And This Makes # 3......

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What is with "Factory" welds lately?I come in this AM and there is a splitter ram cylinder waiting for me with a note.."Same Place As Last Time"..Well this makes the third one of these in 2 months...They were all cracked in the same place..Pics tell all..So now if you know anyone with one of these kindly take a peek at it and see what's going on..It could save a life.I get all the fun jobs.....zap!I am not completely insane..Some parts are missing Professional Driver on a closed course....Do not attempt.Just because I'm a  dumbass don't mean that you can be too.So DON'T try any of this **** l do at home.
Reply:Probably due to crappy recycled chinese steel combined with a lot of sloppy side pressure and wobbling around from what I can make out.I hate being bi-polar it's awsomeMy Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys
Reply:Originally Posted by zapsterWhat is with "Factory" welds lately?I come in this AM and there is a splitter ram cylinder waiting for me with a note.."Same Place As Last Time"..Well this makes the third one of these in 2 months...They were all cracked in the same place.....zap!
Reply:Originally Posted by kidtigger24Were they all the same make and model cylinder?Does the same company keep breaking them?It may just be someone isn't using them right?kidtigger24
Reply:Nice repair Zap!! There is a manufature in the town I live in,ag and construction pieces. I think the only qualifications is to have a beating heart and poof your a welder talked to a superviser one day about all of the welded scrap being hauled away and he said they are allowed so many failures so no big deal and i asked what about the failures in the field? Then it is a fix as fails deal!!! I can not say its the welders or the steel but one look at some of those guys and you would understand. Pride in America is gone.Miller 250DX HTP 221 DV AC/DCHenrob O-A Miller 180 MigMiller 150 Inverter   Hobart 10,000 Welder-Generator   Have a good day!!!
Reply:I frequent a couple woodburning websites and there are endless posts regarding this failure. Many have also involved minor injuries from the hot hydraulic fluid. Most have replaced the cylinder with a standard one and got rid of that mount.
Reply:We do that same repair all the time.  The problem is that those log splitters mount the valve directly to the cylinder port with a solid pipe nipple.  There isnt any support behind the valve.  The constant motion of jerking the handle up and down eventually fatigues the port into cracking or breaking the nipple off.  OR... a log gets stuck on the wedge and comes up and shears the valve off.Great fix; beautiful as usual Zap!edit:  nvm I was thinking of the other completely stupid design that MTD was using for a while for the hydraulics.  Yes, this one is stupid too.Last edited by Jason Lister; 03-06-2013 at 01:27 PM.
Reply:Originally Posted by Jason ListerWe do that same repair all the time.  The problem is that those log splitters mount the valve directly to the cylinder port with a solid pipe nipple.  There isnt any support behind the valve.  The constant motion of jerking the handle up and down eventually fatigues the port into cracking or breaking the nipple off.  OR... a log gets stuck on the wedge and comes up and shears the valve off.Great fix; beautiful as usual Zap!
Reply:Originally Posted by MinnesotaDaveUnless I'm mistaken, Zap's fix is not on a hydraulic fitting.  That is one of two main ears that hold the cylinder.Dave J.
Reply:Originally Posted by zapsterThey may be holding the cylinder..and there are no fittings on it BUT..Yes indeedie..there was fluid pissing out of it...Just another example of a brutally bad design..I have a 22 ton splitter and it's made correctly..I beat the living bajeebers out of it for 15 years now and all I ever replaced was the engine!...zap!
Reply:Originally Posted by power... the only qualifications is to have a beating heart and poof your a welder... Pride in America is gone.
Reply:Originally Posted by MinnesotaDaveQuestion: is putting a trunnion on a cylinder like that even a good idea?Dave J.
Reply:Originally Posted by MinnesotaDaveUnless I'm mistaken, Zap's fix is not on a hydraulic fitting.  That is one of two main ears that hold the cylinder.Dave J.
Reply:If I'm reading this right the two trunnions are welded to each side of the cylinder with probably a 3/16 wall  and take the full force of the splitter ?Wonder who engendered that?Trailblazer 302Hobart Stickmate AC/DCLincoln SP 135 TSmith torchSpoolmatic 30A
Reply:Originally Posted by Jason ListerWe do that same repair all the time.  The problem is that those log splitters mount the valve directly to the cylinder port with a solid pipe nipple.  There isnt any support behind the valve.  The constant motion of jerking the handle up and down eventually fatigues the port into cracking or breaking the nipple off.  OR... a log gets stuck on the wedge and comes up and shears the valve off.Great fix; beautiful as usual Zap!edit:  nvm I was thinking of the other completely stupid design that MTD was using for a while for the hydraulics.  Yes, this one is stupid too.
Reply:When you weld around stuff with grease do you wear a forced air device at all?  I always wonder about the health ramifications for some of those lubricants and TIG welding.JoeMiller 140 Autoset (2010)Miller Syncrowave 250 (1996)
Reply:Poor design Attached Images__________________Miller MM252Lincoln AC Buzz BoxCentury 155Victor O/A
Reply:Originally Posted by MinnesotaDaveBet you are talking about the one on my splitter   Looks like this?Hope it doesn't break!Dave J
Reply:Originally Posted by Jason ListerYup, that is the one!  Easiest, not the prettiest, solution is to take a wood block and put it between the valve and the cylinder, then attach with a large hose clamp.  You are attempting to strengthen up the attachment.Good Luck!
Reply:Originally Posted by MinnesotaDaveBet you are talking about the one on my splitter   Looks like this?Hope it doesn't break!Dave J
Reply:Originally Posted by zapster.And this is how they all should be.....zap!
Reply:I think the trunnion idea would last if they put a plate (or collar) on the cylinder to thicken the metal and spread out the stress, then weld the trunnion onto the plate.My plan to shore up my valve (since I am hard on stuff) is to make a bolt on collar that has a mount for the valve in it's current location.I have to make a log catcher and an engine guard for it anyway Dave J.Last edited by MinnesotaDave; 03-07-2013 at 03:40 PM.Dave J.Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance. ~George Bernard Shaw~ Syncro 350Invertec v250-sThermal Arc 161 and 300MM210DialarcTried being normal once, didn't take....I think it was a Tuesday.
Reply:Originally Posted by Jason ListerSorry Zap... I agree with you on most everything but... all hydraulic valves should be mounted remotely to keep the operator's hand away from the stuck log returning up the cylinder and to keep the forces of the lever from breaking off the nipple into the cylinder.
Reply:... and we run an equipment rental yard... Ive never met an "operator"
Reply:Originally Posted by zapster..... operators that know what they are doing .......zap!