Two bad years and winter is just starting....

Maul4life · Nov 9, 2015

Good Morning from Interior AK!
I am writing to: 1. Get back on the group, 2. ask a little advice.
I have a tendency to over-do things. I am 45 years old and love to hand split, love to fall trees and love to work hard around our 5 acres. Last summer, I put a machete into the back of my hand, severely hampering my woodcutting for the year. I ended up buying cord of wood to get me through the winter. Last winter, whilst doing a little snow machine logging, I had a little accident that resulted in a torn supraspinatus (rotator cuff) injury. I pretended that I was fine, and cut 'some' wood over the winter...but definitely not enough. So I went around the trails on the property and collected the rounds I had bucked. It looks like I have about 2 cords...but will probably use 3-4 for the winter. I have a Log Home that we heat, solely, with wood.
Last year we installed a cat stove, BK Chinook....freakin' awesome..., and we get some really great burns out of our really poor Interior Alaskan wood. My old routine was 30 rounds a morning...now I can do about 3-5 before the shoulder starts for flair up...
Now for the advice part. Being as I can only swing my maul for about 10 minutes before the shoulder gets sore, I am looking at renting a splitter. I don't want to, I don't like them...I don't want to admit I cannot swing my maul...but my doctor and PT are highly recommending it.
So, knowing nothing about hydraulic splitters, and having a plethora of them to chose from....what, precisely, am I looking for in a splitter?
I looked up splitters on the forum, but got lots of random advice. I am looking for models, makes and reasons why.
Any help would be appreciated. With a little luck, and lots of PT...I may be able to avoid surgery and be back on the Maul full time.

Starstuff · Nov 9, 2015

Have you tried a Fiskar's splitting ax (X27)? Much lighter to use and easier on the body. I'm a bit younger than you, but if I had kept swinging the ol 18 lb maul, I would have ended up an early wood chopping retiree.

BlueRidgeMark · Nov 9, 2015

Maul4life said:
now I can do about 3-5 before the shoulder starts for flair up

So you should stop, Completely. If you want it to have any chance of healing, stop pushing it. Let it rest for a year. I know that's hard for guys like us, but it's the truth. You can ignore it, you can continue to be Mr. Tough Guy and push it, and you will never get back to doing what you love to do. So man up, and stand down.

As for splitters, don't make this complicated. There are a LOT of good splitters out there. The Northern Tool units are good, the Speeco sold by Tractor Supply (and others) are good, Iron & Oak are good. Brave are good. If you want to go full on gonzo, get a Timberwolf.

SERIOUSLY consider getting a log lift. You have healing to do. This is a medical expense.

Monaco · Nov 9, 2015

BlueRidgeMark said:
So you should stop, Completely. If you want it to have any chance of healing, stop pushing it. Let it rest for a year. I know that's hard for guys like us, but it's the truth. You can ignore it, you can continue to be Mr. Tough Guy and push it, and you will never get back to doing what you love to do. So man up, and stand down.

As for splitters, don't make this complicated. There are a LOT of good splitters out there. The Northern Tool units are good, the Speeco sold by Tractor Supply (and others) are good, Iron & Oak are good. Brave are good. If you want to go full on gonzo, get a Timberwolf.

SERIOUSLY consider getting a log lift. You have healing to do. This is a medical expense.

I second this from experience! Joint and bone-related injuries CAN get better- but they take a long time and you have to let them rest.

Poindexter · Nov 9, 2015

I am with the above. I had MRIs of three different parts of my spine this year and following advice rather than trying to power through. I got my second and third MRIs from trying to power through after the first one.

Among splitters I bought an electric for ~$300 rather than renting a gas powered model and having to rush. Little thing gets through 98% of my rounds no trouble, the last little bit can go in the firepit. And I don't have to hurry to return the rental.

I have been keeping an eye on local CL lately, in your shoes I would probably bring in some of the fire-killed dead standing spruce from that forest fire they had down by Delta, AK, was it two or three summers ago? The price is kinda high because fo the delivery distance, and its going to have some black charcoal on the outside, but it looks like the economical current choice looking at price v- dryness for a cat equipped stove.

Best wishes for a speedy and complete recovery

Jags · Nov 9, 2015

Maul4life said:
I am looking at renting a splitter.

Maul4life said:
I am looking for models, makes and reasons why.

Color me confused. Are you looking to rent or to buy? If renting - I wouldn't concern myself with model, etc. Use whatever they got that will get the job done. If looking to buy, the recommendations above are good ones.

