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Back-Saving Skid Steer Splitter
Marvin Feucht and his son, Matt, burn a lot of wood in their outdoor wood burners, so they were looking for an easier way to split wood. They decided to make use of the auxiliary hydraulics on their 1840 Case skidloader to build a hands-free splitter.
    They had an 8-ft. I-beam and purchased a 5-in. bore by 30-in. stroke hydraulic cylinder.
    “Instead of having this wood splitter in the typical straight out position away from the skid loader operator, we mounted ours perpendicular to the skidloader operator. This allows the operator to split wood with better visibility,” Matt Feucht says.
    With long hydraulic lines and two quick-tach plates on the I-beam, the Feuchts’ design includes 3 splitting options.
    They use the first option most often, splitting from the top down with the wood on the ground.
    “Since the hydraulic cylinder is on the underside of the I-beam, we bent up a shield to protect it and the plumbing from ground contact and damage,” Feucht says.
    In the second position, the I-beam is flat and the wood is on the ground. The third option is for conventional splitting for fireplace and small stove wood, placing smaller pieces of wood on top of the splitter.
    “A local machine shop helped us design the pusher and suggested we mount the wedge at less than a 90 degree angle at the end of the I-beam. This prevents wood from riding up the wedge and not getting split,” Feucht says.
    Mounted on the skid loader, the splitter can be raised, turned and used as a thumb to pick up wood to split or load on a trailer. The splitter easily splits hardwood up to 30 in. long. The Feuchts use the machine to split wood 12-in. dia. and larger.
    “It’s enjoyable to run,” Feucht notes. “It’s safe because the operator stays in the cab and can split alone. I think a lot of people would benefit from a device of this type.”
    Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Matt Feucht, N6382 Townhall Rd., Mayville, Wis. 53050 (ph 262 224-7632; szep496@msn.com).



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2014 - Volume #38, Issue #5