bigfellascott wrote:
Nice setup Ed, what's the story? :
I could see the day would come when I run outta breath, and struggle with fire wood,,,,,,,
So I gathered up bits and pieces and built my own machine.
The crane is also hydraulically slewed 360 degrees, and is mounted on a semi trailer turntable to allow for rotation.
The chassis that everything is sitting on top of is part of a WW 2 Mack Truck.
The splitter itself develops 94.5 tons per square inch at the cutting end of business.
I have actually cut hardwood logs up to around 6" diameter straight across the grain with it.
The splitting blade is one I developed over time with successive shapes and profiles, and is near tool steel hardness
When I first finished building it a friend of mine looked it over and declared that it was grossly over engineered.
I proved him wrong a month later when I actually bent the I beam that runs underneath.
I was cutting up River Red gum stumps with it at the time.
Now, it has double I beams, and has never bent again.
When I used to have to get firewood by permit from state forests etc, I used to follow where other people had already taken the easy stuff, and left the twisty forked sections behind, these are easy for this machine to handle and the tougher wood usually makes for better burning.
The biggest problem I have in my current location is that I can't get timber as big as what I used to be able to access.
The largest I've ever cut up with it was rings of redgum just on 6 foot diameter.
I had bought these, and they were unloaded off the truck one at a time.
I do not fear death itself... Only its inopportune timing!
I've come to realize that,,,,, the two most loving, loyal, and trustworthy females in my entire life were both canines.