Log splitters

[deezler]

If you can buy on sale you can't go wrong with this. The few logs it won't split makes good bon-fire fuel. RuggedSplit 322-24-REX Log Splitter: 22-Ton, Raven 301cc, Log Lift, 24" Stroke

I am SO very much on the fence to buy this sucker. Definitely seems like the best deal out there by far.

My current MTD 6-hp splitter has a low beam height, no lift, slow cycle time, no 4-way wedge, etc. Works ok when you have helpers but is atrociously slow when working solo.

 

[John_Mc]

If you can buy on sale you can't go wrong with this. The few logs it won't split makes good bon-fire fuel. RuggedSplit 322-24-REX Log Splitter: 22-Ton, Raven 301cc, Log Lift, 24" Stroke

Rugged Made is one of the few splitter manufacturers who is more honest about their splitters tonnage ratings. You'll find that their 22 ton splitter will easily keep up with (and often beat)splitters that are rated significantly higher.

Years ago, I contacted the manufacturers of a number of splitters and asked what the recommended setting was for the pressure relief setting or "operating system pressure" on the splitter. With that number and the size of the cylinder, you can calculate the tonnage. (Real world will be slightly less due to friction and in the system.) Most would actually put out significantly less than their advertised rating. I'm not sure how they get away with the false advertising, but it's VERY common in the industry.

Rugged Made, American CLS, and Timberwolf were three who were fairly accurate in their ratings, at least last time I checked. There are a couple of others whose names I don't recall at the moment.

For anyone interested the formula to calculated pounds of force exerted by a cylinder:

Pi x R x R x PSI = pounds
Where Pi is 3.14 (approx), R is the RADIUS of the cylinder (not diameter), and PSI is the operating pressure.

To get tons, just divide pounds by 2000.

A 4" diameter cylinder operating at 3500 PSI would be:
Pi X 2 X 2 X 3000 = 43,982 Lbs = approx 22 tons.

To get 25 tons out of a 4" cylinder, you'd have to run it at almost 4000 PSI.

 

[newkiotiguy]

I'll likely go for the Champion 34 or 37 ton splitter. Don't really need the extra splitting force and the 27 ton would be fine but they seem to be in bigger demand on Facebook Marketplace around here. Both are in stock locally and just $300 more. Might be money well spent for a quicker resale.

Right now, I'm still cutting rounds and moving them to a staging area. I plan to buy and split at my leisure over the summer and resell the splitter in the fall.

We have put well over 20 full cord of cherry, elm, oak, and ash through our 27 ton champion. Haven't found anything that it hasn't gone through. 11 second cycle time on the 27 vs 16 seconds for the 34 and 37 is huge.

 

[arrow]

I'll likely go for the Champion 34 or 37 ton splitter. Don't really need the extra splitting force and the 27 ton would be fine but they seem to be in bigger demand on Facebook Marketplace around here. Both are in stock locally and just $300 more. Might be money well spent for a quicker resale.

Right now, I'm still cutting rounds and moving them to a staging area. I plan to buy and split at my leisure over the summer and resell the splitter in the fall.

The 27 ton is plenty for the average home owner.
I started with a rated 16 ton horizontal and it uses a 4 way on there with no problem even with splitting mostly oaks.
I dont think there is an available 4 way for the 27 ton Champion but the return speed is pretty quick and the vertical ability came in handy to split 24” cherry last year.
Unless one is splitting very large and knarly stuff,
The larger Champions are overkill imo.

 

[gsganzer]

We have put well over 20 full cord of cherry, elm, oak, and ash through our 27 ton champion. Haven't found anything that it hasn't gone through. 11 second cycle time on the 27 vs 16 seconds for the 34 and 37 is huge.

The cycle time was a factor for me. 11 seconds was one of the shortest times I've seen. It makes a difference.

 

[deezler]

The cycle time was a factor for me. 11 seconds was one of the shortest times I've seen. It makes a difference.

Yeah. The rugged made 22-ton states a 10 seconds cycle time, highly appealing for me.

The thing is, when your ram hits a tough piece of wood, it slows way down and cycle time becomes much longer. Kinda hard to account for that.

 

[gsganzer]

Yeah. The rugged made 22-ton states a 10 seconds cycle time, highly appealing for me.

The thing is, when your ram hits a tough piece of wood, it slows way down and cycle time becomes much longer. Kinda hard to account for that.

I agree. I think most are 2-stage pumps. It's the return that seems to make the difference, as that's just unproductive time. I guess I assume the cycle time is extend/retract.

 

[gsganzer]

We'll have to compare notes on the Champion. I bought mine at Home Depot and it was already assembled. Although, I'll probably go through it myself. I'm a stickler when it comes to assembling things using locktite for parts that need to stay together and never-sieze on parts that need to come apart.

The first thing I'll do is add some lifting eyes, so I can easily lift it with a chain to put it in/out of my truck bed/trailer.

