New SpeedPro Kinetic Log Splitter from TSC...

[Cedar-Acres]

I guess in all fairness I should sincerely thank those early adopters who took the risk and tried out the Speedpro so the rest of us could see if it measured up to the promises of the manufacturer. They, unfortunately, were burned and are still waiting for some sort of reconciliation from Speeco. I have been lurking here almost daily since the start of this thread and have been astounded at the flaws found in the Speedpro and dazzled by the knowledge and skill demonstrated by the members of this forum.

I know Speeco has (had) an excellent reputation for quality and customer service, I own a Speeco 22 ton hydraulic splitter and am very happy with it. I just want the speed the Speedpro offers so I can spend less time in the wood lot. Until the Speedpro is perfected I will just have to keep plodding along with the old hydro.

So, THANKS GUYS, for all your effort in the initial shakedown of the Speedpro!!!

 

[Dozer Man]

Thank You

I guess in all fairness I should sincerely thank those early adopters who took the risk and tried out the Speedpro so the rest of us could see if it measured up to the promises of the manufacturer. They, unfortunately, were burned and are still waiting for some sort of reconciliation from Speeco. I have been lurking here almost daily since the start of this thread and have been astounded at the flaws found in the Speedpro and dazzled by the knowledge and skill demonstrated by the members of this forum.

I know Speeco has (had) an excellent reputation for quality and customer service, I own a Speeco 22 ton hydraulic splitter and am very happy with it. I just want the speed the Speedpro offers so I can spend less time in the wood lot. Until the Speedpro is perfected I will just have to keep plodding along with the old hydro.

So, THANKS GUYS, for all your effort in the initial shakedown of the Speedpro!!!

Cedar-Aces,

It's a nice change of pace for someone to come to this thread with optimism and some appreciation for the people who have been involved from the beginning. We SpeedPro owners are all striving for the same thing, a dependable product at a fair price. The same as any other consumer of any other product. Now with that being said, I wonder how long it will take for a negative comment from one of the ignorant "bashers".

We use this forum as a way to communicate with each other so we can discuss ideas and...well...frankly sometimes just vent our frustrations. Some of us, for whatever reasons, have decided to follow this thing through to the end, aggrevations and all. For what? Well for me, I can give you a 1000 pretty good reason. I don't have an extra grand to put into an SS right now, and I definately can't go back to splitting in slow motion. And for those out there who have given up on this machine for whatever reasons, I don't blame you one bit and sincerely wish you best of luck in your next purchase. Your input was and still is greatly appreciated.

Thank you Cedar-Acres for your positive outlook, it is greatly appreciated.

 

[KiwiBro]

I was seriously interested in getting a Speedpro, glad I waited to see if they held up.

ditto. I also thank the early adopters on the bleeding edge. I would have been one of them had I resided in USA, but our remoteness adds a definite layer of conservatism b/c basically if we buy from USA, we are doing so without a guarantee in most cases b/c of shipping costs and delays.

 

[Cedar-Acres]

KiwiBro, I understand your situation. In my case I had to exercise an extreme amount of self control since I have a local TSC and was able to see and lay hands on a SpeedPro in person. I really-really wanted to buy one but could not reconcile the risk associated with buying into a brand new untested product of this type. There was also the resistance of the "Budget Committee" at home who wanted to know why I needed another splitter when I had a perfectly good one already. I finally heeded the "too good to be true" warning flag in my head and looked for some actual user experience on the web. That brought me to this thread. I guess you know the rest of the story...

 

[philwillmt]

Cedar-Aces,

It's a nice change of pace for someone to come to this thread with optimism and some appreciation for the people who have been involved from the beginning. We SpeedPro owners are all striving for the same thing, a dependable product at a fair price. The same as any other consumer of any other product. Now with that being said, I wonder how long it will take for a negative comment from one of the ignorant "bashers".

We use this forum as a way to communicate with each other so we can discuss ideas and...well...frankly sometimes just vent our frustrations. Some of us, for whatever reasons, have decided to follow this thing through to the end, aggrevations and all. For what? Well for me, I can give you a 1000 pretty good reason. I don't have an extra grand to put into an SS right now, and I definately can't go back to splitting in slow motion. And for those out there who have given up on this machine for whatever reasons, I don't blame you one bit and sincerely wish you best of luck in your next purchase. Your input was and still is greatly appreciated.

Thank you Cedar-Acres for your positive outlook, it is greatly appreciated.

I agree Dozer Man...well said!

 

[stever]

This is what Speeco said:

Steve,

Though we still do not have a re-release date, I am being told that the parts testing is going well. We should have more information in before the end of February.

