I have just been given an old home built splitter. It isn't pretty and definitely need some major TLC but it seems it may be a fun project. The cylinder is around 4" and the ram is 2 1/4". Travel looks to be 24". I'll need to replace one hose right away. The engine is a 2 cylinder OMC that I have not even tried to turn over but I'm already planning to replace it with a 12hp Wisconsin from a pressure washer. replacing the axle down the road seems to be a good idea as the rims are some funky set-up. The beam is a piece of square tubing that I'm already thinking of turning into the hydraulic reservoir. Here are some pics, any thoughts?
Free splitter
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axel looks to be an old mobile home axel. pretty tuff, but i am to the understanding that the tires are odd ball sizei.e. 13.5 or 14.5" something like that. i could be wrong...seems that is what i was told in the past.
looks like a good score.i want to build one for myself. the wife says why we burn pellets.i do alot in my neighborhood for the elderly, and some have firewood, and no way or help for one, and two,if i ever go back to wood,i dont like to rent or borrow.
i work in a fab shop as a welder, so ready access to materials.
one thought on yours...with the beam being made out of tube steel,might be a good idea to weld a good flatbar gusset to the underbelly of the tube for strength.i have seen a splitter built in the past with an i
beam that was to light and it bent from pressure of the ram.
converting the tube beam to a hydraulis res. sound like a good idea, never seen that before
all in all, nice looking splitter for the price.
mike
looks like a good score.i want to build one for myself. the wife says why we burn pellets.i do alot in my neighborhood for the elderly, and some have firewood, and no way or help for one, and two,if i ever go back to wood,i dont like to rent or borrow.
i work in a fab shop as a welder, so ready access to materials.
one thought on yours...with the beam being made out of tube steel,might be a good idea to weld a good flatbar gusset to the underbelly of the tube for strength.i have seen a splitter built in the past with an i
beam that was to light and it bent from pressure of the ram.
converting the tube beam to a hydraulis res. sound like a good idea, never seen that before
all in all, nice looking splitter for the price.
mike
That thing is so cool! Yes, looks like an old mobile home axle and wheels. OMC engines were fairly reliable. Johnson and Evinrude used them in their snowmobiles, 1970-ish. It's a two-stroke engine, oil and gas mixed? No, I guess it does look like a 4-stroke.
Reaaly good basis to start from and free is good! Do you need it as a production machine or only as a fun toy? I'd consider keeping the omc engine just to be different, if if works. I've never seen a 4 cycle omc. It is probably smooth and must have a unique sound.
I have lots of memories of old wisconsin V4 and vertical twins. most of them unpleasant..... newer wisconsin robins are totally different and technology is way better than 'the good old days' on the balers and farm equipment.
I have lots of memories of old wisconsin V4 and vertical twins. most of them unpleasant..... newer wisconsin robins are totally different and technology is way better than 'the good old days' on the balers and farm equipment.
I would tend to say clean it up and don't fix what ain't broke... Splitters are relatively light and mostly don't rack up many miles, so the funky tires and axle setup will probably last as long as the tires hold air as one example...
Converting the beam to a hydraulic tank sounds cool, but I'd be worried about flexing from operation causing leaks, and also about what kind of shape is the inside of the beam - hydraulic fluid needs to be CLEAN if you don't want to eat the rest of the components...
Gooserider
Converting the beam to a hydraulic tank sounds cool, but I'd be worried about flexing from operation causing leaks, and also about what kind of shape is the inside of the beam - hydraulic fluid needs to be CLEAN if you don't want to eat the rest of the components...
Gooserider
Stick with the mobile home wheels and tires. You can get'em for a song because they are only legal for one time use. But nobody is gonna care on a splitter. I bought a twenty foot trailer with'em on it and to stay legal I had to put 100 psi low-boy tires on it when I replaced them.
I have done a little bit of business with these guys and have no problems with them. Some of the prices are really LOW. This winter I put a new piston on a friends splitter. I did have to modify the tail pin bracket but $70 for 20 X4.5 cylinder and $50 shipping how can you go wrong ? The thing was really heavy duty. Also they have a paper catalog that has even more stuff than on their site. When you mentioned square tube for hydraulic tank, you can look on their site for something and not have to deal with potential fluid contamination. You also might do better with a vertical tank. Personally I never had much luck with horizontal tanks. They always seem to want to give back the fluid that was so generously given to them.
https://www.surpluscenter.com/home.asp
They also go by. Burden Sales Surplus Center
https://www.surpluscenter.com/home.asp
They also go by. Burden Sales Surplus Center
I had some time this morning so I hooked another battery up and started to try to figure out what was was up with the wiring(a couple of wires are loose), put some gas in the tank. finally got the starter to turn over and this thing fired right up! It does run pretty smooth and relatively quiet in spite of one of the mufflers being shot. The oil pressure gauge showed 40 psi. So I guess I'll keep it on there since it's either an 18 or 20 hp engine and it is pretty cool. Sort of 1/2 of a VW engine. Now I have to get one hose replaced and another correctly connected and I'll see how the hydraulics work. I would still like for the whole thing to be more compact. A shorter axle would help in getting into tight places. This is not really for production work but I would like to be able to bless friends and neighbors with the use of a splitter. I'll update as it comes together. Thanks for your input.
My 30 year old splitter uses the beam for the reservoir; I've never had a problem with it. However, I do agree with the if it isn't broken advice.
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