motownbrowne
Elite Member
- Joined
- Dec 30, 2013
- Messages
- 2,613
- Location
- river falls, wi
- Tractor
- Kubota mx4700 HST, New Holland TC-29D
Well, after splitting wood by hand since I was a little guy I decided that it was finally time for a hydraulic splitter. Between heating and cooking maple syrup I burn about 18-20 cords/year, and I'm expecting that number to go up as my syrup project keeps growing.
Since I burn that much myself and would like to be able to sell a few cords every year I decided that I would skip the regular every-level splitter and get into something that will be more productive.
For a couple years I've been dreaming of an electric Super Split because I hate working next to an air cooled motor running a splitter. It just totally removes the enjoyment of splitting wood. For me anyway. The super split, however only handles 24" logs, and for my syrup evaporator, 32" is a much better length. The longer wood means less bucking, less stacking, and most importantly, faster loading during boiling.
After seeing the great pics that Sawyer Rob posts of his Timberwolf TW3-hd, I decided that a three point splitter with a PTO pump would be the way to go. So, after getting a quote from Timberwolf I called up Chris at Wolfe Ridge (Wolfe Ridge Mfg – Eau Claire, WI USA – 715.559.4376 – Professional Grade Wood Splitters). Chris agreed to build me what I was looking for, and his price was quite a bit less than timberwolf's. Plus, I got to pick it up myself and see where they're made. And I got to choose my own
.
So, here's what I got:
It's got a 5"x36" cylinder, a 4-way wedge, a sorting table, a 20 gallon hydraulic tank, a Prince auto-cycle valve, and brackets for a hydraulic log lift if I decide to add one in the future. It's powered by a 21 GPM PTO pump.
I've only spent a couple of hours running it so far, but I am very happy. I was worried that my small tractor wouldn't be able to lift it (the beam is 100" long and the whole rig weighs somewhere around 900#), but it picks it up no problem. It's a bit tough to keep the front wheels on the ground, but i can fix that with some weights. I haven't split anything that tested the power limits of my tractor yet, but hopefully that's not an issue. These pumps are only single stage, so they don't slow down, but they require 30 HP to make full pressure, which my NH doesn't have. I may have to adjust the relief setting on the valve if it starts stalling my tractor, or just plan on using the bigger tractor if I've got a bunch of nasty stuff to split.
Here it is on my Kubota splitting some 32" ash and butternut which will make sap into syrup next year:
And here it is on the New Holland getting ready to make some stove length splits:
As I mentioned, I've only run it a little so far, but I'm pleased with how it works. Best part is how quiet it is. I run the NH motor at about 2000-2200 RPM, which makes for a decent ram speed and is also fairly quiet. And, of course, the operator is about 12' from the motor most of the time. I can actually have a conversation with someone at a regular volume while running it. Actually my wife thinks I should still wear muffs but get this, she says that she thinks the noise of the wood splitting is loud enough to warrant them. She might be right, but I just think it's cool that the splitter is quiet enough that you notice how loud the WOOD is!
Anyway, I'll post up some more pics hopefully this week as I get to split more wood. I have a lot of white oak that needs chunking up, and then a wagon load of ash. After that I'm gonna start running loads from a friend's place. Right after I ordered the splitter he called me up and offered me 70 cords of logs that are piled at his place about 12 miles from me. Good timing, huh?
Since I burn that much myself and would like to be able to sell a few cords every year I decided that I would skip the regular every-level splitter and get into something that will be more productive.
For a couple years I've been dreaming of an electric Super Split because I hate working next to an air cooled motor running a splitter. It just totally removes the enjoyment of splitting wood. For me anyway. The super split, however only handles 24" logs, and for my syrup evaporator, 32" is a much better length. The longer wood means less bucking, less stacking, and most importantly, faster loading during boiling.
After seeing the great pics that Sawyer Rob posts of his Timberwolf TW3-hd, I decided that a three point splitter with a PTO pump would be the way to go. So, after getting a quote from Timberwolf I called up Chris at Wolfe Ridge (Wolfe Ridge Mfg – Eau Claire, WI USA – 715.559.4376 – Professional Grade Wood Splitters). Chris agreed to build me what I was looking for, and his price was quite a bit less than timberwolf's. Plus, I got to pick it up myself and see where they're made. And I got to choose my own
. So, here's what I got:
It's got a 5"x36" cylinder, a 4-way wedge, a sorting table, a 20 gallon hydraulic tank, a Prince auto-cycle valve, and brackets for a hydraulic log lift if I decide to add one in the future. It's powered by a 21 GPM PTO pump.
I've only spent a couple of hours running it so far, but I am very happy. I was worried that my small tractor wouldn't be able to lift it (the beam is 100" long and the whole rig weighs somewhere around 900#), but it picks it up no problem. It's a bit tough to keep the front wheels on the ground, but i can fix that with some weights. I haven't split anything that tested the power limits of my tractor yet, but hopefully that's not an issue. These pumps are only single stage, so they don't slow down, but they require 30 HP to make full pressure, which my NH doesn't have. I may have to adjust the relief setting on the valve if it starts stalling my tractor, or just plan on using the bigger tractor if I've got a bunch of nasty stuff to split.
Here it is on my Kubota splitting some 32" ash and butternut which will make sap into syrup next year:
And here it is on the New Holland getting ready to make some stove length splits:
As I mentioned, I've only run it a little so far, but I'm pleased with how it works. Best part is how quiet it is. I run the NH motor at about 2000-2200 RPM, which makes for a decent ram speed and is also fairly quiet. And, of course, the operator is about 12' from the motor most of the time. I can actually have a conversation with someone at a regular volume while running it. Actually my wife thinks I should still wear muffs but get this, she says that she thinks the noise of the wood splitting is loud enough to warrant them. She might be right, but I just think it's cool that the splitter is quiet enough that you notice how loud the WOOD is!
Anyway, I'll post up some more pics hopefully this week as I get to split more wood. I have a lot of white oak that needs chunking up, and then a wagon load of ash. After that I'm gonna start running loads from a friend's place. Right after I ordered the splitter he called me up and offered me 70 cords of logs that are piled at his place about 12 miles from me. Good timing, huh?
