What can a 120V Splitter Do? Where Does Gas Pick Up?

Alrighty, so I do almost all my splitting by hand with an 8 lb Maul. I can get through an awful lot, but these low cost (less than $500) electric splitters seem interesting. What is the limit? Can they go through knotty spruce rounds? Elm?

I'm sure they aren't the end all be all, I'm just curious as to what the upper limit is for a machine like this, and where gas powered models pick up the slack?

WEN Electric Log Splitter, 6.5-Ton Capacity with Portable Stand (56208) https://a.co/d/hzpJWcP

 

Those will do a lot, but large diameter rounds are a real PITA on those little machines, and knotty knarly stuff will often stall them.
That one looks to have a decent wedge on it...some have a wedge that is kinda blunt, goes too wide, too quickly, those suck!

 

I want one just fir camp fire and smoking wood. I may have to look into that unit more.

 

What kind of cycle time on these units? Curious.

 

Mine is not too terrible...10 seconds maybe?

 

I think to complement hand splitting and if you don't burn much say a few cords or less per year and don't get the large or knotty stuff you could be fine with them

 

I've split loads and loads of wood with one of these over the years. Big rounds I'd throw a wedge under one side to roll it off center and split those. There are some stuff it just won't split like greenish hardwoods like oak or ash with knots. Seasoned it does pretty good for the most part but will still struggle with knots. Just have to learn it's limitations and how to get the most out of it. Very rarely have I found wood I can't get split with it

 

I have used a couple of them and they aren't too bad if you have reasonable expectations. They are no replacement for a 20+ ton machine. I converted my gas splitter to electric, but it runs on 240 and has a 3 hp motor. More power than the gas motor and a faster cycle time too.

 

Thank you for the reasonable responses.

The next step up from one of these looks to be a $1,000 unit from Harbor Freight that can push 20 tons. I think I might actually give one of these little guys a try. I have good thick 12 gauge extension cords so "fueling" shouldn't be an issue. I'm happy to hear that they hit pretty hard. Not waaay above their price point, but still pretty effective.

I'll keep you all posted. Thanks again.

 

That style splitter is nice, my brother has the split-fire (probably what they copied to make this one) and I like it a lot...wonder what they would charge for the extended warranty on this unit?
I'd wait for one of their frequent coupons, or sales to buy it though.

 

I picked up one of the Ryobi Battery kinetic splitters a few weeks back.
It’s awesome
I didn’t expect it to work this well honestly

I tried a couple of the 120v plug ins before in 5 and 7 ton. Returned both.

I'm keeping this Ryobi though. It’s fantastic

 

You're never going to get enough power from a traditional splitter on 120v power. 240v is what you need with at least a 3hp motor.

You can run a kinetic on just about anything because it stores energy in the flywheel.

 

I really like that one. I wish they had a version with a cord though. Does it really do 150 splits on a battery charge?

 

They have different batteries for it
4 6 etc

the bigger one lasts longer obviously
I have a 4 and a 6
The two of them combined do everything I want to do in an afternoon or mornng of splitting

I will add another 6 battery when fall/winter gets here and I want to work longer in the woods

150 splits? Probably
But I seriously don’t think I can count that high while enjoying my firewood time


Another thing I didn’t mention is how quiet this is compared to other splitters I have used.

 

Kinetics are VERY quiet because there is no pump whine. The pump makes just as much noise as a gas engine. I was shocked at how much whine there was when I swapped the gas motor for electric. It's MUCH more pleasant to be around, and WAY cheaper to run on electric. I got a new pump because I thought the old one was making noise because it was worn, but the new one is the same.

It would be much quieter if I doubled the pump size and got a 1725 rpm motor instead of 3600. Think hum vs whine.

 

They are handy little machines. I picked mine up for $50 and use it here at home for bundle wood splits. It can do 12-16" rounds provided they are knot free. It will bog down rather easily.

They are on the slow side, but if time isn't an issue and most of your wood is Goldilocks sized it may work for you.

Here's the thread on my electric splitter.
Got a "new" Splitter

My main wood storage I'm running a generic 27 (ton hydro which goes through just about anything,

 

I have one from Lowes like that. It's fine and rarely gets hung up but the cycle time is what kills it. I generally only use it for the stuff my axe struggles with.