Regards,


Shaun Stinnett
Customer Service Representative
303-279-5544 (Main)
800-525-8322 (x1147)
303-278-3432 (Fax)
[email protected]
SpeeCo Inc. Farming accessories and tools, log splitters, post hole diggers and custom manufacturing.

 

[philwillmt]

Steve,

Though we still do not have a re-release date, I am being told that the parts testing is going well. We should have more information in before the end of February.

Regards,


Shaun Stinnett
Customer Service Representative
303-279-5544 (Main)
800-525-8322 (x1147)
303-278-3432 (Fax)
[email protected]
SpeeCo Inc. Farming accessories and tools, log splitters, post hole diggers and custom manufacturing.

Days become weeks become months become years! Well...hopefully not years!

 

[CUCV]

I was hoping Speedpro could get their act together but I just ordered my 3rd Supersplit. The 3rd machine will be a project machine so I'm not tinkering on a machine that I need to make firewood. Definitely a tough nut to crack buying a SS for fun, but I'm really happy I will have 3 red machines in the yard. (I've put everything I can think of to sell up on Ebay and Craigslist) A speedpro would have been sweet at near half the cost. My plans are for 100lb flywheels, diesel engine and multiple wedges.

 

[lumberjackmoe]

Dozer Man, I might take you up on one of those reverse handles. Is it like the one that BSD put on his? If either of you guys want to make me one let me know. My email address is [email protected] When we get these fixed I might put one on. I like the one BSD put on his.
I spoke to David, Shaun's boss and he told me on Feb the 8th that they are in final testing and parts are soon to be released. He felt 2 weeks from the 8th. I just spoke with David this morning and he said the parts ( he said 5 different ones. The Rack, the engagement device, bearings, and the spring plate, and he couldn't remember the 5th one ) are going to be released very soon. He said that they want to make sure it is right.
Shaun and David are telling me that the warranty will go into effect for the 1 year again from the time of t completion of repairs.
Dozer Man, I don't know if you remember, I am from Bloomington, IN.

 

[TFPace]

Contact source

Here's my gripe with Speeco. Why haven't they contacted the owners and let us know about these mods? If it weren't for this forum I would know absolutely zero about the problems,

When I talk with Speeco they are first class and point on but I registered my machines on-line like most people do and I would expect some sort of acknowledgment .

Some companies don't notify their customer base of problems until the owners machine fails. This may be Blount viewpoint, if so, I disagree. Like someone mentioned earlier this thread has > 800 post.

Thanks for listening to my rant!

Tom

 

[philwillmt]

Here's my gripe with Speeco. Why haven't they contacted the owners and let us know about these mods? If it weren't for this forum I would know absolutely zero about the problems,

When I talk with Speeco they are first class and point on but I registered my machines on-line like most people do and I would expect some sort of acknowledgment .

Some companies don't notify their customer base of problems until the owners machine fails. This may be Blount viewpoint, if so, I disagree. Like someone mentioned earlier this thread has > 800 post.

Thanks for listening to my rant!

Tom

Tom,

We feel your pain...see post #739 & #740.

Good luck!

 

[philwillmt]

Well I just got back from tractor supply and found out the speedpro has a RECALL. They pulled the display to the back and were told not to sell another one till further notice. I read the recall paper they had printed off and it had something to do with the teeth being to small on the ram. It said right on the paper to offer FULL refund on ALL speedpro's sold. The manager said he saw this comming. He said too many customers mentioned after seeing the video that it could really hurt someone with the speed and got a hydro instead.

We ended up getting a 22T huskee.:msp_biggrin:

This was post #304, dated 11/08/11...STILL NO PARTS! How many SpeedPro owners have even heard from SpeeCo since 11/08/11? I never heard from them until I initiated the call...much of the reason I am no longer a SpeedPro owner! I hope the rest of you have a better experience...I guess I'm just too impatient when it comes to that kind of non-sense! I paid good money for my machine just like everyone else did, and expected the issues to be dealt with in a much more timely manner!

 

[BSD]

well, i got my machine back with a brand new head, wear plates and bearings. only problem is they forgot to hook up the return springs, so I have to go take it apart and put 2 longer bolts in there right from the start :bang:

it'll be nice to get this machine running again, we've got about 10 cords of logs and chunks piled up on the deck that need to be processed.

 

[TFPace]

Clutch questions

I have not used my Speedpro in months and decided to split some cherry that a sawmill customer left me.

