Will a HF lawnmower motor work ona spliter?.,,

[BigCahuna]

I have a friend with a 20 ton log splitter, and the motor is toast.I can't see a size on it, but it has a vertical shaft motor on it. I see HF sells a 5.5 hp lawnmower motor for $109.Any thought on whether it will work?.,,

 

[nitehawk55]

I think a 5.5 would be a bit small on a 20 ton splitter .

What is the shaft size on the original engine ?

 

[grumpy]

As noted, it will work. The emergency blade brake will have to be tied out. I would compare the power to the original engine. If close, close enough. If the original had more power, the speed of the cylinder & splitter blade would be slower when under load. In other applications, the HF engines have gotten a pretty good rep.
tom

 

[BigCahuna]

Best I can tell 7/8ths.The end of the shaft to the bottom of the motor is 2 inches. Don't know how long the HF shart is.,,

 

[eljefino]

HF does well to make their stuff compatible. Only thing to watch for is maybe metric bolt threads on the motor mounts... 10mm instead of 3/8, 8mm instead of 5/16...

 

[MolaKule]

What is the brand and model of Splitter?

Most 20 ton splitters I have seen use horizontal shaft engines connected to Barnes two-stage hydraulic pumps.

 

[JTK]

I would have *assumed* a small Chonda vert shaft pushmower engine would not work because of the lack of a heavy flywheel. Ever try to start one w/out a blade on it? Yikes.

 

[JR]

I wouldnt see many if any reason it wouldn't work.

Ken

 

[jhellwig]

One big reason it won't work is not having a cast flywheel. Push mower engines have aluminum flywheels so that you don't destroy the crank when you hit something.

Another reason it won't last long is lawn mower engine don't have much for bearings if any. They are only meant for a concentric load. A belt load will need ball bearings.

There are lots of log splitters that are belt drive vertical shaft.

 

[BigCahuna]

This unit appears to be direct drive. The shaft goes into a coupling that drives a pump for the hydraulics. It spins pretty easy by hand, so adapting it up looks easy enough.,,

 

[JimPghPA]

If the new motor is designed to use a lawn mower blade as part of the mass that keeps the motor turning when not on a power stroke, you may require some rotating mass to get that engine to run decent.

If the old motor is toast, pull the head off of it and measure the displacement by seeing how much fluid the cylinder holds when the piston is on the bottom of the stroke. Then try to get something with the same displacement.

 

[Ken42]

I don't see a 5.5 hp engine at HF but they do have several 6.5. Which is recommended for log spliters. And they do have ball bearing output shafts.
I would match as close to possible the original motor. May have do some handy work to get it to fit. Like drill some holes

 

[BigCahuna]

Here's the one I'm thinking of using.In the specs it says it's 5.5 hp. http://www.harborfreight.com/engines-gen...gine-69731.html

 

[meep]

if it needs a flywheel, add a cast iron pulley (sheave) to the output shaft. they are not very expensive. a 6" would probably be enough.

 

[jeepman3071]

I'm betting you could find a used Briggs and Stratton vertical shaft motor on Craigslist for half that.

 

[BigCahuna]

Well, I went to HF to buy the motor. I talked with the guy there and while I know he's not the worlds authority on motor swaps. He did say It would be iffy to try and use that motor.Being I have no use for it if it doesn't work, I decided to abort the mission. I went home and started looking at a 4.5 hp B@S mower someone gave me. I don't use or need it, so I said why not. Took the motor off and measured it up against the original one. I would need some longer mounting bolts, and some spacers, as the shaft was about an inch longer. Went to Sears and got the hardware. Went over and bolted it up. I had to wire up the clutch brake so it would run. I added some gas and a few pulls later it was running. I had to raise the idle some or it wanted to quit. After that it was splitting time.I did a bunch of logs and for the most part it wasn't even straining. But if I did a big piece of oak, it would stall. But would start right back up.Just have to go at it easier then the softer stuff. For a $3 dollar repair I'm happy with the results. Thanks to all who replied.,,

 

[MolaKule]

I think you need some rotating inertia, like a flywheel.

 

[bubbatime]

I believe your engine stalls out on the heavy stuff because you don't have a heavy flywheel.

Do a search for "heavy flywheel engine" on eBay and you can find several under $150. The Kohler 173cc looks to be identical to the Predator 173cc, but has the heavy flywheel. It also has overhead valves, cast iron cylinder, and ball bearings so should be pretty durable and more fuel efficient than a flat head Briggs. You could also get an electric start engine if that would make your life easier.

Edit: I don't see why you couldn't swap a heavier flywheel onto your engine if it runs good. Briggs parts are fairly cheap and everywhere.

 

[BigCahuna]

I would swap the flywheel if I could find an exact fit/match. But B&S has probably made a million different variations of 4.5 hp motors. My motor is fairly new, and I don't know what year parts are interchangeable. But, I will keep my eyes open for a possible candidate.,,,

 

[edwardh1]

do any recycling centers allow people to pick thru stuff turned in?
I had a conversation with our recycle person and they said "we dont allow it- people would fight over the parts- washers dryers etc"
I thought gee thats the ideal situation, people wanting stuff that was turned in
what does your city do?
hope not too off topic