If you are familiar with the firewood industry or just heavy machinery in general, you have most likely heard the term “PTO.”
“PTO” is short for power takeoff and is - in simple terms - an energy transfer from a power source to an attachment (Admin, 2022). Most often, the power source is a tractor.
So, a PTO log splitter is a wood splitter that generates power from the tractor it is attached to.
How Does a PTO Wood Splitter Operate?
A PTO pump is used to transfer power from a tractor to a 3-point wood splitter. With Timberwolf’s PTO log splitters, the PTO pump is attached to the log splitter and the pump then attaches to the tractor’s output shaft.
For Timberwolf’s PTO models, the tractor must reach 32 HP to unleash the maximum speed and power of the 3-point log splitter. The machine will still operate when attached to a tractor without 32 HP, but the functions will be slower.
Note that while the terms “PTO” and “3-point” are used interchangeably, they do not represent the same exact setup and performance.
As mentioned previously, Timberwolf’s PTO log splitters are equipped with a PTO pump that attaches to the tractor’s output shaft. Because of this, the log splitter uses both its own and the tractor’s hydraulics.
On the other hand, a 3-point wood splitter uses an auxiliary port(s) to route the tractor’s hydraulic power to the log splitter, meaning the log splitter only uses the tractor’s hydraulics (Tractor Log Splitters - 3 Point Wood Splitters, PTO Log Splitters, n.d.).
Photo: lowes.com
Timberwolf’s PTO Log Splitters
Timberwolf currently manufactures two PTO log splitters, namely the TW-3 and TW-3 HD. Both of these wood splitters use a 22 GPM PTO pump for power and can be attached to a tractor via a class 1 hitch.
A feature that sets these PTO wood splitters apart from the rest on the market is the 25-gallon hydraulic tank. This hydraulic reservoir allows the machine to operate faster and with more power because the splitter’s hydraulics are working in combination with the tractor’s.
The TW-3 comes standard with Timberwolf’s Step Wedge and has the option of being equipped with a slide-on 4-Way Wedge and/or a table grate.
The TW-3 HD comes standard with a hydraulic block and wedge lift, both controlled from an ergonomic operator’s platform. It will be tough to find another PTO log splitter on the market with the same commercial functionality as the TW-3 HD.
References
Admin. (2022, July 9). What is Tractor PTO ? Tractor PTO Types and Uses. Blog - TractorJunction. https://www.tractorjunction.com/blog/what-is-tractor-pto-tractor-pto-types-and-uses/
Tractor log splitters - 3 point wood splitters, PTO log splitters. (n.d.). Wood Splitters Direct. https://www.woodsplitterdirect.com/collections/3-point-tractor-log-splitters#:~:text=For%20starters%2C%203%2Dpoint%20log,right%20to%20your%20PTO%20shaft