logsplitter questions

[bassman]

I want to end up with a good splitter that i can tow or rent out as i dont have all that much to split ( 2 cords ) .
I was going to buy a cheap electric unit till i used one....
then a guy showed me his splitter and i was sold.
13 hp and will split 4 and a half foot log in seconds.
all the way out and back in in 6 seconds.
now i have been seeing alot of 13 hp honda clones on ebay and have a 5.5 hp clone going to run a gocart .
I thought i would try it as it was only $130 shipped (can) .
13 hp is around $300.
then i have a single stage pump but have read people use 2 stage ...what is 2 stage??
I also have a 12 inch i beam that is 52 inches long and want to know if i can mount the ram at the collar and not the butt end so i can cut a 4 foot log.
most all of the car hydraulic rams mount this way.
I have a good understanding that if i try squish a big log and it dosent split i could end up takin a dirt sleep if somthing breaks.
also can you push a log into a wedge rather than a wedge into a log???
this way you can make a T or + wedge and make more splits.

shayne

 

[staywarm53]

I have a good understanding that if i try squish a big log and it dosent split i could end up takin a dirt sleep if somthing breaks.
also can you push a log into a wedge rather than a wedge into a log???
this way you can make a T or + wedge and make more splits.

shayne

My personal opinion is that splitting a 4 foot log is D_A_N_G_E_R_O_U_S , it's like compressing a big spring.just my opinion. Are you going to be burning 4 ft logs ?
pushing a log into the wedge works good. When you slid the adapter over the wedge, so that you get 4 pcs instead of 2, it shortens the available area to split, so leave a couple extra inches room in your design.

 

[bassman]

my outdoor boiler can take a 42 inch log.
the 16 cords i have coming are cut and split but i cant see the downside to a splitter that can do a big log.
shayne

 

[staywarm53]

You will probaby be ok with a big splitter, I would use the wedge at the receiving end definetly, that way if there was any log hopping it would be away from you.And you are going to be paying attention anyway There is probaby guys here that can give you more info . good luck.

 

[turnkey4099]

I want to end up with a good splitter that i can tow or rent out as i dont have all that much to split ( 2 cords ) .
I was going to buy a cheap electric unit till i used one....
then a guy showed me his splitter and i was sold.
13 hp and will split 4 and a half foot log in seconds.
all the way out and back in in 6 seconds.
now i have been seeing alot of 13 hp honda clones on ebay and have a 5.5 hp clone going to run a gocart .
I thought i would try it as it was only $130 shipped (can) .
13 hp is around $300.
then i have a single stage pump but have read people use 2 stage ...what is 2 stage??
I also have a 12 inch i beam that is 52 inches long and want to know if i can mount the ram at the collar and not the butt end so i can cut a 4 foot log.
most all of the car hydraulic rams mount this way.
I have a good understanding that if i try squish a big log and it dosent split i could end up takin a dirt sleep if somthing breaks.
also can you push a log into a wedge rather than a wedge into a log???
this way you can make a T or + wedge and make more splits.

shayne

Two-stage pump - puts out higher volume at lower pressure until the load comes on then shifts to a lower volume higher pressure setting. Very nice as it speeds up the cycle time tremendously.

Yes, you can mount one at the collar but only use a ram that is designed that way, don't try to modify the other type.

Pushing the log onto the ram is the default design for all splitters that I know of except for the ones that can be set up vertically. There really is no real advantage to having the wedge on the ram or on the end of the armature. They both work. I prefer on the end of the armature (see below).

Danger of splitting long logs. Yes, they can store up energy and release it suddenlty. Just splitting 16" stuff I have had them 'snap' and fly up to 6 feet. A long log would have even more energy stored.

A few design features you should consider (these are my personal preferences so...).

Keep the 'works' (motor/pump/tank/axle/wheels) out of the way of the operator. My homebuilt has the axle right at the end of the armature but that does make for very heavy tongue weight.

Make it so the ram/wedge/slide is at about waist level or a bit lower. You do not want to be bent over while running it.

Add an outfeed and infeed table to hold the stuff you are working on. A log lift is also nice.

Make your wedge with 'wings'. They should start about 1/3 back from the point and spread out to around 3 or 4" wide at the back. The point starts the split then the wings force the split the rest of the way. Usually it will result ing the split finishing long before the ram goes the full way.

This is DANGEROUS so... My splitter has a non-centering valve. Nice as it stays were ever you put it letting you be getting another round, tossing wood or whatever while it is cyling. Dangerous as letting go of the valve does not stop the action (almost caught my finger once). I won't let anyone else use it due to that danger.

