Anybody try to build a super splitter
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bulldoglover
ArboristSite Operative
This guy is just a few towns over from me, might have to take a trip over and test on out. I'll have to bring some gnarly knotty wood to see how it does.
Cmccul8146
ArboristSite Member
woodwolf
The wood wolf is probably a good splitter, but I dislike the work table on their splitter. Their table is mounted at the bottom of the beam rather than flush with the top of it. With my splitter & the SS, you don't have to worry about making sure the log is balanced on the center of the beam, & don't have to put your other hand anywhere near the ram or wedge when engaging the gears. Also when the log splits, it does not fall down & need to be picked up to place on beam for a 2nd split. With the flush mounted table, just slide the log back over & you're ready to go.
The wood wolf is probably a good splitter, but I dislike the work table on their splitter. Their table is mounted at the bottom of the beam rather than flush with the top of it. With my splitter & the SS, you don't have to worry about making sure the log is balanced on the center of the beam, & don't have to put your other hand anywhere near the ram or wedge when engaging the gears. Also when the log splits, it does not fall down & need to be picked up to place on beam for a 2nd split. With the flush mounted table, just slide the log back over & you're ready to go.
tnxm
ArboristSite Member
Looks awesome great Job. Compared to a hydro splitter would you say more difficult or less to build? And how much to build me one 
haha
hahaI would like to build one of these and understand the principle behind except for how the rack and pinion engages and disengages.
For those of you that have built one. a few questions.
1. the wheels did you make them out of one solid piece of a36 or 2?
2. What are the diameters of the wheels and thickness? Of both inside and outide where the thickness changes. I know you said yours weigh 105 lbs. I was thinking about having the wheel and rim cut out water jet and then truing them on a shaft and welding them up.
3. Which rack & pinion gears did you buy?
4. Did you use square tubing or solid square stock for the ram?
5. What size I beam did you use?
6. What diameter of shaft did you use that goes through both wheels?
7. Did you use a keyway on the shaft if so what size it seems this part would get a lot of impact and shear easy.
Thanks I could really use a splitter and was thinking of building a hydraulic but this looks like it is pretty simple.
For those of you that have built one. a few questions.
1. the wheels did you make them out of one solid piece of a36 or 2?
2. What are the diameters of the wheels and thickness? Of both inside and outide where the thickness changes. I know you said yours weigh 105 lbs. I was thinking about having the wheel and rim cut out water jet and then truing them on a shaft and welding them up.
3. Which rack & pinion gears did you buy?
4. Did you use square tubing or solid square stock for the ram?
5. What size I beam did you use?
6. What diameter of shaft did you use that goes through both wheels?
7. Did you use a keyway on the shaft if so what size it seems this part would get a lot of impact and shear easy.
Thanks I could really use a splitter and was thinking of building a hydraulic but this looks like it is pretty simple.
I'd like to know what rack and pinion you used. Also what shaft size is the pinion and the flywheels mounted on?? I've never seen a Super Split or any other splitter of this type in my area. If I could find one I could measure those parts.
Vince
Vince
I agee. the first SS ever made had the trays mounted on the bottom of the beam. PITA imo. Very nicely built splitter Imust say. keep up the good work and enjoy.
farmermike
ArboristSite Operative
This thing really has peaked my interest. What model # is the rack and pinion? I'd like to build one myself. It looks so simple and fast. I know I can fabricate one but need the rack and pinion to get it started. Do you think heavier flywheels would make it more powerful. I was thinking fly wheels off of an old square baler I've got setting in the grove. Probably is overkill. How about the wedge height? Would higher be better? I split alot of big rounds and think a taller wedge would work better. Keep us posted. Enquirering minds want to know! Thanks for the help.
Sierra99
ArboristSite Lurker
From photos I'd estimate the standard SS uses 18 in diameter flywheels 1.5 in thick (w/ lightening holes and reduced hub thickness). Weighing 72 lbs and spinning 300 rpm (12:1 pulley diameter ratio for the Vbelt with motor running 3600 rpm) gives about 1010 joules of stored energy for the pair of flywheels. Energy goes up as RPM squared, or diameter sqaured, all else being the same.
Assuming a baler flywheel is 24-in diam with most of its mass in the outermost 4 inches, and weighs 120 lbs, you'd only need one spinning at 225 RPM to get 1000 joules stored energy.