While checking it out, I did notice the Home Depot folks put all the cut lock-washers on the wrong side of the flat washers when they assembled it. No big deal, I changed them around and also used locktight on everything that shouldn't come apart. A pet peeve of mine is nuts and bolts coming loose/lost, when an ounce of prevention is all that's needed.

 

[big bubba]

do most splitters use the same rated hyd fluid?
my 36t Huskee states ISO 46 (sae 20). i go with the recommended filter #,
but don't know the micron count.

 

[gsganzer]

do most splitters use the same rated hyd fluid?
my 36t Huskee states ISO 46 (sae 20). i go with the recommended filter #,
but don't know the micron count.

Surprising no. You'd sort of think for this application, it would be a pretty consistent oil across equipment. I guess I don't consider it a very demanding hydraulic application, but maybe I'm wrong. The Champion takes ISO/AW 32

 

[big bubba]

maybe someone can explain what ISO hyd fluid rating is in relation to SAE ratings.
micron ratings on filters is also important to consider for any hyd system. thx

 

[WinterDeere]

Oil Viscosity Comparison Chart - ISO VG, AGMA, SAE Gear, SAE Auto

Use our oil viscosity comparison chart to identify and reference thickness at different temperatures for engines and machinery for ISO VG, AGMA, SAE Auto, and SAE Gear lubricants.

petroleumservicecompany.com

 

[WinterDeere]

The cycle time was a factor for me. 11 seconds was one of the shortest times I've seen. It makes a difference.

Once you get above about 22 tons, this is all that matters, IMO. I see guys buying these 27 ton and 35 ton splitters with wimpy little 11 or 16 GPM pumps, and feel bad for them, most just don't understand what it takes to make a suitable splitter.

I've owned many over the years, and at least for what I do, 22 tons is the sweet spot. That's enough force to never stall in anything I'd actually ever want to split, without giving up so much speed as to make the thing unusable. John_Mc already did a good job of laying out the basic math, no need to repeat here, 22 tons = 4" bore at the 3500 psi most of these systems run.

Because force and volume go up at the same rate, each incremental increase in splitting force comes with the same incremental decrease in travel speed, given the same pump. So, adding extra force beyond your minimum need, is just taking a voluntary speed reduction, with no good reason for it.

If I were to start over, buying a new splitter today, it would the lighest platform that has the largest available pump. In homeowner grade splitters, that usually means a 23 GPM pump on a 12-16 HP engine, with a big honkin 6" (35 ton) cylinder. Then I'd remove that stupid unnecessarily large cylinder, sell it on ebay, and replace it with a 4" cylinder of the same length and configuration. That'd get you down around 5-6 seconds round-trip time on a 24" stroke, if everything else is sized suitably... just about fast enough for me.

I would never want a log lift, but to each their own. Much easier to go vertical, when you're dragging home a lot of 500#-plus rounds, and the lift just gets in the way and slows down operations when working smaller stuff. I'm doing 10 - 14 cords per year, with precious few hours per month to get it all done, so speed is the only thing that matters here and now. But I reserve the right to change my opinion when I retire, or the kids move out.

 

[wolc123]

I enjoy splitting wood, with my 20 year old 22 ton 2-stage horizontal /vertical northern hydraulic splitter, powered by a 5 or 6 hp Honda engine. I find it a very relaxing way to pass the time on rainy days, which we get plenty of up here on the Canadian border, about half way between lakes Erie and Ontario.


I mostly use the splitter in the vertical orientation, while seated on an upturned 5 gallon bucket. It’s easy to roll the larger rounds onto the platform, and I toss the splits into the bucket of my canopy-equipped 4 WD tractor, then move that out to the adjacent woodshed, that has a wide overhang. It can be pouring rain thru this whole operation, and me and the wood stay dry the whole time.

On non-rainy days, I buck up the wood, usually over at my parents place 17 miles away, where they have about 50 acres of hardwoods. Unlike my own 10 acres of woods, their’s drains real good and I can access most of it just about year round with a 2wd tractor. I’m usually limited to about 3 months of summer and a month of winter to get firewood out of my own woods, with a 4wd tractor

Cycle time isn’t bad at all with this splitter, thanks to the two stage hydraulic pump and smaller diameter cylinder. Frankly, I wouldn’t mind if it was a little slower, because I find it a very relaxing way to kill time on rainy days. Way more fun than sawing up the wood.

My favorite part, of the whole firewood making operation, is loading and unloading the woodshed. What a pleasure that is, compared to keeping the split wood outside on pallets covered by tin or tarps. Splitting is second best.

 

[gsganzer]

Wolc,
I agree completely on the relaxation of splitting and stacking. My least favorite part is driving around my lease to find standing dry oak. Lots of prickly pear and turkey pear grow at the base of the trees and lifting the rounds into the truck takes some work. It wouldn't be that bad if I had my tractor there for clearing, loading and moving things. That standing dry oak can also dull the heck out of saw chains, especially if it gets any termite tubes.

Splitting and stacking is just moderate labor that provides a great sense of satisfaction and instant return on your effort.

