A splitting time

[Cowboy Billy]

After splitting wood yesterday in the heat. And feeling I worked way too hard and long for the wood I got split. A sore back and crick in my neck today. All I can think about how much easier and faster it was using my friends splitter at the farm. I really need to get my new splitter built I have most of the parts I just got to order the rest of the parts and steel and start building. My Grandpa and Brother built the one I am using now 30 years ago. And it does amaze me on what it will split with that little cylinder and it has a decent cycle time. But ergonomically it sux.

When I picked up my friends 3pt splitter. And was talking to his dad in his late 60's he laughed and said he split 13 cords in one day with it and if I couldn't I was a wimp.

Here it is on my 65hp Massy. I thought it would use a lot of fuel. But I split for 11 hrs the first day on less than 5 gal.

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On anything from 12 to 20 inch rounds its a one hit wonder. Over 20" you have to resplit some.

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In the thick of splitting.

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Split some pull up and split more.

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11 hrs later I had the first pile split. I'm sure its not 13 cords. But when I ask latter he said he split 13 face cords. Thats a big Difference Gerald! Plus he had his son bringing up all the wood in a skidsteer bucket.

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I was too sore to split the next day. So I went over my cousin's and helped him put in some deer feed plots. But the next day I was back at it.

I started out by the sawmill. I had a few cord of pine and spruce that had been sitting around to long to put on the mill. So I cut it up for campfire wood.

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The back to the pit to finish another pile there. My back was already getting sore. So I said the heck with it so I fired up the loader and got a bucket of wood and took it to the splitter. So I didn't have to bend over to pick up rounds or carry them much. But I hated all the wear I put on the loader starting and stopping it. Along with the danger of having one of those old hoses break and having the bucket fall on my foot.

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The duel wings on the splitter are on a hyd so you can lift it out of the way for smaller logs. Or position it better for bigger ones.

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I have a few more cords to split. And I need to cut some cedar 4x4's to stack the wood on. But I am really getting closer to having three years of wood ahead.

Billy

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Billy, you hit on the number one problem. That is, the bending. The splitter, when the only option is horizontal, needs to be higher so you don't have to bend. Then as you found out, putting the logs in the bucket helps a lot but that is a lot of equipment just for splitting wood. I hope when you build the new splitter you make it horizontal/vertical. You won't be sorry for that for sure.

On the plus side, that is a lot of wood to split at any time but in this heat..... You are a better man than I Billy.

 

[Cowboy Billy]

Howdy Dennis

I split that wood a month ago and it was in the low 70's high 60's. I would have never got it done in this heat! Another reason to have my own splitter at the farm is so I can split as I go. The first pile I split was from last year and when I was ready to split last year they were using it so I had to wait until this year.

With the way my back is hurt sitting down and trying to pull logs up to me and push them under the splitter isn't going to work. So its going to be a horizontal splitter with the work surface at the correct level for me. It will have a log lifter on it for the bigger logs. And a box wedge like a TW 7. Its also going to have a shoot after the wedge like the discharge of a square baler. So the splits will push up in and drop in a trailer that I can haul to the stacking area and save one handling of the wood. I have a very nice quiet 13.7 hp 2 cylinder perkins diesel engine to put on it too.

Billy

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Billy, perhaps some day I can teach you the right method. I highly doubt your back is worse than mine as polio left me a bit wanting and even after 3 surgeries, the danged thing still hurts. There definitely is a little trick to doing it the way I do but it surely is a lot easier on the back and most times I won't even break out in a sweat.

 

[Cowboy Billy]

Dennis I am not saying my back is worse than yours yet at least. Just that it may be damaged in a different way. I clearly remember when I blew it out. I bent over to pick up a bag of bentonite lifted and twisted my back at the same time. When it goes out I can't sit. I have to either lay flat on my back or stand strait up. If I sit around the house my back mussels will weaken and let it slip out of place. So I either have to stay active work out in a roman chair. But what works best to strengthen it is to kick up the radio and dance around the living room. I often wonder if my neighbors see me through the window dancing by myself and think I am weird.

Billy

 

[Backwoods Savage]

I say let 'em think whatever they like. Dance away Billy. And I can easily relate to your back problem.

 

[My Oslo heats my home]

I like the setup with the equipment you have. The loader will make some short work of moving the unsplit and split logs/splits here and there. It's actually alot of manual labor you are avoiding with help. I like the 3 pt splitter too and esp the hydraulic wedges, makes short work of the 20" and smaller rounds. A couple more 'good' days out there and you will be well on your way to being ahead.

 

[osagebow]

Love the wedge on that thing - nice setup. Ya think he left out the "Face cord" detail on purpose? LOL..

 

[bogydave]

Nice equipment & set up.
What ever it takes to be easier on "your" back, I say spend the time & $$ to get it set up for splitting wood.
Stacking it is enough strain on my back, wrestling rounds on & off the splitter might convince me to start buying.
I do it like Dennis, vertical. Not fast, slow & easy.

Like my work benches, I set the right height for me & not cause my back to start aching.
A custom built log splitter for what you need would be sweet.

