Timber Champ Log Splitter

Did the pinion teeth get chewed off or did it shatter? Shatter indicates composite construction- sintered or maybe some of the new processes. A cut gear seldom shatters.

 

Any follow-up Cowcatcher? I see it is still available at the same price.

Greg

 

Sorry for the long delay in getting back. First let me say that the manufacturer was extremely responsive and did a whole unit replacement shipped in a matter of days from my contacting them. They shipped the replacement FedX Ground and by the time it got here the box was beat to bits but the unit was unscathed.

Unfortunately when it did get here I was buried in other tasks an have not had an opportunity until today to use it. My impressions so far are very positive. The replacement operates with the same force but seems to drive the ram a little slower and I have experienced no kickback like I did with the first unit.

What I am currently splitting are both green and dead aspen that I have been cutting out of a field fence line that we were concerned would end up laying in the field by spring and it all has split very cleanly. I also ran a few pieces of the seasoned pine that I was splitting with the original unit succesfully. The ram doesn't go all the way to the wedge so if your wood is on the green side or the grain of the wood is twisted you may need to work a little to get the last bit split but I know that this is true with all splitters and I think the trick is to place a piece of 2x4 between your wood and the ram. The wood I am splitting is 18" to 24" in diameter max and also 18" to 20" long.

Only long term use will determine how good this unit will be but for now I am very satisfied. I can't say enough for the manufacturer's responsiveness.

If there were one change I would make to the unit it would be larger wheels, not so much for making it taller, but for making it roll easier when moving it on uneven or soft ground. For those that want it much taller they are working on a stand for it making it particularly well suited for those that move their cut wood off the pickup bed directly to the splitter.

 

Chris, as stated in my new post, I have been pretty buried with other tasks and since they were replacing the unit I haven't taken the time to pull the guards off to inspect the broken unit. The pieces I found under it were rather small though and I suspected they were pieces of cast metal but the product manager told me they should be steel. He is the person who judged the failure to be the pinion but perhaps he was wrong. When I get caught up with other tasks I will tear it down and see for sure then report back.

 

Hope you stick around some, we need all the Washingtonians on here we can get

 

I bought mine in Aug 2015 (14 months ago) and just put it to use -- last year's wood was already pre-split. In the second hour of operation things went awry: pinion sheared most of the cogs and bearings blew on one of the push-arm rollers. Argh. I feared losing $399 + tax since I didn't open the box till two days ago and hence hadn't seen the terms of the "1 Year Factory Warranty"... "Void if Warranty form not returned within 15 days of purchase." Having prepared my sad story and armed with the post above where one buyer noted Timber Champ sent him a new unit, I called the Customer Service number in the owner's manual. The kind gentleman asked one question which identified my unit as the previous year's model; then he said, "yes, there were some issues with those, we'll send you the latest model that has multiple refinements. What address can we send it to?" 5-stars for customer service!! And let's hope those refinements solved the problems.

 

I still see these at North 40, and wonder ... though I lean toards the HF hydraulic unit as my next splitter purchase.

It is strange how there is almost no information on the net about this unit (user reviews) other than what is found here. Let us know how it works out for you M.R.E.

It would be really a bummer to buy one and have it fail the first day it is used. And BTW, welcome to da club!

 

Thank you for the greetings. Yes, failure on day one was a bummer, especially after it sat in my garage (in the original box) for 13 months just waiting to plow through a wood pile. By the way; as I looked around today before making the call to the Company I saw a number of positive ratings on the Lowes website. Doesn't seem to include comments from folks who have used them long-term. Perhaps the Timber Champ hasn't been around for very long? Hopefully their 2nd Gen design will provide successful real-world testing.

 

Welcome to the club M.R.E

 

Any updates on the Timber Champ? Thinking about picking one up this weekend? Thanks!

 

Welcome M.R.E. - You're gonna like it here, I guarantee it...Lots of info and the best bunch of folks you could ever wish to associate with-Nice to meet ya

 

I still see them for sale around here, and wonder. Information is scarce. If you buy one MattyRetro , be sure to check back in and give an update. You might just want to hang around a little bit too!