First 1/4" rod burn and gloat

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I am assembling myself  a log splitter thats gonna be tougher than -----. I used a 12x1 inch thick piece of bar stock for the edge which got machined to a blunt edge. Then I welded a chunk of 1/2 inch plate to the back of it then affixed it to my I beam with a few 3/16 7018 rods then a few 1/8 inch 6013 then a few more 3/16 7018 rods then a final cap this morning with around a dozen 1/4 inch 7018 rods. DIY home owners don't have nothing on my welding or my log splitter  heck most of them wouldn't know how to use a 1/4 inch rod . I might not be totally qualified but I got beads that look pretty good and penetration thats getting deep into my I beam and into my inch thick plate. I will get pictures for every one in a little while when I am done adding 1/4 rods
Reply:The welds aren't perfect but they are allot better than some people do when they run a 1/4" rod for the first time. Also the top welds that I just ground down are not porous at all Last edited by blackdoggy; 04-21-2008 at 09:08 AM.
Reply:Took me a minute or 2 to figure out how you were building this. I missed the bevel on the wedge the first time thru. I'm having a hard time getting a good overall picture of what you have made so far. I am wondering if the wedge has enough support in the middle. You say 12"x1"x? 2-3"?It also looks like the diagonal is greater than 45*. Looks more like a 30/60/90 triangle. The general rule of thumb I was taught in my structural class was any brace with more than a 45* angle was of limited use unless actually engineered. Again, I am not quite visualizing the thicknesses in relation to anything, so it may be heavy enough to withstand the load.Personally I might look at filling in the triangle with some 1/4" plate at minimum.Other than that the welds don't look bad. I'd love to see the rest of it. Keep posting.
Reply:The main wedge is an inch thick twelve inches tall and about four inches wide and then the reinforcing plate is I believe 1/2 or a little less. I layed out the rear brace and did a little of it's welding the other night when I was plastered lol . The next day I looked at it and said "damn that ain't bad" lol. I will post more pictures as I get them.
Reply:Ok 4" is more along the line that I was thinking it should be. Just looked like it was 2" in the photos. I couldn't get past what I thought I was seeing vs what I was reading.
Reply:I think I will be painting this green and naming this "The Incredible Hulk" due to the 3/4 plate gussets welded into the I beam that run the length of the beam and the amount of welding rods used in it's construction.
Reply:What is the purpose of those 3/4 gussets ?
Reply:Structural reinforcement for when it's used to crush truck rims or logs sideways. My engineer said they needed to be around the thickness of the beam and I just grabbed what I could find in quantity and size off hand and it happened to be 3/4 .Btw I might also use this for cracking small engine blocks and small import car engine blocks.Last edited by blackdoggy; 04-24-2008 at 09:15 PM.