge welded to the I-beam. The way it is now likely gives the most effective splitting as the wedge get hit directly. The other way the elasticity of the log absorbs some of the hit. Might work well though. I'll put that on the to-do list. Thanks for the input.
 
Freedom to share Ideas

It's what sets the internet apart from any other media form.

I am a small sponsor and pray that exchange of ideas and insights will never become stifled because of the highest paying sponsor.

A good idea is a good idea and innovation never comes from large companies any longer.

kellog just some quick questions.

Is there a reason to have the flywheels so far apart?

IE are you using torsional effect of the shaft to accentuate hammer strike of the cam?

Also I am having a hard time visualizing how the cover works when in use.

Perhaps for now just some still shots of the unit in action?

There are a lot of advantages of your design over any of the current electric over hydraulic units available.

Also document EVERYTHING you do PRECISELY to protect your own ideas.

Patents are expensive and many times are hijacked to the originators loss.

You have something here..........please stick with it.
 
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