Real-world splitter production rates for us average Joe's.

[KiwiBro]

We've all heard or read the claims of various manufacturers and yes, there are so many variables it's like trying to nail jelly to a tree, but it would be good to read real-world production rates from AS members who don't push any particular barrow and aren't interested in turning it into a pissing contest.

Say you had a mix of hardwood rounds already cut. Some nice grained wood, some knotty stuff, a few crotches - you know the type, just a normal day at the office or weekend around the yard for many. What splitter do you have, how is it configured and how many cords (not stacked) can you split on average per hour over a day or two without putting yourself in hospital. Also, is that production rate by yourself or with helpers?

Thanks in advance.

 

[gulity1]

I have a Huskee 34 ton (with techcemsahmotor on it DO NOT like it) No mods I do a full cord in about 2 to 2.5 hours just splitting and throwing into a pile behind me and moving the splitter as the rounds get further away im on a paved drive way I split about 10 cords for myself and maybe 20 cords a year to sell maybe( extra Chiristmas money)?

 

[WidowMaker]

Timely

Just finished splitting this, its just over a full cord, split form a load for rounds cut on Sept 30, Doug fir. Speeco 35 ton splitter w/log lift(home made) split and pitched to trailer from splitter, 3 hrs from start to finish with a smoke break and a Looky Lu, tire kicker break(wanted to know if I sold wood.) Actual time about 2.5 hrs, by my self..

Now if I can get the pictures to open up...

I,ll be DAMMED, It worked....

 

[Toddppm]

Splitting only without stacking/cleaning up? I could probably do about 3/4-1 cord/hour for 3-4 hours before it got so boring or I got so hungry I wouldn't want to do anymore.

Split and stacked about 40 ft. away 1 cord last sunday in about 2 hours.

 

[blacklocst]

I have a Tw 2 with a razor sharp 4 way , 2 comfortably 3 or 4 and I'm taken the next day off.

 

[dancan]

As long as the wood is 16" and down I can split almost a cord (128 cubic feet) per hour with a local made splitter from Hall's Maritime Welding .
Production would even be better with a conveyer .

 

[Streblerm]

I can split and stack 1/2 cord per hour out of the back of my truck, stacking right next to where I'm splitting with a 22 ton Huskee. About an hour and a half if it is piled on the ground, split, thrown into a pile, and then stacked from there. 2 cords a day is about all I want to so by myself.

I can do about the same with the Fiskars and a chainsaw for the nasty stuff. I only like to do about a cord a day like that.

 

[Steve NW WI]

One of a kind tractor PTO powered splitter, pump and cylinder off a Cat dozer (7" ram, 28" stroke, 18" tall wedge).

File photo, no snow here, just lots of leaves on the ground from 30+ MPH winds all day:

Loafing along by myself, about 1/2 cord an hour. With an experienced helper, close to 1 1/2. More hands really speed things up.

No 4 way here, don't want one. Bigger wood gets sliced a couple times, then restacked on top of each other and split the other way. Works good for me, I can keep my splits the size I want em, usually shoot for about 4x6" in good hardwood, larger in low btu wood or stuff that's starting to get punky.

I spent last weekend on the business end of a Timberwolf TW-P1 with a 4 way, 3 guys on it (operator/helper, loader, and tosser). I don't know what we were making in cords/hour, but it was up there, maybe 2+, in mostly 8-16" oak.

 

[SWI Don]

I have by myself done an easy 1 cord an hour rate with my splitter going from pile to pile off the end of my splitter. The pieces need to be manageable ie not needing the log lift to get the pieces hiked up. My splitter has about a 9 second cycle time 28gpm/5" cylinder, and with the autocycle valve you can go for the next piece while the last is in process. Stacking, large chunks, and carrying long distances will slow me down a lot.

We (my father in law, myself and some help from my brother) did all of my 2012-2013 wood in a short weekend (4-5 cords) cut, split, hauled & stacked. It helped that the trees were 1/2 mile away. It was nice getting it done so fast but on the other hand since I like doing it, it went too fast.

