Looking for a wood splitter

Bruce(OR)

Well-known Member
Looking for a self contained wood splitter. Trying to decide between the one that had a loading table and does not tilt down to the cheaper one that does tilt down. Might also enjoy the adjustable 4 way splitter head, but then again...?
Trying to keep this down under $2500 would be nice.
 
I bought a 30 ton splitter from Northern Tool 4 years ago its done a great job,has a Honda motor.It'll tilt back so blocks can be split on the ground this is a great feature as
far as I'm concerned much rather have it than the lift on the side.I see they still sell for around $2000.
 
What size logs will you split?
What size/length can your stove accept?
Self-contained.....so you don't want one that's tractor powered?

We don't burn wood, but have thought about it. I had been eying this design. Could be set up so that it cycles continuously, but with a Cycle Pause in case you need extra time for whatever reason.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p6v0YuD7FWw
 
That is some very easy to split wood,I'd love to see him put in a big piece of Hickory or snarled up White Oak.Also makes no economic sense to me to run a 100 HP motor and put wear and tear on the tractor's hydraulics to split wood.
 
If you go with one that tilts,make sure you can actually use it.While it sounds good to roll the wood up and split it without lifting it,quite a few people have found they can't work on their knees.I can lift wood a lot easier than I can work on the ground.My personal gripe with those machines is having the wedge on the piston,moving instead of fixed.With a fixed wedge the wood drops off the end,either on the ground or in a conveyor hopper.With a moving wedge you have to catch the wood from both sides and toss it where you want it.I have been using a Super Split myself since 1978,and will never go back to a hydraulic splitter.I have a commercial LaFont hydraulic splitter that I have not put a piece of wood in since 1996.The Super Split looks like a tinkertoy,but you will find the detractors are armchair experts that never worked with one.
 
There are a lot of them to pick from on the higher end, log lift, fixed wedge with built in table so you are no just working off a beam. So many of these horizontal/vertical models were just a straight up beam, wedge on hydraulic ram, kind of useless in regards to working in comfort, you at least have to have something on one side of the beam, and doing production work in the vertical position is literally working off the ground, just like all the low rider ones from the past, they are just too low, but likely so to be able to roll a log onto them. For high production with a conveyor or what have you, wedge on end of beam is what you want and the higher end splitters seem to all be set up like that.

I prefer the wedge on the ram, as some of the wood I split can be difficult. When the wedge gets stuck in the wood, just reverse the direction and let the stops on the beam clear it off. Also allows me to make use of wood you may not want to run through a splitter built the other way. I do like to line up checks in the blocks to the wedge, especially elm and I suppose you can do that with both kinds, I find it works well with elm when you have your blocks cut in advance and it's dried a bit first, you can find the ideal location to line up the wedge and make an easier and neater split. Some elm I will split planks off the outside then leave the middle block because some of this does not split, it splinters into fragments that won't stack so well.

I just have one of the more common Speeco (TSC - huskee ) splitters, 28 ton. Bought used for 1000 if I recall. I will add a log lift to the beam and a valve to accommodate. To minimize working off the ground, I will cut and stack or make the blocks easy to get with a log gripper ( kind of a hose type deal with a hook on each end that allows you to handle a block easily ). A log lift will make the heavier ones so much easier to deal with. On the other end I either work next to a stack or line up 4 gardenway carts and 3 heavy old Jackson wheelbarrows with stakes I made to hold more split wood. I can put well over a cord on wheels and move to where it will be stacked. For blocking the logs, I can use the heavy 3 pt forks or the backhoe thumb to elevate the bigger logs, so I mostly work at a comfortable height, but sawing the blocks, right on the ground is usually no bother, good to have options. So many variations, methods, and equipment, you really have to set up specific to your needs to be productive and work in comfort. No way I'd split in vertical with one of these for long, I have a few large logs in the yard now that I will halve and quarter before splitting all the way in vertical, that is just uncomfortable for long periods of time, + moving the blocks while heavy and on the ground on the flat is awkward.
 
I've had a DR Power flywheel splitter for a few years now. It's much faster to recover than anything else. It's held up well, was priced right, and had a good warranty. I went with an electric model so I can split in my garage when it's cold out. At the time I was shopping for a gas model, but in the end I'm glad I got the one I did.
 

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