Short stroke my splitter

[DaveBP]

Excellent photos and clever hole saw work around. I've never used a vertical splitter and your photos are nicely self explanatory. I never got Goose's term "log extractor" into my visual imagination but it's clear now why you would need something like that. From the looks of the paint it apparently doesn't happen too often.

If I may make a suggestion to anyone short-stroking their splitter: from the perspective of the " engineers must find something to quibble about" school of thought; any time you put a block on your cylinder rod that is on one side of the rod centerline and not balanced out by one on the other side or all the way around the cylinder rod, when the rod comes back and hits the stop it will tend to shove the rod to the other side from the stop. This might cause wear on the cylinder cap that houses the seal. I think it would take a long time to happen and I don't think it would bother the seal itself for even longer. Any sign of uneven wear on the chrome plate on the rod itself would be a bad sign.

The huge advantage of limiting the stroke to your work length far outweighs the disadvantages. But I think it would make a good argument for finding that adjustment to the return detent pressure so that when it does hit the stop it puts the least side thrust on the rod.

 

[LLigetfa]

from the perspective of the " engineers must find something to quibble about" school of thought; any time you put a block on your cylinder rod that is on one side of the rod centerline and not balanced out by one on the other side or all the way around the cylinder rod, when the rod comes back and hits the stop it will tend to shove the rod to the other side from the stop.

I'm thinking you are talking in general terms as it doesn't really apply to this splitter. I understand what you are saying.

First off the stop is against the wedge and the wedge transfers that energy directly through the 9/16ths bolt that goes through the centre of the ram so in effect the stopping energy is dead centred.

Second, the cylinder is fixed only at the front pivot and the other end of it is free to float up or down. as the ram extends or retracts, it teeters on this pivot point. There is a rest that it bottoms out on and I adjusted the rest so there can be no undue lateral pressure applied to the seal. Despite changing out the 1/2" bolt for the 9/16ths, there is still enough play in the union that the wedge is free to move up and down as much as the bearing plates allow without exerting any lateral force.

I did say that the stop pin causes the front edge of the wedge to lift and make a clunking sound as it falls back down on kickout. The same force however, holds the rear of the wedge bearing plate down. The amount of lift telegraphed to the union at the back of the wedge is less than the amount of free play in the 9/16ths bolt.

Now I'm not an engineer, nor do I play one on TV and I haven't stayed at a Holiday Inn Express, but I think I have a decent grasp of the mechanics involved. I'm one of those armchair engineers that annoy those with the pinkie ring.

 

[Gooserider]

Actually, I have found that while log ejectors / extractors look nice on the splitter, they really aren't all that necessary - My friend took the one on his splitter off, and I've never missed it. A round that won't split on a full stroke is going to be so weakened you should be able to pull it off by hand. If it gets stuck part way down, it will again pull off, possibly with a bit of wiggling. Normally just the weight of the round will pull it off with no problems. I find any round getting far enough up to hit the ejector is going to be a minor falling hazard anyway, so I always try to stop and manually remove the round before it would get that high...

Gooserider

 

[DaveBP]

I’m thinking you are talking in general terms

I was actually thinking about some of the homemade splitters I've seen. Especially ones with strokes that are way too long for firewood. Your rig there and its adjustable gibs looks like it can keep the motion pretty straight.

No, I'm not an engineer but I work with a bunch of them. The one that stands 6'2" and finished the Ironman Triathlon in Hawaii doesn't wear a pinky ring, though.

 

[Gooserider]

The one that stands 6'2" and finished the Ironman Triathlon in Hawaii doesn't wear a pinky ring, though.

Maybe you should buy him one? %-P

(Couldn't resist)
Gooserider

 

[DaveBP]

Maybe you should buy him one?

What? Only two weeks after our state-mandated workplace harassment seminar!
I know a bad joke when I see it. I tell a lot of 'em. But that one I'll stay away from.
And his wife is a federal prosecutor!

But seriously, I am interested in the adjustable play on LLigetfa's sliding wedge. Are those two adjustment bolts with the locknuts actually against a gib or do they contact the I-beam directly? It looks like a rail or something welded to the edge of the I-beam. Is that for the bolts to ride against and not score the I-beam?
I ask because mine has worn over the years to where it has over a 1/4" of play back and forth and the hole in the wedge where the cylinder is attached is all ovaled out from cocking back and forth. I thought about welding it in and remachining it out for a snugger fit on the I-beam but a couple of tapped holes would be a lot less work. Brass bolts would gouge the I-beam less but would wear faster.

A picture is worth a thousand words but often gets back a thousand questions.

 

[Gooserider]

Could be wrong, but my guess from looking at the pictures is that what you are seeing is actually a broad wear plate attached to the FRONT face of the beam... My friend's unit has something like that, not sure if it came that way or if it was added later.

I don't know how those side adjustment nuts are set up, but I would think that area would see relatively little wear anyway - I would expect most wear to be on the front face of the beam where the strip is added...

Gooserider

 

[LLigetfa]

The two bolts on the side are to adjust for side play. The sides of the I-beam are not precise so they need to be adjusted to the widest spot and have a bit of side play elsewhere. There is no sign of wearing on the sides of the beam and there are softer wear inserts that the two side bolts apply pressure against.

The up and down play, while not excessive, is not adjustable. The six grade 8 bolts you can see hold steel plates to the underside of the top I-beam flange. The factory welded a 1/4" plate on top of the I-beam and that plate is what shows the most wear. It won't will wear through in my lifetime.

When the splitter was new, there was a casting defect in the wear surface of the wedge and it scoured part of the top plate leaving sharks. I had to take off the wedge and grind off the high points.

 

[DaveBP]

OK, I get it now. They made the top flange of the I-beam thicker by welding on flat stock not quite as wide as that of the original. Makes the beam stiffer too, I'd bet, resisting the bending force of splitting without having to make the whole beam heavier throughout.

I'll live with my standard wide-flange I beam as it is; it'll out live me. But I like the side play adjusters. Looks like a simple project. There are advantages to working 2nd shift in a machine shop.