 

[ptabaka]

wood

i can do a cord a hour with my tw6 as the day goes the count goes down

 

[wdchuck]

Just splitting; with rounds staged and splitter within two steps of a 12'x4'x16"L rounds x two rows and split to 3"x3"x4" it will take 3+ hours to split one cord with 5% cross grain elm involved, and the remaining 95% straight no tussle easy splitting wood.

1 gal of fuel for every 3hrs running time.

Speeco 25ton Horiz/Vert 9.0hp I/C .

 

[chucker]

with a 20 ton duerr splitter, around a cord an hour with everything ready an in place. other wise 1 cord split and tossed into the stack/pile takes close to 13/4 hours by myself. the best we(son and i) have done 7.5 cords split and stacked in an 8 hour day!! this is all within 10 working feet of the splitter in a long row averaging 5" to 12" red oak. not an everyday job for sure?

 

[stumpy75]

I'm more like the 1 cord every 3 hours or so. I take my time... I'm sure I could do it faster if the rounds were nicely set up and small, but I get mostly larger pieces that I have either split vertically or noodled. For me, I have the time and don't need to kill myself trying to do it as fast as I can...

 

[Sandhill Crane]

It takes me close to an hour and a half to do a face cord to maybe half a cord using a Speeco single wedge horizontal splitter, 100% oak. Considerably slower than most posts here. I do split small compared to my neighbor. Half the size he splits.

 

[chiefs584ever]

About a cord an hour by myself. Timberwolf TW6 with log lift and table grate, 4 way wedge. I like working on trees 30 - 40 inches in diameter. Get a lot of wood in a hurry.

Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk

 

[KiwiBro]

Great use of a ute deck as the splitter trailer.

Just finished splitting this, its just over a full cord, split form a load for rounds cut on Sept 30, Doug fir. Speeco 35 ton splitter w/log lift(home made) split and pitched to trailer from splitter, 3 hrs from start to finish with a smoke break and a Looky Lu, tire kicker break(wanted to know if I sold wood.) Actual time about 2.5 hrs, by my self..

 

[Hedgerow]

If I use the tailgate as a work bench, I can get 2/3 cord per hour through the speeco... That's just splitting and pitching though... Oak or mulberry... Hedge or elm? Not so much... Stringy stuff makes for a slow day... Splitting is for sure the bottleneck in the process... :help:

 

[William Balaska]

knocked out three cords in two hours with my new supersplitter and a helper feeding me logs nonstop.

 

[Locust Cutter]

Working by myself I can do between 0.5-0.75 cord/hr if I have help a bit more. That said, I'm limited by a relatively slow cycle time and usually large knarley/knotted wood. I'm using a 35 ton Speeco. Hedge and Blackjack Oak can be challenging. If I'm splitting Locust, Hackberry and Silver maple, I can usually go faster with an axe, (when I'm in practice). I may have to get an S.S. or that LogRite if it's similarly priced. Unfortunately, living in the Mid-West, I don't have pretty string-straight trees like they do in the N.E or the Pacific N.W. so a processor wouldn't be of much benefit to me, as much as I like their inherent efficiency.

 

[Whitespider]

...usually large knarley/knotted wood. ... Unfortunately, living in the Mid-West, I don't have pretty string-straight trees like they do in the N.E or the Pacific N.W...

Ain't that the truth... Seems like the plains, especially the northern-plains weather makes for some gnarly trees. Even our so-called straight-grained trees get all ugly(ed)-up from the wind, cold, heat, droughts, floods, and whatnot.

Using my Log Boss yesterday I split 'round a half-cord of stringy elm in an hour... but I was stacking/loading it in the trailer as split so I suppose I could split about a full cord an hour letting it fall to the ground. Stringy elm requires that the wedge work the full length of the round (and ya' still haf'ta' use the hatchet on some), so I'm guessin' I could split an easy one-and-a-half cords of oak or ash an hour, not loading or stacking. But I can't say for sure because I can't remember ever doing it that way... always split in the woodlot, loading as I split, and then haul it up to the yard.