Speeco splitter pump upgrade.

[2broke2ride]

I have a 22 ton speeco splitter. I want to upgrade the pump to get a faster cycle time. I already have an 11HP Briggs and Stratton engine off of a generator that a buddy will turn the crank to standard 3/4 for me.
The current pump is 11GPM 2 stage. What size pump should I be looking for to speed this up without bogging out the 11HP engine?

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[triptester]

The 11 hp. engine if healthy can handle a 22 gpm 2-stage pump. But unless you make major changes to the present system, larger hoses , larger filter , and greater reservoir capacity, you are limited to a 16 gpm 2-stage pump.

 

[2broke2ride]

Is there enough of a speed increase to justify the change to 16GPM?

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[rancher2]

Is there enough of a speed increase to justify the change to 16GPM?

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It will be night and day difference in speed. I have put a couple 22GPM pumps with new engines on those splitters but you really need to up size the hyd tank when you do that the 16 GPM works well. I did do 22 GPM one for a buddy's friend a few years ago and didn't up size the tank but he only runs it in the winter so far it worked ok.

 

[Patrick62]

I'd switch it out to the 16 gpm, 11hp is overkill to run the pump but quite workable. can you upgrade the oil tank to something closer to 16 gallons?? Half inch hoses can handle 16gpm pretty well but you need a larger reservoir .

 

[2broke2ride]

Ok, a lot of info being thrown at me at once.
What formula of parts/sizes would I need to go to 16gpm? Will the half inch hoses and 6.5gallon tank support it ok?
What about the 22gpm pump? What size lines? Could I just add and auxiliary tank made of a propane tank or similar? The original tank is the axle of the splitter so I dont really want to mess with that.... will my current valve work?

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[2broke2ride]

If the line size was upgraded wouldnt it just bottleneck at the cylinder since it only has 1/2 NPT ports? Wont the system.only flow as much as the smallest component?

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[Ted Jenkins]

2b for most part you are correct. If you upgrade you will need to go to 3/4'' hoses fittings valve cylinder to speed up the system. If you have upgraded every thing , but not the hoses you will notice an increase as an example. I ran a 22 GPM pump with a 10 HP Briggs for a couple years. It had to be run WOT to get any thing done. I rebuilt that thing two times before I chucked it for a bigger HP unit. Thanks

 

[2broke2ride]

Yeah, I'm just not sure what to do. I bought the splitter brand new and it works good but is painfully slow. I'm not sure that going to all the trouble of swapping a motor and 16gpm pump would be worth the gain and upgrading everything would be cost prohibitive, I feel I may as well sell this and buy it build a bigger faster splitter at that point.
Not sure, open to suggestions.

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[kevin j]

what is the info on your current pump, and the speed and cylinder size? It may be that the current pump is stuck unloaded, at low flow. If you upsize the pump, you will get a speed increase proportional to the pump size, because it’s a positive displacement gear pump. However you get significant pressure drop across all the lines and hoses and fittings with higher flow which is what creates the heat. The reservoir itself is not necessarily a problem it’s just more area to dissipate heat. Have to deal with the root issue of pressure drops in smaller components.
I would focus on making sure that there’s not a malfunction in the system currently, run it the way it is and then sell or trade it. Or you can downsize to a 3 inch cylinder and get a lot more speed you do give up force

 

[2broke2ride]

Current pump is 11gpm, 2 stage. I have never timed the cycle time but it is the same as it was new. I can see the pump kickdown into low range on a hard push so I know it isnt a malfunction.
Probably just going to run it as is. I figured I had the most expensive part covered with the larger engine but apparently there is more to it than I thought.

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[rancher2]

You say you bought the splitter new so how old is it and how many hours on it? If you wanted just a little more speed with out much investment you could put a 13 GPM pump on it and your current motor will be ok with it unless its worn out.

 

[2broke2ride]

Its 6 years old. Dont have an hour meter but I have probably split 550-600 cord with it. I just put a new valve with adjustable detent on it, changed the oil in the engine and changed the hydro filter.

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[rancher2]

Wow if your doing close to a 100 cord a year I would think you would want a faster splitter. I only run 15-20 cord a year and I wouldn't be without my 28-GPM pump on my four inch cylinder.

 

[2broke2ride]

Wow, major brain fart lol, I can't do math today apparently. How about 50 or 60 cord? I do between 10 and 12 cord a year. Wow I feel dumb lol.

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[Patrick62]

Designing and building a log splitter is one of the funnest things I have ever done. Not a lotta mystery to the thing, but you HAVE to have a definate goal in mind. While you are out splitting with your current machine, think... do I like the beam height? Do I want a shorter stroke to speed things up? where would the handle and valve be better for me? Do I need to split from both sides? I am a believer in a 3 way wedge, you can see this one barely

There are a bunch of advantages of a 3 way wedge. It was created out of some grader blade and bunch of welding and grinding. Built with the point about 6 inches above the beam. IF a block is smaller, it gets split in half. Larger stuff you align with the point, and it makes thirds. Even bigger stuff, you split to thirds most of the way, and then back 'er up, rotate it about 60 degrees, and push it again. You have just made 6 chunks of wood with two strokes. I gain speed by being efficient with the machine.
Then you decide what size cylinder would work best for you. THis splitter has a 20" stroke and is fine. 18" is too short, as you need to wiggle longer rounds into position. 24" is too long unless you design a stop at 18" or so... ram travel is time wasted. what engine? what pump? what hoses?

Whole lotta fun! but a task that is WELL worth doing.

 

[2broke2ride]

I am thinking of doing this setup while keeping everything else pretty much as is and seeing how it does. If it doesnt workout I can easily swap back to stock.
Will an 8hp motor be sufficient to run this pump? I have a couple of those from snowblowers as well as the 11hp generator motor. The 8hp would not need the shaft machined so it would he a much easier bolt on. The other option would be an adapter for the generator motor, it turns it to a 1 inch shaft but that would add another $60 to the cost.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07HGHL1SF/ref=cm_sw_r_apa_i_p9NXEbEKPV3FB
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[2broke2ride]

Bump

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[triptester]

A 8 hp. engine will handle a 16 gpm 2-stage pump with no problem. Verify that your engine has the proper pump adapter holes, some older engines require a separate foot mount.