Got my Timberwolf TW6 this weekend..PICS!

[luckydozenfarm]

If I am correct, the unloader valve between the hi/lo stage is actually inside the pump. Is there a spring to change or an adjustment screw?

 

[Mike from Maine]

If I am correct, the unloader valve between the hi/lo stage is actually inside the pump. Is there a spring to change or an adjustment screw?

I'm far from a hydraulic expert... But my understanding is that most pumps have a way to adjust the spring that unloads one section. Some pumps have an external adjustment screw or nut. Others you need to open up and adjust the spring by adding or removing shim washers.

The haldex/barnes manual says to contact the factory for instructions on how to adjust the pressure... The max 1st stage is 1100psi according to the spec sheet. Preset to 650.

1100x22gpm/(1714(.85) and you'd be using 17 hp.


Or 1100psi time 22 gpm times .0007 = 17hp

 

[luckydozenfarm]

Sounds like a good idea. I noticed that the 2nd stage comes in almost every time when using the 6 way..Even on the straightest of wood. I have to admit I'm a little hesitant of pulling open a new hydraulic pump.

 

[Mike from Maine]

Sounds like a good idea. I noticed that the 2nd stage comes in almost every time when using the 6 way..Even on the straightest of wood. I have to admit I'm a little hesitant of pulling open a new hydraulic pump.

.....

 

[Mike from Maine]

Here is my pump -- to adjust it all you have to do is remove the hex nut cover next to the intake port. And turn the screw in -- that increases the pressure at which the high flow section unloads

On my little 11gpm with a honda gx 160 all the way in stalls the engine. It runs fine 1.5 turns out. With your setup you should be able to easily run with it turned all the way in.

This has got me thinking about how to modify the adjustment range to take full advantage of the available HP. If it is possible I could see pairing a Chonda 420cc with an 11gpm pump set to 1750 psi -- it would barely ever go into low speed.

Might be as simple as removing the adjustment screw and adding shims to have a higher pressure adjustment range?

 

[ERic Rowe]

I'm going to wait until the initial sticker shock wears off before I do any mods. Plus being a rookie on this machine I'd like to get comfortable with it before I try to make it faster. BTW I can split more wood just leisurely running it than I could balls out with the Speeco any day.
Mod #2 may be a 28gpm pump and take off the 22gpm. This has an 8 second cycle already and if I have someone feeding me logs to the lift I can stand to see the pushblock move faster. But that's waaayyy down the road.

Things I like about this splitter other than the obvious::
1) the 8 gallon gas tank that's on it that they never tell you about on the website. Makes for all day splitting before you have to refuel.
2) The sight glass/thermometer on the side of the hydraulic tank..>NICE!!
3) How quiet it is. Yes, I can have a conversation at full throttle to the guy loading me logs.
4) Hourmeter

Things I don't like:
1) The on/off switch and throttle need to be on the control panel. You have to walk around over to the engine to shut it off or adjust .
2) The exhaust heat blows on you while you split. Would be nice in the winter, but not in the summer. Your right leg gets pretty hot.
3) The 4 & 6 way wedges are not attached to the wedge lift. Causes the wedge to ride up as you split.
4) The unit is soooo long you have to walk all the way around the front tongue to load another log on your lift. Splitting from the lift side doesn't work for me cause I'm not left handed and it feels like I'm gonna get hurt with the log lift around my feet.

Other than that, this thing is a boss..Its like a 660 vs a 029 difference.

Mike, please advise how to make these adjustments. Any special tooling needed?

Sent from my SCH-R950 using Tapatalk 2

Thanks very much for the update on the TW-6. I have admired it above many other contenders for my dream splitter vote. Though short on resources for such a purchase I am in the process of building one over time. I do have a terrific shop available and love to spend time there. There are many examples of fine, well thought out homemade splitter online but the TW-6 for me is the ultimate template. Your likes and dislikes are a big help. I was wondering about the HYD filtration on the TW-6. I know they use a HYDAC return filter/filler. Is that the only filter in the hydraulic system?

 

[luckydozenfarm]

Eric...it has a long filter that goes inside the tank and a gauge that will tell you if there is a restriction and you need to change it. It also has a thermometer/sight gauge on the hydraulic tank so you can monitor your hyd oil temp and condition. So far I have 200 hours on the machine and the oil is still clear as day and the needle doesn't even move on the restriction gauge.
Since I wrote that I have had more experience with the machine and I can say a few more things:
1) the 6 way wedge is pretty worthless unless you have dead straight, knot-less wood. And it makes the splits too big for my liking. Most of my customers like the smaller splits and I personally do too.
2) The 8 second cycle time while on paper is really fast, it just seems like molasses now. The upgraded 28 gpm pump is coming pretty soon.
3) Seriously, this thing really needs an auto-cycle valve on it. Now that I'm comfortable with the machine and keeping my hands where they need to be, I could use this option to speed things up, like getting another log.
4) I'm finding out that the wedge lift is an absolute must have. Without it using the 4 way wedge, the bottom 2 splits will jam in between the horizontal wings and the beam. The lift just picks it up and you can slide the splits out. Without it you will be lifting the wedge off a lot..and its freaking heavy.
5) It doesn't split everything you throw at it while using the 4 way. Big Elm logs..nope...forked big logs...nope..The single main wedge works on those though.
6) This splitter really is only good for logs that are easy to roll without any forks, crotches or knots. There is a guard on the beam (standing side) to keep logs from rolling off the splitter onto your feet. This guard gets in the way of the "crazy logs". You know.. the logs that aren't even close to being round and fork in all directions. On those I use my Speeco on vertical mode and just do my best to get those split.
7) The splits coming off the end need to be cleared or a giant pile accumulates and will cause the splitter to walk forward when your splits jam up. Not a big deal but it can bend your beam support under the splitter that contacts the ground if it hits something like a root.