BlueRidgeMark · Nov 9, 2015

By the way, I just noticed your location. When you get your splitter, consider putting ordinary transmission fluid in it, instead of hydraulic fluid. It flows better at low temps. Makes it a lot easier to start on a cold morning. You'll want to use a good synthetic oil in the engine for the same. reason. Rotella T6 would be a good choice.

Tell us about what kind of wood you usually get and the size rounds you will be rasslin' and we can advise you better on the size splitter you should look at.

Heh. I just checked on the Speeco site, and found they have a dealer in Fairbanks.

Alaska Industrial Hardware Inc.
2951 Airport Way
Fairbanks, AK 99709
Phone: (907)452-4788
Website: http://store.aihalaska.com/

Also, I have noticed that Lowes is carrying a decent looking splitter. Kohler engines, and a good pump on it. That's the heart and soul of a log splitter. They have copied Speeco's desing a bit, with their built in log cradle. I like that feature on my Huskee (made by Speeco). I don't have to balance a round on a flat beam. Very nice.

Another place to check:

http://www.logsplitters.com/firewood-alaska/

Look for a good engine and a good name-brand pump. The steel is hard to get wrong, and problems there are easy to spot. Too-thin guards and hollow wedges are the worst offenders. I'd steer clear of the Troy-Bilts for that reason.

Seanm · Nov 9, 2015

Poindexter said:
I am with the above. I had MRIs of three different parts of my spine this year and following advice rather than trying to power through. I got my second and third MRIs from trying to power through after the first one.

Among splitters I bought an electric for ~$300 rather than renting a gas powered model and having to rush. Little thing gets through 98% of my rounds no trouble, the last little bit can go in the firepit. And I don't have to hurry to return the rental.

Its nice to not have to rush eh? I have a bad back and find that using an axe (even the fiskars) hurts me for days. I have a 6.5 ton electric and love it but it was $475 on sale. Its a bit heavy to haul around but it sure saves my back. No vibration to deal with. Its funny that I can run the saw no problem but get me splitting with an axe and it hurts. I used to love splitting by hand by the way. Family can get involved using the splitter as well since they are so easy to use. OP you may find that once you have one you can choose to use it on days when youre feeling a bit off. As others have said give yourself time to heal or it will be with you for a long time.

Applesister · Nov 9, 2015

Buy a splitter and dont look back.

billb3 · Nov 9, 2015

Bad back and I quit trying to hand split about 4 years ago.
About the only time it bothers me now is if I try hand splitting again or try to lift something I know I shouldn't , especially several times.

Also got tennis elbow and golf elbow trying to get too many cords done on a weekend like I'm still 20-something. Because I got beck into it every time It started feeling better it took 18months. Or it just took 18 months. But it wasn't supposed to and I didn't baby it like I was told to .

Insane thought: what would it cost to buy wood for a year ?

mwhitnee · Nov 10, 2015

I am the same age as you. This year I had 9 trees cut down and had them split and stacked in ten days with a hydro.

I tend to go "ham" on things and want chit done, and I paid for it. I had some issues with my neck before and this exacerbated them badly- I was moving 30+ " hickory rounds around myself it was bull work. The position I had to be in using the splitter was tough. Chiropractor due to my neck- numbness going down my arms was enough for me. I also don't like the feeling of having a splitting wedge lodged between my cervical vertebrae. My neck is better now for the most part.

PT will tell you to exercise stretch etc. because that's what they do. For me every time I have hurt my back/neck it just needs rest, period. BTW my sister is a PT.

Thing is with a hydro you can do it a half hour every other day (not 4) and very likely not feel it too much and have a decent amount of wood split. Spacing things out really helps, and a splitter will really help with that.

Anyway got off the subject a little, just make sure you rest your back. The splitter will no doubt make thins easier.

bboulier · Nov 10, 2015

I recommend buying or renting a splitter. You need to rest up. Been there. Joint injuries need recovery time. I would not rule out splitting wood later (with the Fiskar's splitting axe), but I would take it easy for now. You might think about physical therapy. Physical therapy is underused. I have had back, hip, and shoulder injuries that were greatly improved with therapy

Maul4life · Nov 17, 2015

Hey All,
Thanks for all the advice...medical and wood related.
Basically, we just have Birch and Spruce. It all splits pretty easy. We do have aspen, but I shy away from it. I have a lot of rounds that I bucked up the last couple years.
In regards to buying, it is about $350 for Spruce and $425 for Birch. I will go through about 3 cords...maybe 4.
I would just rent one, for now.... I don't really have the space for one and I don't have the passion for it. Maybe after I rent it....
My PT is telling me to take it easy. Swing the Maul as long as it doesn't hurt. First sign of...anything...STOP !!!

