Thanks for the pics guys. Showrguy, how many consecutive days have you done with your set-up? I ask because the plastic handle does not take enough of the shock loading of the engagement away for my liking and I tend to get some soreness after a while. This is why I like being able to swap sides and use the other hand when the scenario allows it. Also, in your case it looks like you are pretty stationary, so I guess can organise your splitting area prefect for your needs. I'll need to split on different sides of the machine depending on the location it is - I take it to different sites.
It sure would be nice to have the extra storage room on the table to accommodate the re-split bits that multiply when breaking down a large round. I'm thinking perhaps a pin on/off extension that can be flipped both ways depending on which side I'm working on.
Nice idea on the splitting table paint. I had the same epiphany when splitting largish rounds during the onslaught of a tropical cyclone here (way too much fun splitting with this machine to stop just for howling wind and torrential rain). The rounds and re-splits were sliding all over the very wet table in that rain and it took a wee while to work out a system to minimise them sliding off before being split to size. But, as you have learned, the radically less effort to do all the re-splitting is quite a joy that is hard to understand until you experience it for yourself. It sure makes for a heck less fatigue at the end of each day.
My search for slipperiness lead me to UHMWPE (ultra high molecular weight polyethylene) sheeting. Very hard wearing, super low friction. Dropped the mounting half an inch and put on the 1/2" UHMWPE sheet, so it all sits flush with the beam. Magic outcome. Very pleased with it after a number of years and probably around 500 cords with the table on. It's showing naff-all or rather insignificant wear too.
Another benefit to such slippery tables that may not be immediately obvious is the potential for radically less wear on the rack and pinion from the engagement procedure. The easier it is to slide the wood back to the wedge for another split, the more chance we have to engage the rack and pinion at that moment when the carriage rebounds off the rubber bumpers. For that brief instant, the rack is moving in the same direction as the pinion gear, thus the meshing of the two is silent and easy. Not so hard to do on the big rounds that can take a little more time to get back in front of the wedge, but for all the re-splits and smaller rounds, it's a wonderful zone to be splitting in when it all becomes kinda zen. That sort of rhythm is one of my happy places for sure.
CUCV is the real SS mod' genius amongst us though. From extra flywheels to four-way wedges and cam followers rather than the carriage lift bearing.
Some mods still on my to-do list are:
Telescopic/sprung legs; gets it down lower when towing around job sites and allows me to set it up levelish on sloping sites.
Sorbothane sock on the handle; to see if can reduce the engagement strain/shocks.
A better grill + chute off the end of the table than what I have now.
That clip-on table extension I mentioned above.
I also had making it highway towable on my list too, but have decided I aint paying 'the main' another set of registration fees, etc.
