Tractor-powered hydraulic log splitter
Saturday, October 29th, 2005
This is a relatively old, but still serviceable John Deere farm tractor at the Warren, CT fall fair. Some young guys were demonstrating using it to power a hydraulic wood splitter.
Here’s the tractor connected to the wood splitter. Notice the two hydraulic lines running to the pump mounted on the tractor’s PTO.
This is a hydraulic pump mounted on the second transmission/power take off point of the tractor. For those who don’t know about these things, most larger tractors have a second transmission, powered by the same engine that powers the drive wheels that powers farm implements that are connected to the tractor.
In this case, the PTO is powering a pump for pumping hydraulic fluid through the log splitter so it’s cylinder can split wood.
Here’s the whole rig: tractor, PTO, pump, hydraulic lines, splitter with (yellow) cylinder and valve.
The valve has a handle on it so that when pulled in the direction of the tractor, the cylinder pushes the piston (and log) toward the splitter and splits the log. These systems can generate 20 or more tons of pressure which will generally split anything.
To return the piston into the cylinder, you push the lever back toward the splitter wheels and it retracts into the cylinder. The pump, which is always going, keeps pressure in the system.
The size of the cylinder, the size of the hydraulic fluid reservoir, the size of the hydraulic pump, and the tractor’s horsepower all together determine the power of a given log splitting system.
I think having a PTO setup for your tractor is definatly worth its weight in gold
Ross, I wish cars and trucks had PTOs. Of course, with the price of gas…
That sure is creative. Someone must really hate splitting logs!
Having spent some time this last weekend, this splitter looks low to me (like the one I was using). When the splitter is too low it really takes a toll on my back. A friend of mine has one with bigger wheels that puts it up higher and thus less bending over.
Rob: trust me, as one who hand split (with a maul) 4 cords a year for ten years, this looks pretty good to me.
Bill: it is low, mine is waist height so that one doesn’t need to bend. However, the beauty of this one is you can roll very large rounds onto it pretty easily where mine makes that hard. Mine has a different remedy for that though: the entire splitting rail rotates vertical so you can simply slide the rounds under it for easier splitting without lifting.
I would be most interested in where a fellow could find a hydraulic pump that would mount to a catagory 1 PTO like the one in the pics.
Bill: I have no clue, I’m just the photographer. However, maybe a farm supply shop?
Hate to bust the bubble but the tractor is a John Deere.
PTO to pump couplers are available at any larger tractor store.
We could supply pump and coupler. http://www.billstractor.com
Also have a secure online parts store for Mahindra Tractor Parts at:
http://billstractor.com/online-store/scstore/
Thanks, Bill
Thanks Bill.
The PTO pump is a Prinz, available thru Northern Equipment. To use this system, you must have a 15 gal reservoir or larger, or the hydralic oil will overheat.
Nice looking wood splitter, looks like it would do the job. I didn’t have time to read & was wondering if you built your own log splitter? If so, could you tell me where you bought your parts, or the best place to buy the parts? I wont to try & build a 30 ton vertical/horizontal pto log splitter for my tractor. Any info. would be much appreciated.
Garry
Gary, not much reading to find out I was wandering around my town fair and took a picture of the rig some boys were using to show wood splitting to fairgoers. I do have a log splitter but it’s a self-contained Iron and Oak. Works quite well and I’ve used it for years.
i was given a homemade wood splitter but it isnt tractor driven but i would still like some advice. it has a 5horse motor and a single stage pump. it works but wont split very big logs.
Jeff: how big is the engine (horsepower) and what is the rating on the hydraulic pump and reservour? What about the cylendar, how many tons is it rated at? Those are generally the things that affect brute force.
If you look at some of the commercial grade units you can get an idea of what’s what:
Iron and Oak
I have a very old version of the 26 ton variety and it’s worked well for me for many years. I bought it used; it was a rental. It will split anything I toss at it including big, green oak. Look at its specs to see what’s what. I know it can handle pretty much anything and I doubt I’d want anything bigger or more powerful unless I was in business selling firewood and even then, it would be more cycle time than power.
engine size is 5 hp with a gear reducer. resevoir is home made, i will get dimensions. pump is single stage but the only numbers are a model #. not sure on cylinder rating.
Jeff: I’m not really the one to pass judgement, you just need to make comparisons with what you find online in terms of engine HP and capacity of the hydraulic system. I can tell you that my splitter has an enormous amount of power, more than I need. It rarely balks at anything, crushing burls rather than choking on them.
Is there such a thing as a PTO/electric generator for emergencies? I’m thinking of when there is a power outage and you need to hook a generator up to your fuse box to provide juice to run the furnace, fridge etc. even if it’s just for short periods to keep things comfortable?
rdl: I would guess there is. I know there is a generator that runs off a car so why not a pto to run off a tractor. I’d sniff around on the web, you’ll turn something up and if you do and it’s not too much hassle please come back here and let us know what you find. Thanks.
