I compared splitters for my first log splitter purchas and the YardMax 25 ton half beam came in first for features and fitting into the budget. Assembly took about 4 hours to do by myself. Once fueled it started just fine. I have only had it running for one weekend so I have only done 2 cords of maple and sycamore. The YS2565 is light enough for me to move around by hand. The 4 way splitting head is easy to put on or remove so I could just work my way into the pile instead of finding the smaller pieces then work on the larger ones. (up to 4ft diameter at 16in thick) It does not blast through knots like the higher tonnage splitters do but it does split them. Just takes a few more passes at it. Definitely beats splitting by hand. I like the locking features to hold the beam horizontal or vertical. Since this is the half beam it is easy to flip up and down. I think YardMax really thought out this ones design. For the home owner using 6 or less cords of wood per year, the 25 ton YardMax Half Beam is a good value log splitter.
