# New Wood Splitter



## okotoks guy (Nov 16, 2010)

So I went to Home Depot 3 weeks ago and purchased a Surge Master 20ton Hydraulic splitter.
It has a 5hp Honda GC engine. They wanted $85/Day to rent it so I figured I might as well purchase it!
This is probably going to sound very stupid, but it has a 2 stage pump;what does that mean?
I am very happy with it and have gone through some very nasty,knot-infested,fresh cut, old spruce.
I tried to find the stopping point on the splitter by going through my old piles of wood and putting some
nasty apple through it....no sweat.I put some really,really ugly apple through it.....no sweat. I finally 
made it cry with some unbelievably ugly Green Ash.It was basically a chunk about 100 lbs where I guess
the main trunk met with 3 branches. I remember looking at it with my Fiskars SS about 3 months ago for 
a minute or 2 and never even bothered trying it

Any tips you guys can give me would be appreciated. I can't find any grease fittings for it to lube it. What do
you use to lubricate the slide that the wedge moves on? Am i the only one who cares what the splits look like?
I take a round and take the 4 edges off first with the splitter so that I basically end up with a block.Then,depending
on the size of the block, I will split that into burning size "rectangles".This dramatically slows down the process,but
I like the way the wood looks.(Instead of a bunch of triangles)

Thanks in advance.


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## SolarAndWood (Nov 16, 2010)

A 2 stage pump runs at high volume low pressure when the splitting is easy, then kicks down to high pressure low volume for the nasty stuff.  The advantage is you can use a much smaller motor to power the pump while still having the power of the big pump when you need it.


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## Backwoods Savage (Nov 16, 2010)

You'll know when the 2-stage kicks in as the wedge will slow down a lot to get through the tough stuff.

Tips on using. Run it in vertical mode. It just does not make sense to have to pick up each block of wood and lift it up onto a horizontal splitter. Don't pick up the logs; roll them onto the butt plate. Don't let the ram go all the way back up most of the time. Otherwise you just have some wasted time waiting for the ram. I also sit while splitting (check my avatar). I know that goes against the manufacturer's recommendations but they are just trying to cover their bottoms from the idiots who want to sue. Some simply kneel on their knees and others bend. 

Your method of splitting can be very good. We do that too in order to have more square pieces for building the ends of the stacks. They also stack really well in the stove. 

There probably are no lube spots on your splitter. With mine, before I put it away, I set it in horizontal position and put oil on the bar. I then run the ram down and back up to spread the oil. Other than that, change engine oil and keep filter clean is about it.


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## thinkxingu (Nov 16, 2010)

Mr. Backwoods,
     Why are you trying to indoctrinate fellow woodsmen with your "vertical mode" preaching?!  But seriously, from a sitting position, how many logs can you reach?  Also, what do you do when the wood's split?  Chuck it somewhere and then pick it up later?  I take wood from my truck bed and roll it onto the splitter, then throw it in a pile or have my friend/wife stack it--seems to save a couple steps and a whole lotta bendin' and twistin', no?

Okotoks, tell us about the splitter--I've never heard of the brand.  Was it a rental unit or what the rental department uses?

S


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## r_d_gard (Nov 16, 2010)

I find it hard to continually lift  100lb+ rounds all day long.  I'm with Backwoods.  Split vertically.

Ray


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## thinkxingu (Nov 16, 2010)

Ray,
     I would too, if they weren't already in my truck.  Though I scrounge as opposed to driving the splitter up to the bucked sections.  I still don't see how you can have access to more than five or six rounds at once, which means standing up and stooping a lot.  Also, how easy is it to move a 100+ lb. round from a seated position?!  I've attached a sweet diagram of my process!

S


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## adrpga498 (Nov 16, 2010)

thinkxingu said:
			
		

> Ray,
> I would too, if they weren't already in my truck.  Though I scrounge as opposed to driving the splitter up to the bucked sections.  I still don't see how you can have access to more than five or six rounds at once, which means standing up and stooping a lot.  Also, how easy is it to move a 100+ lb. round from a seated position?!  I've attached a sweet diagram of my process!
> 
> S



I split the same as you allthough I lack the diagram skills. Good work.


