waiting for my Fiskar to be delivered

i have both the X25 and X27 - both are very good - i am 6 foot and i prefer the X27 - i have never been close to an accident with that. The x25 is a little short for me and a couple of times i have 'followed through' and nearly caught my leg. In fact once it went straight through my Jeans. I always wear Steel toe boots - just in case.

The X27 is my main weapon of choice but the X25 is in the ute for any drive buys i might see which i cant lift into the back. i am always a little more cautious with the 25.

I never tried this but was told to wait till rounds are frozen and they split easy

Mark Richards said:

Well I've had a few turns with the x37. I split about a face cord of wood and I have to say that the axe is pretty awesome. It split many of my very dry maple rounds with only one strike. The ash rounds were much more difficult. Are green rounds harder to split than dry ones in your experience? The ash was cut in April and have been stacked and drying since then. I was hoping the x37 would slice through them easier but I am still swinging the axe with some reserve so I don't miss and chop my toes off.

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Never saw an X37

Mark Richards said:

And you never will, haha. Watching football while typing not working well for me. Sorry X27 (36" long should be called X36!!).

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Anyway congrats U will like it , I actually use my X7 more than the X25, (not for splitting) best hatchet I ever owned

NortheastAl said:

Do you have any problem with the X25 being shorter than traditional mauls or axes. At 28" compared to 36" for the X27, I was hesitant to get the shorter one.

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I don't think anyone has answered your question yet. While I don't have experience with the X25, I have split 10+ cords with my X15 (4.5" shorter). I almost learned the hard way about how to swing it. I'm 6' 2" and generally split on top of a 16" tall round. So the axe head is striking round to be split at about 32" to 36" off the ground. One thing I learned pretty quickly is that you have to plan for where the axe head will be if it: 1. goes right through the round and continues its trajectory; or 2. It misses the round and/or is deflected off of the round and continues down. If your wrists break (like in a check swing in baseball) as the axe hits the round, you can draw a radius from that point to the point of impact (legs or toes). If you don't break the wrists until a point after impact, you can ensure that the axe head continues in a safe direction either to the chopping block or the ground should 1. or 2. from above happen. When the axe head impacts the round, my hands are a couple of inches below the top of the round that I am splitting. Hope that helps. I plan to buy an X25 this year just to have something with a splitting head on it vice an axe head.

StuckInTheMuck said:

I don't think anyone has answered your question yet. While I don't have experience with the X25, I have split 10+ cords with my X15 (4.5" shorter). I almost learned the hard way about how to swing it. I'm 6' 2" and generally split on top of a 16" tall round. So the axe head is striking round to be split at about 32" to 36" off the ground. One thing I learned pretty quickly is that you have to plan for where the axe head will be if it: 1. goes right through the round and continues its trajectory; or 2. It misses the round and/or is deflected off of the round and continues down. If your wrists break (like in a check swing in baseball) as the axe hits the round, you can draw a radius from that point to the point of impact (legs or toes). If you don't break the wrists until a point after impact, you can ensure that the axe head continues in a safe direction either to the chopping block or the ground should 1. or 2. from above happen. When the axe head impacts the round, my hands are a couple of inches below the top of the round that I am splitting. Hope that helps. I plan to buy an X25 this year just to have something with a splitting head on it vice an axe head.

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Thanks, I see that there is a learning curve when going to the shorter ax. Right now I'm sticking with the X27. Most of what we split is with the 5ton electric, and the ax becomes a backup, so to speak.

haven't had any trouble with relatively straight Locust, Cherry or Silver Maple...have an alternative for those harder to split pieces like a sledge and wedge....took a little getting used to standing further away to split but haven't had even a close call at full length...had a few close calls choking up to split kindling...

NortheastAl said:

Do you have any problem with the X25 being shorter than traditional mauls or axes. At 28" compared to 36" for the X27, I was hesitant to get the shorter one.

