Chomper Automatic Firewood Processor

Chomper Automatic Firewood Processor WOODLOT EQUIPMENT Miscellaneous 10-1-21 "I needed a one-man, large volume firewood chopper. To build it, we eliminated all conveyors and saws and developed our hydraulic shearer and automatic feed system," says Warren Aikins, president of Rainier Hydraulics, Inc., manufacturer of the new Chomper Automatic Firewood Processor. The one-man processor is unique in that it has just two moving parts ù a hydraulic shear blade and the shear blade carriage. The machine operates at ground level so logs don't have to be lifted onto a platform. Because there is no saw blade, there's no saw-dust removal problem or waste. The hydraulic blade shears through wood up to 16 in. in dia. and a splitter splits it into four chunks that can be automatically loaded into a truck or wagon with the use of an optional conveyor. Here's how the Chomper works: A simple cable winch pulls the log into the machine. It's pulled up flat against the closed shear blade which rises to an open position and moves back to cut to the desired length, ranging from 12 to 20 in. The shear blade, which is made from a special alloy heat-treated steel that never needs sharpening, penetrates the log nearly through but doesn't completely sever it. The shear blade carriage then pulls the log forward onto the splitter head, splitting the wood into four chunks and finishing the cut. It then repeats the cycle automatically. "Eliminating the saw blade saves 2.3% of the wood figuring a 3 3/8 in. kerf and 16-in. long firewood," says Aikins, who began working on the Chomper in 1978 and finally built a first workable prototype in 1980 and introduced his first commercial model in the Northwest last year. The portable splitter pulls down the road behind a pickup. An optional lights and brakes package is available. The splitter is powered by a 68-hp. diesel engine which runs a hydraulic pump. The shear blade is fitted with a 6-in. bore, 18-in. stroke hydraulic cylinder. The Chomper sells for $25,500. A smaller model with all the same features, except that it's designed to cut and split wood up to 13 in. in dia. sells for $17,000. An 11-in. dia. model, designed to mount on a tractor 3-pt. and is powered by a pto-powered hydraulic pump, sells for $6,500. For more information, contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Rainier Hydraulics, Inc., P.O. Box 748, Rainier, Ore. 97048 (ph 503 556-9136).

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