The spindle is probably 1-3/8 inch diameter. You can get a 24" rack for $60 (page 1056 at www.mcmaster.com) for 20 degree pressure angle, 8 pitch. The main problem is the spur gears come with a small borehole, so you need to bore out the gear then weld it to the spindle. The 2 in pitch diameter gear ($42) might work, and give a rack speed of 23.5 inch/sec using that baler flywheel at 225 rpm. Should work great.
Assuming a baler flywheel is 24-in diam with most of its mass in the outermost 4 inches, and weighs 120 lbs, you'd only need one spinning at 225 RPM to get 1000 joules stored energy.
The spindle is probably 1-3/8 inch diameter. You can get a 24" rack for $60 (page 1056 at www.mcmaster.com) for 20 degree pressure angle, 8 pitch. The main problem is the spur gears come with a small borehole, so you need to bore out the gear then weld it to the spindle. The 2 in pitch diameter gear ($42) might work, and give a rack speed of 23.5 inch/sec using that baler flywheel at 225 rpm. Should work great.
Cmccul8146
ArboristSite Member
Sierra, please don't take this as criticism, but advice from someone who's actually built a flywheel splitter that works perfectly. The 24" rack isn't nearly long enough. My Martin RA6 x 4 was cut to 42inches in order to have a 25 inch stroke. Remember, the pinion is well beyond the end of the rack in the retracted position. My Martin gear rack is 1 inch thick x 1 1/2 inches wide. SS uses a rack that is 1 inch thick x 2 inches wide. Motion Industries ,Inc. sells the Martin products. You'd need at least a 2.500 pitch dia. pinion gear ( 2.833 max OD) to bore for a 1 3/8 shaft W/ 1/4 keyway. If you weld the pinion to the shaft, you won't be able to disassamble if necessary without cutting the shaft & making a new one. SS also uses CAST flywheels that are 2 inches thick. Also not a good idea to run with just one flywheel . There's the BALANCE factor involved that requires 2 flywheels. My flywheels weigh 102 lbs. each, with the hub, and are rotating at 150- 160 rpm with just a 3 hp motor. ( running half throttle) That's 19.635 inches of travel per sec. no load speed. So far I haven't needed to ,but could speed up motor a bit if I need more splitting force. Hope this info is of some help.
Farmermike, I hope this answers some of your questions, too.
Claude
Farmermike, I hope this answers some of your questions, too.
Claude
Sierra99
ArboristSite Lurker
Claude, you make excellent points. And you've actually made one whereas I'm just arm waving. A 24-in rack would work with an extension on to the pusher end, just not as pretty! Two flywheels do make spindle torsion symmetrical, needed for a small spindle diameter.
I haven't done the torsion calcs but a single flywheel would likely work with a larger spindle diameter, 1.75 or 2.0-in. I'm just throwing out a possible design if a fellow finds a biggish flywheel at the local farm auction.
You still have to fit the pinion to the spindle. You could turn the spindle end down to the pinion bore plus 0.002", press the pinion on, then neatly weld it all around. Same for a second spindle half on the other side of he pinion. You'd want to pre-heat/post-heat and weld short beads to minimize distortion. Low speed machinery can handle some runout without harm.
This two piece spindle approach is for reducing pitch diameter to 2-in for slowing down the action and increasing mechanical advantage. But your successful build with a 2.5" pinion proves maybe that's not so critical afterall. And a larger flywheel will have plenty of energy even at lower RPM, so the larger pinion would work fine.
I haven't done the torsion calcs but a single flywheel would likely work with a larger spindle diameter, 1.75 or 2.0-in. I'm just throwing out a possible design if a fellow finds a biggish flywheel at the local farm auction.
You still have to fit the pinion to the spindle. You could turn the spindle end down to the pinion bore plus 0.002", press the pinion on, then neatly weld it all around. Same for a second spindle half on the other side of he pinion. You'd want to pre-heat/post-heat and weld short beads to minimize distortion. Low speed machinery can handle some runout without harm.
This two piece spindle approach is for reducing pitch diameter to 2-in for slowing down the action and increasing mechanical advantage. But your successful build with a 2.5" pinion proves maybe that's not so critical afterall. And a larger flywheel will have plenty of energy even at lower RPM, so the larger pinion would work fine.
