I just bought a splitter a few weeks ago. If money was no object then it would have been the supersplit. The last one I had was (borrowed but split many cords) from Northern tool-a conventional 27 ton I beam with the conventional method of clamping the ram end/wedge to the top of the I-beam. It had a
subaru 5.5hp or maybe 6.5hp-good engine. The two aggravations with the thing was 1)the cycle time in having to return the ram every split, and 2) the weight of it, was a heavy POS to move around.
I ended up with the 13 ton Powerhorse dual split from Northern. I split all softwoods and some occasional urban chinese elm so I don't need alot of power. Cost-799.00 for the splitter. What sold me on it is that it is lightweight, compact and easy to move around by hand. The wedge is welded to a tube within a tube which I believe creates less friction since the wedge tube is contained and greased(but I don't get any on me). When you finish a split, you just pull the next piece in-line and start the split with no wedge return cycle. So for the same number of splits I'm using half the ram cycles of a normal hydro splitter. Comes with a rack on each side so splits don't fall on the ground. After I put it together/added all fluids, the engine started on the first pull. Frame, welds, quality are very good I don't have any doubts this will hold up for my application. The engine however, I would say is the wild card with this splitter.
Splitter is made in USA but I suspect the motor is a Chinese Honda copy but that is a guess. The engine castings I have to say are impressive-beautiful little motor that runs perfectly and is quieter than average-Chinese seem to be coming around with the quality in this case. I read alot of reviews and average of 4.7 out 5. Happy so far and has two year warranty. They have a bigger much heavier 20 ton and a 20 ton horiz/vert also. Splitting power-nothing has slowed it down yet. So the extra 2 grand I didn't spend on the Supersplit remains in the bank, but I only burn 3 cords of wood/yr anyway. That's my experience so far with the thing-only had it 3 weeks.