Have you noticed that some wood splitters have full beams and some have half beams?
If you’re not sure what we’re talking about: "traditional" log splitters have full beams that support and stabilize the entire length of the hydraulic cylinder while half beam log splitters only support the front end of the hydraulic cylinder so that the remaining length hangs off the back of the log splitter.
Below is an image comparison of two Dirty Hand Tools splitters: HB 22-Ton Loncin Engline Wood Splitter (left) and 22-Ton HV Log Splitter (right).
Have you noticed some wood splitters have full beams and some have half beams? So what is the deal with this? Why are we seeing more and more of these types of log splitters popping up in the market? If your not sure what were talking about the cylinder sticks out off the end of the log splitter and a “traditional” log splitters have full beams that the cylinder sits on.
So what is the answer? It’s simple really, cost! I guess it makes sense, if you use less material its going to cost less money for not only material but labor as well to build the machine. Another cost saving benefit is weight in shipping. Two feet less of beam on every splitter that shipped at least twice can amount to quite a savings in cost.
So what about performance of actually splitting firewood? Its debatable and it depends on who you talk to. The half-beam splitters in my opinion have came along way the last few years. There have been extensive testing and reviews with in the same brand, full beam vs half beam and there really has not been any evidence one is better then the other one. The half beams will be lighter to move around. We sell a brand called Yardmax that has both the same tonnage in both half and full beam and again they both preform extremely well. I think it comes down to your personal taste on what works for you!