Harry K

 

[SmokinDodge]

It's nice to have that kind of capacity. Will your wife be trying to load the stove with four foot wood in the pre dawn hours when you are away? Just a consideration. My father in law burns 36" wood and when I built my splitter I made damn sure it would go all the way up to split 39" wood. Now I wish I hadn't because we get to wrestle 3' red oak chunks around that are 2' across when I go to help them cut wood. Lot of work, lot of work.

I guess my point is this, if I had made the splitter to only go up say 24", guess what? We would only cut 24" wood and wouldn't have sore backs from trying to be He-Man all the damn time. We would probly be more productive with shorter wood as well ( faster to load splitter and unload) That long wood gets very heavy in short order.

As to making your own you need to carefully consider all aspects of the cost/time of the splitter. I made mine with 100% recycled steel (free from the father) I had $80 in the six inch ram and used an axle I had been given all along with an engine from a $75 mower. I was able to get my hydraulic lines free (used) I just had to cut one end off and buy a new fitting. I ended up with $800 in my homemade splitter after new fittings, twin spool valve, new pump and odds and ends. I count my $ per hour as 0.

It took me a lot of nights, weekends and head scrathing to build my splitter and even after I'm 'done' I still have a few things I need to go back and fix after using it for several hours.

Just my two cents.

 

[mga]

12 inch "I" beam 52 inches long???????????

maybe i missed something because it's early, but to split a 4 foot log, you need a cylinder with at least a 36 to 48" stroke. also, this cylinder would have to be at least 5" in diameter to be effective to split 4 foot logs.

the point is, the cylinder has to be mounted to the "I" beam. so, a 36" cylinder needs at least 72" of space on the beam. you need about 6" in the rear to mount properly and about 6" in front for the slide/ram. that's at least 84" of beam used already. now, add in the space needed to place a 4 foot log in....say 58" and another 8" for a wedge. your beam alone would have to be about 12 feet long....longer if your cylinder has a longer stroke.

a 12" "I" beam 12 feet long is very heavy. i'm guessing 45 lbs per foot.

also, i have to question the alleged stroke time given for that distance.....

 

[turnkey4099]

12 inch "I" beam 52 inches long???????????

maybe i missed something because it's early, but to split a 4 foot log, you need a cylinder with at least a 36 to 48" stroke. also, this cylinder would have to be at least 5" in diameter to be effective to split 4 foot logs.

the point is, the cylinder has to be mounted to the "I" beam. so, a 36" cylinder needs at least 72" of space on the beam. you need about 6" in the rear to mount properly and about 6" in front for the slide/ram. that's at least 84" of beam used already. now, add in the space needed to place a 4 foot log in....say 58" and another 8" for a wedge. your beam alone would have to be about 12 feet long....longer if your cylinder has a longer stroke.

a 12" "I" beam 12 feet long is very heavy. i'm guessing 45 lbs per foot.

also, i have to question the alleged stroke time given for that distance.....

I believe he is thinking about a trunnion mount cylinder. That would work with his beam. I never saw one built that way but can't see any reason it wouldn't work.

I think you have added in 3ft twice there. A 36" cylinder collapsed only requires about 3 1/2-4 foot, plus 4' log = about 8 ft plus the allowance on the ends comes up to about 9 ft total. Still way long though.

Harry K

 

[mga]

oops...my bad....thanks, harry.

i said it was maybe too early in the morning to do math in my head...lol

(only excuse i got)

 

[bassman]

I cant see why it is so dangerous to split a 3 to 4 foot log??
the splitter i ran 2 years ago had room for a 5 foot log .
it was home made and it pushed the log through a circle with an + welded into it.
the ram end had a 5 inch pad with a bolt welded to it and that would stick into the log so there was no slipping logs here .
we ran this thing for 20 hours and cut a semi load of green birch that were cut 16 inches long.
thinking back i remember stacking 3 pieces at a time .

shayne

 

[RaisedByWolves]

green birch

Oak, Maple and Locust will act very differently than birch.


Ive had these actually explode and have been hit in the stomach and elsewhere fairly hard.


The bigger the chunk of wood, the harder its going to hit you.

 

[bassman]

I should add that around here you will see 20 loads of black and white poplar to 1 load of birch .
last week was the first time i have ever been delivered a log thicker than 12 inches.
there were 3 of them....
I see what you guys split and it amazes me to see wood like that .
if it didnt rot i would not even split what i got.

shayne

 

[staywarm53]

ebay 4 ft splitter

Here's one already built.
http://cgi.ebay.com/MONSTER-LOG-SPL...8QQihZ011QQcategoryZ11752QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem