Anyone regret buying a 2X Ton splitter or sell shortly after?

[lukem]

Anyone have experience with the B&S engines?

Mine is fine. Starts on first or second pull after sitting all winter. I wouldn't sweat it.

 

[firefighterjake]

Anyone have experience with the B&S engines?

I think I'm on Year 3 or 4 with mine and no issues . . . I add StarTron to the fuel tank over the winter.

 

[mikefrommaine]

Leave the auto-idle to excavators, man lifts, etc.

The auto idle annoys me more on my aerial lift. Engine is constantly going up and down every time I move my hand to activate a different cylinder (it's a z-style lift)

 

[lukem]

The auto idle annoys me more on my aerial lift. Engine is constantly going up and down every time I move my hand to activate a different cylinder (it's a z-style lift)

It's not bad if they are on a delay. Last one I used would idle down after 10-15 seconds or something. Enough time that you could back off the control and grab it or another again. This was a 60' boom diesel.

 

[MasterMech]

I had considered wiring in a pull style solenoid for idle down function on my splitter. This is exactly the reason I didn't. Could you image how many throttle up/down cycles would happen in a two hour splitting session? I could only image the carb linkage after a couple years of doing this.

If you were to run it electronically like that, I'd want a time delay. That would be a different animal rather than cycling the throttle for every ram stroke.

 

[MasterMech]

I'd look for one that you can add a lift to later on if necessary.

That would generally limit him to a horizontal only machine. And I would want a log lift on one of those from the get-go. A hydraulic log lift of the spec sheet usually means a $6K machine unless you are building or retrofitting one.

Anyone have experience with the B&S engines?

I have tons of experience with B&S. Some of it good, some of it not so good. The engines I think you're looking at are generally good runners but don't have the longevity that the Subaru or Honda engines typically demonstrate. If you're shopping in the $2K neighborhood, you don't have to settle for a mid-range Briggs.

FWIW: I believe you can get a unit identical to my I & O shipped to your door for well under $2500.

 

[velvetfoot]

I really like the Robin engine on my 30 Ton Harbor Freight splitter.

 

[SIERRADMAX]

Harbor freight scares me. It's been hit or miss with their tools. Although the reviews look decent, some complain about how hot the Hydraulic fluid gets. I like the price of the unit though and someone posted a coupon to get the 30 Ton splitter under $1300. For something Im going to own for a while, I'll stick with the brand named units.

I'm really starting to like the specs on the speeco units, especially their 28 Ton model. I caled their technical department to discuss the differences of the 25 Ton & 28 Ton, seeing how they use the same motor, same GPM pump & same cylinder. Rep. said the 25 Ton unit is built on a slightly less rugged platform and has a relief set at 3000 psi whereas the 28 Ton is built on a stronger platform and is set at 3500 psi. I also like how quickly their 4 way wedge is added/removed. It can be accomplished n seconds as opposed to several minutes like the northstar units.

 

[velvetfoot]

I said I liked the Robin engine. Big bolt holding things together in the hydraulic cylinder was never tightened at the factory. The big problem though was the leaking from the tank; I finally had a guy weld it up and no leaks since. It's been working great for me. I use it mostly vertical but for horizontal I would recommend the cradle that the fellow on eBay sells.

 

[xman23]

What Dennis said, We have the same MTD 20 ton, mine has a Tecumseh 5 HP. Just split 4 hours each of the last 2 days. I run mine less then have throttle. It's a fast as I need. I have done nothing to it other than engine oil in 10 years i have owned it. I am the second owner.

BTW 8 hours running and 2 tanks of gas. I think it holds less than a quart. It's real good on gas. Chain saw, backpack leef blower, weed wacker are real gas gullzers