I finally was able to see how the clutch failed to properly work. I was splitting the forked part of the cherry... 18" in diameter and everything was going along OK. After a second or third cycle the ram got stuck out on the end of its stroke. This happen when the block of wood raised up and placed a downward force on the ram. This force prohibited the ram from retracted. I was expecting the clutch to start slipping:msp_confused: :hmm3grin2orange: It didn't so here I am trying to pull the block free from the wedge/ram. This problem occurred 3X while trying to split this mess of a crotch.

Otherwise, the machine split great.I recall BSD mentioning the need to grease/lube the rack. I pulled it out as far as it would go and pumped globs of grease on my hand and smeared the teeth full of grease. I need to take a picture the build up on the stainless steel wear plate. I don't know if I need to oil the underside of the ram assembly with some PB blaster or silicone and see if that will help.

Back to a clutch question, aren't some of you guys lubing the inside of the clutch housing? When the machine is at idle does your machines clutch disengage or is it engaged allowing the flywheel to turn. My machine is the later. The flywheels always turn. I find find this odd and guess the clutch may need some attention too.

Thanks guys!

Tom

 

[Hddnis]

I don't have the same machine you do but every centrifugal clutch I've seen won't engage until somewhere in the 1800-2200 rpm range.


If you leave the switch off and just pull the starter rope does it turn the flywheels?




Mr. HE

 

[Dozer Man]

Clutch Lube

The only reason I lubed my clutch is because someone in here said that Paul @ SS recommended it. It made sense to do so because at that time we were looking for a way to stop/deter the violent disengagement issue. By lubing the inside of the clutch, you are creating a "cushion" as the clutch will disengage easier. I found that once you spray the clutch with WD40 it slipped excessively until I revved the engine substantially. At that point it had "slung" excess lube and started gripping as it should. Will i do it again?? Yes I will. I think it helps somewhat. Especially after performing all the other "fixes" in this thread. I still haven't had a "violent disengagement" since, and the clutch now stalls like it should. Recovery time is lengthened with lube, but only because I am running at low RPM.

Edit: yes I will lube the clutch again, but only after a few cord.

As for the idle question, my flywheels keep spinning after I've put machine back to idle. But they are only coasting. Try splitting wood after you put machine back to idle, it will stop flywheels pretty easy and they will not recover any rpm as the engine is below the engagement rpm. Other than the excessive size of the drive pulley I am pleased with the clutch. But fwiw... my mechanical skills are limited and only a product of necessity, not by trade.

 

[Dozer Man]

Repairs Starting Soon

Talked to Shaun @ Speeco today. He said they are getting things set up with there repair shops to start shipping parts and doing repairs. From what I understand, they are replacing the rack assembly, engagement cam-mechanism, and the engagement rod. I'm sure there are other parts involved also. They are not replacing the clutch assembly, but from what I understand they are working with kohler on what sounds like a throttle stop which will reduce the engine to approximately 3000rpm. (I still want a new clutch, but it is nice splitting 2-3 cord per tank of gas as I'm only running at approx. 2500-2700 rpm)

From what I understand, when our repairs are made...that is when our 1 year warranty will start.

Time will tell for sure, but it sounds like they are trying to make it right.

 

[COUNTRY6543]

repairs

Dozer:

Got the same call yesterday from Shaun. He told me that he was going to call my local service center and send the parts and all I had to do was take it in. I am getting a new rack and engagement system and also told me about slowing the motor down. Funny I already slowed it down and am running 'bout the same as everyone else. This oughta be interesting to see what they have came up with. Kinda funny the first thing he asked me was if I still had the machine, I laughed and told him yes, I waited it out. See what happens.

 

[COUNTRY6543]

Well I got my machine back from the shop the other day. I asked him what he replaced and he told me the rack, engagement rod and the cam. I started it up and immediately noticed he had also changed the throttle stop. It is running much slower now at full throttle. About what I had set it when I was using it. I assume around 3000 rpm. I ran a few bare passes just to make sure that it was going to work alright. I haven't had time to tear into and look at all the replacement peices and see the difference or run any wood through it. I will probable get to that mid-week or so. I will give an update on what I find. Got a little preocupied. Went to the gun show and found me a new toy. Kel-Tec KSG shotgun, for anyone that cares. WOW it rocks.

 

[BSD]

good to know the new racks are out. i'd been 'holding back' slitting some nasty pieces just in case. didn't want to shear off any teeth and not have a replacement available.

we cut and split today, probably did about 5 cords. after I finish up the last of our current log pile i'll snap a picture. we've probably processed about 25 cords so far with this machine.