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## SolarAndWood (Nov 16, 2010)

thinkxingu said:
			
		

> Also, how easy is it to move a 100+ lb. round from a seated position?!  I've attached a sweet diagram of my process



That only works because your truck is a low rider :lol:  I do effectively the same thing by dumping all the rounds uphill of the splitter.


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## Backwoods Savage (Nov 16, 2010)

thinkxingu said:
			
		

> Mr. Backwoods,
> Why are you trying to indoctrinate fellow woodsmen with your "vertical mode" preaching?!  But seriously, from a sitting position, how many logs can you reach?  Also, what do you do when the wood's split?  Chuck it somewhere and then pick it up later?  I take wood from my truck bed and roll it onto the splitter, then throw it in a pile or have my friend/wife stack it--seems to save a couple steps and a whole lotta bendin' and twistin', no?
> 
> Okotoks, tell us about the splitter--I've never heard of the brand.  Was it a rental unit or what the rental department uses?
> ...



thinkxingu, I highly suggest you go your own way if it works well for you! However, I detect a bit of sarcasm in your remarks and hope to address that. In the first place, I could care less how you split your wood. My sole purpose for being on this forum is to try to help a few folks and fortunately I've been able to do this up to this point. Does that mean I am 100% right? Absolutely not! Does that mean my way will work for everyone? Absolutely not. One only has to look no further than our friend Firefighter Jake. He and I josh each other a lot about splitting.....but there are no hard feelings about it with either of us. Jake will correct me if I am wrong.

To answer a couple of questions, I can reach a whole lot of logs (a whale of a lot more than the 5-6 rounds you state) from a sitting position and when I run out I simply move the splitter ahead, sit back down and split some more. As to how many, naturally that depends upon the size of the logs. As for a whole lot of standing and stooping, absolutely not! If I had to do that, then I would search for a different method.

Like you, when the wood is split, I throw it into a pile right beside me. When the splitting is finished, then comes the stacking which is done right where the wood is thrown. Perhaps one way we differ is that I cut the wood during the winter months and do not split until spring; usually early April. This means I get the splitter out once, do the splitting and put it away again rather than cutting a load, getting the splitter out then to do that splitting and then putting it away again. However, either method will work fine. 

Can a 100 pound round be moved from a sitting position? Absolutely! And it will move a whole lot easier than standing and lifting it. I was thinking earlier today about some sort of analogy and then I remembered my younger days when we milked cows and the milk was always put into cans; days before milking parlors and bulk tanks. We sit some of the cans in the barn and when full took them to the milk house. Not a long ways but those cans were heavy! They were heavy enough before they were filled with milk. So what to do? We did not have a cart for moving these cans. Easy answer and it is the very same thing the milk haulers did. They could have lifted the cans and carried them and we also could have done that. However, common sense said it was a whole lot simpler and easier to roll those cans. No, we did not lay them flat to roll, but simply tipped them on the edge and rolled them. It made the work easy. Son of a gun, I found that rolling a 100 pound log can work the very same way. I simply reach with the left hand and tip them on the edge and roll them onto the butt plate. No lifting involved.

I could also draw a diagram but won't take the time. I will say though that with our methods, the logs are on one side and the split pile is on the other. When I get a split, I do not have to throw it OVER the splitter. Sure, this is a simple thing but still it is just a bit harder. Not a lot, but it all adds up at the end of a day.

Perhaps if I had never done any time or work studies trying to find simpler and easier ways of doing things I would not even mention most of these things to others. But I have so I look for the little things. Little things add up big when doing repetitive work.


Once again, please do not think you offend me by splitting in a different manner than I or others do. By all means, continue on with what works for you. In the meantime, I'll be sitting and splitting.






Not a 100 pound log, but heavy enough that I don't want to be lifting it.


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## thinkxingu (Nov 17, 2010)

Gee, you're making me feel bad--just joshin'.  You gotta admit, the diagram was solid.  
And I suppose I might do the same if my rounds fell into piles like yours seem to!

S


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## LLigetfa (Nov 17, 2010)

Backwoods Savage said:
			
		

> It just does not make sense to have to pick up each block of wood and lift it up onto a horizontal splitter...


There you go again insulting us, saying we are senseless.

