Problem with a Home Depot Toro splitter rental

[gsganzer]

I'm beginning to hate renting anything from Home Depot. I bring home truckloads of dead/standing oak throughout the year. When I get enough, I rent a splitter from HD and split it all at once.

Last year when I rented a splitter from them, I got it all the way home, before I noticed the ram handle linkage was broken. The engine started and stopped fine (which was their checkout test), but a small cast part was broken in the linkage, so you couldn't extend/retract the ram.

Yesterday, I rented a brand new Toro LS-922. Seemed like a decent machine, except it has a design flaw that resulted in it getting damaged during my use. Even though I had damage protection on it, they won't honor it and claim I used the machine incorrectly. They're wanting me to pay for 1/2 the repair cost.

The problem on the Toro is with the wedge wiper design. To clarify, the wedge wiper straddles the wedge and will push a stuck log off the wedge as the ram retracts. On many other splitters, like a Bareto, the wedge wiper is hinged so you can swing it down into position when needed and it stays up out of the way when not needed. On the Toro, it's fixed and has about a 1 1/2" gap between the top of the I-beam and the bottom of the wiper. During auto return of the wedge, it's very likely the wedge can sweep a piece of wood into this gap bending the wiper up and out of whack. In my case, it was enough to bend the wiper and snap the 4 bolts. On the hinged design, this can't happen, because it would merely pivot the sweeper up on its hinge.

I tried explaining that there was a design issue and this wasn't a function of misuse, but hard to explain it to someone that has no idea what they're looking at.

We're at a stalemate and I'm waiting for a call from them to discuss costs.

 

[dodge man]

Don’t pay it and if they charge your credit card, deny it. I know the part you describe on mine is fixed but I don’t 100% understand what happened.

 

[gsganzer]

Don’t pay it and if they charge your credit card, deny it. I know the part you describe on mine is fixed but I don’t 100% understand what happened.

If I had a good side photo of the machine, I could explain it better. On the wedge wiper, (the heavy metal black piece that the wedge retracts into), it rides 1 1/2" high, so it clears the bolted wedge carrier as it returns. The wedge carrier is what slides back and forth on the I-beam. If some wood happens to get stuck behind the wedge, the returning ram carrier can wedge that wood into that gap, pushing up on the wedge wiper.

That's what happened to me and it was enough to bend the wedge wiper and snap the 4 bolts that hold it.

On the photo below of a Barreto splitter, you can see how their wedge wiper swings upward during normal use. Any wood that falls behind the returning wedge/carrier, just drops freely.

Not quite as easy to see in this stock photo of the Toro, without be blowing it up. But you can see the gap under the wedge wiper. I piece of wood caught behind the wedge carrier as it returns and can generate some significant leverage to bend the wiper upward or out of position. So, on a subsequent ram return, the carrier itself might strike the wiper and snap it off.

 

[4570Man]

I’ve never liked those wedge wipers anyway. It’s not hard to hold a split piece of wood between the end of the cylinder and the stuck piece to knock it off on the rare occasion one gets stuck. And what good is the damage insurance if it doesn’t cover alleged misuse? That’s nearly everything that breaks.

 

[Engineer42]

That's why I prefer the wedge to be on the end of the rail stationary and a flat faced push plate on the cylinder.

 

[gsganzer]

That's why I prefer the wedge to be on the end of the rail stationary and a flat faced push plate on the cylinder.

I agree, that's my preference too. Put another piece of wood on the table and continue pushing the previous piece through the wedge. You're also pushing the split wood off the front of the splitter where someone can start collecting it.

The only benefit of the wedge being pushed is for splitters used vertically. A position I find really awkward.

 

[dodge man]

This is a picture of mine, it’s fixed and I’ve never had a problem with it but it’s a little different than the one you had a problem with. It’s the gray piece around the wedge in the picture. I agree what’s the point of getting the “insurance” if they won’t cover it.

 

[gsganzer]

They called me with a price tag of $300 for a new part. They were willing to pay $200 and me the $100 balance. I told them to pound sand. It's now the principle of it. I bought the accidental damage for exactly this issue of accidental damage. In fact, I never would have bought the insurance if I hadn't had the issue with the previous rental last year.

The sad part is I almost just fixed the bent part myself before I returned it. All it would have taken was a little heat from a rosebud to straighten it and some new bolts that I would have bought and installed when I brought it back. Instead, I figured I had the insurance and I'd let them deal with it.

 

[RjCorazza]

Wow... That's just unbelievable.
I would also tell them to pound sand.

 

[Topzide]

Call corporate and tell them what's going on.