Another splitter build

[DeerMeadowFarm]

Decided to put together a splitter. I'm sick of repairing that Oregon (Speeco) splitter. I designed it so I can use it as the splitter for my processor when I get to that point but for now it'll be a stand alone splitter.

Beam assembly: 6" angle 3/8" thick spaced an inch apart. End caps are 6" angle as well and there are 3 1/2" thick straps spaced evenly below that were cut from an old snow plow cutting edge to form a box.

 

Carriage assembly. 1" thick. This bolts to the push plate assembly with 5 1/2" grade 8 bolts. It rides below the surface of the angles on 4 Ford Escape rear wheel bearings.


 

Push plate assembly. This is made out of 11/16" thick steel that my BIL had kicking around his machine shop. It was used as a set-up jig for a job he hasn't done in years. His comment as we were cutting it up was "I bet I get an order for these parts this fixture was for next week..."


 
Cylinder mounted using a bought cylinder mount. I drilled those holes with a Harbor Freight step drill till I just got into the 1/2" diameter and then I cleaned it up with a regular 1/2" bit. I love those step drills!


 
Another shot. I left 26" between the push plate and the wedge.


 


Side view. Cylinder is a 5" with a 24" stroke. I wanted to put the push plate gussets inboard more but that bracket on the cylinder was in the way. I am thinking of adding a 3" wide plate to the top of the angles kind of where the hammer is laying but under the cylinder to close up the gap in the angles and just strengthen the whole beam that much more.



 

That's it for now; more to come!

[thecfarm]

Pretty cleaver guy you are.

[DeerMeadowFarm]

Apparently you're the only one who thinks so!  :-\

[Hilltop366]

I think adding a piece behind the push plate is a good idea.

Kind of wondering if the beam is going to resist the forces applied to the centre of it from each end, adding the tie across the top will certainly help.

Not sure where your cylinder came from or the rod size but speaking from experience of having bent a cylinder rod or two on a wood splitter equipped with a non-wood splitter cylinder (not a large enough rod) the forces applied to the cylinder when almost fully extended and hitting a extra hard knot can be great enough to bend the rod as the now almost 3½ foot span of the cylinder and rod will want to bend sideways or up or both! The cheap cure (after replacing the rod) was to decrease the span of the cylinder and rod by encasing the gland end of the cylinder with a piece of steel that goes around the cylinder and fastens to the beam with bolts so it can removed to service the cylinder in the future.

Not trying to discourage you just relaying my personal experiences.

[DeerMeadowFarm]

It's a new replacement cylinder for a splitter. It has a 1.5" diameter rod. It's bigger than the one on my current splitter.

As for the beam....? We'll see I guess... It seems pretty stout

[Bruno of NH]

Looks good .

[DeerMeadowFarm]

I tried the splitter out this weekend. Worked fine but was really S....L.....O....W. I bought a hydraulic unit off of CL that came from a car carrier. Apparently it was used to power the ramps. I wasn't able to get the numbers off of the pump initially because it was tucked in so nice, but it isn't going to work for me in it's current configuration so I pulled the engine, pump assembly out. The pump is a Roquet gear pump that puts out 6 cubic CM at 1500 RPM.

I have found some 2 stage pumps that will bolt right up to the adapter currently on the engine (SAE A 2-Bolt). The 22 GPM says it requires 12 HP. What are the thoughts of using it with my 11 HP?

Thanks!

[Gearbox]

That 11 will handle a 16 and on a 4 in cyl. I can't grab another piece befor it is backand waiting . spend the money on a detent return valve .

[DeerMeadowFarm]

I have a 5" cylinder and I'm looking at the 22 GPM. One catalog shows the pump requiring 12 HP minimum and another shows 10 HP minimum for the same pump...?

[Jemclimber]

Nice build.