Great picture & lots of hard work in them !

 

[thewoodlands]

That is a chit load off wood Billy, nice work.

zap

 

[velvetfoot]

That's a lot of split wood!
Anybody'd be stiff after splitting all that in a short period of time, no matter which way the splitter was oriented!

 

[Cowboy Billy]

Thanks Dennis

Take care my friend.

Thanks Oslo

The biggest problem with using the loader is all the dirt I get in with the wood. I have two more cord of popple to buck up and split yet along with two other small piles. And I should be set for this year. Get my splitter built and start doing all my CSS in the fall.

Thanks Osagebow

No I should have realized he meant face cords I just didn't think about it. They always cut their wood the year before they burn and stack in single rows along fence lines. The design well other than for logs you would like to quarter. The top set of wings could have been moved up a inch or two. But I am not complaining!

Thanks Dave

I have been designing this splitter in my head for at least three years. Looking at other peoples splitters and trying to decide what I want and how it will all work together for me. While I could have bought a good splitter for what I am going to have in this one. I feel its worth it to have just what I want.

Thanks Zap

Its nowhere near as much work as you have done. It just looks like a lot as it was all done at one time. I am kinda curious to see how much wood is there when its stacked.

Thanks Velvetfoot

It is and I need to stop doing it that way. I was surprised that even though the ram speed was close to the same. My splitting time was 7-8 time faster and easier than the old splitter I use at home.

Billy

 

[firefighterjake]

As usual . . . great pics.

 

[clr8ter]

That set-up, equipment & land is the Balls!! I wish I just had that kind of space.....

 

[Cowboy Billy]

Thanks Jake

Thanks clr8ter

I hope to move up there in a few years. My home is on 7 acres and it is just not enough.

Billy

 

[golfandwoodnut]

Billy, how do you like your Massey? I have been looking at farm tractors for quite awhile and there seem to be a lot of good ones. What year is that one? I am assuming you prefer a stand alone splitter to the 3 point splitter, or at least it keeps some hours off the machine. That is what I like about the farm tractors is that you can get so many attachments pretty reasonable. You try to buy attachments like that for my skid steer and the price jumps quite a bit and putting the hours on for splitting wood is not worth it.

 

[certified106]

Looks great! That's alot of wood that you got split. I would be hurting after that much splitting also!

 

[firefighterjake]

. . . But what works best to strengthen it is to kick up the radio and dance around the living room. I often wonder if my neighbors see me through the window dancing by myself and think I am weird.

Billy

Guess it depends on what you are dancing to and what your dance moves are . . . if your'e dirty dancing all by yourself or doing the macarena I too might wonder about you.

 

[smokinj]

Very nice Cowboy! What was the temp at on this day?

 

[TimJ]

Guess it depends on what you are dancing to and what your dance moves are . . . if your'e dirty dancing all by yourself or doing the macarena I too might wonder about you.

Yea, and to think he might even put on a wig

 

[Cowboy Billy]

Billy, how do you like your Massey? I have been looking at farm tractors for quite awhile and there seem to be a lot of good ones. What year is that one? I am assuming you prefer a stand alone splitter to the 3 point splitter, or at least it keeps some hours off the machine. That is what I like about the farm tractors is that you can get so many attachments pretty reasonable. You try to buy attachments like that for my skid steer and the price jumps quite a bit and putting the hours on for splitting wood is not worth it.

Howdy G&WN

I think its a 1980. It makes a good farm tractor for plowing disking planting ect. It has good weight and ground clearance and with the perkins diesel is one of the more fuel efficient tractors I have run. But I would not consider it for a utility tractor or for a FEL tractor. The three pt is very slow and doesn't work with the clutch in. They made a few different trans options, This one has a 3 sp w/ hi low range. And a hyd two speed on the dash. Which works great plowing or disking as you can be plowing in hi and if it needs more power you flip the lever on the dash and it drops one gear, But when its in lo hyd there is no engine breaking so if you pull a wagon down hill in low it just takes off like you are in neutral. Also if you shut it off on a hill you have to set the break. As the hyd clutch drops out and it will roll away weather it is in low or hi. I didn't like it for bush hogging either it did best in 1st hi range lo hyd but it would run away going down hill 1st hi hi was too fast and 3rd lo r hi hyd was too slow. Also backing up low reverse was way to slow and hi reverse was way too fast.

Yes I prefer a stand alone splitter. You can just hook it up to whatever and go and split. What I dislike about a 3 pt splitter is that it ties up a tractor and right now I only have one 3pt tractor at the farm. I don't mind putting the hrs on the tractor as I generally only split 20 hrs a year.

Billy

 

[Cowboy Billy]

Thanks Certified

Can't wait until I get the rest of it split and stacked.

Hi Jake

Dancing to 80's alternative and no dirty dancing or macarana going on here. I do through in a few skiing exercise moves in too.

Howdy Jay

It was between 62 and 72 degs out when I was splitting. A bit on the warm side but not real bad.

HI Tim

I live alone so I think even with a wig they could figure out who the loose screw is.

Billy