Sun Joe LJ10M 10-Ton Hydraulic Log Splitter, Green

I don't understand why some reviews say this splitter is underpowered or that it won't split anything an axe won't split. Maybe those folks have He-Man super strength and are used to splitting redwoods with a giant axe or something, I don't know. But for us normal folks with normal sized trees this thing absolutely gets it done. The description states "logs 8 inches in diameter", and at risk of jeopardizing my warranty I don't want to say exactly how large the logs are I've been splitting, so let me put it this way - I wouldn't even bother getting this beast out of the garage for an 8 inch diamter long. The pros: -Super easy to use -No engines to fail or hoses to wear out. This thing is basically an I beam, a heavy metal wedge and a bottle jack, so I'm expecting years of use. -Small storage footprint The cons: -The wheels are tiny and kinda suck -It's great for a homeowner who has 1-2 trees per year come down during storms, but I would NOT want to try to split enough wood to, say, heat my house all winter I think the biggest concern folks should have when considering this splitter isn't size of logs to split but rather volume. I think thr average homeowner would be hard pressed to find a tree this hoss couldn't process. That being said, if your aim is to heat your house all winter with wood, the manual nature of this splitter wouldn't make it a viable option (unless you want Popeye forearms). Bottom line: I've only used it twice so far on a hardwood a storm took down approx. 1 month ago, but those two uses yielded roughly 2 pickup truck loads of firewood. I've not had any issues yet, but will certainly update this review if I do. Based on my experience so far, I think this is a perfect splitter for a homeowner with up to a couple of acres who wants something for storm cleanup or to keep the summer fire pit fed.

This device is amazing. It splits BIG logs with moderate effort. No noise, no fuel, almost no risk of any accidents. Good exercise, fun to use and definitely somewhat addictive. Light enough to be moved around. Was in my workshop, now in the barn where it has chewed through a ridiculous amount of firewood arising from a bad icestorm that took down trees of all kinds. No problem with maple, black cherry, elm, apple, ash, ironwood etc. Not sure how it would do with oak. A few tips: Keep some blocks of various thicknesses around, saves time pumping the handles. Don't let the piston go all the way back unless necessary, but release it fully when you're done with a session. Switch to the stronger gear once you've got the log firmly stuck on the wedge. More efficient, less wear and tear on the machine.

We've got a couple of maple trees that I cut into approximately 15" logs, 14" in diameter on average. They're a little short; I should have made them 18 or 20" but too late now. This splitter works great, though. For the shorter logs, I use a good, straight piece of wood as a spacer and it's worked great. You have to be careful that the spacer doesn't cause the log to pop out and become a flying projectile. In fact Snow Joe doesn't recommend this approach, so do this at your own risk! I've done about 5 logs so far, and will finish these trees in a few days. It's easy to use and doesn't hurt my back the way swinging an axe does. The satisfying sound of the log cracking in half is music to my ears. I just go ahead and split a log down to 6-8 pieces suitable for use in my small wood stove. Takes about 5-10 minutes per log. I think for the price, this machine is pretty good. The electric and gasoline splitters are way more expensive and inconvenient. If you're doing large scale splitting, like to produce several cords of wood, this might be insufficient and you need to consider shelling out $300-$500 for a motorized heavy duty splitter, but for casual use like chopping up a single tree, the Snow Joe is pretty close to ideal. The worrisome thing is that several of the reviewers report defective units, like the knobs breaking off or the piston suddenly failing to work. But so far, my unit has worked great. It stores upright in the garage and takes up very little space. It does have wheels, and you have to be somewhat in shape to haul this thing around, but it's not that hard, not harder than pulling a heavy mower around for example. I don't try to take it down to where the wood is at the rear of the yard; the wheels seem too small and it seems like it would end up just getting dragged through the soft dirt and mud, and then I have to drag it back up the hill to the garage. So I just wheel it out onto the driveway, and wheelbarrow my logs back and forth. For the amount I have, this works out great. If you have a pretty big pile of logs, though, you may need to load this thing onto a hand cart to wheel it to where the wood is, and maybe lay it down on a 2-by-4 or a plank of plywood for stability. I've noticed it will rock back and forth while you are working the levers, if it's set on an uneven surface, so you do need to make sure it's on a flat, level surface. Not much else to say about this. In a couple of months I'll probably add more oil, if the instructions are accurate, and if that is problematic, I'll add a note about that here. Otherwise... it's time to "make like a banana and split"!!!

Fantastic product for anyone who likes to split their own firewood, is not pressed for time, likes exercise and wants a simple product that requires no electric or internal combustion engine power. The Logger Joe is a well-designed, heavy duty unit. The two handles operate hydraulic pumps with different compression ratios - a coarse ratio for moving the piston quickly to lock the log in place against the splitting wedge, and a fine ratio for exerting sufficient pressure to crack the log - at which time you can revert to the coarse ratio for completing the job. Springs retract the piston when the pressure relief valve is opened. Check out u-tube videos that demonstrate actual usage of the unit. Service from both Amazon and Sun Joe is fantastic. Product was in my hands less than 48 hours after ordering it from Amazon.ca - a shipping distance of about 600 km. 10 day delivery was promised - a definite beat of expectations in my book. There was a small leak of hydraulic fluid when I first used the Logger Joe the day after receiving it. Sun Joe immediately offered to ship me a brand new one and pay return shipping on the defective unit. As it weighs 87 lbs, I was not looking forward to trying to package it up for return shipment, so I had a closer look at it, and isolated the leak to a threaded joint at one of the pumps - I simply tightened the joint and the leak stopped. Simpler solution to a simple problem, but I was impressed that Snow Joe was prepared to ship me a replacement unit immediately.

this is a solid but weighty piece of equipment. It took longer to get off the porch and unpacked than to set up and start splitting the seasoned mesquite I had been unsuccessful in splitting by other means. Super easy to use, all my logs were in specs suggested but I suspect larger diameter logs would be handled just as easily. Money well spent for me. This is a substantial piece of equipment both in weight and space required for use. It does stand up after use to a small footprint for storage.