To each his own.  To me it makes no sense to be sitting and reaching your arms and twisting your back in unnatural motions.


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## tfdchief (Nov 17, 2010)

Dennis,
That's some really nice looking wood however it got split!  Is it Ash?
Steve


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## okotoks guy (Nov 17, 2010)

thinkxingu said:
			
		

> Mr. Backwoods,
> Why are you trying to indoctrinate fellow woodsmen with your "vertical mode" preaching?!  But seriously, from a sitting position, how many logs can you reach?  Also, what do you do when the wood's split?  Chuck it somewhere and then pick it up later?  I take wood from my truck bed and roll it onto the splitter, then throw it in a pile or have my friend/wife stack it--seems to save a couple steps and a whole lotta bendin' and twistin', no?
> 
> Okotoks, tell us about the splitter--I've never heard of the brand.  Was it a rental unit or what the rental department uses?
> ...



The splitter is a "Surge Master." Home Depot in Canada sells them. The rental dept.at H.D. uses the exact
same splitter so I figured they must be fairly reliable.I paid $1800 for it.The echo was about $600 more and 
was not highway towable.
I use the splitter in both vericle and horizontal modes. I picked up 10 cord of larch that was already bucked into
16" lengths.This stuff is at about 15% MC and the rounds are light.I use the splitter in Horizontal for those.
I also have a large mound of fresh cut large spruce.These are heavy rounds,some very heavy(150+ lbs) I already 
lifted them into the back of a 4X4 Dodge Dually and am not interested in lifting them again! I use the splitter in
vertical for that wood.( I sit down on a nice ash round to do that splitting)


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## thinkxingu (Nov 17, 2010)

I think the HD near me rents out Iron Horse splitters but sells Yard Machines & Ariens.  I would tend to agree that by choosing to use them as rentals they're putting a lot of faith in the quality.  I'm surprised to hear Echo makes splitters, and I can't find them on their websites (neither USA nor Canada), but I wonder how well they're made.  I really like my ES-210 blower/vac.

One last thing: if they're already in your truck, wouldn't it be just as easy to roll onto the splitter (did you see my sweet diagram?!)?  Let us know how the splitter works, and get some pics up!

S


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## Backwoods Savage (Nov 17, 2010)

tfdchief said:
			
		

> Dennis,
> That's some really nice looking wood however it got split!  Is it Ash?
> Steve



Steve, almost all of that is indeed white ash. In April 2010 I split another stack a little smaller than the one pictured. I wish I could cut all the dead ash now but there is just too much of it.


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## tfdchief (Nov 17, 2010)

Backwoods Savage said:
			
		

> tfdchief said:
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> ...


  Wish I was closer and I would come and help you!  I love ash.  It probably burns the cleanest of any wood in my old stove, and not to highjack the thread, it splits easy too.  We haven't seen much Ash kill in this area yet.


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## firefighterjake (Nov 17, 2010)

Hehheh . . . love the diagram ThinkingX . . . for the record I pretty much do like you do . . . but off load the wood off my trailer . . . no sweet looking diagram to show you though.


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## r_d_gard (Nov 17, 2010)

I like the drawing.

When splitting in the vertical position and sitting in front of the round, like Dennis' photo shows, in no way could I "bench press" a 100lb behemoth.  My rounds, of which I split 40 to 50 at a time are on the left (facing the splitter) and the cut stuff goes on the right (just the way I like to work). When I get a new round I stand up and walk over to 'junior' and put the round up on its edge (you roll it on edge the same way you would a 45gallon drum of diesel, Physics: it's just a cantilever) and roll it over to splitter.  When it comes down off its edge I may have to 'slide' it onto the splitter plate, yet if i have to do that I just rotate the round (again on it's edge) on to the plate and away I go.

My FIL had a hernia a couple of years ago trying to lift one and refused to ever split again.  Once I showed him that you use the weight of the log to your advantage and the ease of rolling it on edge, he now rolls rounds around with no problem.  

Again, it's all horses for courses.

