Full beam vs half beam splitters

That's cheating..

Chaz

 

Not try to be a smart aleck, but you still have to bend over several times when you split vertical. When you cut the tree down and block it up, how does it get to the splitter? You have to bend over and pick it up, unless you use a hookaroon or similiar but that won't work well on big stuff. Then once the wood is close to the splitter how do you get it on the splitter? Then after it is on the splitter and you split it, with it in the vertical postion, both pieces are going to fall on the ground, then you have to bend over to pick them up. If you were splitting horizontal with a table, you would not have to bend over to pick up the wood if it needed resplit. I don't have back issues but sitting hunched up at a splitter splitting vertical for hours would hurt my back. My old splitter hurt my back so I raised it 4'' to a comfortable height for me. You can also get a log lifter so you don't have to pick up wood.

 

Rounds on the pick up truck, tailgate down, split round in horizontal positi0n using tail gate as bench, chug beer, repeat.

 

I'm a fan of thinning out 6-8" trees and completely skip the splitter. It takes a bunch of them to make a cord, but they do dry just fine in "the round" cut & stacked leaving the bigger & better wood to thrive without the competition.

Dennis I must have ADD or OCD or one of those alphabet problems, I like to C/S/S each outing. Besides "mentally" being happy, physically doing the different movements even's out the sore muscles.

 

I might not get a complete cut, split and stack situation in every setting, but I am a huge fan of at least getting my wood out of the woods.

I once had a logging job where I went behind a guy without equipment to pull out wood for his sawmill. WHAT A NIGHTMARE! All he did was go through the wood lot and drop trees and limb them out. Nothing was laid out in any semblance of twitches and so I had to manage to make up hitches and go with them. It was hardly efficient, nor ideal. It was also in the middle of mud season, an uphill twitch, and at one point the Sheriff was at the doorstep over the whole deal.

I learned from that to NEVER leave trees in the woods. If I cut them down, they are out that night; typically that hour. I might pull them to a deck or landing, but they are not lying in the woods. A person just never knows what sort of weather will come in, what breakdowns their equipment will have, or what sort of change of plans takes place. Sometimes the skid trail just did not work out, or the prominent lean of the trees favors a different approach angle...a lot of things change, so best to fell and pull out at the same time.

For me, there is just something nice about having a clean wood lot and clear conscience. Cut a few trees, get them out of the woods, rinse and repeat! I might die of a heart attack and have a few cord piled up on a deck somewhere, but no one will walk through my woodlot and scratch their heads at 70 trees tipped over and say, "Now why did Lodged Tree do that?"

 

Absolutely Backwoods Savage and again why I so love being a part of this site. Ladies and gentleman, its about what works for you clearly-I love the workout, the stretching, the lifting and working upright, that does not work for everyone for a variety of very different reasons and I respect them all-I have a blast with the banter and the distinguished gentleman of the north knows full well I respect his way of doings things and he I. Viewpoints and reason, knowledge and ole tried and true life experience enriches this site and all members contribute to and oft times prevent folks from making the same mistakes or suffer consequences. Aside from pics, dogs and beer, thats what makes this place so wonderful. Fellowship and sharing our love of this craft, never condemning, and being helpful wherever possible

 

If we we're all alike, or thought alike, this world would sure be a boring place!

 

I was just pointing out that there are several time through out the wood process where you have to bend over. Log lifters make the splitter more efficient. Even if you are splitting small wood they make a great staging area. I think it would hurt my back sitting down because you would constanly be bending over to pick up splits. Then you also are going to be getting up and down a lot getting wood off your pile.

I also roughly stack my wood before splitting.

I can knock out over a cord an hour, I should try sitting down and see how much that helps

 

I/we split vertical.
Like you, I stage the wood for splitting. In the past (and hopefully the future) the wife is more than wiling to do splitting if I stage the wood for her.

She has only to roll the rounds, stand them up and split them. Toss the splits to the side or in the cart and it's done.

I know that she would not be able to do as much bending over as would be required for horizontal splitting. As stated previously, if picking out of the back of pickup and moving to the splitter would be an entirely different scenario.

As long as the wood get's C/S/S does it really matter how it got done?

I could strap at least 4 splits to my dog and she'd follow me in the house willingly, and I'd get the wood in. I have never done that.. but now I wonder.

It's all good as long as the stove is fed and people are warm.

Chaz

 

Where I am really confused on the vertical splitting thing is the not bending over. How do the rounds get to the splitter without bending over?

 

Well.. as with most things.. there will always be bending over.

But.. I stage the rounds so that she can pull them off without leaving the "seat" which is a wood cut.
She leans to the left.. rolls it to the splitter, stands it up and runs the ram.
Then when split.. toss it to the right either to the pallets or into the cart.

The most work involved is actually tossing the splits off to the side.

Chaz

 

I will add from my perspective, reaching from the sitting position can easily cause back strain because you are twisting from the spine, not the hips...kinda like a bad golf swing. Does that apply to folks with bad hips? Of course not. But, in the process of recovery from a second full shoulder reconstructive surgery, I have my limitations...those with back problems have theirs---we do what works for us individually and it's all good...we burn the wood...My best to all and hope this finds all well and warm!

 

I agree that the twisting and turning can cause back strain.
But.. just the nature of doing wood itself causes some level of back strain no matter how it's done.

I am no doctor, and I did not stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night.. so I will not try to dispense doctorly advice other than if someone says "It hurts when I do this".. my response is obviously.. "then don't do that".

We all do what works best for us.. but if we never try any other way.. how would we ever know we're doing it the best way??

I am more than willing to try horizontal splitting.. but if my wife says that she will NOT.. well then I will set the splitter up vertically and stage some rounds for her.

Chaz

 

My back would feel about broke if I had to do much splitting that low to the ground.

 

I'm unfamiliar with half beam splitters . Does anyone have a pic of one.

 

The cylinder is only supported on one end by the beam.

https://www.championpowerequipment.com/product/92750-1-27-ton-log-splitter/

 

All he has to do is raise the 3 point hitch.

 

I agree 100% .
Possibly because we Alaskans are ( hardwood starved) "hard hardwood" like oak , rock maple ect ect.
I can't wrap my head around throwing great flooring , wainscoting, trim, book cased door stock ect into a stove or furnace !
That would leave the smaller and funky/punky stuff for firewood.
My little electric kinetic splitter will split that and anything too big or tough I can get with my power saw.
But a conveyor . Now that's a true production force multiplier.
I've used vertical hyd splitters, for big and heavy wood they are ok . But a horizontal has proven to be much faster and easier for me.