Well,,splitting the gnarly maple didnt last long

So what happened here, did a split hit it and break it off, or did just the pressure break it off...?

 

Bad casting-see pics-pressure built up on the gnarly slab and forced the breakage

 

There shouldn't be any real pressure in there since it is the return unless something is seriously wrong. Fluid is always pumping around in a loop through the filter and only gets diverted through the cylinder when you pull the handle. In fact, if you were splitting gnarly wood your splitter was probably in low speed and therefore pumping only 3-4 gpm creating even less pressure in the filter. Must have been a bad casting.