Upside Down Wood Splitter Build

You might be disappointed; I think it might be very slow in actual use. I say that because it can be problematic to situate the woodsplitter over the round enough to pinch it, then lift it over the dump body of the trailer (not in place in the photos), and finally split it. In all reality I think it would be faster to lift up a round, toss it on a woodsplitter and then toss the splits into the trailer. Faster of course, but not easier then running levers.

A decision I have to make is with the hydraulic hoses. Because I am not using my grapple, I have a extra hydraulic function available to me. In fact it is ideally situated because attaching my woodsplitter hoses to these grapple ports allows me to have 365 degree rotation of the woodsplitter. A nice feature for sure, and I can operate the splitter by controls driven by the powerpack of the trailer and levers already in place. It also allows me to install very short hoses saving me lots of money. But there is one HUGE drawback. The grapple ports are only 3/8 of an inch so I have a feeling the splitter cycle time would be incredibly longggggggggggg.

That was why I designed it to have a Prince PTO pump directly driven off the tractor. That would have a lot more volume and flow, but also means I must run (2) 25 foot half inch hydraulic lines to the woodsplitter, and since it does not go through the grapple rotor, would mean no 365 degree rotation. The cost of that alone is over $300.

Right now I might just see if I can use the grapple ports and see how this thing works. Who knows, it might be a lesson in frustration. Then again, since its only seat and lever time, I would be splitting just as fast after 10 hours as I would in the first hour, so who knows.