Splitter wedge question?

[Brad Burnette]

For those of ya'll who've been at this for while, I was just wondering if a shorter wedge on my splitter would be easier on my ram when splitting larger rounds? I'm thinking about removing the lower portion of the wedge and lowering the solid portion to the beam. That will give me a 6" wedge. The wings shown in the pic are no longer there...that was a trial and fail lol.

 

[muddstopper]

Personally, for large rounds, I prefer a tall wedge. My splitter, before I started messing with different wedge designs had a hyd adjustable 6way wedge. At full extension, it would rise 24inches tall. After removing the hyd and welding on a box wedge that my splitter promptly ripped off the beam in only two splits, I reinstalled the big tall wedge, but not the hyd. Now my 6way sits on the bottom wing and functions as a 4way. It only extends 12 inches tall. With the large rounds I a splitting, I find that the tall wedge doesnt give clean splits on the top half of the round. It is always hanging on top of the wedge by a hinge that isnt completely split. Sort of like it was can opened. I am actully thinking about cutting the lower unused portion of my tall wedge off and welding back to the top of the center wedge. I have already cut off the bottom wings or I would just raise it up and weld some sort of stop to keep it from falling back down thru the beam, and then remove the top wings. What I really need to do is just go ahead and rebuild my box wedge and install on the splitter. I found my weak link in my design and it is a easy fix, but I have wood to split and no time for a welding project.

 

[Brad Burnette]

I hear ya on the no time for welding issue. I'm doing this splitting wood stuff on my days off and it takes all my free time filling the few orders I've been getting. I got lucky and got a tree that is down and seasoned so I've been cutting and splitting as I get orders. I've found on bigger rounds like 16" or bigger, my splitter hesitates a little but once I rotate the round and find the soft spot it breaks right on through.

 

[muddstopper]

If I recall, you put a 5in bore cyl on your splitter, that is the size that I am using. I regularly split rounds much bigger than 16in and even when I had my 6way and knotty rounds, I seldom had any problems making splits. I use a knife edge wedge where as your wedge is a spreader wedge. Just an observation, not saying one design is better than the other. I personally feel that a knife wedge works better on oversize rounds.

 

[Brad Burnette]

I went with a 4 in bore cylinder with a 1.75 in rod. I do think a knife wedge would probably work better and I will probably switch to that in the future. My wedge basicly pops a lot of the verses splitting them. I am impressed with the new cylinder though. Much faster cycle times and plenty of power. I need to put me a pressure gauge on it though cause I want to make sure I'm getting optimum power out of my machine.

 

[cantoo]

Yes, your wedge is too blunt for a foot wedge. You don't need the splits to pop like a wedge on cylinder splitter, you need them to slice. I would spend some time with a torch and grinder and make what you have work. My wedge is close to 30" high. Which is easier to split a piece of wood, an axe or a sledge hammer?

 

[Ted Jenkins]

On one of my splitters I went a different direction with a smaller ram with a faster motor and pump. The knife wedge seems to be the best for this particular set up. A multi wedge seems to be plainly not practical for any thing around here. When every thing is just right a 4 or 5 second cycle is perfect for going through a mountain of rounds. My biggest challenge is transporting the thing so suspension has to be perfect. Thanks

 

[sb47]

The wedge on your splitter seems extremely thick. The wedge on mine is only a half inch at it's thickest point. Being thin and very sharp it's cuts as fast as it splits. I think that thick wedge may be creating to much friction at the beginning of the split making your splitter load up more then it would if it was thinner. I do like taller wedges for big rounds because it cuts those stringers and my splits fall apart easier.

 

[NSMaple1]

Echo above - you need a knifey edge on that thick wedge.

You could try welding a knife onto it, make it a 2 stage affair. My welding skills likely wouldn't pass the mustard, but yours might.