 

[jrider]

Lucky, sounds like this machine has some issues but they do seem like they have solutions that wouldn't require much. On average, how long does it take you to split a cord working with just average wood?

 

[luckydozenfarm]

Jrider...Yeah I know no machine is perfect for everyone and I wouldn't trade this thing in for anything. I'm not trying to say this is a bad machine by any means. I'm just one of those efficiency nitpickers...LOL

To answer your question, the fastest setup I have found is three people on the machine at one time.

Man #1 cuts the 6' logs into blocks and keeps the log lift fed on the right side of the machine.
Man # 2 does the splitting
Man # 3 takes the splits off the grate and stacks them onto these special pallets we have made and also moves the pallets around with the forklift. He also uses the forklift to bring the new logs to man #1.
We can do 6 pallets in an hour (1/2 cord per pallet).

By myself I can do about 3/4 cord doing all 3 processes by myself.

 

[bigbadbob]

luckydoxenfarm if you get a minute could you measure the beam for me, am building a splitter and was wonder the dimensions of yours are. The website doesnt list it
height width a web thickness, might save me some metal and work,,
BTW I am envious!!!
BBB

 

[Jakers]

i too am interested in the beam specs. thinking along the same lines. width, height, and thickness of the web and plates

 

[luckydozenfarm]

I will take some measurements today along with some pics after work. The beam is pretty big, I know that. The thing is built like a beast. The 12" high wedge is a great improvement over my Speeco's 8". But me being 6'4" tall I do prefer the working height of the Speeco vs the TW-6.

 

[angelo c]

Lucky,
I rerouted the lines to the lift with 90* fittings and plumbed the lines closer to the frame of the lift...all gone now.
That drove me nuts about the splits landing on the lines waiting for an accident to shut the day down. There is plenty of line left to "tuck" away on my older model

 

[luckydozenfarm]

Yeah isn't that the stupidest thing you ever saw? I've had a few logs already fall on them already. I haven't had the time to reroute them like I would like them to be. The other thing I am changing is the motor orientation. It needs to be rotated 180* around so the muffler is on the other side and the controls are on my side where I stand.

 

[angelo c]

if you think of it maybe we should start a "how to pimp my 6" thread...

I've been staring at the 6 for hours thinking how to "orient" the motor or exhaust. I saw one guy set up a PVC pipe and just pitched it downward and back. maybe welding up a "tuned" exhaust tailpipe might work. I like to work with a full crew from the motor side as well. Running a 6 by yourself is useless to me( take out the SS for that special solo time). Two men are not enough. at some point you will look into a conveyor and that lessens the men needed.

 

[luckydozenfarm]

I was thinking the same thing...I was gonna start a new thread called TW6 Mods after I get done with it for the winter. A conveyor wont work for me because we stack the wood right off of the grate onto pallets that we can move into the sunny field. My splitting area is amongst a bunch of trees for shade because we split during the summer. I agree, running a TW6 by yourself isn't all that faster than a Speeco, esp if you consider that the TW6 is 10 times the price. But with 3 guys, yeah you get a lot of wood split up fast. I'm thinking of getting more height out of the beam by running it up on some blocks. But then I realized the log lift wouldn't reach the ground after doing that. I'll figure out something I'm sure.

 

[angelo c]

IS yours on a Torsion axle ?
the newer models are supposedly improved in as the frame and "axles" sag and bend in the middle after time and use with BIG wood. its a weak point on the older models.
they do not travel well either and need to be trailer-ed. A suggestion offered to me was to weld up a torsion axle under it and it should be good. Keep an eye on that main cross beam.

what kind of winter do you guys get in TX ?

 

[luckydozenfarm]

Yeah its a 2014 model and has the torsion axle. I don't expect to break any beams on this thing, its built like a tank and really heavy. Most of the wood we split is heavy white oak and I'm sure we have put some overweight blocks on it a time or two. It's held up well so far. I use my little Mahindra tractor to move it around when I need to, but it stays mostly in one place.
We get our occasional cold spells like in the 30's-40's now and then, but today is about 65-70 outside.

 

[luckydozenfarm]

We split up a bunch of "gravy blocks" the other day with it. That's a round measuring about 20" diameter with almost no knots. You get it up on the beam, lift the 4 way wedge to max height, split that into 4 pieces. Then lower the wedge and then split each of those into 4. Talk about wood flying off the machine!! I would bet if I had a full day of gravy blocks and an energy drink I could probably do 20 cords a day with that machine. LOL

 

[farmer steve]

Yeah its a 2014 model and has the torsion axle. I don't expect to break any beams on this thing, its built like a tank and really heavy. Most of the wood we split is heavy white oak and I'm sure we have put some overweight blocks on it a time or two. It's held up well so far. I use my little Mahindra tractor to move it around when I need to, but it stays mostly in one place.
We get our occasional cold spells like in the 30's-40's now and then, but today is about 65-70 outside.

a little off topic. but HAPPY BIRTHDAY LUCKYDOZENFARM!!!!!!!!