How to weld log splitter?

[dangerousatom]

For $450 why not just by a decent little wire feed and weld it yourself and you will have it for other repairs later down the road?

I got one of those flux core china cheep-O’s off Amazon for $83shipped and it works surprisingly well. It’s going to live at the hunting cabin just to be an emergency fix for w/e.

 

[krag]

The local "forge" said that the engine had to be removed before he could work on the log splitter. He has some logs on his property he wants split. In my experience it is very hard to adequately trade or barter on one thing for another or one job for another. What do you think? I don't have room to work on this myself.

 

[dangerousatom]

IMO to fix/mod your splitter with your purchased steel and maybe a bit of his and welding/fab time is worth about 2 cords of wood cut & split by you. That’s not moving the logs long distance by you either. He piles/gathers the logs where he wants it, or moves the split wood to dry storage if the trees are all over his property.
2 cords = $500-600 retail
2 cords is a 2-4 day event for 1 man with a good saw and splitter without killing yourself.

Keep in mind if you are not willing to buy a welder and learn to use it, then having him near by and both of you in each others favor is having the access to his skills in metal fab/repair. So IMO even if 2 cords might be on the high side for you it’s also an investment in the future repair needs you will have.

 

[Wilhelm]

If the task at hand is not within Your comfort zone nor knowledge base then the price for having it done by someone else is whatever the other party says it is.

Access to required tooling weighs in heavily too.

For example, I consider myself fairly good with metal working but I do not touch AC electrical installations (even though I understand the basic principles & safety precautions of it).
I also don't do any roofing as I am prone to vertigo.

 

[Wilhelm]

For $450 why not just by a decent little wire feed and weld it yourself and you will have it for other repairs later down the road?

I got one of those flux core china cheep-O’s off Amazon for $83shipped and it works surprisingly well. It’s going to live at the hunting cabin just to be an emergency fix for w/e.

Make sure it is an inverter welder though!

My first flux core wire welder purchase was a bust, a transformer welder with no electronics to "help the unskilled user smooth out operator errors".

Years later I dared buy another, this time a digital inverter welder.
It has one On/Off switch and one knob to set "intended workpiece material thickness" - the welder determines and supplies amperage and wire feed automatically.


Also, hobby inverter stick welders have become just as affordable yet powerful and in my experience lay a deeper wider weld than hobby flux core wire welders.
My tiny Gorilla got me hooked to welding.
I sometimes take two scrap steel pieces and weld them onto each other simply because I crave the sound of laying a bead.

My stick & flux core wire welders.


The size of the Gorilla stick welder


The bead the Gorilla manages to lay on every pass, Amps maxed out & available features enabled, with a 3.25mm (~1/8") 40+ year old basic coated Oerlikon Spezial electrode.

 

[krag]

I called my local welding company, forge, no response, he said he'd be available today last week but no such luck. I drove to where "AC Skips" welding was in Norwalk and was shocked he had a heart attack a few years ago.

So the gentleman who is now working in his former shop garage gave me a good price on fixing the splitter.

Champion would want around $350, $200 for the hydraulic tank and $150 to ship it FedEx ground. So welding makes sense.

 

[krag]

The local weld shop in Norwalk did this for $250.

 

[Phil187]

That would be a tough decision to put $450 in that when u can get a used one off the market place for $800 or less

 

[krag]

That would be a tough decision to put $450 in that when u can get a used one off the market place for $800 or less

The guy wanted me to get the angle iron and weld plate for it too, which was around $100 at Lowes.
I drove in, he says I'm scaring his cat. Not a talkative guy, has a record which I don't regard as a bar to hiring but he has zero humility. Pungent smell of weed around the house.
So actually more like $550. Last weld job, I paid him to weld a car, he said $175, he ended up wanting $250. Then it failed in a month or two, I came back dropped the car off, biked into town, another $250 or so.

The local guy did the splitter weld job for $250, stood on his estimate. I gave him $20 more. No drama, good attitude, appreciative.

 

[dangerousatom]

Finding someone who welds, and is actually good at it is always a good thing. Weeding through the Joe-home owners who are still playing/learning or the near alcoholics who never stop saying "Ive been welding for 35 years" but cant hold down a welding job are often the issue.

Try finding a good reliable Tig Welder who doesn't think they need a beer to settle their verves before starting, only because they have put down 5 cups of coffee or 2 energy drinks before noon.

Glad it has been sorted, now find something he cant do that you can and you'll both be set