I like the tractor idea for powering the hydraulic pressure. I have a commercial splitter that I put next to the blocked wood and built a platform that I can load a bucket full of wood with my kabota tractor. No matter how large the blocks are, I just roll them on the splitter and avoid all the lifting. Works great for me.
Loren, sounds ideal, rolling big rounds onto the splitter rather than breaking one’s back. My splitter is a “homeowner” type that goes vertical and so I can pull a pin and rotate it and then split rounds on the ground into small enough pieces to lift to the splitting rail. Some of these rounds are big enough so that if I had them up on the lateral splitter and cut them in half I would not be able to hold onto them and at least one half would fall on the ground. If that happened I’d lose the efficiency of your method and might as well use mine.
Right now I have maybe 60 big rounds that need to be quartered and so, a friend and I will spend a few hours today getting them cut up small enough to lift and then, I’ll rotate the splitter to lateral and do the reset of my pile plus those quartered rounds over the course of a few days. This method is far from perfect but I’ve done 4 cords this way each year for eight years and it seems to be relatively easy on my back. Of course, this may be the year my back gives out. Stay tuned, I’m splitting this week.
Jeff: Building your own wood splitter gives you some experience that you would never have otherwise. Checking into what you would like to expect from the finished product in terms of power, height of splitting table, and amount of investment is helpful. Sometimes, it is just less expensive to buy a commercial splitter as some that have written have done.
Just to say I built my own splitter, I used a 2 cylinder Wisconsin engine that I had here on the farm and put together a splitter with a 5″ cylinder and a 3/8 X 8 X 8″ “H” beam along with a 4 way splitting head and a 36″ maximum length of wood. The pump is a 2 stage 16 gpm. This was mounted on a trailer axle and happily, everything works just fine.
It’s quite easy to determine how much pressure that you will end up with. (Pi r2) to determine the sq inches of the cylinder X the pressure that the pump puts out will give you the pounds of linear force. The length of the cylinder only determines the amount of fluid that you’ll need for filling. The greater the flow of fluid, the larger engine that will be required, but also the faster the feed will be. It’s all about matching horsepower with the system that it’s being applied to.
Loren, Thanks for the detailed instructions. If I ever get to a place where I want to build one I’ll know just who to ask. Thanks.
rdl.. A generator that mounts on the back of a tractor or on a trailer, connected to the PTO shaft is used extensively on farms that have commercial power problems or half power brownouts. Some of these units have the capacity of several thousand watts and require 50 horsepower or more. Interestingly, a large capacity generator will run on less horsepower if the requirements are less, but if more wattage is needed, it is available. In context, an average home uses about 10,000 watts under peak load, or about 45 amps at 220 volts. Generators are not always needed, but are so necessary when there are no alternatives available.
Check this out: Timber Wolf Splitter
Fantastic Steve. Now all I need is a tractor with a rear PTO. Sigh. Thanks.
Hi Richard,
Your blog came up in a google search for hyraulic log splitter tractor. I wanted to share a new patent pending idea with you and the group.
I have been working on this idea for over two years and have gone thru a couple of design enhancments to get to this point.
Check out the video and pictures on my website.
http://www.licketysplitter.com
I had some very large wood that I was not able to pickup into a tradtional splitter. I was tired of repositioning logs to split in the verticle splitters. I would be interested to hear feedback on my product.
Here in the mid-west, Tractor Supply Company [TSC] stores and similar farm supply outlets carry the hydraulic pistons, hydraulic fluid reservoirs, two stage valves, hydraulic fittings & hoses, wheels with tires and even the splitting wedges. My guesstimate as to the cost of the above mentioned items excluding the I beam is around $600.00.
Ditto on the Iron & Oak Log Splitters. Have been using the 20 ton model for years.
I’m still using mine, the thing is indestructible.
I like your style..
….
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but I think I would turn the splitter around so that the logs fire away from the tractor!!
Jonathan: Not my splitter, just one I saw. Yes, I agree, split would should eject away from tractor. Of course, while we’re at it, this entire rig is a bit low to the ground. Great for getting big piece up, less great on your back for a lot of splitting unless you’re sitting down.
I found all of your comments very interesting and I think it is time for a woman’s opinion. So, Richard, If you want a heavy-duty log splitter that isn’t so low to the grown try the 32 Ton 9HP It isn’t so hard on your back on the long run. And even though you might pay a few more dollars for this one, fixing hurt backs can get pretty pricey too. The 32-ton will get the job done a whole lot quicker than the wimpy 20 that Jonathan likes. :)
LogSplitterSale.com
Melissa: I’m extremely happy with my log splitter, works like a charm (not the one pictured here). I have a much larger Iron and Oak model with a big cylinder, pump and engine. There’s nothing that it won’t split.