View Full Version : Log Splitter recommendations?
I'm thinking about buying a log splitter........finally...........after probably needing one for over 30 years. We always do things the hard way here! :~)
Anyone have one or know of a good brand? I'm looking online, but I'd like to hear from people who own one.
I actually just saw they have some good-reviewed electric ones. It might be nice to not mess with another gas-powered piece of equipment.
Any suggestions?
Thanks.
I know a thing or two about splitting wood...
From this:
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-iG5wnPMGbkM/T3d1yP8boGI/AAAAAAAAE1U/8Qi-aiCOxAA/s640/IMG_0590.JPG
To this:
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-Yx14gRMmnH0/UF5MYQGioOI/AAAAAAAAGQE/uUT6xs70_E0/s640/Awesomized.jpg
Using more traditional hand tools to do the work: Gransfors Bruks splitting mauls and wedges, and a sledge hammer.
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-AwwtwAvPkOc/S_rpEhfFtiI/AAAAAAAAD8U/juDHeU5Fb8g/s640/gse_multipart6793438116023170181.tmp.jpg
And to section the rounds:
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-kZ1aETuCrbQ/TyCLggrvEbI/AAAAAAAAEmg/M_6TxeUv08E/s640/IMG_0449.JPG
I also got a pair of these as a gift:
They rock. I'll never have to bend over again to pick up a small-to-mid-sized (9" diameter) chunk of wood when splitting, so much back effort spared:
S.A. Wetterling Axes 334 Large Lifting Tongs with Orange Rubber Handles
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/31WbJQ6iy-L._SS500_.jpg
Now, you asked about splitters. I've used many different gasoline-powered ones, and here's my opinion:
- they are loud
- they use a lot of fuel
- they are really loud
- they require lots of maintenance
- they are really really loud
- they use a lot of hydraulic fluid, and make a mess of your work area
If you do go this route, I'd make sure to not get a cheap one, it will be no bargain over the long run. Get one with a good name-brand engine, not a clone engine. Buy a lot of hydraulic fluid. Learn how to do small engine repair/maintenance, and develop some skill with hydraulic repair. Pay very very close attention to the safety guide.
I have two non-human-powered wood splitters myself now, both of which work great:
First up:
This hand-operated hydraulic wood splitters, from Grizzly tool. It was reasonably frugal, $108. Freight for delivery is insane, $79, but it weighs ~100 pounds. Luckily, Grizzly Tools has one of their main warehouses just a few miles away from me over on the mainland, and when I was over there recently, I just drove by and picked it up for $0 delivery cost. The savings paid for my ferry ticket, gasoline, and lunch.
http://www.grizzly.com/products/10-Ton-Log-Splitter/H6239
The reason I got this is that I have some really nasty tough wood here, with lots of knots or twisted burls, and some of it is a royal pain to split totally by hand - I was getting tennis elbow blasting through it with a sledge hammer and wedges, the splitting maul wouldn't even make a dent in those chunks.
This hydraulic unit eats them up.
One handle moves the ram forward semi-fast, but requires more force, the other handle moves the ram very slowly, using very little effort on your part, so you can start the split with the low-geared one, then speed things up with the other.
It is still a bit slow, so for me its best use is to break a problem round in halves or quarters, then do the rest with hand tools. It is great for team-splitting, one partner can produce halves, while the other deals with them.
It stows upright when you are done using it, so you can tuck it away in a corner of the garage or shed and not trip over it.
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-Ly2GyFVveps/T1v9MeajpiI/AAAAAAAAEtA/JyyN3cU3VxE/s576/IMG_0523.JPG
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-adFtSShoIAk/T1v84AvBMkI/AAAAAAAAEso/STB7XdTnvhY/s576/IMG_0524.JPG
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-CPYZQxD-h14/T1v8nfboERI/AAAAAAAAEsg/9j85H_1SCRc/s576/IMG_0525.JPG
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-3MCDb4WH1jc/T1v6ycZ6PsI/AAAAAAAAEtE/-QuLPPua58Y/s576/IMG_0532.JPG
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-Xihp0AJIYJA/T1v7wrF8qbI/AAAAAAAAEsI/ulDoaTglg0g/s720/IMG_0528.JPG
That hand-powered hydraulic Grizzly unit is perfect for the occasional troublesome round.
However, if you are faced with a mountain of such things, it is pretty slow.
A while back, after borrowing several gasoline-powered splitters to use on a big job and getting disgusted with them, I decided to try out one of the electric-powered ones. I got a Homelite splitter from Home Depot:
http://www.homedepot.com/catalog/productImages/300/73/73c4b021-3c66-4b75-a2aa-90f0091e5230_300.jpg
This thing is great. $299, sometimes on sale though. It is almost as fast as the consumer-grade gas splitters, maybe faster at times. No gasoline needed, it doesn't consume hydraulic fluid, it's safer to operate in many ways, and it's very quiet most of the time. I'm very very happy with it, having used it on a *lot* of troublesome wood recently.
http://www.homedepot.com/p/t/202019865?productId=202019865&storeId=10051&langId=-1&catalogId=10053&ci_sku=202019865&ci_src=17588969&cm_mmc=shopping%2d%5f%2dgoogleads%2d%5f%2dpla%2d%5 f%2d202019865&ci_gpa=pla#.UhOjxhjn9hE
I got a Homelite splitter I'm very very happy with it, having used it on a *lot* of troublesome wood recently.
