update on homemade portable splitter

I think it was on the old board. someone had built a splitter that used the tank as part of the backbone for a portable upright splitter. it also had some angle iron to beef it up. I was wondering about an update on it's performance and wear.

i think its cozyheatformyfeet that built it. im curious also cozy.....give us an update.

I remember it looked neat he used a steel water main pipe for the hydralic tank actually the parts are right in Northern Hydraulic. I could give you a list on mine You might be able to purchase then on Ebay cheaper but at least you know what to look for. After looking at my electric one I should have built it.

Yep, it was me. Don't have any pics with me at the moment, but your memory is essentially correct 6" steel pipe for the backbone, e-bay hydraulic cylinder, valve, pump and engine. A few parts from the scrap pile and a few precious hydraulic fittings from Northern tool.

So far no complaints of functionality. I would like to add a handle for easier transport and I have found that one of the used hydraulic hoses seems to have a pinhole leak...looks like it will be cheaper to buy a new hose from Northern than it will be to rebuild the old hose at the local hydraulic shop.

If you have any questions, just let me know...I will share what I know.

Corey

I will stow away all the knowledge until my current splitter gives up the ghost, or until I cacn no longer pick up the rounds to put them on the splitter. Horizontal woud be nice, but Ii got what I got. I just hadn't seen any mention of it since the old boards and was wondering how it was doing. how much use has it seen?

So far I have done about 2 cords of hedge and 1/2 a cord of elm...so it is still just a baby in terms of usage. Although I think the 1/2 cord of elm is probably about as much wear and tear as 1000 cords of oak

Corey

Hi Corey,

Do you have any plans of making these splitters and selling them? I like the setup a lot. Different from anything I have seen.

Just make sure you make one for me with an electric motor (like Elkimmegs).

Carpniels

Is the spitter wedge end welded directly to the shaft? It's been my experience that the welding of hardened steel does'nt always go well

Carpniels - I really don't have any plans for production. This was just sort of a one-off production that I made with the materials I had on the scrap pile and a few selected new tidbits off ebay, and I'm still tweaking a little as I go. The electric motor would be pretty cool, though because it could be mounted in any position (ie down low on the splitter) for better weight balance.

I'm curious, though (maybe elkimmeg can chime in, too) Are those electric splitters actually electric/hydraulic? Seems like I remember seeing one where the motor was coupled to a gear reduction box which turned a lead screw and drew the wedge up and down? That may be even simpler yet...eliminating all the hydraulic bits!

Jared - Yes the wedge is welded right to the ram. Had a bit of trouble with that in the beginning and if I had it to do over again I might choose a different solution. But with the proper pre weld and post weld heat treatment, the weld seems to be holding up OK.

Corey

Hi Corey,

Yes, almost all electric splitters are electric/hydraulic. The only difference between a gas and an electric splitter such as the ram splitter, is that the engine is replaced from gas to electric.

The only non hydraulic electric splitter I have ever seen was last week. It is called a flowtron and is exactly like the one you thought off: a screw with a wedge moving left and right. Twice the speed. On Ebay it went for $200+.

Carpniels