Huge Homemade Wood Splitter with Auto-Cycle in Action
Vložit
- čas přidán 10. 09. 2024
- i built this splitter in my shop at home on weekends and nights. The tree I'm splitting is an old oak that was close to 100 years old. Part of the tree fell on the shed in the rear left of the splitter when we cut it. Some of these chunks of wood weight a few hundred pounds, all we can do to roll them around.thanks for watching and feel free to post any comments
thank you. I got ideas from looking at others work and had always wanted to build one bigger and stronger than the one I had. I can't say to the penny how much I spent nor the countless hours scratching my head and cutting out cardboard patterns to make sure it all would balance out, so far I am happy with it. Thanks again
I’ve watched most of the DIY wood splitter videos on CZcams. I think you’re is the best I’ve seen yet. You obviously put a lot of thought into it. Great video too! Some people just like to complain.Good job Tim
thank you Travis
I spent lots of time just scratching my head trying to figure out what I think would work. I would make a cardboard pattern and cut it out on a bandsaw first before cutting metal pieces. It has worked great for the past 5 or 6 years and I don't know of any major alterations I would make if I were doing it over.
thanks again for the compliments
@@bassplugger1 Tim that is a top of the line splitter I wish I could have one just like that!!! You did a great job!!! Any plans on it?
@@rogerl8488 Thanks Roger, I'm not sure about top of the line, but it has worked sweet for the past 5 or 6 years, just had it out this past Saturday on an old white oak that was over 100 years old and 44" across the stump. Sure takes away most of the straining in getting those huge chunks loaded onto the beam. I usually cut my lengths to 30" and they are quite heavy. I really didn't have any plans from the start and would make patterns from cardboard and kept snipping on them until they worked. Thanks for the kind words and hope you have good luck with your build
thanks, I did not keep up with all the expenses, but i believe i have about $5,000 in parts, the honda engine, pump,valves and hoses were over half of that cost. It was really fun to build and even more fun to watch it handle whatever I am able to roll onto it, thanks again
thanks for the kind comments, I have a son and a younger brother and nephew and the four of us can usually give it a run for the money, I lowered the table about 2" and it seems to work better now, thanks again
What a great splitter, man is that thing powerful. That Honda is barely above idle, wow!
Beautiful setup, I haven't been able to build a solid 4 way wedge yet, everything I create blows apart. My most recent attempt last fall shattered half inch iron--I'm thinking I used iron instead of steel. All you need now is a conveyor and you wouldn't have to fight the split wood, just keep shoving material infront of it! Thanks for the video.
hi there watched this splitter and impressed every time well done john
Absolutely gorgeous build.
If I had the brains, money and ability to build a similar one I'd potentially use about a 5gpm pump for the log lift and wedge and would mount the valve for the lift either directly over the centreline of the splitter or else put it on the lift side of the splitter.
Some info for some of the people who have asked.
-the auto cycle valves are basically locking valves that release when the set pressure is reached.
-the dump valve or pilot activated check valve is primarily for when you have a large rod compared the cylinder size. When retracting there is a lot higher flow rate coming out of the extend side of the ram due to the extra volume that the rod takes up. This can exceed by a long way what the typical 3/4" ports on a splitter valve can handle. The dump valve allows the bypassing direct back to the tank of 30 or 50gpm when the splitter is retracting.
Thanks Alan H. That is a good idea of using a different pump for the lift and the wedge, I had thought of that before, but way after I had completed the build. Now I have to wait for the main cylinder to retract before I can either raise the lift or wedge, and if it were on a different pump I could raise the waiting log while splitting the one already loaded. Wished You had commented about this while I was building it. Thanks again
Hi Tim. I have thought about building a splitter and/or processor for 20yrs now. I have been collecting videos with good ideas on a firewood processors and compiling a heap of what I reckon have outstanding features as a playlist on my channel. Your splitter had a few good things that I deserved filing away on my wishlist.
That's a damn fine piece of equipment you built there. It's great to see pple with brain and ambition using both to come up with stuff like that. Where would we be if somebody forgot to invent Hydraulics? You spent a few bucks putting that together.
