Log splitter cylinder size.

David G · Feb 23, 2020

What size cylinders do you have on your splitters?

Richard G. · Feb 23, 2020

Mine is a 4 inch and will split or cut through anything.
Richard in NW SC

jCarroll · Feb 23, 2020

4" - operating pressure not known.

Weldon K · Feb 23, 2020

I built a splitter many years ago. Picture below of it mounted on tractor. It has 4 inch diameter, 30 inch long cylinder. I shared building cost and use of splitter with my brother-in-law. He burned wood up to 30 inches length in his large firebox water stove, hence the need for long cylinder. I cut my wood about 20 inches. If only built for myself it would have been only 24 inches. Rare to ever find a piece of extremely knotty wood that it will not split.

fastfarmall · Feb 23, 2020

If you got 1500, lbs of pressure, a 3 in would be suffient, but that's not written in stone, the only thing is you get a faster cycle time, a friend of mine used my shop to build one over 48 yrs ago, he made his so he could open and close it with Knee control, so both hands were free to handle the logs!

brentb · Feb 23, 2020

I use a 5? cylinder on my splitter with a 13 horse Honda motor and a two stage valve.

Russ from MN · Feb 23, 2020

Most folks use a 4 inch, and a little longer stroke that your wood. I bought a 3 1/2 X 24, I stayed with the smaller dia. to speed it up, our tractor develops 2500 psi so it splits fine. Only once in 10 years has it failed to split, and I just turned the block around and it split it, I think it was a green elm crotch.

Russ from MN · Feb 23, 2020

A 3 inch cylinder with only 1500 psi would only have about 5 tons of force, I think that would be inadequate for many hard woods. The factory hydraulic splitters are 20 to 37 tons of force, seems like more than necessary, but that's what they advertise. Mine is a little under 12 tons, that seems OK.

John Deere D · Feb 23, 2020

My equipment is antiquated......4.5" Ram @ 2150 psi.......
Dead dry knotty PINE, and Dead dry Poplar......

12" > 14" diam X 10">12" long

Splitter never has a problem....

Bob...

Jeff NWOH · Feb 23, 2020

I built this one for a friend of mine 15 or so years ago. It has 6" cylinders. He runs it off a 10hp electric pump. If it won't split it, it'll just cut through it.

I also have a couple "normal" splitters that run 4" cylinders.

David G · Feb 23, 2020

I am starting to work on my dads splitter.

It has a 24" cylinder on it, with no tag, I can measure OD, how thick do you think walls are?

Steve@Advance · Feb 23, 2020

Can you peek in through one of the ports, get a measurement?

David G · Feb 23, 2020

Here is a link to chart, seems excessive to me
Untitled URL Link

teddy52food · Feb 23, 2020

I built mine with 2 cylinders side by side. They are 3 inch & have been resealed 3 times. Have a 1 cylinder Wis. but I don't know the HP. It just keeps on splitting year after year.

Russ from MN · Feb 23, 2020

Yes, that seems excessive, it claims a cylinder like mine (3 1/2) bore and 3000 psi rating would be 3/4 wall thickness. I have worked on a lot of cylinders, and most 4 inch and under are about 1/4 wall, 6 inch might be 5/8?

David G · Feb 23, 2020

That is more what I was thinking.

Traditional Farmer · Feb 23, 2020

My Northern Tool splitter has a 4" cylinder,splits vertical or horizontal,wedge on the cylinder I despise a splitter with the wedge on the back have to keep going and picking up pieces to resplit off the ground.Honda motor,costs about $2000 some of the best money I ever spent.

PJH · Feb 23, 2020

4" X 24" using a John Deere 630 for hydraulic power. With that same splitter on an 800 series Ford, it would barely move. The splitter we built for the Ford had a 3" X 24" cylinder, and it cycled about like the 4" X 24" on the John Deere. GPM was greater on the Deere.

37 chief · Feb 24, 2020

I made a splitter from a large trash compactor my company threw out. As you can see the cylinders are stacked on top of each other, and are around 2 1/2 inches in dia. at least 18 inches long. No special valves as one cylinder fills so does the other. No special blade material just a piece of metal I found at a scrap yard. Stan

caterpillar guy · Feb 24, 2020

If I have to split much wood it is to much work to burn. With a 27 inch square door if it goes through it probably doesn't get split much. Maybe a couple sides off some. I regularly put 12-18 inch stuff in without splitting.

Richard G. · Feb 24, 2020

Gary, I like my moving table on my splitter.
Almost never have a chunk of wood hit the ground.
Richard

Traditional Farmer · Feb 24, 2020

Thats a great idea,helped my neighbor one day split some wood with his splitter with the wedge on the end got real tiresome picking the wood up off the ground to resplit.

Billy NY · Feb 24, 2020

2 things are for certain, no matter how you do it, with whatever splitter you have, is getting it up to comfortable work height and having a log catcher, cradle, table, whatever works to avoid working off the ground. I do not like just a beam, especially on a low rider splitter, granted you then have to get the blocks up onto the beam once it's at a good working height, so it is a toss up. we had a table for the Didier, lift up with 3 pt boom pole, then shield the exhaust away. Blocks were not too big, but it was better than being on the ground when there's lots of cords to be split.

I brought 3 loads of 6" average diameter elm up to the house, cut it up off the ground, well there's a 6 x 6 runner under it, to help the forks slide out easy. Back gets fatigued, I have an old gasoline engine powered table saw, need to put the engine in it. Once done, I will work from forks at height, to the table saw, to the cart with the small wood and that is extremely abundant, have not used it for this in 42 years or so, but like a buzz saw, it works pretty quickly. I used to work with my father using it, he would buzz off so much that he'd finish the cutting, I'd still be out there stacking an hour later LOL !

Blackhole49 · Feb 24, 2020

Not sure of the cylinder size, but I have a #5 JD 3 point splitter I run on my 8n and it splits anything I've put in it. Won't set any speed records though.

Log splitter cylinder size.

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