My Surge Master (Wallenstein) h/v splitter seems to be laid out very well. I think they got it right. Using horizontal, I can stand on either side & work the central lever equally well. It's made for towing so has signal lights & fenders, but even then I can still stand there without the wheels or that stuff being in the way - and if I need a place to set half a round down for a moment, the fenders make a good shelf, right there beside my leg.
The engine is up front out of the way. Vertical is easy when I need it. Compact & easy to park in tight spaces with the ATV, and I can move it around by hand.
It was used when I got it, and after using it a bit I think it had split a lot of wood before I got my hands on it - could notice wear spots I didn't notice when I got it. But it still works like a top. I bubble gummed up a small table that hangs off the beam & can go on either side, and slides off/on in a second. I still want to re-arrange the hose routing some, think the other guy replaced a couple hoses and didn't get them quite right so they have a habit of tangling a little when I go vertical. But I would highly recommend one - for a lot less than a new one of the ones this thread was about.
Agreed completely about the brain & back comments above - and for me and where I'm at in life, a full-zoot hyper speed high dollar splitter would be wasted waiting for my brain & back to do their thing. A longer cycle time = body feeling better at the end of the day. Not that my splitter is real slow - just that if it was faster, I wouldn't be.