Quite a bit of coffee grinds in the middle of that oak eh? Beautiful workmanship on all the hose fittings and the gauges of steel you used were all more than what is required! This thing is built to be handed down a few generations, the way things used to be built. Quiet, smooth, clean, and powerful! I wouldn't worry about the speed so much, it wasn't like you had a lot of down time waiting between splits. You had a good system there where you were keeping busy and produced an impressive amount of water stove food. As you said, it's only for personal use. If you wanted to make it more efficient the only thing I would do is weld on some more splitting blades like a star formation, you have the power, but again, not really necessary.....Good job!
thanks, the first one I built had power enough to twist the beam, I had to reinforce it, this on so far has worked flawlessly. thanks again
the best wood splitter home made i ever seen.and stihl chainsaw you are an example for small farmers.great work
andreiman2008
thanks for the compliment, so far the splitter has worked great, and the orange and white paint on the chainsaw is a trademark all on its own, its hard to compare any other saw to a sthil
i have an stihl 661 the greatest saw ever use.and i working on a wood splitter diesel,hope put some video in about 3 weeks
andreiman2008
looking forward to seeing the video, be sure to keep me posted, as for the 661 it probably the newer model of my old 066 magnum it is a beast in a big ole log
i have been watching these kind of wood splitting videos since 2014--and today was the first time urs came up. i guess cause of the title. i just wanted to say after watching both videos. that u built a very nice piece of equipment. i got 2 homemade one's, but neither has a lift on them, or a table. that Honda was just playing with them logs to split them. ha! thanks for the video.
thank you Jim for the compliments on the splitter. Most of the time I just run about half throttle and that seems to be fast enough and strong enough too, plus it's not as loud. The lift is a back saver for sure and the table catches the larger pieces so we don't have to pick them up from the ground-another back saver too.
thanks again
From a toolmaker in WNC......very well done.
thank-you, the thickness of the vertical splitter is 1". It is 6" wide and about 36" tall, 12"above the horizontal wedge and (that is 3/4" thick) and 12"below when it is raised and 12" down thru I-beam where is attached to lift arm, It is out of hardened steel used to manufacture track-hoe buckets
Nice. Amazing how similar are splitters are.
Nice wood splitter, no, best damn wood splitter on CZcams. I'm building one myself and I have used a lot of your ideas along with dealing with James at P&J Equipment, there are good people to deal with.
thank you for the compliment, I have enjoyed both building and using it. You are dead on about those P & J guys, you'll have to look long and hard to beat them. Good luck on building your splitter and send me some pics while you are putting it together
thanks again
little late but still a nice spitter john
Sometimes better late than never
Thanks
Better than a factory built splitter
+Ronnie Getts
thanks Ronnie
I looked at the one Northern Tool made and just wasn't impressed with the metal thickness nor the cylinder length and the ones that the big box stores sell are much too small for what I needed
thanks again
the engine usually just runs on a low speed, seems to have plenty of power and pressure to split whatever we load on it. The autocycle valve has two spools (operated with two leavers), it's the one next to the main cylinder, when you pull both leavers the main cylinder extends, when it reaches the end, one of the spools opens and lets the cylinder start retracting, when it's fully retracted, the second spool opens and now its ready to make another cycle. The dump valve (it is located behind the manifold) opens only when fluid is returning to the reservoir, it allows the oil to bypass the valves therefore reducing friction and causes less heat, it has no effect on the pressure of the operation
I love the tires
thanks, they came from a junk yard,
Very well designed log splitter. It's easy to see you took a lot of time and care building it.
Thanks for the compliment
It was a slow process of figuring out all the details but in the end it turned out fairly well
I have a H beam and hydraulic cylinder so far(long way to go). I like the size. People are happy when you get all the wood not just the easy stuff.
@@saltwaterinmyveins that is exactly the first two items I purchased from a local scrap metal dealer. I bought a 10' x 8"x 8" "H" beam with 3/4" thick top and bottom plate and 7/16" thick vertical plate, and a 6"dia. x 48" cylinder from a Caterpillar track hoe. they both are the backbone of the splitter and have worked perfectly
Thanks for the reply.All this stuff is harder to find than you might thank!
