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Countyline Log Splitter? Best Budget Splitter?

Started by GaTrapper, January 21, 2022, 12:58:26 PM

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TroyC

Mike- That's quite a splitter ram there. Interesting having the center point- that would help keep the occasional log from sliding upward.

mike_belben

nothing ever moves.  you stab it just a touch and thats the spot its going no matter what. i use a piece of sacrificial wood laying on the bed at the foot plate to shorten stroke, and so that the knife goes completely through a tough fibery piece so i dont have to rip the last inch apart.  well a lot of times i plop a round up ontop that hunk of wood if i want to raise the intersect point or if its gonna jam under the wings as a single split.  better to raise it for a double split with 2 pieces of kindling. i heave it up onto that end block, hold it level, let the point touch and then my hand comes off and it does the rest just perfect.  took a few revisions so excuse the ugly. it makes shiny new wood that no one wants to pay for, so forget em.  they can go bust their own.
Praise The Lord

mike_belben

if youre gonna start modding wedges, ALWAYS stagger the engagement.  notice not one pair of mine enters fiber at the same time as another pair. this way i can often keep the pump in high displacement mode for an extra inch or 6 before it kicks down to slow mode.  

if you start a bunch of points at once, youll be dropping to low gear as soon as you touch wood. a fast splitter is on that stays in high gear longer. more production for less time and fuel.

also dont forget that the further back you stage a wing, the wider the piece has already spread from the previous stage, so that wing needs to meet the wood further out.  it is much better for a point to meet the fiber than a flat.  this way the point touches the end grain and holds it. a flat knife edge that is touched late in the stroke when pieces are flared way open will often be slid across instead of sliding through the wood to separate fibers.  makes a big wad of wood mess. 

thick about stabbing a table with a point verse a flat knife edge.  which one lets you gouge deeper with the same force?  the point.
Praise The Lord

upnut

Quote from: TroyC on January 24, 2022, 08:59:42 AM
Thanks! That will give me something to do today. :laugh:
I can confirm, 11" center to center. The decking on mine is flat stock instead of square tubing, the brackets look the same.
Scott B.
I did not fall, there was a GRAVITY SURGE!

TroyC

Great! Maybe I'll drill one end and wait till camp to drill the other, Never can tell, maybe they changed the hole pattern.

TroyC

Quit raining long enough today to get the splitter cradle mostly done.




Started out with some stuff I took off an old boat trailer.




Made a couple extra spacers and Ill get the ends on when it get to the camp.

SwingOak

I have the 22 ton model made for Tractor Supply by Speeco. I think it was $900 at the time, and on sale. I haven't needed more power than it has, and it will even cut a log cross grain. I have the log catcher and four way splitter accessory. The 4 way wedge drops on the main wedge, and the label said to use in soft wood only. I found it didn't save any time. 

My dad bought the exact same one, and hasn't had a problem with his either. Can't really speak for the new ones that aren't made inthe USA anymore. But, if you happen to get a lead on a used one, it gets the job done. 

The Kohler engine is good on gas, but doesn't like to start when it's below 30°F, which works out pretty well for me, because I don't like splitting wood when it's below 30°F anyway.

Just kidding, I split wood when I have time. IF I know it's going to be cold, I'll park it in the shop the night before or just give it a shot of happy gas.

thecfarm

On the hard starting when it's cold, a magnetic heater and a moving blanket will help out a lot!!!
Model 6020-20hp Manual Thomas bandsaw,TC40A 4wd 40 hp New Holland tractor, 450 Norse Winch, Heatmor 400 OWB,YCC 1978-79

TroyC

SwingOak- thanks for the info on the 4 way. I only split oak so guess I'll pass on pursuing that for a project. The catcher I made will prevent having to pick up the splits, probably saving more time than a 4 way.

SwingOak

Plus, sometimes I like to keep splits large so they burn slower. Sometimes with a big log, I might split it 5 or 6 ways. I found it wasn't really useful for me. 

I will add that despite the "softwood only" label, it worked fine with straight grain hardwoods but poorly with wood with an interlocking grain like Elm. 

stavebuyer

Quote from: SwingOak on January 28, 2022, 06:05:57 PM
Plus, sometimes I like to keep splits large so they burn slower. Sometimes with a big log, I might split it 5 or 6 ways. I found it wasn't really useful for me.