Aha... does it split Madrona? Tihis one might work for us, in the city, and we could save $$ by buying rounds instead of split wood. Thanks!
We had a horizontal PTO splitter that we used on the back of our '55 Massey gas-engine tractor... I sure did like that tool. Liked the tractor too. I miss rural living.
Thanks Bae,
I didn't even think they made electric ones until I started researching it, and it sounded like some of them were very good.
It would be great to not have to deal with gas/noise/hydraulic fluid, etc. I suppose a heavy duty extension cord would be okay, otherwise we'd have to carry all the big wood closer to an outlet.
One of them (I forget which model) requires its own circuit.
Thanks for your input.
Aha... does it split Madrona?
See, you know exactly why I got it :-) Madrona and alders here sometimes come in the most terribly twisty knotty configurations, and I cannot power through them even with a huge sledge hammer and lots of wedges without spending more effort than it is worth.
Both of those hydraulic splitters I showed work on such things, yay!
Thanks Bae,
I didn't even think they made electric ones until I started researching it, and it sounded like some of them were very good.
It would be great to not have to deal with gas/noise/hydraulic fluid, etc. I suppose a heavy duty extension cord would be okay, otherwise we'd have to carry all the big wood closer to an outlet.
One other thing to consider - if you want to use an electric one remotely, too far from power, you always have the *option* of using a small generator to power it if need be. Then you only have *one* small gasoline/diesel motor to maintain, and it's in something more generally-useful - the generator. I use one of the small Honda gens for this, and for an electric chainsaw, now-and-then.
Sort of feels wrong, but it works well, and gives you a lot of flexibility.
bae, I recently had 5 80' trees cut down in my back yard and I stacked the logs, planning to split them in the fall. What's the maximum length for the manual hydraulic splitter? I'm sure most of my rounds are too long so I'll have to cut them to the appropriate length before splitting.
I've traditionally done the splitting by hand but these days I'm feeling a little too out of shape to try it with this volume. As a result, I've been toying with the idea of getting one.
Alan - the hand-powered one handles 18" lengths, the electric one I think goes to 20". Your wood stove may also have some preference as to maximum length :-)
DH used to split them with a "Monster Maul". But we're both running out of energy (and joints that work right).
So we've gotten used to putting humongous chunks of tree in our fireplace. They definitely wouldn't fit in a wood stove.
It would be nice to have smaller sizes. We also need a new wood shed. What a job....removing all the wood, tearing down the old dilapidated one, and having a new one built, then putting all the wood back in.
The next one is going to have a cement floor. The bare floor we have now is home to way too many varmints. We even had woodchucks in there for awhile, with their big holes.
A good electric splitter is starting to sound really good.........
Bae.....I see the one from Lowe's is a 5 ton. What would the advantage of, say, a 10 ton one be? (hopefully that's not how much they weigh..........:~))
Alan - the hand-powered one handles 18" lengths, the electric one I think goes to 20". Your wood stove may also have some preference as to maximum length :-)
That's the thing, I have two fireplaces and no wood stoves. When we burn wood, it's more for ambiance than heat, although with this much wood at my disposal that may change this winter.
I had been thinking that I needed to cut the logs down to 15 to 18 inches. Glad to confirm the length.
Bae.....I see the one from Lowe's is a 5 ton. What would the advantage of, say, a 10 ton one be? (hopefully that's not how much they weigh..........:~))
The "5 ton" part is simply the measurement of how much pressure it exerts. If you have seriously-troublesome wood, you'd want More Force, but I haven't found much here that even the 5-ton electric one won't manage, if you are even a little bit clever. For instance, shave off a couple of edge slices first on a really big and obnoxious round.
Madrona is the bugaboo for splitting; awesome for burning.
I've never heard of Madrona. Is it any worse than sycamore? That has wood growing in all different directions, and is a bear to cut.
Bae.........I'm still contemplating which electric log splitter to get. Do you have any problems with needing to consistently bleed the screw? I guess cavitation and ruining everything is a strong possibility if you don't do this every time. (whatever that means.......I'm guessing its just to let all the air bubbles out of the hydraulic fluid or the shock caused can hurt something ?)
Here's a fairly thorough review of the machine. Go down a ways in the article and the guy's review starts with lots of pictures.
Just curious if you found similar advantages and disadvantages.
http://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/homelite-5-ton-electric-splitter-review.78864/
Thanks.
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