Project Almighty Splitter, the turbocharged logsplitter!

[mga]

also for anybody who is reading this that is going to design an oil tank, you want about 1/3 of the tank volume to be air space to allow for tank venting, and to help the air separate from the oil. this also helps prevent oil spillage.. one gallon is 231 cubic inch too...

true. when i designed mine, i ran the return line down to about an inch off the bottom of the tank. the suction opening is about 1" off the bottom so as to not draw any particles that might be in there.

the baffle is in the center and stands about 3/4 of the height of the tank. the two bottom corners are cut away about an inch or so. the baffle does a great job of preventing the oil from swishing around and it definately keeps air bubbles out of the system. when running, if i remove the filler cap, i can watch the oil flowing over the top of the baffle and there is no turbulence at all inside the tank.

as for cooling the oil, i was thinking of running a 24" piece of base board heating element on the return line. since there is very little pressure here, it should hold up and the fins should dissipate heat. but, that's a winter project......

 

[CylinderService]

I like MGA's idea for a simple cooler - never tried it though.
The amount of heat you'll need to deal with is often expressed as Hp, and is calculated as a percentage of the input Hp. 25% is a common assumption, but your flow control will add to it, depending on the percent of flow diverted.
A cooler's effectiveness is related to its size and the volume of oil running through it of course, but also importantly to the amount and temperature of the air blowing through it. You should try for 150 degrees F as a final temp.
A good shroud which forces the air directly through the fins makes a big difference, preventing the air from blowing around the cooler. I had a customer once who went through a $1200 pump every 6 months until they put the shroud back on the cooler!
Tank design: I often recommend making a long rectangular tank with a baffle running the long way. Both the in and out ports are in the same end of the tank, but on opposite sides of the baffle, 1 -2 inches from the bottom. The return hole must be near the bottom - if it comes in above the oil level, air will be churned into the oil. The holes in the baffle are only on the other end, so the oil has to run to the other end of the tank and back before it gets back to the suction port. (It doesn't usually go over the top of the baffle) If the filler hole is in the center, you'll have less of a sloshing problem.
I don't think you'll have any air in the oil from the flow control - there shouldn't be any source of air, and good oil shouldn't have many volatile compounds that an ordinary tank wouldn't let settle out. I wouldn't bother with a separator unless you find it necessary after trying it out. I think heat is a much more likely issue.


Don

 

[drmiller100]

for a really stupid, simple cooler, build the oil tank such that you ahve a container on top that holds water, and shares a tank wall with the return oil.

or, to visualize, a giant bowl as the top fo the oil tank full of water. when it starts boiling, you know it has reached 220, and it takes a LOT of heat to boil any significant amount of water.

 

[CylinderService]

I foresee 2 problems with such a cooler:

1. a single steel wall will transmit heat, but probably not at a sufficient rate to remove it from the oil as fast as it is being produced by an inefficient system. That's why commercial coolers use lots of small tubes & fins, to increase the metal surface area.

2. water certainly does absorb a lot of heat to boil, but 212 degrees is way too hot for the oil in a hydraulic system. Standard seals start to break down at 180 degrees, and worse, most hydraulic oil gets so thin that the pump parts start to score & gall from lack of sufficient lubrication. 150 degrees F is often considered a good maximum hydraulic oil temperature.

 

[Old_School_Nut]

thanks for the thoughts guys.

Don, you are right their should't be any air in the system, but i figure when the line is empty (when it is not being used it may drain out) and the flow control opens it may foam from the sudden high volume of oil into a line with air in the line, of course not for long and probably of little worry compared to the heat I will have to deal with.

anyways i will be looking for a cheap cooler for 30 GPM, any other ideas gents?

this is what i may pick up for an intercooler

a small but thick oil cooler would work well for me.

 

[mga]

...and mount a 12 volt fan to the back of it.

 

[triptester]

Mga's idea of using a section of baseboard tubing sounds pretty good. It is fairly inexpensive, easy to work with , and allows you to design to fit. A single strait line or short sections could be stacked depending on space allowed.

 

[Old_School_Nut]

how big is the tubing in them heaters? I am running 3/4 inch line and flowing 28 GPM....

also for the intercooler (for the turbo) I do not want to run an electric fan. I wish for everything to operate without a battery if needed so I will drive the fan mechanicaly with the jackshafts for my water pump, and oil pump for my turbo, as well as a mechanical fuel pump that can keep up with my fuel requirements under boost (you have to raise fuel pressure with boost)

btw, I am keeping her at 6 volt! its an antique engine so it only seams fitting. it is my opinion that if you keep things tight and bright 6 volt is plenty and I have had no problems starting my 1949 ford 8n in -20 weather with 6 volt, (I wont be splitting in that weather anyways) only get one or two shots though!

 

[triptester]

Baseboard usually have 3/4" copper tube some may have 1" or larger.