I will add that despite the "softwood only" label, it worked fine with straight grain hardwoods but poorly with wood with an interlocking grain like Elm.
Thats the main issue with multi-wing wedges; A small percentage of splits come out the desired size dependent on log diameter, position of the pith, and knots.

farmfromkansas

  About the speed of your engine on these countyline splitters, do you guys run yours at full speed?  I usually just run mine fast enough to do the job. Same thing with my lawnmowers and the mill as well.  Should I be running as fast as it will go?
Most everything I enjoy doing turns out to be work

TroyC

Usually run mine a tick above half speed or so. Not in a hurry and it is less noisy. Very fuel efficient. I only split for campfire wood so speed is not necessary.

btulloh

Running the splitter engine at lower rpms works for me too.  Lawnmowers are designed to run at governor max speed though. Blade speed should be at max to do the best job, especially if you run mulching blades. If you are happy with the results at lower rpms, then I suppose that's a good thing.  Reduced rpms on the lawnmower might actually lead to reduced engine life, but that's above my pay grade. 
HM126

TroyC

Quote from: btulloh on February 07, 2022, 09:02:59 AMReduced rpms on the lawnmower might actually lead to reduced engine life, but that's above my pay grade.


I'm curious, how would that work? I realize bushogs and such are designed to run at speed, but if I slow my lawnmower down, can I wear the engine faster?

beenthere

south central Wisconsin
It may be that my sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others

jb616

I've worked on small equipment since middle school and it is my experience (no formal training) that you just run them up against the governor and let it do it's job. Sometimes it's not good to run them at part throttle with a load, just like lugging a stick shift car up a hill to the point where its chugging. When the governor is working correctly and there is no load, the throttle is barely open to keep it at 3200-3600 rpm. It's not like a car where you are flat footing it and the 4bbls are kicking in :)

Hilltop366

Theory goes that depending on how the oil is distributed in the engine and the efficiency of the system at lower rpm there is a chance that some engines will not distribute the oil adequately for proper lubrication.

I think this is/was more of a problem with the horizontal crank engines with splash lube system that had a piece of metal on the end of the connecting rod big end that would sling some oil every rotation as the piece of metal would dip in the oil and splash some around.

Perhaps @sawguy21 could add to this or disprove it.

sawguy21

The splash lube system works very well at the speeds these engines normally operate at. However regular maintenance is very important, many engines suffer an early death from lack of oil changes and keeping the cooling fins clear. To answer @TroyC question, the engine will overheat if run too slow because it is now  working too hard and the cooling fan is not supplying enough air. Besides, the lawn won't look good.
old age and treachery will always overcome youth and enthusiasm

upnut

There is a throttle stop screw(for lack of a better term) that you can adjust on the Kohlers that will limit the WOT to wherever you want it. That way someone unfamiliar with your preference won't run way higher rpm's than you wish, and you can push the throttle to the same rpm's every time.

Scott B.
I did not fall, there was a GRAVITY SURGE!

stavebuyer

I run my mower at governed speed; same as I used to run the 38hp Kohler on the firewood processor. The Honda's on my elevator and Supersplit ran just over a fast idle. I wouldn't hesitate to run at any speed as long as you aren't lugging and stalling but I don't think the countyline splitter has enough pump to drag the motor down that much. 

Old saw fixer

     Don't forget the cooling fan on an air cooled engine is the flywheel.  Run the engine too slow and it might not cool itself, just sayin'
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rusticretreater

I just got back from a trip to my local co-op and the tractor supply store that was right across the road from there.  I looked at the new DR 22T log splitter at the co-op $1700 and the County Line log splitter at $1500.  I am definitely going with the DR log splitter.  There was no comparison in quality and workmanship and the DR comes with splinter baskets on both sides.  County Line says theirs is more powerful and faster, but I know a good machine when I see one.

The YardMax Log splitter is one of the most popular out there.  But it is also sold at the big box stores so I am already kinda put off.  Maybe unfair, but I think you understand my reasoning there.

A lot of folks like the Champion splitter, but it doesn't go vertical.
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upnut

When your old splitter looks like this(note the TLC)...



 

The new County Line splitter @$999.99 becomes quite appealing. The old one, bought for $150.00 at a local flea market, with continuous tinkering, served two families quite well. I've been satisfied with the new one over 7 years.....



 

Scott B.
I did not fall, there was a GRAVITY SURGE!

woodroe

I've been renting splitters for a few years, a good way to try them out I guess.
They had DR splitters 24" that I liked and worked well, vertical option was a plus for me. Have plenty of pasture pine culls
some 2' dia.
They went to County line 24" last year with the vertical option as well. Somehow the hyd lever
became hard to operate, lots of resistance, not smooth.
Did what I needed and returned it. The beauty of renting .
I would like to own one so there isn't the pressure of having to split 2 cords in a day but
like a lot of purchases these days it can be a crap shoot with the quality of the products .
However, reading the online reviews on some of todays splitters makes me want to continue renting.


Skidding firewood with a kubota L3300.

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