Double Action Log Splitter

Double action log splitter WOODLOT EQUIPMENT Wood Splitters 10-4-9 If you split wood, take a look at this one-of-a-kind design that uses two cylinders to split with an incredible initial ram force of 200,000 lbs. The splitter develops its force (an average splitter uses about 22,000 lbs.) by acting on a toggle-type ram. It exerts extremely high pressure when it first cracks open the wood and then pressure declines as the wedge moves further into the wood. "Conventional splitters usually have one cylinder mounted in-line with the splitting bed. It has a constant force and velocity through the entire splitting cycle. That's inefficient because logs only need a high level of splitting force through the first 2 to 4 in. of ram travel to start the initial crack in the log. After the split is begun very little force is required to drive the ram through the rest of the log," says Wendell Hunt, who invented the splitter while a student at Iowa State University, along with fellow students Greg Herbers and Brian Moriarity. The splitter uses two 2¢ in dia. hydraulic cylinders. At 2,000 psi pressure, the initial ram force is 200,000 lbs. After 1 in. of ram travel, the force drops to 50,000 lbs. After 2 in. the force drops to 35,000 lbs. and after 4 in. to 22,000. After 8 in. of travel the force drops all the way down to 9,000 lbs. The ram also moves progressively faster as it runs through the splitting cycle. Another advantage of the design, according to Hunt, is the adjustable length of the splitting bed which allows it to be adjusted to logs of varying lengths. If the splitter should ever run out of force before the split is finished ù or run into a knot ù you can back it up and shorten the bed. "We've never had a log we couldn't split," says Hunt. Contact: FARM SHOW4 Followup, Wendell Hunt, Rt. 1, Box 153C, Denver, Iowa 50622 (ph 319 292-7948).

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