PTO Log Splitter Project

[MadDog]

OK, I'm starting a new thread on this, since I picked up the steel today.

I have a 6' 8x8 .51"web H beam sitting in the back of my truck downstairs, along with various pieces of 1/4", 3/8", 1/2", 3/4" and 1" plate and some 2" and 4" 1/4 angle iron and 2" square tube.

The hydraulic pump, return line filter, jackshaft and bearings arrived last night and the ram cylinder and hydraulic reservoir will be delivered Monday. The valve, gearbox, pulleys, etc. are on their way.

I'll unload the steel tonight but I'm going to NYC for the weekend so construction won't start until I get back and snowblow myself and my neighbors out from the storm that's supposed to hit us Sat night and Sunday.

I will take pics as I go along and post links to our photos website.

Parts have run a bit more than I originally planned, but that's mainly because I have, as usual /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif "overdesigned" and "over-speced." It would be possible to buy all the parts for a perfectly serviceable splitter, with about the power/performance specs of a Timberwolf TW-3 HD for under $1700.

My parts will run about $2500, but for that I am building a splitter with:

a top-quality welded 5x20x2.5" 3000psi cylinder that can generate about 54k# (27 tons) ram force running at 2750 psi

a 28 gpm 2 stage Barnes pump (plus pressure guage) that will still generate 6.4 tons ramforce at low (650psi) pressure (28 gpm). Assuming that the cylinder can split logs at low pressure for 16" of travel and must switch to high pressure (for knots, etc.) for 4" that will yield a time of 5.7 sec on split and 2.75 sec on retract for a total cycle time of 8.45 sec.

a 30 gal hydraulic reservoir w/level and temp guages and a good filter on the return line, that should stand up to pretty much continuous use without fluid overheating issues,

a complete auto cycle valve to activate an entire out and back cycle with one movement, rated for up to 3000psi, and 25 gpm

4-way and 6-way wedges that slip over the vertical wedge and can be hydraulically adjusted,

a hydraulic log lifter, and

a "moose" of a beam at its core (the beam alone weighs 348#) , that should be able to handle full cylinder ram force without appreciable deflection.

A commercial splitter with roughly equivilent performance specs (but not necessarily all the same quality componants) appears to run between $5700 and $7000. The list price on Timberwolf's equivilent machine, with log lift, is a bit over $8100. /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif but you can buy 'em cheaper. Of course, the people who build them get paid for doing so and that figures into the price. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

At any rate, I expect to get a lot of fun and satisfaction out of building this, and to come out with a piece of equipment that easily justifies the $$ (albeit not, perhaps, the labor) that I put into it.

BTW, I could have gone REALLY nuts and bought a "custom" cylinder with a 3" rod from Baileys for about $215 more, but I figured that since they rate the standard 5" bore cylinder for use at full 3000 psi pressure for stroke lengths of up to 36", I could probably squeak by with the regular 2.5" rod. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

Of course, my wife thinks I'm "nuts" anyway and that I ought to sign the papers I file in courts with "Farmer Larry." /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

You'll see....she'll change her tune.... AND THEY'LL NEVER TAKE ME ALIVE.. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[rswyan]

So what are you using for a powerplant ?

Yesterday I managed to move the sprayer out of the shop, along with my bucket, which I just finished reinforcing the top lip of, down to the polebarn and move the splitter into the shop to finish it up.

It's modeled after a TW-3 but I'll be using a two-stage 13 gpm pump powered by a 6.5 hp B&S.

 

[scott_vt]

Mornin Madog,
This sounds like an impressive project, Im looking foward to your future posts and or progress!

scotty

 

[bird1968]

</font><font color="blueclass=small">( Of course, my wife thinks I'm "nuts" anyway and that I ought to sign the papers )</font>

She's probably right /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif, but make sure that she gets the house, but the Bota & the Splitter is in your name...or else your really "nuts" /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Now, get busy building that machine... /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif I can't wait this long... /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Bird

 

[GaryBDavis]

Sounds somewhat like the splitter I built in the late 90s. Log splitter projects are fun.

 

[MadDog]

RS: I'm taking my power of the Tractor's rear PTO (22hp). The complication, as I indicated on another thread, which I've decided not to hyjack by starting my own, is getting the 540rpm pto speed up to the 3500 or so I want to run the pump. That will be accomplished with a combination of an increasing gearbox and different sized pulleys.

 

[Deerlope]

I must have been a real bear get that block of wood on it.

 

[escavader]

SOUNDS AWSOME,CANT WAIT TO SEE IT COME TOGEATHER
ALAN

 

[GaryBDavis]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( I must have been a real bear get that block of wood on it. )</font>

Not really. It has a hydraulic lift arm that you can't see in the original photo. Here is a picture from the other side of my wife running it.

 

[1948berg]

My fully automatic woodsplitter. Only needs a hug from time to time, and a drink or two friday nights. It is a threepoint splitter,standing on three feet, but I use an eletric motor, tank and hyd.pump with weels on that I can move around when I am working near the farm. Very little noise, wife loves that, she can listen to the radio while working. No trouble starting it eather.

