Woodsplitter build #2

[Zeus1]

Hi. Checkin out your work on the splitter. Looks cool. I myself unloaded material i have been gathering for a splitter build. Yours is a bit more ambitious than mine. I will keep watching to see the finished product, and I will soon post some pictures of my progress as soon as I start on the fab process:thumbsup:.

 

[6sunset6]

Got a little work done yesterday and today. Power pack is done except for electric. Knowing what I know now I would have plumbed slightly different. I have suction and return hoses crossing each other. No pictures today . tomorrow. I did the valve platform over, smaller plate and two legs instead of 4. It better work because it is all welded up. Grinding that out would be a nightmare. There is always the torch I guess. Speaking of welding I started with the New Hobart 5/32 6011 rod 145 A. Deep penetration and lots of splatter. Then over welded with 5/32 6013 145A Nice almost as nice as the MG 500 at a lot less $$. Have to find my best weld to take a picture of.
Got the log lift cylinder and a couple of hoses. Both pressure. one pump to bulkhead and the other bulkhead to valve. I guessed right they both fit.
Almost ready to order the rest of the pressure hoses (2) 1/2 " (2) 1/4" and
one 3/4 144" long. The return hoses I make up myself, got 24' of 1"

 

[6sunset6]

Pictures
Power supply needs electrical work , on off switch and hour meter. Debating with myself if the filter housing needs a brace across the top and then to tie that in with the mount for the electricals. Probably
Valve platform looking good. Only issue is the B work port on the first valve.
It is very tight between the detent pressure adjusts. You can see it in the second picture way in the back on the left side. I tested it with another hose connector and it does fit but just. I was thinking of either a LL el which is higher or a 3/4 x 3/4 extender. That port is for the ram extend on the splitter cylinder. I have to put the cylinder back in and see how the hose lays. DHH has both fittings but they have a $20 min and there is nothing else I need at the moment, except 5 more hoses. Burden Surplus has the best deal on hoses even with shipping. Fixed length though.
The third picture is a weld on the cylinder anchor. 6011 root pass and 6013 over the top. I think one more pass with 6013. This weld and the one on the other side corner and the other side plate probably take the largest load in the whole machine.

 

[6sunset6]

I am thinking I may want a pressure relief valve across the pressure /return line in the power supply unit. Set higher than the relief valve in the first 4 way.
IF a QD gets unplugged somehow the pump will self destruct. I think I have one around someplace . More plumbing fittings
I also posted in the Hydraulic forum a question about how to set up the pressure settings on the auto valve.
http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/hydraulics/229269-auto-cycle-valve.html

 

[Scooby074]

A crossover to keep the pump from deadheading is a good idea.

On the autocycle valve, what system pressure are you running? I didnt adjust mine from factory. I intended on doing it, but never really needed too.

 

[J_J]

I am thinking I may want a pressure relief valve across the pressure /return line in the power supply unit. Set higher than the relief valve in the first 4 way.
IF a QD gets unplugged somehow the pump will self destruct. I think I have one around someplace . More plumbing fittings
I also posted in the Hydraulic forum a question about how to set up the pressure settings on the auto valve.
http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/hydraulics/229269-auto-cycle-valve.html

If your pump is hard lined into the valve, there is no need for a relief valve as the valve relief will protect the pump.

However you could do it with something like this.

Surplus Center - 1/2" NPT 20 GPM 1500-3000 PSI RELIEF VALVE RV-H4

 

[6sunset6]

A crossover to keep the pump from deadheading is a good idea.

On the autocycle valve, what system pressure are you running? I didnt adjust mine from factory. I intended on doing it, but never really needed too.

