MetalworkingFun Forum

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(12-29-2015, 12:48 AM)f350ca Wrote: [ -> ]Thanks, yes I'd be very interested in seeing your roller design. There's always room for improvement.

This is the layout for the top roller and chain drive.  The roller is moved up and down hydraulically.  A double acting hydraulic cylinder is connected to another double acting cylinder on the wedge.   When the cylinder that actually moves the roller  up and down oil is transferred from the other cylinder connected to the roller frame to the cylinder on the splitting wedge.  The hydraulic hoses connect directly from one cylinder to the other.  No pressure line from pump is used.  Either there is a connecting cylinder between the cylinder on the roller and the one on the wedge so the same amount of oil is tranferred to the correct side of the wedge cylinder or two double ram cylinders are used.  It is the same method used to synchronize two cylinders with and uneven load.  If the three cylinders are used then there is a connection to pressure and to tank.

I don't know why I ended up with three pictures of the same thing. This is the first time I have posted a picture directly on this forum. Sorry about that.

No problem BF. Fixed that for you.

Interesting design BF. Thanks. Wouldn't you still need to lift or at least control the height of the roller as you advance the log, to correct for knots and variances in the diameter?
Neat idea for adjusting the wedge height. Im planning on only using a single wedge to get the size blocks I want. I find the multi split ones usually create too much kindling. A six inch block only needs split once, say a 10 inch one is too small for a 4 way but too big for one split. About 12 inch blocks work great with a four way but bigger ones need more splitting. The loads I get vary from 4 to 24 inch diameter so I'll just wrestle them back and forth trough a conventional splitter to get what I want.

This may be thinking too far outside of the box, but since you're planning on having the "work table" change height to center the log on the 4-way, why not make it a 6-way on the bottom and a 4-way up higher?

(12-29-2015, 05:59 PM)f350ca Wrote: [ -> ]Interesting design BF. Thanks.  Wouldn't you still need to lift or at least control the height of the roller as you advance the log, to correct for knots and variances in the diameter?
Neat idea for adjusting the wedge height. Im planning on only using a single wedge to get the size blocks I want. I find the multi split ones usually create too much kindling. A six inch block only needs split once, say a 10 inch one is too small for a 4 way but too big for one split. About 12 inch blocks work great with a four way but bigger ones need more splitting. The loads I get vary from 4 to 24 inch diameter so I'll just wrestle them back and forth trough a conventional splitter to get what I want.

The top roller moves up and down with a direction control valve. There is an accumulator in the circuit to maintain pressure. It acts sort of like a shockabsorber maintaining the pressure on the log.

OK, the holidays are over and it is getting cold outside. Don't you think you should get back on this project?

Been too many OP"s projects, but soon. Today its paint the shop ceiling, to try and get some brightness in there before I start the frame.

Fabricated an axle for it today.  Cut the ends off a 3/4 ton truck rear axle then machined them down to press into a length of 3 inch shed 40 pipe.
Machining the ends down with a 3 jaw live chuck in the tail stock. Handy piece of kit, the OD was way to rough and out of round for a steady rest.



Pulled the ends into the pipe with an 8 foot length of threaded rod then welded.



Should make a good stout axle.

What size cu/ccm hydraulic motor are you using for your feed chain? I was just wondering why you use a gear reduction on the chain feed. Every firewood processor that I have seen or used has the motor direct mounted to the feed chain.

That axle looks great.