Dunno, is this hickory really worth it?

[avalancher]

Been chopping wood all my life, and have NEVER run across a woodpile that will lick me, but this weekend I am starting to wonder if I have met my match. Dragged home a bunch of BIG hickory,and it is making a mockery of my splitting efforts. Have ended up cutting most with a saw, at least into halves before the splitter will even consider busting it. Took me an entire day to split two cords, and that was with no sitting around.
Think its worth it?
I did everything that I could think of to weaken the chunks, but considering the weight of these doggone things, it aint easy to move it around for several shots at it. Makes for some very dull chains in a real big hurry too!
Anyone got any extra dynamite?

 

[046]

no heroics... quarter it, then saw it down again. get em in manageable pieces.

lately it's been all oak rounds 3ft+ weighting enough to hurt ya...
waste way too much time trying to wrestle HUGE rounds up to splitter. then you get to wrestle that huge round some more. if split doesn't go clean.

35 ton speeco blasts right through just about anything. when it hits a solid knurled up sections, it slows down. then shears off section. what a brute!

so splitter not having enough grunt is not the issue. it's more of how much time expended needed to reach split wood. and most importantly not to hurt yourself.

 

[chainsawaddict]

I hate you people.

Some of us rely solely on siberian elm.:chainsawguy:

 

[buckwheat]

"There is no problem that cannot be solved without the proper application of explosives."

 

[Zodiac45]

Is your splitter stalling out on it? Even in the second stage?
You might want to try looking the round over carefully to exploit any natural fissure or area that looks like a weaker area. I'm sure your doing that though.

Have you tried starting a groove with your saw (rather than trying to rip the whole peice) a couple inches in or so, then hitting it with the splitter. Hickory that size is tough stuff :bang: but it's also good stuff!

 

[GeeVee]

yes it is worth it.

 

[wdchuck]

Keep at it, hickory burns nice and hot once its dry enough, and that big stuff may take more than one year to season well. If the splitter is having issues, then quarter it with the saw, make some noodles(kindling), and split horizontally.
When I get big rounds, I'll split vertical to manageable sizes, then go back to horizontal, it works out very well that way for me, unless its ridiculously heavy, then the saw does the work.

I just brought home some cherry/hickory/oak from down the road, treeline wood, and that hickory was heavvvvy, almost had to rip in halves on the spot, but it'll be worth it next winter when its really cold out.

 

[JeffHK454]

Yep , defiantly worth it.

That 372 is more than enough saw to block it into quarters and then drag to the splitter, make sure you wear a back support and go make some looong chips!

 

[pacman]

rounds

If I were you I would pic out all the pieces that dosent need splitting ,like under 8 inches , and load your trailer full . You can handle the smaller pieces alot better and faster than you can those big rounds .

Just think cut , load , then stack verseres wrestle push shove load then repeat that over a few times just to split .

Hey man I been there done that !

So take it easy on your self and cut those smaller limbs You will feel alot better at the end of the day !

Just trying to help .

 

[jerseydevil]

I totally agree with Pacman. Keep in mind how much your time is worth. A wise man one said, "there is so much wood to remove from the forest, don't be afraid to give some back."
Unless you are in a real pinch, stay with the stuff that you can split effortlessly and move on.
I have been down that same road too, I just tossed back some huge gnarley cherry rounds(cherry is my fav). I had been sitting on them for 2 years, waiting for time to split them up. Well, they been in my way the whole time and guess what, I still can't set aside time to mess with them, too much good straight easy splitting wood around here. So, back into the woods they went . They were even too big for the burning pit.:greenchainsaw:

 

[extraspecialman]

I dont recommend this to anyone because its stupid,dangerous,and just plain dumb.But I used to cut some big hickorys down without notching them.Those trees would split in half about 20 or 30 feet sometimes,but the upper half would fly back about that far sometimes to.But anyhow,shellbark hickory has the most btus of any wood I know of.Coals super and holds fire good.Just dont try the no notch method.I recommend a -< notch in hickory.As good as hickory is,keep it off the ground.Hickory also rots about as fast as any wood Ive ever seen

 

[A. Stanton]

I would go for it. Hickory is one of the best burning firewoods. I split one up last fall from a neighbor in my hood. My 35 ton splitter poped it with no trouble. However, I had to keep my machete from Uncle Henry handy to cut some of those pesky fibers that held the chunks together.
Go for it.

 

[oneoldbanjo]

A Shagbark Hickory tree fell over in my fencerow and landed on the neighbors pasture. It was about 30" in diameter and was hollow inside for a little bit where the ants had been living. I had an 029 at the time with an 18" bar and it did a decent job of cutting it up, it did not go through the trunk very quickly and you just had to cut at the speed the saw was willing to go. I started with a new chain and I didn't know how to file chains at the time, and the saw wasn't cutting too well by the time I got everything cut up. I cut the trunk into 4' lengths and hauled them in the loader bucket of my tractor and then recut them to 2' lengths when I got home. My neighbor loaned me his 3 point splitter and when I lowered it down near the ground it was everything I could do to roll the 2' long rounds onto his splitter - and after every split I had to take an axe and cut the strands that were holding everything together. Even when the pieces were split down to a reasonable size they were horribly heavy.

