Ive noticed that some manufacturers have 4 and 6 way wedge attachements for their splitters. Does anyone know of such a thing for a Craftsman 27 ton splitter? Or a generic one that will fit?
4Way wedges for Craftsman splitter?
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I almost came to the same conclusion independently. You might be able to adapt one of the www.northerntools.com 4 way splitter on to your wedge but it will either require cutting and welding
or drilling 5 large holes through your wedge and bolting on the wings for the 30 ton northstar,
or the wings for the 20 ton northstar splitter, see accessory section after clicking on the pics of the splitters mentioned above.
I dont know the contours of the mtd /craftsman wedge or the countours of the wing kit, so some surface grinding could be necessary. Same problem with the troy built 27 ton, no 4 way wedges. Have to micky mouse up something.
I imaging the bolt on right & left side 5 bolt steel wing kit uses 1/2 or 5/8 in dia. bolts, maybe even 3/4 inch . It comes with bolts but might not be long enough for you if you have a thick wedge. Would have to buy the maximun hardness bolt you could find and a really strong 1/2 or 3/4 in chuck electric variable speed hand drill, oversized drill bits and a set of new sharp
small drill bits and a can of grease to keep your drill bits constantly lubricated and drill really slowly. Expect to spend one to two hrs per hole, as you start with 1/8 in drill bit , then on up
through all the sizes until you reach the bolt size and maybe 1 size bigger, just in case all the holes dont line up perfectly, to give you some shifting room.
All day or 2 day job. Is it worth it. maybe. How much wood you split. how much time it save you after you finally get it on.
You may have to have it welded on, if the holes are oversized because of needing wiggle room
to get bolts trough or alternately, you might be able to got to the next largest bolt size.
If you go to the next largest bolt size, do the drilling with the wings still bolted onto your wedge and alligened as appropiate bolt size and only remove one bolt at a time and drill it,install the new bolt , remove only 1 smaller bolt and drill its hole to the next larger bolt size and so on.
This will insure that the wings with the oversized bolts fit tightly against the sides of the holes with no wiggle room.
I hope your wedge is made of steel and not cast iron like the troy built. cast iron is hard to drill,
harder to weld and tends to crack if abnormal stresses are applied to it by say a wing kit.
so good luck with all of that and let us know of sucess or failure.
ALTERNATLEY--OPTION #2
If the wing kit is steel and your wedge is steel , you can have it high penitration arc welded on
with a built up coner layered and puddled bead for superior strength. or something along those lines. I m not a big enthuisest of welding although I have done some little bit here & there, so I probably dont have the correct techinical term of the weld, but a submarine welder would know
what I'm refering to. He has to make watertight welds that can withstand tons of pressure.
Yor welds do not need to be watertight but must withstand 27 tons of pressure.
OPTION 3
REMOVE , if possible, your wedge from off the ram and see if a converter plate to one of the 4 way wegdes is fashionable, able to be made, you have 2 wedge choices the 8 inch wedge or the 12 inch wedge. again , you may have to have a professional welder fabricator make you a custom connection bracket from heavy steel.
These are my thoughts, they could work, but I never promised that they wouldnt be a big pain in the ash can.
or drilling 5 large holes through your wedge and bolting on the wings for the 30 ton northstar,
or the wings for the 20 ton northstar splitter, see accessory section after clicking on the pics of the splitters mentioned above.
I dont know the contours of the mtd /craftsman wedge or the countours of the wing kit, so some surface grinding could be necessary. Same problem with the troy built 27 ton, no 4 way wedges. Have to micky mouse up something.
I imaging the bolt on right & left side 5 bolt steel wing kit uses 1/2 or 5/8 in dia. bolts, maybe even 3/4 inch . It comes with bolts but might not be long enough for you if you have a thick wedge. Would have to buy the maximun hardness bolt you could find and a really strong 1/2 or 3/4 in chuck electric variable speed hand drill, oversized drill bits and a set of new sharp
small drill bits and a can of grease to keep your drill bits constantly lubricated and drill really slowly. Expect to spend one to two hrs per hole, as you start with 1/8 in drill bit , then on up
through all the sizes until you reach the bolt size and maybe 1 size bigger, just in case all the holes dont line up perfectly, to give you some shifting room.
All day or 2 day job. Is it worth it. maybe. How much wood you split. how much time it save you after you finally get it on.
You may have to have it welded on, if the holes are oversized because of needing wiggle room
to get bolts trough or alternately, you might be able to got to the next largest bolt size.