 

[wolc123]

Wolc,
I agree completely on the relaxation of splitting and stacking. My least favorite part is driving around my lease to find standing dry oak. Lots of prickly pear and turkey pear grow at the base of the trees and lifting the rounds into the truck takes some work. It wouldn't be that bad if I had my tractor there for clearing, loading and moving things. That standing dry oak can also dull the heck out of saw chains, especially if it gets any termite tubes.

Splitting and stacking is just moderate labor that provides a great sense of satisfaction and instant return on your effort.

I miss the days when I burned more oak, but the chains do stay sharp a little longer cutting up the softer stuff. For the last 15 or so years, most of what I’ve been burning has been ash. They were about half of the trees in my own woods, and about 1/4 over at my parents. EAB has killed them all now, so I will probably only need to deal with them for another couple years.

I no longer cut them down (too unpredictable when they are dead), but I try to cut them up within a month or two, of when the wind drops them. It’s been years since there was a shortage of blowdowns on the trails in my parents woods or from the hedgerows of my fields or my little woodlot at home .

As I’ve gotten older, my back gets sore bending over to cut them up on the ground with my saw, so at home I use my tractor forks to lift the logs onto a trailer, to buck them up. Over at my parents, I usually sit on a chunk while cutting up the logs or lift them with a 3-point carryall.

My dad’s little JD 770 works good for hauling the chunks from the woods trails to my pickup. I’ve got to drill a heavy plate, to bolt to the front grill guard on that, so that I can haul more on the carryall . That’s my next “rainy day” shop project. I also have a pretty good pile ready for splitting in the splitter shed now though, so I guess it’s time to pray for rain.

 

[John_Mc]

I should team up with some of you guys.

I enjoy the puzzle of picking trees to take for firewood to favor the higher value trees I'm leaving standing, then figuring outhow to get the cull trees down on the ground and out to the trail without damaging those that I am leaving to grow. From there, my enjoyment of the process diminishes with each further step: I don't mind cutting logs to stove length. Splitting is just OK, but if someone else wants to do that I'm happy to let them. I'm not a fan of stacking wood (plus if I stack a lot of wood more than about waist high, it usually means a trip to the chiropractor in the next day or two - the repeated lifting and reaching aggravates an old college wrestling injury in my neck & upper back.)

I also seldom harvest standing dead trees, unless they are creating a hazard along my trails. In fact, I occasionally girdle a few trees here and there in my woods for wildlife habitat, or where they are diseased or malformed and crowding a "crop tree" and there just isn't room to get them down without damaging something I want to keep.

 

[wolc123]

I should team up with some of you guys.

I enjoy the puzzle of picking trees to take for firewood to favor the higher value trees I'm leaving standing, then figuring outhow to get the cull trees down on the ground and out to the trail without damaging those that I am leaving to grow. From there, my enjoyment of the process diminishes with each further step: I don't mind cutting logs to stove length. Splitting is just OK, but if someone else wants to do that I'm happy to let them. I'm not a fan of stacking wood (plus if I stack a lot of wood more than about waist high, it usually means a trip to the chiropractor in the next day or two - the repeated lifting and reaching aggravates an old college wrestling injury in my neck & upper back.)

I also seldom harvest standing dead trees, unless they are creating a hazard along my trails. In fact, I occasionally girdle a few trees here and there in my woods for wildlife habitat, or where they are diseased or malformed and crowding a "crop tree" and there just isn't room to get them down without damaging something I want to keep.

Stacking firewood outside was definitely my least favorite part of the whole operation also. Having a decent woodshed makes a world of difference.

Keeping firewood outside was torture, stacking, trying to square up the ends of the piles, and unloading dealing with tarps or tin covers in the wind, snow and rain.

This woodshed turned all that around and made the stacking and unstacking my favorite part. My woodshed holds 24 face cords, which is enough for (4) average winters, to heat our well insulated 2000 sq ft house.

All the material to build it was free - I recovered the hand-hewn oak posts, beams, sawed rafters, and purlins from my great great grandads old timber framed barn, which I dismantled, and the roofing tin is the shipping damage “protector” sheets, that came with my new Stockade pole barn.

 

[arrow]

Surprising no. You'd sort of think for this application, it would be a pretty consistent oil across equipment. I guess I don't consider it a very demanding hydraulic application, but maybe I'm wrong. The Champion takes ISO/AW 32

That’s what it calls for.
My cylinder gets quite warm after 20 minutes of splitting. Moderate size rounds like maybe 12-15” working horizontally.
My old splitter didn’t do that.
Was wondering if anyone else’s Champ 27t does the same.

 

[John_Mc]

That’s what it calls for.
My cylinder gets quite warm after 20 minutes of splitting. Moderate size rounds like maybe 12-15” working horizontally.
My old splitter didn’t do that.
Was wondering if anyone else’s Champ 27t does the same.

Did your old splitter have a bigger hydraulic oil tank and/or a smaller pump?