Not running yet. I will leave the factory settings for now. Except I fiddled with one of the detent settings. I thought the bolt was a cover. Hopefully I put it back where it was. I am still trying to figure out how to set the pressures, if I want to. I have a gage in the pressure line permanently. I guess if I hold valve one manually out the cylinder will bottom out at the end of the stroke and I will see what pressure the relief valve is set at. If I let the cylinder auto cycle at the extend end I will see what pressure detent 1 is set at.
When the cylinder retracts I will see what pressure detent 2 kicks in at.
I think the pump only has an adjustment for the low pressure side. The pump will develop 3000psi max

 

[6sunset6]

If your pump is hard lined into the valve, there is no need for a relief valve as the valve relief will protect the pump.

However you could do it with something like this.

Surplus Center - 1/2" NPT 20 GPM 1500-3000 PSI RELIEF VALVE RV-H4

That's the concern. I have QD right after the pump. Valve relief is after 2 pairs of QD. Think I am going for a relief valve. I have one about 30 years old, They are not that expensive , think I will get a new one.

 

[6sunset6]

Getting there. On the beam , from the sled back is finished. except for some hoses and a fitting change. I think in the next day or so I will move the beam outside to finish welding the box splitter and the base for it. The 6011 rod penetrates great but really smokes up the place. Have to open the door so might as well weld outside. Besides I will find out if my tractor will still lift it. How do get a symbol that shows crossed fingers? 6013 rod is just as good as MG500 as far as I can tell ,well maybe 95% but way cheaper . It does not smoke up the building as much either. I am wondering if my welds will hold. Only one way to find out.
I am adding relief valve to the power supply, just in case a QD gets disconnected. Turned into a plumbing , lets say expense. Everything is welded in and hose lengths set and hoses in place. Options options options. I could have just eliminated the QD but what fun is that. Besides the first time I took a bath in hydraulic oil I would regret that decision. So more fittings. In order to make the hose curves I went to 3/4 for the tank return line. Since there should never be any flow there it should be fine. It also provided an oppertunity to provide a gage port at the pump. Not a bad thing.
I have been ignoring the log lifter so I could get something done. I will have to get back to that. Also the out feed tray. I am thinking about 1" EMT for that. IT's cheap and strong. But I don't weld it with an arc welder. I use OA and a rod called FC 13. Not cheap. Race car guys used it for tubing. It is a fillet forming material. Very high temp for melt. Almost as strong as welding.
I asked some questions in the hydraulic forum about the auto valve and setting pressures.
http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/hydraulics/229269-auto-cycle-valve.html

 

[Scooby074]

Getting there. On the beam , from the sled back is finished. except for some hoses and a fitting change. I think in the next day or so I will move the beam outside to finish welding the box splitter and the base for it. The 6011 rod penetrates great but really smokes up the place. Have to open the door so might as well weld outside. Besides I will find out if my tractor will still lift it. How do get a symbol that shows crossed fingers? 6013 rod is just as good as MG500 as far as I can tell ,well maybe 95% but way cheaper . It does not smoke up the building as much either. I am wondering if my welds will hold. Only one way to find out.
I am adding relief valve to the power supply, just in case a QD gets disconnected. Turned into a plumbing , lets say expense. Everything is welded in and hose lengths set and hoses in place. Options options options. I could have just eliminated the QD but what fun is that. Besides the first time I took a both in hydraulic oil I would regret that decision. So more fittings. In order to make the hose curves I went to 3/4 for the tank return line. Since there should never be any flow there it should be fine. It also provided an oppertunity to provide a gage port at the pump. Not a bad thing.
I have been ignoring the log lifter so I could get something done. I will have to get back to that. Also the out feed tray. I am thinking about 1" EMT for that. IT's cheap and strong. But I don't weld it with an arc welder. I use OA and a rod called FC 13. Not cheap. Race car guys used it for tubing. It is a fillet forming material. Very high temp for melt. Almost as strong as welding.
I asked some questions in the hydraulic forum about the auto valve and setting pressures.
http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/hydraulics/229269-auto-cycle-valve.html

Bob, EMT is too flimsy for the outfeed.

