firewood splitter

[rockriver]

as a kid, i split a bunch of firewood... tore up some axe handles trying to pound axe into a round with a sledge hammer...
got away from heating with firewood... then one day, at a boy scout campout with my son, watched one of the leaders trying to split a round.
his axe was bouncing and he was getting frustrated.. normally one of the best leaders and capable at most items.
i walked over and asked if i could try. saw the small crack, got it. saw the next small crack, got it... leader guy looked at me with a quizzical look. told him i'd explain it later, which i did.
that story is several decades ago. and it ain't as easy on the back as it once was... therefore...

anyone smart about wood splitters? got one? do you like it? would you buy again? recommendations? you bought an abc brand, and wish you'd paid the extra $200 and gotten the xyz brand?

i'm leaning toward gas engine with an axle/tires with a tight budget!

[surviort_wwdnet]

We have a log splitter, basic hydraulic model but it does the job. It won't split huge rounds, but it will split medium sized ones. Because of my husband's deteriorating health, I'm considering an upgraded model (electric?) that will be easier for him to use. If you find something reasonable, let me know.

[Patriotic Sheepdog]

I have looked at a lot....champion comes to mind, but I was leaning to the HF one, but they are out of stock at my store when I was looking. Think about it, you throw your back out swinging an axe in a SHTF world is not a good thing. You throwing your back out in an up grid world not a bad thing. Having a family swinging an axe in a SHTF world and a mistake happens...not a good thing. Lucky in the deep south, I don't need a splitter....it is more of a want so I put money to better use. We have plenty of blankets for those occasional nights in the 30's....When in TN back in Jan 2022, we slept with the windows open in the bedroom with temps in upper 30's, just had a few blankets on...

[surviort_wwdnet]

The firewood is nice for cold weather - and we do get it here - but in a power-down situation it could be a lifesaver. I'm pretty good at cooking over wood if need be.

I'm just thinking something easier for my husband to use. Electric is probably not the best option if the SHTF.

Husband complained about me heating up the house canning yesterday, so maybe I'll look for a small propane range too. My wants never end...

[Patriotic Sheepdog]

We have multiple cooking sources....camper has two 30lb propane, we have 100 lb propane stored, have some firewood, but live in area we can get more, we have coleman stoves, backpacking stoves, rocket stove, BBQ grill, camper has a griddle plus its stove/oven, and a small stove that takes the green 1lb bottles and we have at least 12 of those bottle plus adapter for a 20lb tank. In really cold weather the house will get cold, but we have jackets, long johns and blankets galore....

[Bill Foster]

Ms Foster purchased a small electric splitter that was on sale at TS ($99). It has trouble splitting the large oak pieces, over 14” in diameter. I found that if I cut a small stripe in a stubborn piece with a chain saw, it works just fine. I have used it for three seasons now.

[surviort_wwdnet]

Ms Foster purchased a small electric splitter that was on sale at TS ($99). It has trouble splitting the large oak pieces, over 14” in diameter. I found that if I cut a small stripe in a stubborn piece with a chain saw, it works just fine. I have used it for three seasons now.

I'll look for one like yours that I can handle (maybe like yours) because one never knows. I know I can't use the hydraulic splitter - too heavy! I can't even move it😂

[surviort_wwdnet]

We have multiple cooking sources....camper has two 30lb propane, we have 100 lb propane stored, have some firewood, but live in area we can get more, we have coleman stoves, backpacking stoves, rocket stove, BBQ grill, camper has a griddle plus its stove/oven, and a small stove that takes the green 1lb bottles and we have at least 12 of those bottle plus adapter for a 20lb tank. In really cold weather the house will get cold, but we have jackets, long johns and blankets galore....

We have a lot of cooking sources also: 2 coleman camp stoves, a butane mix backpacking stove, a Triox backpacking stove with fuel, full-size propane grill, small portable propane grill with nine 1 lb bottles of propane, propane stove in the motorhome and maybe the sidewalk if it stays this hot! The small propane bottles are on my shopping list as is another 20 or 30 lb propane tank, which would give us 3. We use the 1 lb bottles of propane for the buddy heaters as well. Then, there's alway a wood fire, but hopefully we can use the wood for the fireplace. We also have a bunch of leftover fire bricks that we could use to build an adequate outdoor cooktop.

[Templar]

I have a trailer-mounted one. works well. I put ramps up to the side to roll up really heavy rounds, but haven't found anything that couldn't be split yet... If I had it to do again I would get one with a tiltable head so that I wouldn't have to lift the heavier rounds... Normal maintenance, tires, drain gas, oil, etc...

[rockriver]

templar, good morning... it's been a while!
can you share the brand? model?
thanks.

[1Admin]

We have one of the red ones from Lowes, Honda 5hp motor. It's going on well over a decade and has literally been under water during a flood at the range and still runs well.

The little piece that auto flips the handle back to return when you knock it upwards broke, I use that part more than my son does. I need to find that part and replace it.

[rockriver]

found a boss 32 on lowe's website...about 300 under normal price. on 2nd tank of gasoline.
one concern is that when i fill hydraulic to proper dipstick depth it spits it out while running... it holds over 5 gallons.
ld, it's red.? i would have preferred honda engine, but this one has a briggs. cranks easily. also it is another reason for us to keep some gasoline on site.
i hope it holds up.

[surviort_wwdnet]

At least for this year, I am going to order firewood properly split and cut to the length I need. After that, I'll need to get a log splitter that I can actually handle. Still thinking that one over...

[rockriver]

the boss unit we bought is on wheels. most brands have that option. it is heavy. moveable by hand on very slight grade. but it has a normal trailer hitch... we bought a shank (mounting bar -not sure of proper name!) and ball combo at walmart for about 26? added that to a wore out golf cart... and it handles the splitter easily. so, if you have a golf cart or 4 wheeler, utv, etc... that will aid in moving the splitter.

[Lowdown3]

We usually move ours around with our Ranger, seems to work better than attaching to truck and don't have to change out trailer hitch or have son stand on it while I drive it :)