Hydraulic wood Splitter

[Chris_in_SoCal]

I plan on getting a high quality offset smoker soon. I also often use my pit BBQ with real wood to cook up.

The problem with wood splits I can get locally is they are always very large and kind of a waste in my pit. I have also been reading up on smaller back yard offset smokers and best practice is to use smaller splits to keep a constant temperature. Buying chunks work but they are more expensive.

I suck with an axe since I rarely use one and they are a lot of work. I recently saw kindling crackers. They seem nice but I spent a little more and bought a 6.5 ton hydraulic wood splitter with a stand and wheels. After buying a couple other heavy tools without wheels I learned it is best to spend a little more and get them with wheels.

Besides being easy to use it is a lot of fun. I tested it with two large splits breaking it up into about 15 smaller pieces in just a few minutes. It has been in the mid 90's this week so after it cools down a bit I will split the rest of what I have. Here are the two large chunks cut down with two more that are next.

 

[Chasdev]

I sure like mine, but somtimes it trys to kill me with flying stick splits!

 

[chef k-dude]

I dont smoke with whole wood splits but it DOES aggravate me when my dad decides to help me split firewood. It's a very personal thing for me! My splitter is 27 ton. It also sets up vertical which is great because sometimes I need to split wood where I cut it because its way too big to lift.

 

[JLeonard]

That’s a cool looking splitter.

Jim

 

[Brokenhandle]

That will make easy work of it!

Ryan

 

[yankee2bbq]

That’s a cool little splitter unit!

 

[JeffShoaf]

I have one of those; it works well but be careful moving it any distance or over rough terrain - it's extremely top heavy and has such a narrow wheelbase and those things make it easy to do over it you're not paying attention.

I was previously using a kindling cracker but decided it was a good investment after my arthritic hand and thumb (aggravated by carpal tunnel syndrome) ached for over a month after a lengthy session splitting down hickory for a big cook on my big Santa Maria/Argentinian grill.

My only operational complaint about it is it's limited stroke; I have to cut down most of the splits I get from my wood suppliers before they'll fit in the splitter. That's fine for my patio-sized offset, but it's just an added step for my big grill and other uses. I've been considering getting a different one just to get a longer stroke; all of the ones I've looked at sit much lower though, and that's a concern with my bad back - i use a big lawn/garden wagon to move wood to and from the splitter and that minimizes my bending.