I made mine out of sched40 and i still bent it up. I wouldnt use anything less than sched40 and be sure to weld support brackets at the end closest to the wedge ( I didnt, but i will have to do it next year). Plus you can weld it, which is faster and cheaper than gas welding. I cant recommend enough to do both the outfeed and the lift. They are the two best features on mine, with the 4 way wedge right up there. Its the accessories like these that separate a store bought to a custom home built high end splitter.

Funny thing about hydraulics, they arent so expensive WHEN SOMEBODY ELSE IS BUYING!!:laughing:

 

[6sunset6]

Thanks You changed my mind. Schedule 80 I guess. Probably have a heart attack when I see the price.
Need 60ft I think
Holy bananas Mcmaster Carr wants $96 for 72" 1" schedule 80.
$30 for 60" 1" sch 40
Not that I would get it from them but it's a quick place to price check.
Discount steel 1"od 10g $42 for 20' better but not for shipping.
Have to check my local pipe guy. I am going to struggle cutting 21 ft lengths in half with a battery sawsall in the parking lot. Guess I will ask him how much to cut.

 

[Scooby074]

Thanks You changed my mind. Schedule 80 I guess. Probably have a heart attack when I see the price.
Need 60ft I think
Holy bananas Mcmaster Carr wants $96 for 72" 1" schedule 80.
$30 for 60" 1" sch 40
Not that I would get it from them but it's a quick place to price check.
Discount steel 1"od 10g $42 for 20' better but not for shipping.
Have to check my local pipe guy. I am going to struggle cutting 21 ft lengths in half with a battery sawsall in the parking lot. Guess I will ask him how much to cut.

mines 3/4" sched 40. No need to go larger IMHO.

Any boilermakers locally? This stuff is boiler tube. Probably the cheapest place.

I cant remember how much mine was, $80 i think? Each piece there is about 30" long and there are 16 of them, so 40', but i bought 50' because i needed to make a few pipe clamps. $1.75 a foot sounds right.

That should get you into the ballpark of what it costs, but its money well spent. Cheaper than a chiropractor :thumbsup:

 

[6sunset6]

Home Depot has sch 40 3/4 x 10' for $13 10'/3 40" 5 lengths will do it $65
10' I can get inside my Subaru believe it or not. Or on top if I have too.
Thanks for your help Jason.

 

[6sunset6]

I did some calculations . 6011 rod is 60,000 psi tensile .
Assuming .25 across the root of the weld The cylinder anchor has two plates with a 7" weld on each side of each plate.
Thats .25 x 7 x 4 x 60,000 420,000 lbs. Probably enough to hold a 48,000 lb load. Thats at 3000 psi. Seems to me I could have welds full of blow holes and it would still work.
Fittings coming Friday for pressure relief change. But valve and hoses to finish are 8-10 days away.
Got to get back to work on log lifter, Been avoiding it . Trouble with pivot point.
Have to start thinking about a run to Tractor Supply for Hydro oil.
Still have electricals on the power supply.

 

[kubotakid USA]

Bob, EMT is too flimsy for the outfeed.

I made mine out of sched40 and i still bent it up. I wouldnt use anything less than sched40 and be sure to weld support brackets at the end closest to the wedge ( I didnt, but i will have to do it next year). Plus you can weld it, which is faster and cheaper than gas welding. I cant recommend enough to do both the outfeed and the lift. They are the two best features on mine, with the 4 way wedge right up there. Its the accessories like these that separate a store bought to a custom home built high end splitter.

Funny thing about hydraulics, they arent so expensive WHEN SOMEBODY ELSE IS BUYING!!:laughing:....................... Scooby, I cant really tell from the angle of the pic posted showing your bent outfeed table, But it looks like there behind the blade quite a bit and need a ramp in front to prevent further conflects with wood coming of the wedge, dunno cant tell alot from that angle, Eric

 

[Scooby074]

Bob, EMT is too flimsy for the outfeed.

