crazyal
Super Member
I have the same splitter as Eddie but an older version. Mine has a solid steel foot at the bottom of the beam vs the cast one like on Eddies. It was years after I got mine they made the switch. I too have a Honda. It's the 'homeowner' grade engine but it has over 1000 hours on it now. About the only problem I've had is the dampener in the lovejoy joint. I didn't pay attention to it until it fell apart. Now I replace it after about 5 years of use no matter what. Tractor Supply has them in stock for a few bucks and it's only 3 bolts to remove the engine. I also change the oil every year. If it's not going to be used for a few months I make sure the ram is retracted and I shut the gas off and let the engine run the carb dry.
As for what type of splitter is right for you, that's a hard one. I started off using one with the splitting wedge welded to the end of the beam. What I found was that pushing the round made more work for me. If the round needed to be split a second time I was bending over to pick up the one that fell to the ground which was almost always on the other side of the splitter. Having the wedge be adjustable with the 4 way adapter would have made it nice and I might have gotten a splitter of that style but they were $4k+. While I use my splitter often mine wasn't much more than $1200 so it was a big jump up. With the style that has the wedge that move the split wood is right in front of you. When it's the size I want I can toss it into a pile or the back of my truck. I often find having a table on the opposite side of when I stand is nice. If it's all small wood I will back my truck up and with the tailgate down it works well. If the rounds are large, the size which you might want a log lift for (which my splitter can be stood up so the can be split on the ground if I want), I use my loader on the tractor. I can drive up to the rounds, load 4 of them, and place it in an easy spot to roll them out onto the splitter. When they are split but are still too large one side just falls back into the loader. In your case you could just put the tote right at the foot of the splitter and stack them in the tote as you split them and skip picking them up the ground after splitting.
I'm not trying to talk you into buying what you don't want but I'm not sure if you will find what you want in your price range. What I can tell you is my 'Troy Built' (MTD) 27 ton splitter with a Honda 5.5hp engine might be a budget splitter but that doesn't mean it's not built to last. It does have some limitations. The return stroke is probably at least 10 seconds (I rarely let it go all the way back) but it does have a detent so it's automatic. The wheels have the bearings in them vs lug nuts like a trailer so I don't know if they would be happy going to long tows at high speeds. But towing it around my property they work just fine. It came with plastic fenders that didn't last much more than a year or two. I did replace them with some from a 50 year old boat trailer that were super heavy duty but the fact is that fenders really aren't needed unless you plan on towing it down the road in the rain. But being as narrow as it is towing it with a pickup is kind of hard as you can't see it.
As for what type of splitter is right for you, that's a hard one. I started off using one with the splitting wedge welded to the end of the beam. What I found was that pushing the round made more work for me. If the round needed to be split a second time I was bending over to pick up the one that fell to the ground which was almost always on the other side of the splitter. Having the wedge be adjustable with the 4 way adapter would have made it nice and I might have gotten a splitter of that style but they were $4k+. While I use my splitter often mine wasn't much more than $1200 so it was a big jump up. With the style that has the wedge that move the split wood is right in front of you. When it's the size I want I can toss it into a pile or the back of my truck. I often find having a table on the opposite side of when I stand is nice. If it's all small wood I will back my truck up and with the tailgate down it works well. If the rounds are large, the size which you might want a log lift for (which my splitter can be stood up so the can be split on the ground if I want), I use my loader on the tractor. I can drive up to the rounds, load 4 of them, and place it in an easy spot to roll them out onto the splitter. When they are split but are still too large one side just falls back into the loader. In your case you could just put the tote right at the foot of the splitter and stack them in the tote as you split them and skip picking them up the ground after splitting.
I'm not trying to talk you into buying what you don't want but I'm not sure if you will find what you want in your price range. What I can tell you is my 'Troy Built' (MTD) 27 ton splitter with a Honda 5.5hp engine might be a budget splitter but that doesn't mean it's not built to last. It does have some limitations. The return stroke is probably at least 10 seconds (I rarely let it go all the way back) but it does have a detent so it's automatic. The wheels have the bearings in them vs lug nuts like a trailer so I don't know if they would be happy going to long tows at high speeds. But towing it around my property they work just fine. It came with plastic fenders that didn't last much more than a year or two. I did replace them with some from a 50 year old boat trailer that were super heavy duty but the fact is that fenders really aren't needed unless you plan on towing it down the road in the rain. But being as narrow as it is towing it with a pickup is kind of hard as you can't see it.