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I've used an x25 quite a bit. It has a real sweet but short swing. Due to the short radius I put my rounds up on a block, using a ramp for the bigger ones. I also carefully pre-measure my swing so I didn't come up short. I find that putting the edge on your target and raising it from there makes it very easy to hit. Also adopting my swing with a drop to my wrists so that when I hit they are lower than the target, thus chances are that if you wiff it will not have the radius left to swing out and damage you.

NortheastAl said:

Yeeooow! I think I'll pass on the x25. Good luck with the ankle. Heal up quick.

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Don't get me wrong, the X25 is a great ax, just suggesting that you get the X27 and make sure you get used to it before you start swinging for the fences!!

degkop said:

Don't get me wrong, the X25 is a great ax, just suggesting that you get the X27 and make sure you get used to it before you start swinging for the fences!!

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I have the X27 already, and I like it.

NortheastAl said:

Do you have any problem with the X25 being shorter than traditional mauls or axes. At 28" compared to 36" for the X27, I was hesitant to get the shorter one.

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I have the X7 axe, the X17 (the original Fiskars splitting axe), the X25 and the X27. Most of my experience is with the X25. When splitting in my yard, I have a tire attached to the top of a larger round and do all of my splitting in the tire on that round. That pretty much takes all of the risk out of the equation. When splitting in the field, I find myself dropping my body much lower to the ground on the downswing so as to make it impossible for the axe to strike my legs on any miss or unexpectedly easy-splitting or deflecting strike.

To date, I have had no striking accuracy issues with any of the three or with a sledge & wedge when I am splitting tougher pieces. The only issues are when a round splits unexpectedly easily or when the grain causes an unexpected sideward deflection of the axe head. The 2 smaller axes seem very well balanced to me and I have no complaints about the X27. I am relatively new to the X27 and have not yet found it as effective as the X25. But that may be due to my particular height & strength as it only makes sense that a greater mass on a longer arm would have more striking power than a lesser mass on a shorter arm.

The handles on these axes are nothing short of amazing in their tolerance of overstrikes. To protect your legs and feet, I'd suggest anyone using them without a tire attached to a block always aim for the side of the split opposite them rather than the side nearest to them. If this results in an overstrike, the handle will absorb the overstrike forces without any damage to it (in my experience). Even if the handle should be damaged, the price of a new axe would still be less painful and less expensive than a strike to one's leg or foot and a trip to the ER.

mliiiwit said:

I have the X7 axe, the X17 (the original Fiskars splitting axe), the X25 and the X27. Most of my experience is with the X25. When splitting in my yard, I have a tire attached to the top of a larger round and do all of my splitting in the tire on that round. That pretty much takes all of the risk out of the equation. When splitting in the field, I find myself dropping my body much lower to the ground on the downswing so as to make it impossible for the axe to strike my legs on any miss or unexpectedly easy-splitting or deflecting strike.

To date, I have had no striking accuracy issues with any of the three or with a sledge & wedge when I am splitting tougher pieces. The only issues are when a round splits unexpectedly easily or when the grain causes an unexpected sideward deflection of the axe head. The 2 smaller axes seem very well balanced to me and I have no complaints about the X27. I am relatively new to the X27 and have not yet found it as effective as the X25. But that may be due to my particular height & strength as it only makes sense that a greater mass on a longer arm would have more striking power than a lesser mass on a shorter arm.

The handles on these axes are nothing short of amazing in their tolerance of overstrikes. To protect your legs and feet, I'd suggest anyone using them without a tire attached to a block always aim for the side of the split opposite them rather than the side nearest to them. If this results in an overstrike, the handle will absorb the overstrike forces without any damage to it (in my experience). Even if the handle should be damaged, the price of a new axe would still be less painful and less expensive than a strike to one's leg or foot and a trip to the ER.

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Good point exactly what I do, I also make sure to stay square to the round and keep my legs wide apart to let the ax pass through my legs when something unexpected happens. I have seen people swing axes and mauls with one foot ahead of the other and that seems incredibly dangerous to me.

I also do not try to take splits off the edges, at least using a full swing.

The Fiskar's is no more dangerous than any other sharp ax. By using safe technique and not getting careless I have had no safety issues w/ the X25. Gonna go knock on some wood now.