Spiral / Scew / HYCRACK - splitter

[Dryar123]

I got screw , shaft and pulley off e bay and fabbed bench to fit. I run a direct belt off a 12hp Kohler engine which runs the screw at just shy of 500rpm. I,ve found the splitter holds it own with upto about 7 inch diameter wood with no knots or complications. Anything bigger than this I've found motor struggles through lack of grunt. I've had a few jams and ended up wedging the wood off. When I remain within the above parameters the kit flies out split wood. With a bit of common sense you quickly develop a safe technique but need to keep switched on as no doubt it's got the potential to bite. I tend to split larger rounds down using hydraulic ram and then reduce further with screw splitter. Might not suit all but it works for me.

[Stubby]

I got screw , shaft and pulley off e bay and fabbed bench to fit. I run a direct belt off a 12hp Kohler engine which runs the screw at just shy of 500rpm. I,ve found the splitter holds it own with upto about 7 inch diameter wood with no knots or complications. Anything bigger than this I've found motor struggles through lack of grunt. I've had a few jams and ended up wedging the wood off. When I remain within the above parameters the kit flies out split wood. With a bit of common sense you quickly develop a safe technique but need to keep switched on as no doubt it's got the potential to bite. I tend to split larger rounds down using hydraulic ram and then reduce further with screw splitter. Might not suit all but it works for me.

 

Thats why you need at LEAST 25hp . If you had that the torque would keep it going . I have run one off a ford 4000 which is about 30hp I think and nothing stops it .

[Cosmiccrofter]

I've got a hycrack and an oxdale hydraulic splitter - they are both good but I reckon the hycrack is more productive (it is certainly capable of splitting things the oxdale can't). I've never trapped my fingers once - it is very predictable. You just have to understand that it wants to rotate the timber if possible, so you present the log in such a way that it can't. Pretty simple if the operator has any level of common sense IMO.

 

I agree with that. I've used one for 30 years and never trapped a finger yet, the doom merchants don't know how to operate a Hycrack properly, they are perfectly safe in the right hands. Oh, and much quicker than an hydraulic one.

[dansound]

so, after a bit of advice and warnings etc i ended up buying a 7tonne hydraulic splitter...

Which, to be honest just aint up to the job of what i need it to do, timber that has been cut for a long time, knotted, forked etc.

Copes totally fine with the normal stuff that is straight and to a decent size, but over half what i need done is not 'normal'.

Going to go for the hycrack type afterall, with a decent engine!

[Big J]

I've got a screw splitter with a 20HP v-twin powering it, and whilst it's very good for sawmill offcuts (and very fast too), it's not what I'd consider a general purpose splitter. If you have knotty timber, get a powerful hydraulic splitter. You are welcome to come and see what my splitter can and can't do at some point.

[dansound]

I might well take you up on that, J!

 

Gets to a point financially as well where I need to weigh it all up. A 10 tonne splitter is going to be best part of £1k, can cobble a screw splitter together for under £300 (which was the same as the hydraulic splitter i just bought)

 

and I'm not doing this for anything else, other than home wood burning stove...which is the whole plan was to save some cash....

 

Must be HOT up in the sawmill in this weather?

 

Danny

[Big J]

Awful. Can't get anything done as it's a south facing sun trap. The coolest, dampest, darkest barn I have is still 26 celcius. I've got a kiln to unload and reload tomorrow, which I am not at all looking forward to.

 

With splitters, you pretty much get what you pay for unfortunately. With screw splitters, they are not suited to knotty timber at all, with their area of expertise being easy to split, straight grained timber. Perhaps better than throwing more money at splitters would be to buy a nice Gransfors Axe to accompany the splitter you have. With a good axe, chainsaw and reasonably weak splitter, there is very little you won't get through. If it's really stubborn just chainsaw it in half!

[Stubby]

Awful. Can't get anything done as it's a south facing sun trap. The coolest, dampest, darkest barn I have is still 26 celcius. I've got a kiln to unload and reload tomorrow, which I am not at all looking forward to.

 

With splitters, you pretty much get what you pay for unfortunately. With screw splitters, they are not suited to knotty timber at all, with their area of expertise being easy to split, straight grained timber. Perhaps better than throwing more money at splitters would be to buy a nice Gransfors Axe to accompany the splitter you have. With a good axe, chainsaw and reasonably weak splitter, there is very little you won't get through. If it's really stubborn just chainsaw it in half!

 

Big J I godda disagree ( respectfully ) about screw type splitter being no good on knotty stuff . They are only no good if you don't have enough torque on tap . If you have a big enough tractor , or engine they are unstoppable . I have seen some grizzly, gnarly snotty stuff stop on a big hydraulic splitter only to be chewed through by a screw type on a big tractor . It is all dependent on the torque available to turn the screw rather than the screw itself . My experience anyways ......

[dig-dug-dan]

I have I hycrak running on a 32hp kubota. Never stalled it yet, and I love to find the knotiest wood I can to put through it and watch it smash its way through!

[dansound]

If you had said before, I could have come and given you a hand with the kiln.

Unfortunately I've agreed to put down a patio tomorrow, ended up rocking some of it tonight to avoid the heat tomorrow.

 

Cheers

Danny