I made mine out of sched40 and i still bent it up. I wouldnt use anything less than sched40 and be sure to weld support brackets at the end closest to the wedge ( I didnt, but i will have to do it next year). Plus you can weld it, which is faster and cheaper than gas welding. I cant recommend enough to do both the outfeed and the lift. They are the two best features on mine, with the 4 way wedge right up there. Its the accessories like these that separate a store bought to a custom home built high end splitter.

Funny thing about hydraulics, they arent so expensive WHEN SOMEBODY ELSE IS BUYING!!:laughing:....................... Scooby, I cant really tell from the angle of the pic posted showing your bent outfeed table, But it looks like there behind the blade quite a bit and need a ramp in front to prevent further conflects with wood coming of the wedge, dunno cant tell alot from that angle, Eric

Ya its hard to tell, but the tubes end near the middle of the wedge.

Next year once i straighten the tube and put some supports, i intended on doing what you suggest, which is a ramp.

 

[6sunset6]

3 steps foward, 1 step back. Went to Home Depot, 10' of 3/4 pipe fits in my subaru. Got 1 need 4 more. Got plumbing fittings from DHH. This is for the relief valve on the power supply. The return worked fine, the pressure side did not quite fit bummer, need 1 more fitting, UPS minimum is ridiculous but USPS is not too bad. Surplus is just shipping valve and hoses and could not catch the order to add anything. Oh well. My son in law is here , with my daughter, He wanted to learn how to weld. Gave him a history lesson, a safety lesson, dressed him up, gave him my auto darkening hood. Means I had to use my old dark one, what a pain. He did very well, has the touch. Not bad for a guy in a PhD program. The big step forward was the pivots on the log lift. He helped a bit with that. Got it. See pictures and video. Only had to redrill 1" holes but to do that I had to grind out some tacks to get the plates in the bridgeport. But it worked. The last picture is me grinding out tacks on the lifter pivot.
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxuzNbxDpSA]Log lifter video - YouTube[/ame]

 

[6sunset6]

It's outside for the first time.
My tractor lifted the beam assembly on it's forks, easy. Good thing cause the half ton chain falls was straining. Got some welding done on the box splitter and the end of the beam where it bolts on. Probably should do some more but I was getting tired of bending over and welding up. I finally unbolted the box so I could flip it around. I think there are enough welds on it now so it will not distort much. I hope. I want to put a foot across the diagonals that hold up the beam.
I think the thing will sink if I don't. That'a that big piece of rusty angle on the ground. I need another one, probably something on my scrap skid. I thought about flat pads but it is better to tie the two legs together. I think I will also add a diagonal brace from the horizontal mid point bar up to the beam. More upside down welding . Last , I hope , of the fittings will be here next Friday.

 

[Scooby074]

It's outside for the first time.
My tractor lifted the beam assembly on it's forks, easy. Good thing cause the half ton chain falls was straining. Got some welding done on the box splitter and the end of the beam where it bolts on. Probably should do some more but I was getting tired of bending over and welding up. I finally unbolted the box so I could flip it around. I think there are enough welds on it now so it will not distort much. I hope. I want to put a foot across the diagonals that hold up the beam.
I think the thing will sink if I don't. That'a that big piece of rusty angle on the ground. I need another one, probably something on my scrap skid. I thought about flat pads but it is better to tie the two legs together. I think I will also add a diagonal brace from the horizontal mid point bar up to the beam. More upside down welding . Last , I hope , of the fittings will be here next Friday.

Looks good.

I agree with the feet. not only for the spread, but added flotation.

one good thing about a heavy steel welding table is i can crank the item im welding down (tight) and turn up the heat. and let it cool after welding. This cuts down on the warping immensely.

Have you figured the cylinder for your log lift yet? I ended up using a 2.5" dia x 6" stroke. Its kinda surprising just how little movement you need on the cylinder to raise the lift to horizontal.

 

[6sunset6]

lift cylinder will be 3.5 x 4"