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Cmccul8146
ArboristSite Member
Change to splitter
Going to make a minor change to my splitter. It works quite well as it is ,especially on dead trees, but I'm going to take farmermike's advice & make a taller wedge. Green wood splits good too, but on a couple of the larger pieces it doesn't always bust completely it two. Have had to either flip it over & make a 2nd split to halve them, or pull them apart by hand, then the smaller pieces are no problem. Wedge is now only 6 inches high and am going to grind the welds off & make a new one at least 10 or maybe even 12 inches tall. Split some knotty ,twisted & crotch pieces of red oak today & had to hit them 2 times running engine at half throttle. One day when I have some more of the knotty or crotch pieces, I'm going to rev up to 3/4 throttle & see how that does. So far the wedge height is the only change I've seen that I would want to make. Now I'm thinking of building a much smaller electric version as a kindling splitter. Won't need real heavy flywheels for it, nor as fast flywheel rpm to split the slabs off my bandsaw mill to get some easy kindling strips.
Going to make a minor change to my splitter. It works quite well as it is ,especially on dead trees, but I'm going to take farmermike's advice & make a taller wedge. Green wood splits good too, but on a couple of the larger pieces it doesn't always bust completely it two. Have had to either flip it over & make a 2nd split to halve them, or pull them apart by hand, then the smaller pieces are no problem. Wedge is now only 6 inches high and am going to grind the welds off & make a new one at least 10 or maybe even 12 inches tall. Split some knotty ,twisted & crotch pieces of red oak today & had to hit them 2 times running engine at half throttle. One day when I have some more of the knotty or crotch pieces, I'm going to rev up to 3/4 throttle & see how that does. So far the wedge height is the only change I've seen that I would want to make. Now I'm thinking of building a much smaller electric version as a kindling splitter. Won't need real heavy flywheels for it, nor as fast flywheel rpm to split the slabs off my bandsaw mill to get some easy kindling strips.
Twigger
ArboristSite Lurker
Home built super split
Hi everyone ,I have been looking at posts by Cmccul8146 regarding the log splitter based on the mechanical principle .I am building one myself but Im a bit concerned that the pinion I am using [4dp .9teeth]is wrong , the largest size I feel that the shaft hole can be enlarged to is about an inch,I am thinking that a 1 inch shaft is not going to be strong enough when the ram gets the shock load splitting the log,If I go to a bigger pinion gear the speed of the travel will increase accordingly, how many teeth are on a super splitter or a wood wolf pinion? Thank you in anticipation . Twigger,UK
Hi everyone ,I have been looking at posts by Cmccul8146 regarding the log splitter based on the mechanical principle .I am building one myself but Im a bit concerned that the pinion I am using [4dp .9teeth]is wrong , the largest size I feel that the shaft hole can be enlarged to is about an inch,I am thinking that a 1 inch shaft is not going to be strong enough when the ram gets the shock load splitting the log,If I go to a bigger pinion gear the speed of the travel will increase accordingly, how many teeth are on a super splitter or a wood wolf pinion? Thank you in anticipation . Twigger,UK
Cmccul8146
ArboristSite Member
pinion gear
Twigger, you said that you are planning to use a 4dp, 9tooth gear for your pinion but can only bore for a 1 inch shaft max. What is the pitch diameter of your gear? I used a Martin S615 spur gear, 6dp, 15 tooth which has a pitch diameter of 2.500 inches. The overall OD of this gear is 2.833 inches. By using a 1/4" keyway, I pushed the bore to 1 3/8 , which is 1/8 over reccommended max bore. Hub dia. on this gear is 2 inches, so that leaves plenty of wall thickness for set screws. My pinion w/ pitch diameter of 2.500 moves ram at 7.854 inches per revolution. Only takes about 1 second ( 2 3/4 revolutions ) for full travel @ 150 rpm. You can calculate ram travel by multiplying pinion PD x pi , regardless of what DP gears you use.