That single tree (along with the purchase of an OWB) caused me to start cruising the internet for advice where I found this site , I bought a horizontal/vertical splitter, and I sold my 029 and move on to some bigger saws. I have not yet burned the Hickory as it is still very wet and it will be next winter before I know how well it burns.

 

[bullseye13]

Hickory is awesome stuff! I usually end up quartering that stuff with wedges into more managable pieces for me to move. I did a 46 inch wide ash like this only that stuff you could split a cord in a about 2 hours. Now i have a 40 inch thick oak tree that i quartered up and will split shortly. I also think i have the same splitter as you, it does well with the big stuff but i have too much of a hard time moving the big stuff just to move it again after it is in half. Good luck with the hickory.

 

[avalancher]

Thanks for all the words of encouragement and advise, and I never thought to have a matchete on hand to cut those strings! Should work considerable better than hatchet, sometimes the strings are so far down in the split you cant reach them with a hatchet without banging your knuckles on the chunk of wood.
I really hate to just leave the big stuff in the woods, after looking at what I cut compared to what is left of just the trunk of this tree, it will mean probably my entire wood supply for next year if I manage to drag the entire thing home, allowing me the rest of the spring to devote to wood for sale for next year. There is tons of red oak on this woodlot, which I plan to sell and keep the hickory for myself.

 

[avalancher]

Hickory is awesome stuff! I usually end up quartering that stuff with wedges into more managable pieces for me to move. I did a 46 inch wide ash like this only that stuff you could split a cord in a about 2 hours. Now i have a 40 inch thick oak tree that i quartered up and will split shortly. I also think i have the same splitter as you, it does well with the big stuff but i have too much of a hard time moving the big stuff just to move it again after it is in half. Good luck with the hickory.

Hey, if you got the Troy Built splitter, 27 ton, have you had any issue with the directional valve leaking like a sieve? I bought my splitter new, used it one day, and it starting leaking a quart an hour. Took it back, they exchanged it. Second one did the same thing. Took it back, they exchanged it after me wondering if I had bought a lemon. The third one held up good until last week now that the warranty is over. Doesnt leak bad, maybe a drip every couple of hours but it concerns me.
Other than that, a great splitter and I have no complaints.

 

[bullseye13]

I have not had any trouble with it yet. We have used it i think 2 full days so far. It almost sounds like whoever manufactures those valves had a bad run on some components.

 

[avalancher]

I have not had any trouble with it yet. We have used it i think 2 full days so far. It almost sounds like whoever manufactures those valves had a bad run on some components.

Yep, that is what I keep hoping, that it is not an indication of how the rest of it is built. Other than the valve leaking, I have no complaints. I have used it now for a little over 20 cords, and all of it being red and white oak with a good bit of hickory thrown at it lately. Most of the red stuff was easy splitting, but I found that the white oak was pretty mean at times, but even with a four way head going I never heard a groan out of the splitter. There were times when i actually felt guilty about throwing some of that knarly white oak forks on the thing, but it plowed right through it. I know the Troy Built splitters have not enjoyed the prestige that some of the other manufacturers have,especially on the boards here, but I figure for the money that I spent on it, it has been a good value.
My only desire is a table to keep the halves from hitting the ground and a log lift that wont get in the way of the beam from going verticle. I have been playing around with a design that would incorporate a table that would go above the engine with a lift at the far end that will stay out of the way when I have to swing down verticle. I dont generally go verticle, if the piece is to heavy to lift, I roll them off my trailer onto the splitter with a 2X12 and pull the board out of the way to split. The only sucky part is then picking up one of the halves that ends up hitting the ground.
The big and nasty stuff, well you dont have much choice other than swing into verticle and get on your knees.

 

[bullseye13]

how much was that 4 way wedge, and how does it work? Does it speed up the operation at all? I have been thinking of getting one but i dont know anyone who has used one. Im looking for something to speed things up a little at times.

 

[avalancher]

how much was that 4 way wedge, and how does it work? Does it speed up the operation at all? I have been thinking of getting one but i dont know anyone who has used one. Im looking for something to speed things up a little at times.

I bought it from Northern tools for I think around 90 bucks, but be forewarned. It wont fit your wedge. It was designed for a wedge that is mounted to the beam, not on the pusher. There is a lot of discussion about not mounting a 4way on a wedge that is mounted on the pusher, but I found that with the slide that comes with this splitter, twisting is almost a non issue. Keep an eye on the metal bushings on the side and keep them adjusted and the slide will not twist.
I modified the one that I got, i had to widen the whole 4way in order for it to go over my wedge, and changed the bracket that slides over the back of the wedge to keep it on. Other than that, it works like a champ. The difference in speed is astonishing, they arent kidding when they say a 4 way speeds your splitting time by 3 times.
If you are able to weld or have someone that can do it for you, give it a try. I have looked everywhere for a 4way that would fit my wedge and finally gave up and tried this one.
You will find that the 4way works best in straight grain wood, it has a tendency to make a mess of a knarly fork or something,but since it takes less than a second to slip it on or off it is well worth the effort and expense to have one.