Speed or Power? Log Splitter Purchasing Guide.

This article aims to help you with your purchasing decision. Whether you are on a budget or not. If you are not tied to a budget, remember! Bigger is NOT always better!

On a budget?

You’ll run into many questions when buying a log splitter. In most cases, the question of price is at the forefront of every customer’s mind. Tied closely to that question is whether to spend your hard-earned cash on high tonnage or high speed.

*This information is best suited to average wood types that are relatively straight grain, or forest-sourced wood. Refer to the NOTE below for information regarding harder or gnarlier wood that may be sourced from an arborist or drier/hot climates.*

For over 40 years, Split-Fire Sales Inc has produced machines ranging from 7 – 32 tons. In the earlier days of Split-Fire, up until just a few years ago, all of the machines formed an inversely proportionate cycle time/tonnage rating. Meaning: the smallest machine had the fastest cycle time/lowest tonnage, while the largest machine had the slowest cycle time/highest tonnage. This is still mostly true; however, today’s machines can be optioned with high-flow kits to supplement the slow speed of bigger machines.

During these 40 years, we’ve had the privilege of using these machines to split our firewood, either through product testing or promotional demonstrations. We were also lucky to use many other brands of log splitters, including the popular ’42-ton’ machines that you usually see in big box stores.

Our findings? Aim for speed, not tonnage.

• SPEED – No matter the split, you will always be waiting for the cycle time. Whether you are waiting for the retraction on a one-way splitter or waiting for the log to finish splitting, cycle time is your main consumer of time. Go small to go fast!
• TONNAGE – Split anything with a small log splitter by aiming off-centre! We’ve seen it plenty of times. A log splitter gets stalled on a piece of wood. What to do? Move the split off-centre and watch the wedge push through. Check out the video below to see a 7.5-ton log splitter chew through some dry Elm logs (the good splitting action starts at 7:55).

NOTE: There are areas in the contiguous USA and Australia that can grow extremely hard splitting wood (gum, beech, elm, eucalyptus, etc.). If a customer is aware of this, it is recommended that a customer rents a log splitter from their local rental shop. This will allow them to get a ‘feel’ for the wood that they will split. If the machine struggles too much, it may not be sufficient for the job. This also applies to arborist drop-off wood, as these logs can contain a high amount of cross-grain splits that require more tonnage.

What if you are not tied to a budget?

Well, I suppose there isn’t much stopping you from going on our website and ordering a fully spec’d out 4490 (including a high flow kit)… or any other brand’s biggest machine.

Actually, there are still a few things to think about, namely:

• Weight – This one can be a big deal.
  Moving a piece of equipment can be tough, but moving a piece of equipment that weighs 4x more? That can be a pain in the back! Keep this in mind when shopping for your splitter. Smaller log splitters can be easily moved by hand, but a big log splitter (especially extended stroke machines) might need a tractor or skid steer to move them around. Moving these without help WILL result in back problems. Small is better for this!
• Stroke length – Why increase your cycle time if you don’t have to?
  Extended stroke machines can be very helpful if you are a firewood business, or if you have an outdoor furnace/boiler with a nice big firebox. If you are only splitting for an indoor fireplace, option your machine at the same size as your fireplace. There’s no need to wait for that cycle time.
• Maintenance needs – Some big log splitters require big service.
  All that power has to be transferred to your wedge. Between those two components, there are oils and plenty of friction. All of these will need to be serviced at some point; engine oil being more frequent, and hydraulic oils less frequently depending on their heat ratings. Many machines use brass or similar materials as wear components. These will also need to be lubricated and adjusted on a regular basis. These bigger machines will have more of everything, including the service items. Even our 2-way log splitters need a slide pad change, but that is much less frequent at an average of 10 years.

All in all, you’re likely better off with a smaller machine. Yes, you might have to play around with the odd tough-to-split round, but in the end you’ll save yourself more time by purchasing a smaller, faster splitter. If you are not convinced that a lower tonnage will do the job, consider a two-way log splitter. You can run a higher tonnage machine while utilizing the 2x efficiency.

Have a nice day.

-Lenny