splitter problems

[ohio woodburner]

Ok so here we go. When it comes to hydraulics I'm not much help. I have an old john deere hydro splitter, i think it a model 35 that my FIL revamped and put on a trailer with a different oil reservoir about ten years ago. When he passed away i got it. I used it for about two winters and it always seemed not have enough power. The engine blew on it this Jan. so i put a different engine on it and still lacks the power. A friend of mine told me to put a larger cylinder on it. Well before i spend money on a new cylinder i wanted to pick some brains to see if that would help. It has a what i'm thinking a 11 gpm hydro pump. The cylinder measures 3 3/4 OD. I'm thinking it might help but not sure that it isn't the pump or the valves. Any way to test any of these?

 

[WES999]

The first thing I would check is to install a pressure gauge and see how many PSI the pump is putting out. Then you need to find the piston dia ( not cyl OD) of the cylinder. This should give you an idea of how the splitter is working.

 

[bogydave]

Few things to consider:
A larger cylinder will result in slower cycle time but will have more splitting force,

Look at the specs on some log splitters, compare to what you have & size the cylinder to the engine & pump gpm & cycle time accordingly.

May just be the pump getting old & worn. A small engine shop or hydraulic shop may be able to test it for a few $. You need high pressure gages to test it, & the shops would/should have them.
I'm guessing but you probably have a 3" piston with the 3-3/4" cylinder you described.

log splitter parts: (broken link removed to http://stores.daltonhydraulic.com/-strse-Logsplitter-Parts/Categories.bok)

If you need more HP, I've heard the Greyhound is OK, it is a Honda clone & pretty cheap.
(broken link removed)