If you go to the next largest bolt size, do the drilling with the wings still bolted onto your wedge and alligened as appropiate bolt size and only remove one bolt at a time and drill it,install the new bolt , remove only 1 smaller bolt and drill its hole to the next larger bolt size and so on.
This will insure that the wings with the oversized bolts fit tightly against the sides of the holes with no wiggle room.
I hope your wedge is made of steel and not cast iron like the troy built. cast iron is hard to drill,
harder to weld and tends to crack if abnormal stresses are applied to it by say a wing kit.
so good luck with all of that and let us know of sucess or failure.
ALTERNATLEY--OPTION #2
If the wing kit is steel and your wedge is steel , you can have it high penitration arc welded on
with a built up coner layered and puddled bead for superior strength. or something along those lines. I m not a big enthuisest of welding although I have done some little bit here & there, so I probably dont have the correct techinical term of the weld, but a submarine welder would know
what I'm refering to. He has to make watertight welds that can withstand tons of pressure.
Yor welds do not need to be watertight but must withstand 27 tons of pressure.
OPTION 3
REMOVE , if possible, your wedge from off the ram and see if a converter plate to one of the 4 way wegdes is fashionable, able to be made, you have 2 wedge choices the 8 inch wedge or the 12 inch wedge. again , you may have to have a professional welder fabricator make you a custom connection bracket from heavy steel.
These are my thoughts, they could work, but I never promised that they wouldnt be a big pain in the ash can.
no one makes a 4 way wedge, at this time, to just go right on your splitter. you have to custom install as outlined in previous post or just write it off as too much work.
if you are going 2 be splitting 4 the next 20 years, probably worth the time , expense and effort.
At some point in the future, I will be doing the same thing to a huskee 22 ton. I will more that likely use the 2 wing,5 bolt, on kit for the 20 or 30 ton northstar from northerntools.com
Since i wont buy the huskee 22 ton until the end of the month, I am not sure what wedge it is equiped with , but i do know that it is a removable wedge and i suspect that your mtd wedge is also removable.
as a starting point, you may want to see what is involved in removing your wedge with an eye to replacing it with one of the 3 northerhtool 4 way wedges.
only you can determine what is the easiest way of skinning your particular cat.
P.S. what is the level of your mechanical aptitude?
1. investment broker, has heard the word tools, but does not own any.
2.tax accountant, not sure of the difference between slotted and philips head.
3.serious beer drinker, can occasionaly see his tools, but does not have the strength or will to pick one up.
4.not very handy man, has only most basic tools and tries not to ever use them.
5. average handyman, has somewhat more tools and knows how to use them.
6.backyard mechanic, has large selection of tools and uses the all,frequently.
7.backyard master mechanic,carpenter,cement mason,welder and electrician, roofe and plumber.has most tools ever made and knows how to use all of them and sometimes even teaches others.
I was a 7 , but am backsliding into a 6 due to the onset of old age.
Its bad when your friends start giving you their prized tools, because they are too old to opperate them any longer.
if you are going 2 be splitting 4 the next 20 years, probably worth the time , expense and effort.
At some point in the future, I will be doing the same thing to a huskee 22 ton. I will more that likely use the 2 wing,5 bolt, on kit for the 20 or 30 ton northstar from northerntools.com
Since i wont buy the huskee 22 ton until the end of the month, I am not sure what wedge it is equiped with , but i do know that it is a removable wedge and i suspect that your mtd wedge is also removable.
as a starting point, you may want to see what is involved in removing your wedge with an eye to replacing it with one of the 3 northerhtool 4 way wedges.
only you can determine what is the easiest way of skinning your particular cat.
P.S. what is the level of your mechanical aptitude?
1. investment broker, has heard the word tools, but does not own any.
2.tax accountant, not sure of the difference between slotted and philips head.
3.serious beer drinker, can occasionaly see his tools, but does not have the strength or will to pick one up.
4.not very handy man, has only most basic tools and tries not to ever use them.
5. average handyman, has somewhat more tools and knows how to use them.
6.backyard mechanic, has large selection of tools and uses the all,frequently.
7.backyard master mechanic,carpenter,cement mason,welder and electrician, roofe and plumber.has most tools ever made and knows how to use all of them and sometimes even teaches others.
I was a 7 , but am backsliding into a 6 due to the onset of old age.
Its bad when your friends start giving you their prized tools, because they are too old to opperate them any longer.
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