I have the pieces cut to add to the end of the I-beam, and had planned on welding them in place. After using the splitter for around 30 hours i have not noticed any twisting of the beam and have split tough knotted wood, all with good sucess and no problems. The pump is a 28gpm and the cylinder is 6"with a 41" stroke. thanks
Really those are nice
yes very similar they are. Nice
thanks
nice wheels!
Brutally strong and wonderfully quiet...Love those Honda motors .Too slow in my humble opinion. A smaller cylinder would have sped it up and you still have plenty of motor for torque.
Five grand is too much money for home made. Great job and I like the auto return.
thanks hillbilly, i am quite fond of honda engines too. Granted the 6" cylinder takes more fluid for it to complete a cycle and,therefore; taking more time, but power was what i was interested in more than speed. I have another homemade splitter that has a 4" cylinder and it cycles faster but not enough power to push through some of the tough, NC oaks we have here. The diameter of the cylinder and pressure are the factors that determine the tons of force. By the end of the day the speed of the splitter has remained constant, mine, however; and slowed tremendously and tough to keep up with it.
Thank you. It was kinda cool building it and it's a lot of fun using it but it will get you hot if you keep it humping
Just watched the video and that thing is the trick. just what I need.
thanks again Red
Hope you get you one up and running
Amazing machine. Alot of thought went into building it! Great job!
thank you
thank you, so far it has worked really well
Big Logs ! Always the Test ! Of Any ! Good Spliter ! No Saw ! Cutting! With it ! See what ! You do ! With Mark Two !
Really nice build. When I retire I'm going to build one too. I like your design, but I will change one thing. The ram will work towards the truck bed!
+Appalachian Stillhunter
that is not a bad idea, I can attach the tongue to the other end of this one and do like you are talking about where you can load as soon as it splits, if you look at my other video i talk about doing that, we usually have two or three trucks when we are spitting and we use one truck to pull splitter from one woodpile to the next, and we back a truck up to the table and load it as it splits, thanks for the compliments
That is a cool machine.
Very nice build Tim. Would like to see the catch table larger is my only criticism. Seems that a lot of wood falls off the table. Very impressive otherwise...
robson 1015 thank-you for the compliment and the criticism. you are probably correct about the table being too small, the only reason I have not made it larger is because usually there are three or four of us splitting, so it is not as much of a problem, if I were the only one splitting then the larger table would be more necessary, thanks again
This mobile wedge is very efficient. It must save you a huge amount of time and work. Very nice and tempting machine.
While watching, I was tempted to conceive a way of using the action of the backing ram to bring, in front of the it, one of the huge halves (100 lbs and +) after the first spliting of those few hundred pounds monster....
+remige2006
thanks. It would be nice if there were some convenient way to allow the ram to retract those huge chunks instead of having to do it by hand
+Tim Scott Hello Tim. If you watch on You Tube a video called :''My 1979 wood splitter'' you will see how the man has installed a device that can retract the pieces once there splitted...quite simple to do!
+remige2006 I have looked at one several times called "My homemade splitter doing what it was built to do" , his is made where the lift table retracts with the huge piece that still needs splitting, that would be nice to have. I cant find a video called my 1979 wood splitter
it seems to handle anything we can roll around and get on the lift, yet to put anything on it we can't split, about 1/3 throttle is plenty and runs quieter and probably uses a little less fuel, thanks
thanks, the wheels, tires and axle came off of a car at a local junkyard
Only thing I would say is that is probably worth capping off the end of the rsj and ram mount, it would make that bit a lot stronger.... Other than that very good splitter.... Is that a 16gpm pump?
Nice build
Thank you. It was a lot of fun to build and even more to use. Thanks again
Thank you
Tim, I mean to ask for the size and length of the cylinder for the log lift table. Thanks Joe.
