BlueRidgeMark
Addicted to ArboristSite
I bent my splitter's toe plate today on an oak crotch!!! 
There was a thread here a few months back where somebody posted a similar pic, and somebody else basically called him a liar.
Well, I had it happen today.
I've been gathering some standing dead oak that was felled recently, and it was some big stuff, and hard as nails. Been dead or dying a long time, I'd guess. Maybe 10 years? I've been aware of it standing there dead for about 4 years, and it was long gone then. It's dry right down to the bone, and did I mention that it's hard?
Anyway, there were some crotches, and one of them flat STOPPED my 35 ton splitter. Had to finish splitting it with the saw. Another one came close to stopping it.
When we were packing up, I noticed my toe plate:
I guess the wood was bearing on the toe plate out toward the end, rather than close to the beam. Got to watch that in the future. Now that it's bent that way, wood will tend to slip out there, making the problem worse.
I'm NOT happy about this!
One thing is for sure, the many folks who say they've got a 20 or 22 ton splitter that will split anything, just haven't been splitting really tough wood.
There was a thread here a few months back where somebody posted a similar pic, and somebody else basically called him a liar.
Well, I had it happen today.
I've been gathering some standing dead oak that was felled recently, and it was some big stuff, and hard as nails. Been dead or dying a long time, I'd guess. Maybe 10 years? I've been aware of it standing there dead for about 4 years, and it was long gone then. It's dry right down to the bone, and did I mention that it's hard?
Anyway, there were some crotches, and one of them flat STOPPED my 35 ton splitter. Had to finish splitting it with the saw. Another one came close to stopping it.
When we were packing up, I noticed my toe plate:
I guess the wood was bearing on the toe plate out toward the end, rather than close to the beam. Got to watch that in the future. Now that it's bent that way, wood will tend to slip out there, making the problem worse.
I'm NOT happy about this!
One thing is for sure, the many folks who say they've got a 20 or 22 ton splitter that will split anything, just haven't been splitting really tough wood.
Last edited:
