Performance Built 27 Ton Splitter from Lowes

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That has happened to me with smaller4-6' EAB ash rounds. They have gone 6-8 feet easy!
 
Try digging your foot plate into the ground a bit so everything is level- stops that walking away deal. personally I do not like the vertical and messing around all bent over . now if it was vertical say about 30 inches up off ground that wood be ok. There some units made that way. I have all seen one that operates at apx 35deg incline.
I don’t care for using my splitter in the vertical position either and I’ve never used it that way i end up hoisting some heavy rounds because of it lol.
 
I like my 37 ton splitter I got from Menards two years ago. I split a lot of scrounge elm and it will often stop the wedge for a moment then when stage two kicks in it will jerk its way through the round grunting all the way. It has a sharp wedge and it will sorta cut through some of knots and narlies. I bought the splitter on Black Friday for $900, I thought that wasn’t too bad but no, it isn’t real fast.
 
speed is overrated- from my perspective- lot of snow on the mountain - hasn't thinned out though. if something goes south it just does it faster. course i would like a bit faster return stroke- easy fix, but the darn oem pump hasn't worn out yet ( knock on wood).
 
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Cycle time is very important to me, my splitter has about an 8 1/2sec cycle, with that said, that 8 1/2 sec's is just a hair faster then my typical working speed on most wood splitting that I do. The second most important thing is 2 stage tonnage, generally speaking mine is a 20 ton unit and I've never had an issue yet.
 
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Cycle time is very important to me, my splitter has about an 8 1/2sec cycle, with that said, that 8 1/2 sec's is just a hair faster then my typical working speed on most wood splitting that I do. The second most important thing is 2 stage tonnage, generally speaking mine is a 20 ton unit and I've never had an issue yet.
Have you split any tough elm? Most elm isn’t too bad to split but I get some that my newer 37 ton machine has a hard time spitting. I know some on here say to just throw it to the side and get rid of it if it won’t split but I can’t throw good wood away. It’s kinda like I have to stop and pick up wood that has fallen off peoples trailers up here lol. This round I took a photo of stopped my big splitter then the 2nd stage kicked in but it still had a hard time with this one.

FB6D04B7-3F45-4711-9892-063412AD77E2.jpeg
 
big rounds- saw them in half ( what we call noodling) or 1/4's, when no mechanical help is available. Course when they get into the 4ft dia range it takes a bit longer View attachment 261541;lol
Or get out the skid and inverted splitter and cut them down to size for your other splitter. I did it that way for awhile but the skid steer had to go since I hardly used it anymore and I gave the buyer a very good deal on the splitter just to get it out of my yard. It kinda stunk really but I can live without it.
 
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Elm and the like is why I have a thin wedge with a spreader located behind it.Shears its way through rather than blunt force.
 
Elm and the like is why I have a thin wedge with a spreader located behind it.Shears its way through rather than blunt force.
Yes right. You can see the edge on my wedge in the photo above, it’s pretty sharp and that’s the way it came from the factory. It will kinda cut through knots and narlies.
 
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I don’t care for using my splitter in the vertical position either and I’ve never used it that way i end up hoisting some heavy rounds because of it lol.
I've used ours about 75% vertical and 25% horizontal. A lot of our splitting has been seriously large doug fir rounds. Like 30-40" diameter. I can whale on them with wedges and a maul for 10-15 minutes, or the two of us can move it to the spitter and start breaking it up in a minute. My back won't tolerate lifting the heavy chunks for hours, but I can work for quite a while on big pieces splitting vertically with a helper. If the rounds are 16" or less than I split horizontally.

Actually, though, at my age I am splitting a whole lot less. Sons have grown up and my wife is pretty petite, so unless I hire someone to help, the splitter stays idle.
 
couple ways to get around lifting, a ramp to roll them up and on, you can add a come -a -long, ratchet strap, boat winch to pull them up the ramp. most of the time i work alone and have to get creative to move or lift things.
 
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I'm also wondering about this model from lowes. It's the only splitter around me in stock and assembled at any hardware store. They also have a wen lumberjack 22 ton and 30 ton half beam. I think that's the sizes. Anyways they're like 40 percent off selling for 850 ish. They're still 1500 at home Depot. Not in stock though and there's like no reviews.
 
Is anyone familiar with the Oregon splitter? My local saw shop sells them and they usually sell good quality stuff. The owner is a good guy and likely put one through the ringer before selling it out of his store. I think they’re kind of spendy but maybe worth the extra?
 
I looked at it and I think it is a hoss. I like it, but for the short time I observed it some of the hoses did not look like they would hold up. The hoses looked soft and like they would collapse or pinch in a way that would cause a leak. If you find one at $850, I would purchase it. For the size it appears to be a better built unit.
 
I purchased a Cub Cadet 25ton 2yrs ago, mainly because of the Honda motor, starts 1st pull every time no matter how long it sits. Never had an issue splitting anything, not the fastest or cheapest but I'm not in a hurry and don't need headaches just to save a few $'s .
 
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I just bought a the Performance Built Splitter you are talking about. For a guy that cuts wood just for himself (nothing commercially) its seems just right. If its a good price, I don't think you will have any issues.