It is a 3" dia. cylinder and I think the stroke is 18"
just needs a little bigger table for the wood to lay on after its split with an upward taper on each side so the wood wont roll off - this is a sure enough good set up - do you sell these?
probably a good idea to slope the sides up a little to help prevent roll off of split pieces. usually have 2 or 3 guys off bearing and loading as we split so it is not a huge problem. I built this splitter as an upgrade to what I had, I don't own a machine shop, so it was a several week project for me, I'm not set up to build for re-sale although it was quite fun to build. thanks
That is a nice splitter you have there. I was wondering what the ton was and how big your stove is from the huge splits you make.
thanks Jake, it believe according to the pressure and the dia. of the cylinder, it is around 40 ton. The stove I have is called a water stove. It has a firebox around 32"deep and 2' square that is surrounded by 500 gallons of water which runs through heat ex-changers to heat my home, and also a 100' long 1/2" dia. copper coil inside the 500 gallons that heats all of my domestic water, so all hot water is basically free minus the costs of firewood. Thanks again
what a great splitter, can you tell me what size metal you used for the splitter and 4 way set up looking to build smoething like this
How does that work when you have a 28 gpm pump with 25 gpm control valves
the fluid that is not used through the valves just returns to the reservoir
Big question.
Two littles one
1.
What size hydraulic cylinder did you used for you log lift and wedge adjustment
2.
How long is the steel beam and what was the size of the steel beam?
I know these videos were done some time ago.
I'm guessing that you just might answere my question.
The log lift cylinder is a 4”x24”
The wedge cylinder is a 3”x12”
The steel beam was originally 10’
My main cylinder is 6”x48”
So cylinder length took up 8’ plus the area to weld on support for the cylinder was about another foot plus the push block
I think I had about a 10” piece left over from the 10’
A very fine piece of equipment indeed. How's about you make me one too? Although, my stove won't take anything over 19"
Thanks
You can split short wood too😀
I love those large tires! Are you comfortable towing it at highway speeds? Is there any suspension?
Thanks Jerry
I can tow it at highway limits but I usually play it a little safe and run a bit slower. There is no suspension
tim, could you tell us the size and type of your log lift table. where did you purchase the cylinder from. Thanks, Joe
Tim! Awesome splitter. I am having trouble understanding the 4 way blade movement? I understand how it's moving. I also see the channel the upper part rides on. But what's happening inside the frame? What keeps that from binding? Does the knife edge run against the front of the I beam ? Thanks
The blade is 1" thick and there are spacers welded on the vertical part of the I beam and a plate welded on the outside of that creating a slot for the blade to run through. Thanks for looking and commenting
Tim, very impressive would like to add the hyd. wedge to mine and the auto feed and detent also. Where can I find those hyd. valve setup Thanks Andy Jean
thanks, you can find the valves and anything you might need if you go to "split e z .com " and talk to Jim. He also offers a lot of good advice on any questions you might have. thanks again
lololol that motor is just idling wow....anyway I would like to learn how the autocycle works is it just a certain valve or does it take two valves? also those dump valves would that cause u to loose pressure? if it were under extreme pressure would it just cycle back to the tank and not in the cylinder?
I would really like you're plans and where you got all your parts. I'm looking to build this same splitter. I just purchased my boiler and it can handle up to 44" piece long. How heavy of a log can you put on the log lift? Great build
thanks dave
I had no plans at all. I bought an I-beam from a salvage yard and the 6" cylinder and fuel tank as well. After those three items were in my shop I just started cutting out cardboard patterns and making sure they would fit, i started cutting metal using the patterns. It took me about 4 or 5 months in my spare time to put it all together. There is a web site called "split e z.com" and the guy there is James. He is the one you need to talk to and he has all the parts you need to build one. Good luck on your splitter
I can't tell you how much the large chunks of wood weight, I only know that it take at least two and three guys to just roll them on the ground, my guesstimate is around 500 to 600 pounds. the cylinder that does the lifting is a 4" diameter and the pressure is 2300psi, so you can calculate the limit it will lift, so far not even a strain at all.
Very nice setup Tim, would love to pick your brain on the lift table.. any means of reaching you without going through the comments section of CZcams? Thanks in advance
Adam
Thanks Adam
I have just started using it again this winter and it’s still doing what it was supposed to do
You can reach me at bassplugger@gmail.com if you have any questions and there’s a couple more videos that tell more details
Mind me asking how much you had in building this? Very nice machine. Thinking about building one
Thank you
No I don’t mind
I had around $5000.00 in it and lots of time. But the Honda engine was close to half of the expense
Very nice! I notice you say NC oaks. I assume you are in NC? If so, what part? I would like to come take a closer look at it if you would be ok with that.