Twigger, you said that you are planning to use a 4dp, 9tooth gear for your pinion but can only bore for a 1 inch shaft max. What is the pitch diameter of your gear? I used a Martin S615 spur gear, 6dp, 15 tooth which has a pitch diameter of 2.500 inches. The overall OD of this gear is 2.833 inches. By using a 1/4" keyway, I pushed the bore to 1 3/8 , which is 1/8 over reccommended max bore. Hub dia. on this gear is 2 inches, so that leaves plenty of wall thickness for set screws. My pinion w/ pitch diameter of 2.500 moves ram at 7.854 inches per revolution. Only takes about 1 second ( 2 3/4 revolutions ) for full travel @ 150 rpm. You can calculate ram travel by multiplying pinion PD x pi , regardless of what DP gears you use.
Twigger
ArboristSite Lurker
Home made super splitter
Hi Cmccu 8146
Thanks for your prompt reply, Im going to have a word with my engineer ,I think going to a slightly larger gear [with a few more teeth on it] will be a better proposition, rather than risk the main pinion shaft twisting itself to death ! Have you used a harder[more torque resistant] shaft ie something like a chrome vanadium material? What mechanism kicks out the rack from engagement when the ram hits that chunk of knotty willow. Ive looked long and hard at the Wood Wolf photos [which are very good]but they are hardly going to show every last nut and bolt [shame !] Thanks for any information I dont think anyone over here in the UK is trying to achieve the same as I am.All the best Twigger.
Hi Cmccu 8146
Thanks for your prompt reply, Im going to have a word with my engineer ,I think going to a slightly larger gear [with a few more teeth on it] will be a better proposition, rather than risk the main pinion shaft twisting itself to death ! Have you used a harder[more torque resistant] shaft ie something like a chrome vanadium material? What mechanism kicks out the rack from engagement when the ram hits that chunk of knotty willow. Ive looked long and hard at the Wood Wolf photos [which are very good]but they are hardly going to show every last nut and bolt [shame !] Thanks for any information I dont think anyone over here in the UK is trying to achieve the same as I am.All the best Twigger.
Cmccul8146
ArboristSite Member
Twigger, whenever you hit a twisted, knotty log that doesn't split & instead stalls the ram, you manually disengage the gears. That's the purpose of using a centrifugal clutch to turn the flywheels. If it stalls, the clutch slips so you don't damage your gears. The return springs pull the ram back, wait a few seconds for flywheels to build momentum and hit it again. So far I havent had to hit anything more than twice. As far as the pinion shaft material, I used 1045 cold rolled steel. This is the same material most hydraulic cylinder rods are made from, only not chrome plated. You'll slip the clutch before you twist the shaft, but I'd surely use at least a 1 3/8 inch shaft. Good luck with your build. Claude
dodek
ArboristSite Lurker
Hello i am writting from poland and i want to built a copy of super split .
I have just few infos and fotos from net and us patent site Log splitter with gear rack drive and wolf site - fotos
I want to use 2 flywheel from old traktor - weight ~160 each X 2
- electic engine 5.5kw/ 500volt , 1400rmp/min
- and gear rack -50 x 50 mm lenght 1500 mm (maybe shorter) module 5
It will be heavy and powerfull to split knoty pine wood
But now i haven't info about trigger mechanism in ori super split (how it realy works and starts - with not crush modes )
albo i don't how works trigger mechanism and how start automatic return mechanism ???
Does someone help me?? -
.... I thing yes
I have just few infos and fotos from net and us patent site Log splitter with gear rack drive and wolf site - fotos
I want to use 2 flywheel from old traktor - weight ~160 each X 2
- electic engine 5.5kw/ 500volt , 1400rmp/min
- and gear rack -50 x 50 mm lenght 1500 mm (maybe shorter) module 5
It will be heavy and powerfull to split knoty pine wood
But now i haven't info about trigger mechanism in ori super split (how it realy works and starts - with not crush modes )
albo i don't how works trigger mechanism and how start automatic return mechanism ???
Does someone help me?? -
.... I thing yes
dodek
ArboristSite Lurker
spliter
is that forum nazist or somthing else ???? -so you cut all my writes ????????????
is that forum nazist or somthing else ???? -so you cut all my writes ????????????
were you someone else in a previous life ??
PLAYINWOOD
ArboristSite Guru
I just moved mine back down. i find at speed, a knot,knub, bump, branch stub etc would hit that tray and use it as a ramp/launching pad driving the whole up...towards my head.I've had close calls.
I think the beam is 3/4 inches and this seems to give me enough clearance this doesn't happen as much.
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