 

[1948berg]

Here is the hydraulic aggregate," used condition" I can remove the electric motor and put in a gearbox which I connect to the pto. The gearbox increases the speed of the pump, allowing the tractor to work at almost idle motor rpm, still plenty of power.

 

[1948berg]

one more pic.

 

[GaryBDavis]

That's quite innovative! Someone once told me that electric motors are much more efficient that running a gasoline engine.

 

[rswyan]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( I'm taking my power of the Tractor's rear PTO (22hp) ....... That will be accomplished with a combination of an increasing gearbox and different sized pulleys. )</font>
IC.

If ya don't mind let us know what you come up with in terms of component parts on the gearbox and pulleys .... I've got a lawn/leaf vacuum that I would like to convert to PTO from gas ..... sounds like whatever you come up with might just work.

 

[MadDog]

Well, despite losing Saturday to helping some geriatric members of the Wife's family clear out some of the clutter in their condo, construction is now underway. I cut and started to grind the gusset plates (4) today.

Because I want the gusset plates to fit quite snugly between the flanges of the H-beam even prior to welding (I will grind a bevel to help get good penetration) and am a bit new to the plasma cutter game (wasn't sure abuot how much "kerf" the cutter removed - but seems to be less than 1/8"), I purposely cut them just a bit (about 1/16") oversize and will grind them down bit by bit until they can be tapped into position with a rubber mallet.

May get at least the first two ground and placed tomorrow, prior to a few hours of business type work.

Once the gussets are welded in place, the next step will be to cut the end plates. Since these are intentionally cut a bit shorter than the distance between the outsides of the flanges in order to set up a fillet weld, these will not require as much grinding.

BTW, using a drill-driven "PG" (flap) wheel and/or 50 grit 3x21 belt sander for stripping down weld areas to bright metal. One thing that I learned from my Bh dolly project was that there is no such thing as a "too clean" weld joint area.

I'll get out the digital camera and try to post a couple of pics soon.

 

[bird1968]

Hi Mad Dog,

You should've took the BX into the condo, It would have moved something fast /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif like the inlaw out of there.

I have a few questions for you, since I'm into the same project as you right now.

I've pick up a 2-stages 22GPM, since it's rated for a 16HP. My thinking is that the PTO is reated on my BX22 at 16HP. Could I had gone bigger like you at 28GPM?

I was thinking os using an old Rear mower for speeding up my pump. Since the gear box & pulley should bring me easy at 3200RPM, is this the right RPM?

Any help would be great, since I'm new at this hydraulic.

Bird

 

[MadDog]

Bird, I'm pretty knew at it, too, so I'm afraid it's gonna be a case of the blind leading the blind. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

However, here's a crack at responding.

I calculated the Barnes 28 gpm 2-stage at drawing something in the 16-17hp range so I think that you'd be OK with it, but doubt that you need it unless you are building a huge splitter. I'm using a 5" bore cylinder and, even with it, I think you can probably get a pretty decent cycle time with the 22gpm pump. It isn't hard to calculate, just figure 5.5gpm at high pressure and 22 gpm at low; and estimate, depending on the kind and size wood you will be splitting, how much of an average stroke will be at each. Then take 231 cu. in /gal for the area of whatever size cylinder you are going to use. For the return cycle, just reduce the bore area by the area of the rod and take the cycle speed at low pressure all the way.

As for the pump speed, I think that the Barnes 2 stage pumps are spec'd to run at up to 4000rpm and I was planning to run mine at about 3500. I think that 3200 is probably adequate to give you reasonable performance, but I'm not knowledgeable enough for that to be more than a hunch.

It isn't hard to take an increasing gearbox and some pulleys to get the speed up to 3500 or so. Surplus Center has a gear increasing box that will take your 540 pto rpm up to about 1025 and using a 9.75" double groove pulley on the gearbox output and running it to a 2.75" pulley on a jackshaft connected to the pump should give you plenty of rpm even at a bit less than full pto speed.

BTWm what kind of valve and what size reservoir are you going to use. For the 22gpm barns pump you probably want at least a 20gal reservoir. The www.baileynet.com online catalogue has some good ones, as does surpluscenter.com.

Surplus center also has some nice autocycle valves.

Hope this helps.

 

[cp1969]

How's it coming?

 

[MadDog]

Hi cp: It's coming pretty slow, because I have spent the last two weekends with wife and SIL cleaning out their elderly aunt and uncle's condo, which was in a state of clutter that was way past "appalling" and had gotten to "inconceivable."

I have taken four truckloads of crap that they "just can't part with" to storage and have discarded about 20 outdoor sized trash bags of refuse and we're still only about 1/3 of the way there. The funniest part was when I had finally excavated my way to a corner of uncle-in-law's bedroom. Sitting there was a can of "Pledge" dusting spray, up to its nozzle in dust.

...but I digress. I cut the gusset plates before we learned of this mess and I am hoping to finish grinding and welding them this weekend. I'll keep you posted. (on the splitter project, not the "mess") /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[cp1969]

LOL, many of us have been there.