If you bring your gloves and boots you can get a real close-up look. Just kidding, but yeah I'm in NC, north of Winston-Salem about 35 miles, at the base of Pilot Mountain, you can send me an e-mail to bassplugger@gmail.com and we can work out the time and place, thanks
HAHAHA, I like the way you think Tim! You are quite a few miles from me but I will try to coordinate something next time I go to Greensboro to see the inlaws. In the meantime, can you give me any more info/views/dimensions on the adjustable 4-way. That is the part that I really like and I think I have an idea of how you did it but more detail would be very helpful. Again, very nice splitter!
Amazing , splitter , hope you don't mind a few questions..
What is the top of beam working height ?
thanks
I think the height of the beam is around 30". If you are in the process of building a splitter I can measure it and let you know exactly what mine is.
I had to remove 6" of the reservoir wall and weld it back together because the beam was too high
thanks again
We're did u get ur pump and what hp is ur motor..thanks
I got the pump from P & J Equipment and the motor is a 25 hp
thanks
Thank u bad ass splitter.. I like it
Justin moyar thank you
come on by and you can use it
We're u located lol
What state
I have to believe you use this commercially?
even though it could probably stand up to the strain of being used commercially, i only use it for personal use. I have a family with 3 of us using firewood to heat with and friends at church also use wood, so i keep it pretty busy at times, thanks
nice but too short
The splitter is capable of splitting wood 44" long. My stove and all my friends are unable to burn anything that long. So may be too short for some but plenty long for us ole Carolina boys. Thanks
Would be nice for you to stop and tell us about the splitter, how much tonnage' weight' ect ecct' Very nice' Thank you // I'm in the pipe dream mode to do one' have 80% of the stuff, just have to get going and find someone to help //
thanks Kevin
the dia. of the main cylinder is 6". So you can do the math on the tonnage if you calculate the pressure into the equation. Somewhere in the ballpark of 40 ton. I have another video on the construction and information about how it was built
thanks
@@bassplugger1 Tim how much money you fig you have in this an you building it? Reason I was asking I thought about getting my local fab shop to build me one with designs I have after watch thousands of vids an this is one of the best!!! Great job!!! WOLF RIDGE has nice ones also.
@@rogerl8488 thanks again Roger, my best guess is around 5 thousand for parts and just my labor, I have a great friend who owns a fab shop and he helped tremendously with cutting most of my parts and I paid a hydraulic shop to make up the hoses. Thanks for the compliments
A faster cycle time would be better
It might be but it would either take a larger pump or smaller cylinder It’s fast enough for an old guy like me
You could probably put a stop block so it would kick off sooner
Hi Tim, Nice video, I'm building a log splitter. Do you use 3/4 inch non high pressure hose on all return lines even back to your dump valve. I didn't I just use 1/2 hydraulic hose on all my return lines and my fluid seem to be getting warm just idling for 5 minutes. I'm wondering if that's my problem. manstock at hotmail.com
BALSY!!! Kudos!!
thanks
is it just me? anyone else get tired of watching a log go through a knife ten times? you'd think he'd tell us what the ton rating is, motor size, cylinder diameter, cylinder length... etc.
be nice if he'd just take this video down and put up another one of the drawings, specs... etc. that way, one could pause and view all the technical stuff. Or put up how one could purchase the plans. I see he's had over 100,000 hits so you'd think he could make some money by selling the plans.
Good Morning earthdude
I'm sorry you found the video so boring. It was uploaded so people could see it under operation and make decisions if they wanted to pursue building one similar to mine. It was not intended to be an instructional as with information on tonnage and pressure or cost. " I've watched too many videos of wood being split for ten minutes and thought to myself, hmmm gee, split wood okay wonder if I can find a guy who built his own splitter who'll explain how he did it, offer plans even if for sale, talk about why he did it this way. Not this guy." If you had searched for "Huge Homemade Wood Splitter with Auto Cycle and Dump Valve" you might be able to go back and think twice about your quote. That was the first video I uploaded and later I added a couple just so people, like you, could see how it operated. It was a fun project and so far it has operated great. Hope you enjoy the video you haven't seen yet, maybe it will give you an idea of how I built this one
thanks for your comments