You should get by with the 11.  It won't be able to generate the full psi the pump is rated for,(it will stall the engine) but with a 5" cylinder there is a lot of splitting force before it reaches maximum pump pressure. Another work around is to lower the bypass pressure in your valve so it never stalls your engine.  With a 5" cylinder I think you will very seldom see your pump go into the lower pressure stage before the wood splits. Unless you are splitting very large ornery wood.  That lower pressure will generally extent cylinder life too.

[DeerMeadowFarm]

Haven't updated this in forever, but I'm in the painting stage now. Here's a little recap of where it's gone from last time.
Salvaged half of an old horse-drawn hay ride wagon my FIL made years ago:


 

Got the power unit mounted. I have since replaced the 7 gallon tank with a much larger one.


 

Beam mounted and test fitting for hoist locations:


 

Out-feed table and you can see the framework for the side work table as well:


 

Valve mount for the hoist. (I replaced the bottle jack with a small cylinder):


 

[Gearbox]

Did you end up with the 22 gal. pump ? What is the cycle time ?

[DeerMeadowFarm]

I did get it and it's....faster. I honestly can't remember what it turned out to be! I don't think I ever actually timed it. All I have left to paint is the chassis which I hope to get to this coming weekend and then I can begin re-assembly. Once it's all back together I'll time it.

[Ox]

A fantastic home built machine!  You should be proud.  If you're not, seek medical attention.  :D

[bedway]

Very impressive iron work. Makes me itching to build something.

[WmFritz]

Very nice project.

[DeerMeadowFarm]

I have more updates. I've got everything painted and have begun reassembly:

[Ox]

There now!  You have something you can look at and be proud of for years to come.  Nice job.

[thecfarm]

That does look good!!!!

[Magicman]

That is a very nice splitter build.  I would want something such as this welded to that flat pusher. 


 
A round with a knot or uneven end for whatever reason may need some grip to prevent it from slipping and being spit out under pressure.   

I was splitting kindling today and found myself regularly fitting the small ends inside that ring to prevent them from slipping out.

[DeerMeadowFarm]

Another update: Finished all the plumbing Friday night. Saturday, after hunting I put 15 gallons of hydraulic fluid in before thinking "Gee, maybe I should run this to make sure it's not leaking anywhere..." Then, the old faithful Honda wouldn't start. Had good spark so fuel was suspect. Decided to quit for the night.

Sunday morning, I walk into the barn and I'm greeted by an overwhelming smell of hydraulic fluid. The lower drain plug on the tank wasn't tightened and I dumped about a quart +/- of fluid all over the floor. Arrrrgh! Fixed that and began working on the fuel situation. I drained the tanks and cleaned the carb. Put new gas in and viola, started second pull!

While it was running I decided to cycle the valves. Splitter cylinder worked great (my phone was dead so I couldn't check the cycle time with my stopwatch). When I tried the hoist however, it shot up WAY too fast! If I had a round hooked up it would have flung it like a Trebuchet! I definitely need to put some flow control on it. I was able to feather the valve and have it operate sanely, but to be safe I'll look into reducing the flow to the hoist cylinder.

As I mentioned, the phone was dead so no new pics, but I'm working on it!

[Gearbox]

That cylinder is so small you are going to have trouble slowing down without shifting the pump into and out of low flow . I would just set your jib and use your winch to lift the rounds . I have one on mine and the speed is about right . A black smith friend made log tongs for me out of 3/4 . Nice and light still strong enough to lift a 24 in round .

[DeerMeadowFarm]

That is a very nice splitter build.  I would want something such as this welded to that flat pusher. 


 
A round with a knot or uneven end for whatever reason may need some grip to prevent it from slipping and being spit out under pressure.   

MM is correct; I need something added to the pusher plate. So, how about it guys, can you post up some pics of what's on your push plates? I need some ideas!

[thecfarm]

Magicman all ready did.
That is how mine looks.

[barbender]

That is sharp! I'm kind of outgrowing my splitter, and I'm considering building one because I haven't seen exactly what I want produced commercially. I may have to copy some of your design ;)