18hp aught to be sufficient

[Patrick62]

I got to the point that the made in china diesel just wasn't doing it for me. IT run cheap, but we were lacking something called "power".
I hauled off and ordered a motor from SmallEngineWarehouse (awsum place, btw) and went with this 2 cylinder Briggs. Overkill to a certain extent
. The splitter has a 22 GPM pump on account of the diesel really did not like higher rpm (but I did it now and then). It was happier around 2400 or so. THe Vanguard has good torque, and I found out that the low speed is about right enough for now. 2500-2600. I think I will monkey around with the springs some and get the idle down to around 1800, and set the full speed to my 2400 to 2600 that I used to run the diesel at. The problem with running the engine at full speed is that the cylinder has 1/2" ports on it, and the drive motor (self propelled machine) isn't rated for that high a flow of oil (and half inch hoses as well).



IT drives better with enough power now, it splits good. It is a LOT quieter!!! Expensive, but gotta have a good hydraulic splitter out here.

 

[ktmtigger]

Hold up it drives itself around? That's genius why haven't I seen this before. My dad has a giant splitter that's a nightmare to move around that would work perfectly

Sent from my E6910 using Tapatalk

 

[mexicanyella]

That looks like a hell of a rig. Was the Chinese diesel one of the air-cooled ones with a shroud, or one of those water-cooled horizontal ones with the open flywheel? I ask because I thought the air-cooled ones ran at 3,600 rpm like typical OPE engines do in the US.

Does that Savonius rotor pump water to fill the water tower? Always wanted to see one of those work.

 

[Patrick62]

Hold up it drives itself around? That's genius why haven't I seen this before. My dad has a giant splitter that's a nightmare to move around that would work perfectly

Sent from my E6910 using Tapatalk

Yes, it is the second splitter I built that-a-way. It seemed that a trike was easier, and a rear axle from a small truck. low speed high torque hydraulic motor to drive the axle. Then the "wrong" way to do it.... I just hooked a valve in the return line to run the motor... oh come on, I know you are not supposed to do "power beyond" that way, but it works. IT seems that it loads the engine more to drive it than to run the splitter. Maybe the drive valve should be the first off the pump?? Hmmmm....

 

[Patrick62]

The china diesel was a knockoff of the yanmar, they called it a "Launtop". actually worked pretty well but somehow the timing got outta whack and it really has to slow down before it will add enough fuel to keep going. 10 hp engine at 3600, but happier at 2400 rpm. at my elevation I barely get 6 out of it...

The savonious in the background was a attempt, it does nothing. The shaft is bent, we were trying to make power with it... The water tank is filled with my well and a ordinary water pump. I water my garden with that. wonderfully observant there!

 

[mexicanyella]

When I was a kid someone gave me a subscription to the Mother Earth News, back when they did crazy stuff like make your Cadillac 472 run on four cylinders to save gas, power an old deuce-and-a-half stake truck with the boiler and winch engine from a steam shovel, build methane digesters and solar ethanol stills and wood gas generators...somewhere in there I saw something about Savonius rotors and it stuck. Funny the stuff you remember sometimes...

 

[Ted Jenkins]

The V twin is better in some ways in that it can run at 3500 RPM easier than a single cylinder. They do not have the exact torque of as a single cylinder, but more smooth and quiet. Thanks

 

[rancher2]

You should like that V twin. I have two of those on wood splitters pulling 28 GPM pumps. I run them wide open all the time. I should have put hour meters on them and I never did. One is close to 30 years old and the other is 20 years old never did any thing to either one other than spark plugs, oil change and oil and air filter change. I change the oil in them every year and run 20-50 full syn. Never have to add oil to either one.

 

[Patrick62]

I'm going to drain and check the inlet from the tank. The hydraulic pump seems to be whining a bit. I don't think it is cavitating, but I will check it out. THis thing could have been whining for a long time cause I never would have heard it over that diesel. I have pushed about a cord across the thing so far (not getting serious yet) just pecking away at things and breaking the engine in. Other than that, I am liking the combination so far.

 

[Patrick62]

Well, I think I got it going good now. I checked my screen, I had forgotten that I had indeed changed it out for one of those fancy stainless steel screen things, so that is good. What I did find was that I was about half down on the hydraulic oil... only about 11 or 12 gallons in the tank. The engine was turning faster than 3000, like about 3200 or so... that would create some turbulence in the tank no doubt inducing some air into the oil with the flow running close to 20 gpm. Slowed the engine to about 3000 which should get me about 18gpm on the pump. Filled the tank with oil, and the whining is quiet now. I will see how it goes, but 18 gpm thru the 1/2 inch ports is pushing it a bit.

 

[kevin j]

and the return flow coming out of the closed and when you are retracting the rod is probably 25 gallons a minute or so.
you’ll be fine, it’s just more pressure drop and more heat generation

 

[rancher2]

Good to hear you found your problem. I wouldn't worry to much about running the engine wide open with your 22 GPM pump and 1/2 ports. I have been running a 28 GPM pump wide open on 1/2 ports for years and have had no ill effects on the system. My tank holds 25 gallons and even in the heat of summer it never gets the oil too hot. I was always going to put a over sized rod cylinder with 3/4 ports on that splitter when the cylinder started leaking and it never has. It will probably blow up the next time we use it after writing this.