splitter wedge question

[torence 20]

ok guys here is my question for you i have a iron and oak splitter and it does a great job couldnt be happier with its performance. its a vert/horizontal splitter so the plate is on the bottom and the wedge is pushed by the cylinder and on some of the bigger stringy stuff i split such as elm and hack berry it will split the round with ease but it wont split in half due to the stragglers on the opposite end of the split. so i want to add a 12" wedge to the top of my existing one now just bevel the edges and stack a few beads in there on each side and done this edge wont really do any splitting more so a severance edge. that being said should i set the new wedge back a half inch or so so the original wedge starts the split before the new one comes in contact with the wood? or will it be too much strain on the cylinder?

 

[Mr. E]

The cylinder won't care. The beam might.

 

[tla100]

I would set it back an inch or two. Also angle it so the top would contact wood first and have the bottom back more. I have mine 12" total for the same reason but did not angle it, I would do differently if I make new wedge. The tall wedge really helps on the big stuff.

 

[firebrick43]

I had to blunt of an edge and it would some times explode chunks to the side (dangerous) or some time stall in hard to split woods. Adding a sharp edge about 1" tall solved both issues. Most woods now split about 2" into the wood but the sharp edge severs if needed. Just make sure it can't hit the plate at full stroke or you will damage it. Leave 1/2" of clearance. The about wedge edge was built up with multiple beads of 7018. It's not crooked, just camera angle/lighting.

 

[torence 20]

tla100 im not sure if i am getting what you are saying, did you weld a wedge on top of a wedge like im thinking of doing?

 

[tla100]

Mine is all home built. I did change my wedge design. I would change again, it works good but....I still may cut off about half way up and move back a inch or 2 and angle it. So if you add a taller wedge, just set it back a bit.

 

[torence 20]

ok i got what your saying now would you angle it backwards? nice looking set up btw. im not going to extend my push plate tho

 

[tla100]

http://www.arboristsite.com/community/threads/custom-log-splitter-5-its-been-a-while.263855/

finally found it....a few pics down is how I would do it

 

[ziggo_2]

i just keep a hatchet near by for such wood

 

[torence 20]

thanks for the link i get what you mean now... thats a pretty impressive build

 

[torence 20]

ive done the hatchet thing for a long time but if it doesnt slit the log all the way in half a hatchet does you no good you still have to roll the log over and split it the rest of the way

 

[bigbadbob]

My wedge works great, stops an inch before the end.
BBB

 

[torence 20]

i bet it does bbb but my set up is opposite my wedge is on the cylinder

 

[blades]

If you proceed with a 12" tall wedge best make it a step type with a 2-4 " step on bottom leading the upper portion, takes a lot of stress off the top edge when splitting large rounds of a diameter exceeding that of the wedge ( same for push plate / foot). The top edge forces will become very high and could cause significant damage to the slide portion and top plate of beam. Some of the mfg angel the wedge back from the bottom up , but this can cause a round to slide up and spit out ( had one like that) . With a vert/ horz units all the forces are captivated and transmitted into the beam via the foot plate, as well as a rotational force at the top of the wedge ( back and down) which then transitions to a up lift force on the leading edges of the slide plate causing a high wear factor there as well as the possibility of deforming the wings the slider runs on. To try and even out the forces on the wedge or push plate the slider base length should equal the height at minimum. In the case of the wedge - it should be as deep as high. This moves the pivot point further behind the lead edge reducing the leverage/ stress.
Just my observations over the years on various splitters I have had or repaired.

 

[torence 20]

thank you for the info. and i am going to do a set back for sure