Real men play with unicorns (log splitter)

[Highbeam]

There were a few companies that made a splitter that attached to your tractor痴 PTO shaft. It works like a big screw with a taper much like a traffic cone. As the unicorn horn screws into the side of a round, the round is split open. It works fast, efficiently, quietly, but not safely. Many folks have been killed or lost limbs with these devices. The makers of the tractor mounted splitters have gone away due to the lawsuits.

They are dang darn fun. Just don稚 bend over and let this thing screw into your ear or your rear end or catch your sleeve or Cause there ain稚 no way to stop it from spinning and it has the power to rip your arm clean off.

I split up no less 2.5 cords today before the rain came. I had a log load delivered that was supposed to be 4-5 cords of doug fir.

 

[MrJimi]

I saw something like that,, that bolted to a rear axle of a car, worked great
be careful

 

[Highbeam]

They still make that rear axle one that bolts on in place of a rear tire. It is called the stickler and costs less than 300$. I don't think that it is a good idea, especially if your truck has a locking rear differential like mine does.

 

[ToadHill]

I have one just yours Highbeam. Do you want it for parts. After the last time I used it and the log stop broke spinning the piece to be split like a propeller and almost breaking both my arms, I had a choice to get a divorce, or a hydralic splitter. I'm still married!

 

[Highbeam]

If you were close I would love to take it since the tips do wear out. Notice the "oh poop" pipe that is hanging from the roll bar. It disengages the pto quickly. I had to use it a few times when a round was too short and slipped off the bar making a propeller.

I know that these things can happen so I stay out of the way and run it pretty slow with the engine at about half PTO speed or 1500 RPM.

I ordered a HF hydraulic splitter about 2 weeks ago which is on backorder. The elderly (almost) neighbor dug this out of his weeds for me to use and keep. This type of splitter is great on the 12" diameter or smaller wood. The big knotty rounds don't go as well since you need to lift them and manhandle them a bit.

The hatchet hanging on the side is for the stringy pieces.

 

[fonman_4859]

next to sticking your face into a running chainsaw this is about the most dangerous piece of equipment I have ever used. We had one on the back of an old john deere M and it about beat my dad to a pulp before we could get it shut off. We cut it up before someone got killed with it.

 

[MrJimi]

I was youtubing tonight and I found the
Worlds fastest log splitter and this is neat and fast
and here is another one
here !!!
another one
YouTube - Log Splitter

 

[bialecki]

I was youtubing tonight and I found the
Worlds fastest log splitter and this is neat and fast

Unreal, I really like the safety features the machine has!

 

[MrJimi]

Unreal, I really like the safety features the machine has!

Yes, safety nuts would love that one, did you click on the other two links I have in that post? both very good also

 

[EddieWalker]

Highbeam,

That thing is just scary!!!

I don't have much knowledge on log splitting, just done a small amout of it in my life, so it's always interesting and suprising, what people have come up with.

Thanks for sharing the pics, if I had come across it and not read the dangers on it, I might have actualy tried it. Now I'm too scared.

Eddie

 

[Egon]

I was wondering if the Hat was required?? I need one like that!

 

[Bill Barrett]

Thanks! I love it!

 

[jimmysisson]

Wow, that skidsteer mounted stickler is almost as slow as my old home-made rig! His does cost a lot more and tear up the lawn, though.
I used an axle-mount Stickler for a couple years but you have to be young and alert, no limited slip as stated, and not mind spending a long time on your knees. No thanks!
Jim

 

[Highbeam]

I got the wood all split up. It took about 14 hours total of splitting over three days and sucked up about 4 gallons of diesel. Plenty of breaks to rest. I hit one huge ants nest that totally dumped out milions of carpenter ants. Gross. I brought out the chickens which sat there and ate a million ants. Our eggs our going to taste fANTastic.

Those fence posts are either 10 or 12 feet apart. The real fun is stacking (NOT).

 

[dirt ditch]

Nice pile of firewood Highbeam. Looks like your helper is waiting on you to start stacking.

 

[RockyMnt1]

I have a unicorn splitter bolted to the axle of a 1981 Bronco (manual trans). It works great. Engine is at idle and transmission is in first gear, so the thing is not rotating very fast at all, but does have all of the torque that I need. I have split 2.5 ft diameter pine pieces. I do use a log on the ground to prevent the wood from spinning. Only very occasionally does the engine stall due to resistance from the wood. I do agree that the knotty stuff is hard to work with and I also have a hatchett handy.

I don't have any kids around, no loose clothing, and only work for an hour at the most. I usially split 5-8 cords of pine/aspen and have been doing so for about 4 years.

Saves tractor engine time and is a very simple, reliable device.

 

[Highbeam]

I'm not looking forward to the stacking but I need to stack it to measure it and make room for another load! The plan is to have two years of supply put up this summer. The first year's supply needs to be drying ASAP and then I can use this summer to process the following year's wood. I expect to go through 6-8 cords per year in my leaky old uninsulated farmhouse.

The tractor was bought to use so I do not mind putting hours on it. I rather prefer to use the tractor engine with the cheap off-road diesel that it sips.

The benefit to using your pickup is that you can use the reverse gear to unscrew the unicorn horn if it runs into a tough round of wood.

 

[AlanB]

We used those in Germany, but the ones we had were mounted over a table type deal.

It has been a while, but if I remember right, you adjusted the table a bit up or down for the "basic" size wood you were doing.

You set the wood down flat on the table, then jammed it forward onto the spinning screw.

I used the stuffing out of that thing, and that other type saw in another thread so that we had firewood to heat the house (yes, that was the only heat)

I may have been too stupid to realize the dangers, but it was as safe as many of the things I was doing at the time.

 

[daBear]

Any splitter can look like it does great when you use clear short blocks of wood without knots. While most of my wood splitting has always been done with an 8# splitting maul and wedges I did have to rent a splitter after Katrina two years ago. We had a twin trunk 28" diameter white oak tree blown across the front of our house. A horizontal splitter means you have to pick the wood up to work it. So I chose a vertical splitter with a 28T ram and finished several cords in one day. Anything to do with firewood is work, but the vertical splitter gets my vote.

 

[copperdog]

I lost a good friend because of one of those things.
Get it to the junk yard while you are still able, because it will HURT you!
The price of scrap is high now, use the money to buy some heating oil.