It seems to be working, but it was -17 today and the wood is starting to go quickly....

Wood Duck · Nov 17, 2015

You should rent a splitter now and split all the wood you can in a weekend or two. After that, if you can split a little, great, if not, that will be OK too. You don't want to try to play catchup with a bad shoulder. You'll never catch up and your shoulder will never recover either.

drz1050 · Nov 17, 2015

Spruce you can probably even split with a regular 3.5# axe instead of a maul.. might be worth a shot. I use a 6# maul for almost everything, but have a 3.5# Jersey pattern that I use for small or easy to split stuff. The 8# maul is mostly used for driving wedges now in the big stuff.

rowerwet · Nov 17, 2015

Birch and spruce split just fine on my $300 homelite 5 ton splitter.
I use a ramp to roll big splits up onto my gas splitter as it doesn't go vertical.

Rossco · Nov 17, 2015

Bone or worse, connective tissues take a dogs life to heal. Buy a nice splitter. It's part of the wood burning deal.

You have a Stella stove, probably a decent saw, why not get a nice splitter.

Worth the $$$ for a good one. Longevity.

mwhitnee · Nov 17, 2015

I think you're being stubborn and therefore sound a lot like me.

It"s your body, remember you have to live with it for the rest of your life. You and I are the same age, and the medical field will probably keep us above ground until we're 90. Something to think about...

BrotherBart · Nov 17, 2015

Anybody that seriously heats with their own harvested/scrounged/whatever wood needs a hydraulic splitter. Up until 1988 I busted six cord a year by hand. In 2015 at age 68 I can tell ya that I am living with the damage in both shoulders and my back from all of that "fun" I had back then. And it didn't come from the job. I rode a desk and airplanes and played Paul Bunyon on evenings and weekends for workouts. There is plenty of exercise left humping the rounds, stacking and hauling the stuff into the house to fulfill the punches on your Man Card.

ADK_XJ · Nov 17, 2015

I went into this whole wood heat thing thinking the same as you - hand split and be Paul Bunyan by early March. And I did do that last year and managed to put away 3-4 cord and felt like superman every Sunday. And then I'd wake up with numb hands and a sore neck...and I burned through my 3 cord.

Thing is, it didn't give me manly pleasure but I was very relieved after my FIL and I rented a splitter for a weekend and put away 5-6 cord. That doubled my production for an entire winter. I still split some by hand because I love it but listen to everyone here and listen to your body. Just need to let that injury heal.

Sounds like you don't need a heavy duty splitter (we were doing locust so went with a 40 ton) but I would highly recommend getting one that can go vertical or horizontal. Also, if you don't have one already, DEFINITELY get yourself a pickaroon and a peavey/cant-hook for moving around the big logs/rounds. Stihl makes some primo ones but can also pick up very decent ones at Northern Tool.

Pickaroon changed my life for stacking split rounds. Injury or not, no ones body handles bending over at one angle 500 times in a row very well.

EDIT: here's the stihl set of forestry hand-tools, again, they're certainly primo but would last a lifetime: http://www.stihlusa.com/products/chain-saws/accessories/forestry-tools/

And here's a set,of similar products from NT - I can't personally speak to these but the reviews would indicate generally satisfied customers and you could get a peavey and a pick-/hookaroon both for less than $100 total: http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/category_logging+logging-accessories+logging-hand-tools

drz1050 · Nov 18, 2015

I much prefer wooden handles, so I have 2 of these: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000AP067M?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00

And one of these: http://www.amazon.com/150-1-1-2lb-H...24652&sr=8-1-fkmr0&keywords=council+pickaroon

Both are made in the US of A too

Maul4life · Nov 20, 2015

Thanks for all the good advice! Please don't take this the wrong way, but y'all sound like my wife! That is a good thing. I am stubborn and she is smart.
I have a pick and I use my maul to lift the rounds onto my block. The maul is a custom 6#. I also use a Husqvarna 6.5# maul. I have been swinging with one arm...just looking to blow up the other shoulder....
I will rent a splitter and get through what I have. Then, I think, I will buy a couple cords.
My Day Job requires a ton from my back and shoulders, already. We have a brewery here in Fairbanks. Everything is at least 50#. As I type this, I am cleaning kegs. Brewed a double of IPA yesterday...about 2200# of grain, 50# at a time...lifting off the pallet, opening and dumping into the grist mill.
I think I used splitting as my "release". It's not as much pride as it is therapy. The beer business is not super stressful...but the people who drink it sure can be.
Stay tuned...I am going to look for a splitter this weekend.
Cheers

Two bad years and winter is just starting....

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