22 Ton vs. 28 Ton Log Splitters

[fordss]

I have had my husky 22 ton for about a year and not a problem with it. Starts in one pull two if real cold. I have not used it in the vert but when I lend it to my uncle thats how he likes it. The husky has a nice design with their I-beam as it holds the wood, also I would recomend buying the log table or making one its nice. I dont know all the specs between all the other splitter but for homeowner it has done all I asked it to. If you can find a 15% off thats only $850 plus tax

 

[Ol' Brian]

You couldnt be further from the truth. There is little comparrison between a 22 ton model and say a 35 ton when it comes to getting a large volume of work done, but it also depends on what species of wood you are splitting and other variables.

I used to have a 27 ton, and recently sold it and purchased a new Speeco 35 ton and my splitting time has been cut by a third. Biggest reason is, the 35 ton rarely drops down into the low gear, generally speaking it just plows through in high gear.

And second, when using the 4way head, I rarely have to remove it for a tough piece. With the 27 ton model, I would often have to slip the 4 way head off when dealing with crotches and mangled pieces of hickory and pecan. Not anymore. I split three cords last weekend and never once took the 4 way head off for anything and all I split that day was hickory.

Every tool has its uses, and if most of your wood is small to medium sized and of a species that is easy to split, then a 22 ton model will suit you just fine. But if you are getting into large rounds, species that are hard to split, and want to use a 4 way head there is no replacement for power. It makes the job easier by not having to wrestle the rounds off and try another approach, and it certainly makes it faster if your splitter does not have to resort to the low gear to get through difficult pieces.

And as far as double the gas, I actually use less fuel than when I had the 27 ton model. Since I shaved a third of my splitting time off and the engine is working a heck of a lot less while working, my fuel consumption has gone down by almost two gallons a day.

Nope, a bigger splitter within reason is faster, easier, and in most cases more economical.

Avalancher,

I think you possibly misread what I wrote.

I said "single wedge" splitters. When you start getting into 4-way and 6-way wedges, no doubt exists that you will probably need more tonnage. But for single wedge splitters, 20-22 ton is all anyone will ever need. If I ever do find that one piece of wood that 22 ton won't split... It can go on the brush pile, and I'll move on to the next piece. That's a lot more economical than spending an extra $750 or more to "ensure that I can split every single piece." I'm not going to lose any sleep if I do find that piece either. I'll probably tip my hat to it... but I won't lose any sleep.

As far as cycle time... for a single wedge vert/horizontal splitter, I think the average 14-15 second cycle time is more than adequate. The way I split, the splitter still spends more time waiting on me than I ever do on it. Now, guys with helpers, or a radically more efficient system may benefit from a faster cycle time, but as long as the splitter is waiting on me to bring the next piece of wood from the pile, what good does faster do?