After much deliberation and reading the advice of some of the members here I decided to make the trek down and buy the speeco 5 ton wood splitter. The man selling the splitter stated it was only used for one season splitting. I finally got him to agree to $155.00 for the splitter; it retails for $297.00 before tax and shipping at SHC Supply: https://www.shcsupply.com/products/5t-log-splitter|190441.html. Harbour Freight had one for sale and with a 20% discount coupon would be $255.11 delivered to my door. I estimated that I burned $10.00 in fuel to travel down and back to pick up the splitter so that brought my total cost for the splitter to $165.00; a savings of $90.11 over buying a new one. That is what made me hesitant in purchasing a used splitter over the Harbour Freight splitter. A used splitter may need repairs in seals and hoses; however, this one was supposedly only used one season so the seals and hoses should be in good condition and $90.11 is enough of a savings to consider buying a used splitter in excellent condition. When I arrived the man met me at my car and escorted me to see the saw sitting in his garage. His wife came out after we reached the garage and he introduced us; they both seemed to be very nice people. His house was in a subdivision which surprised me. He told me they had lived in New York (state) and burned wood for heat. I was also told that his son was a logger so they got free wood. When they relocated, the new home had gas fire logs. The splitter looked a bit more worn than the photos on Craigslist showed; however, he did say that he split around two cords of oak with the splitter. He demonstrated the splitter for me splitting a piece of construction timber that was roughly a 2x4. The splitter was also a bit dirtier than I thought it would be but these splitters do sit low to the ground; although he said the splitter was stored inside when not in use. Since I had made the trip down I decided to go ahead with the purchase. $165.00 is a lot of money to me but I also knew that splitting it by hand was going to be a huge chore for me. I helped the man lift the splitter into the trunk of my car, he lifted the heavy end. When I arrived home, I had a bit of problem, I could not lift the splitter out of the trunk; in fact I hurt my back on my left side. I finally decided to make a sort of ramp. I got the piece of a broken extension ladder I use as a ladder and placed it on the edge of the trunk with padding to prevent damage to the trunk. I then placed a piece of OSB board I had on hand on top of the ladder. I got the light end of the splitter on the board first, then climbed in the trunk and lifted the heavy end onto the board. I got out of the trunk and then slide the OSB board down the ladder to the ground. From there I was able to roll the splitter on its wheels; although the wheels are actually too small and need to be replaced with larger wheels. Once over to the shed, I started the splitter after a quick read of the instructions manual. I went into the little valley and carried some wood up the hill for testing the splitter. The first test was with a small poplar piece with some small knots. Then I decided to test a piece of sweet gum Then I decided to split a larger piece of sweet gum. Then I decided to split a large piece of popular, a foot long but 14 inches in diameter. I was surprised at how easily it popped open the sweet gum, especially the larger one; these were still green and I had to use the axe to finish the job due to the way sweet gum splits. I expect dry sweet gum might be easier; or it could be harder as I don't have the experience to determine that aspect of sweet gum.
Cool beans Kimberly A "push block" on the ram side (something like a 6" chunk of a 4"x4" remnant) will allow the ram to travel far enough to bust all the way through the guys who don't like to pop apart.
These splitters don't push directly with the cylinder; the ram rides on top and it has a space built in to prevent the ram from coming into contact with the wedge. However, when splitting the large diameter-short length popular, I used a push piece to reduce the time required for the ram to come into contact with the piece being split. I didn't do that with the sweet gum so I see where a push piece could be used to push further; it would need to have the grain perpendicular so to avoid splitting the push block.
Thanks, I was just testing it to see if it was working OK. Lots more wood to split but first it needs to be hauled to the house.
Congrats Kimberly! You'll like that splitter. I had one in the basement of our last house. Worked great. My son has it now and he loves it. BTW... use care when putting a block in there to push the piece thru, that it doesn't kick out sideways under pressure. Enjoy...
Glad you got it, I thought you would like it. Mine has smaller wheels, I agree they are too small. Greg
did you get a manual with it?, if not, that wing bolt in the front just ahead of the wedge, is a pressure relief for the hydraulics, it needs to be opened about three turns when using the splitter, then closed back in when done, i've owned an electric 5 ton splitter for four or five years now, and have split several cords with it, only small issues i've encountered with mine, mostly just the power button likes to loosen, one other thing to watch out for on these is whether or not the electric motor is held together with through bolts/studs, the ones held together with bolt on end caps with screws can loosen and burn up the motor, mine is held together with studs, and has served me well with no complaints for what they are, and it's nice to be able to split inside the garage or shed............
Look like you're having fun with it already Good buy ! Lots of used splitter being lately, spring cleaning is good for wood cutters.