 

[STLfirewood]

thanks for the thoughts guys.

Don, you are right their should't be any air in the system, but i figure when the line is empty (when it is not being used it may drain out) and the flow control opens it may foam from the sudden high volume of oil into a line with air in the line, of course not for long and probably of little worry compared to the heat I will have to deal with.

anyways i will be looking for a cheap cooler for 30 GPM, any other ideas gents?

this is what i may pick up for an intercooler

a small but thick oil cooler would work well for me.

Looks like an intercooler off of a DSM 1995 and up edition. I use to race those cars. Make sure to check the pipes where the hoses slide on. They had a problem with getting pin holes in them. Also was it out real good with gas or a thinner. The cars had the Valve cover vent go back through the turbo so the intercooler would get an oil film on the inside of it. If the turbo went out sometimes they would fill the intercooler with oil.

Scott

 

[ray benson]

The 2 cyl. modified 54 cu. in. motor should supply way more horsepower than the pump needs. Lowering the engine speed should allow you to regulate ram speed.

 

[Old_School_Nut]

that is true Ray, but if I want boost I am going to have to do more than just idle, becides I cant charge my battery at idle, and if I always ran her at lower RPM my battery would never get charged (i will have work lights), its all about excess anyways!


and yes Scott, it is a DSM intercooler! thanks for the heads up, I have never played with these little guys..

 

[Old_School_Nut]

well yesterday on my way back from the Oshkosh Airshow I picked up the DSM intercooler pictured for my induction system, it looks like a nice little compact unit that will fit nicely on my splitter.

still need a BOV to make my hunt for induction system parts complete.

this gets more and more fun as I get more parts

 

[STLfirewood]

Get a 1990-1994 BOV off a Eagle Talon (DSM). They were the best prouction BOV ever made. Don;t go 95 and up. They are plasctic and leak after 11psi. When you get the BOV get the pipe it bolts on. That willhelp with the install. It's metal so you can weld on it if you want.

Scott

 

[Old_School_Nut]

Get a 1990-1994 BOV off a Eagle Talon (DSM). They were the best prouction BOV ever made. Don;t go 95 and up. They are plasctic and leak after 11psi. When you get the BOV get the pipe it bolts on. That willhelp with the install. It's metal so you can weld on it if you want.

Scott

Sweet, thanks for the info!!!

 

[Old_School_Nut]

well, I been working on the splitter on and off, machined a large notch in the generator housing to clear the block, the generator housing is .020 thick right now by the block and I do not wish to machine more off unless I have to. Next I have to make a tool to measure how thick the wall is on my engine block, I am hoping I can machine about .125 off to make the generator clear the block easy... after that I need to machine some threaded pipe thread holes for a dipstick and oil fill as the orginal is blocked by my generator and magneto, the other side is blocked by the starter... fun fun!

of course, I have to figure out how to increase my oil supply for my engine as my rather limited oil supply will get hot in a hurry with a turbo, I dont care to make a new oil pan...

-Leo-

 

[mga]

of course, I have to figure out how to increase my oil supply for my engine as my rather limited oil supply will get hot in a hurry with a turbo, I dont care to make a new oil pan...

how about a "remote" oil filter. the lines running to it could go thru a small radiator. they make those small ones for transmission cooling.....

just trying to think at 6 am....lol

 

[fast*st]

Hmm, badass project, now my head is screwed on sideways, but would
hydraulic pressure be a good source for turbo oil? any other pics so far?
Would need some kind of pressure reducer, 2500 psi might crack the turbo
housing and send the seals into the next town.

-Jason

 

[Old_School_Nut]

how about a "remote" oil filter. the lines running to it could go thru a small radiator. they make those small ones for transmission cooling.....

just trying to think at 6 am....lol

yeah, she will have a remote filter as well as a small pump to move the oil to the turbo, however I do not wish to add a cooler unless I have to, besides it is an air cooled engine and does not hold much oil to start with, this is a good excuse to add oil capacity... the problem with an oil cooler is over cooling, I will need a valve to bypass the cooler when it is cold out or she will have a hard time warming up.

you are right though, an oil cooler WITH a bypass would work nicely, I already need to rig up a fan for my intercooler...

-Leo-

 

[Old_School_Nut]

Hmm, badass project, now my head is screwed on sideways, but would
hydraulic pressure be a good source for turbo oil? any other pics so far?
Would need some kind of pressure reducer, 2500 psi might crack the turbo
housing and send the seals into the next town.

-Jason

yeah, I don't want to go much over 60 psi max for the turbo feed line....

hyd splitter oil could be used for the turbo if it could stand the heat of the turbo, which I question and I sided on the safe side against it. high temps with even engine oil can coak up a turbo if allowed to get to hot, hydraulic oil has different qualitys than, say, diesel engine oil which makes me caution against it.

I will need to take some pics, been awhile.