Want to design a woodcutter for your home? Well, this article will guide you on how to make a log splitter with a hydraulic jack.
Log splitters are expensive and cost a few hundred bucks. On the other hand, you can chop wood using an axe, but that’s not a permanent solution. If you have an extra jack, and some steel beams and sheets, you can design a log splitter, and take the wood cutting towards automation.
After making a log splitter, you will still need to pump the jack unless you have an air hydraulic jack.
With that, let’s make a log splitter with a bottle jack.
How to Make a Log Splitter With a Hydraulic Jack
Design the System
The system should be in such a way that you can put a jack, wood, and a wedge. The two ends will have a blade and a jack. And the wood will be in the mid-portion. The three should come inside a frame, which should be designed in the first place.
Try to make the frame similar to a sawhorse, where you will have legs and a surface area for operation. The dimension of the splitter depends on the size of the jack, wedge, and wood. The jack, wood, and wedge need to be installed inside the frame.
Further, the system can either be vertical or horizontal.
Slide Blocks
Let’s design two slide blocks. With one block, you’ll need to weld the wedge and the other block needs to be welded on the saddle of the jack. The distance between the slides should be enough that you can place a wood of sufficient size.
They should be installed inside the frame which you’ve designed in the first section. You can weld the wedge with the frame, and the block attached to the saddle will slide only. However, this will need more strokes on the jack if you want to cut small wood since it will first need to reach the wedge.
If you make both the blocks slidable, you will slide down the wedge over the wood, and the cutting will start right off the bat. If you cannot make the wedge slidable, you can make a few locks at different heights for the wedge. And you’ll need to adjust it as per the size of the wood every time you want to use it.
Install the Jack
The bottle jack should be placed opposite the wedge in the frame. You can weld the jack with the frame or tie them down with steel straps. The second method is recommended because you may need the jack for other uses as well in the future.
Inside the frame, the wood should come between the jack and the wedge.
Related: The 4 Best 6 ton Bottle Jacks That Can Lift 12,000 lb
Adding the Blade
The blade should also be installed opposite the jack. If you have a built-in wedge, that’s great. However, if you don’t have it, you can design it using two steel sheets of reasonable sizes. Sharp their one side and join them together, making a triangular shape. The sharp edges should come together projecting towards the jack head.
Casters
You can add wheels to the legs of the splitter if you want to move it around. This will not be required if you want to make a vertical frame or if you have a permanent position for it and do not need maneuverability.
Run the Splitter
There you go. You’ve designed a woodcutter and this is how to make a log splitter with a hydraulic jack. In the end, you need to run the splitter to test it.
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