Ray


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## FuzzyOne (Nov 17, 2010)

That picture of Dennis could be me the way I split.  It definitely has it's merit to be able to roll a round onto the splitter plate rather than lifting.  I would never buy a splitter that can't go vertical.  I split for a few hours the other day and stood the whole time using my attached work table.  I think it was faster, but I definitely could feel it at the end of the day.  My feet hurt.  But when seated, I never had any aches....so it's a trade off for me.

Dennis, you really need to invest in one of those mechanic stools that is padded.  I can adjust my height and spin around to grab a round all while seated on a nice padded seat.  Sure beats the milk crate!


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## Backwoods Savage (Nov 18, 2010)

Fuzzy, I have considered that. I do get a kick out of the guys who comment on the milk crate. I recall when I first bought that splitter, I was amazed at how easy it was to split wood. Then I thought maybe it would be easier on the body if I could sit. There was an old milk crate sitting not far from me so I grabbed it. It was a bit rough to sit on so I put a hot seat on it. It just worked so good that I've continued to use it to this day. Maybe some day I'll get something better though.


Rayza, that is a good explanation on working with the log rather than fighting it. However, I don't stand up to go get the round. Most I can usually roll one-handed right onto the butt plate. When I can no longer reach the logs, I move the splitter ahead and start splitting again. I just purchased a lift with a wheel on it that I'll be fastening onto the splitter so it will be even easier to move.


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## thewoodlands (Nov 18, 2010)

Vertical Sav, like my FIL said you want gravity working for you.

zap


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## WVOz (Nov 23, 2010)

I didn't like the bending to pick up rounds for the horizontal splitter and the getting up and down for the vertical splitter was almost as bad. So I made one that took care of both issues.


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## r_d_gard (Nov 23, 2010)

WVOz said:
			
		

> I didn't like the bending to pick up rounds for the horizontal splitter and the getting up and down for the vertical splitter was almost as bad. So I made one that took care of both issues.




Love the safety boots


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## tfdchief (Nov 23, 2010)

WVOz said:
			
		

> I didn't like the bending to pick up rounds for the horizontal splitter and the getting up and down for the vertical splitter was almost as bad. So I made one that took care of both issues.


 Let's see some more pics of that bad boy!  :snake:


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## WVOz (Nov 23, 2010)

Those are my best welding boots. I will have to take more pictures then I will post them.


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## wood-fan-atic (Nov 23, 2010)

If I can lift it (most rounds) its faster for me to split horizontal. I have a method crackin' rounds that works well for me. If I cant lift it alone, I'll roll up a few huge rounds, 1/4 'em ,then go back to horizontal. With my particular back issues, lifting & standing is MUCH less painful than sitting and leaning forward....even the seat in my p/u leans back as far as it can go!! I would LOVE to sit and split, I just CAN'T. Do whatever works best for you. Thats why this is 'the Land of the Free'. ;-)


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## joel95ex (Nov 27, 2010)

LLigetfa said:
			
		

> Backwoods Savage said:
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Even though I am a newbie, I have to say, after cleaning up the massive southern red oak that fell on our house, I will be splitting in the vertical position.  I picked up enough logs after that incident.  I would rather tip or roll a log than lift it, and lift half or less when it is split.


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## WVOz (Nov 28, 2010)

I said I would post some more photos, so here they are.


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## fire_man (Nov 29, 2010)

wood-fan-atic said:
			
		

> If I can lift it (most rounds) its faster for me to split horizontal. I have a method crackin' rounds that works well for me. If I cant lift it alone, I'll roll up a few huge rounds, 1/4 'em ,then go back to horizontal. With my particular back issues, lifting & standing is MUCH less painful than sitting and leaning forward....even the seat in my p/u leans back as far as it can go!! I would LOVE to sit and split, I just CAN'T. Do whatever works best for you. Thats why this is 'the Land of the Free'. ;-)



Same here,  wood-fan-atic. My back screams at me if I sit for even a couple minutes at the splitter. It's like Dennis says, whatever works for each person is the right way for them. I can lift and stand for hours while splitting but sit me down and I'm in agony. I still would never own a splitter that does not go vertical. I split some 48" diameter rounds and no way could imagine a horizontal only splitter.


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## fire_man (Nov 29, 2010)

WVOz said:
			
		

> I said I would post some more photos, so here they are.



WVOz, that is one extremely handsome and well built looking splitter. I have splitter envy!


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