Splitting the impossible..

[Rockey]

You boys would have been real proud of me today. What had begun last weekend when I pulled a log out of the woodshed I saved from last year that had given me nothing but fits, finally ended today. I put well over 100 swings into it last weekend with my 8# maul and made little headway. I felt like Brock Lesnar must've felt last night. I was landing career ending blow after blow only to get tangled up in the end. This morning I warmed up on a few logs and then decided I'd finish off what I started. I hit the badly splintered log a few times and then flipped it over and landed a few good hits into when finally the maul went about halfway into the log. A few more hits and it was finished off. I know it doesn't sound like much of a victory. Next time I figure I will save myself some time and just use the sharp end of the maul.

 

[paulie]

I would save myself a lot of time ...and get a splitter ! although, there is some satisfaction in knowing you beat the thing !

 

[Highbeam]

I have gotten reveng by sawing the bugger in half.

 

[wahoowad]

I like your perseverance.

 

[cmonSTART]

After I recover the tough ones from wherever they were thrown, usually months later, I throw them in the fire bit, douse them with gasoline, and then watch them BUUUUURRRRRNNNNN!!

 

[jeffman3]

Yea!! Victory is yours, and satisfaction in the form of a nice warm fire tonight! I broke my second maul today, splitting elm. :ahhh: At least you got the split done, and still have your tool! I think I'm looking a Gransfors Bruk now. I am sick and tired of breaking the cheap tools available locally.

 

[tkirk22]

You boys would have been real proud of me today. What had begun last weekend when I pulled a log out of the woodshed I saved from last year that had given me nothing but fits, finally ended today. I put well over 100 swings into it last weekend with my 8# maul and made little headway. I felt like Brock Lesnar must've felt last night. I was landing career ending blow after blow only to get tangled up in the end. This morning I warmed up on a few logs and then decided I'd finish off what I started. I hit the badly splintered log a few times and then flipped it over and landed a few good hits into when finally the maul went about halfway into the log. A few more hits and it was finished off. I know it doesn't sound like much of a victory. Next time I figure I will save myself some time and just use the sharp end of the maul.

That is persistence. Next time take a video, speed it up 10 times and put it to that Benny Hill music. It'll be worth a good laugh ;-)

 

[woodzilla]

E=mc2. Try a 6# maul. Faster head speed is exponentially more energy than heavier mass. That is why those little guys can ring the bell at a carnival. Just before the head hits the target they pull up a bit on the handle to increase the head speed. Congrats though! I got revenge on a few with the new splitter today.

 

[North of 60]

I delt with a few today myself. I save them up, wait for a cold snap and boy did we get one. Warmed up to -25c today so took it to those #^*#+"?/#@!
I to respect your stuberness.

 

[firegal]

Wow, over 100 swings last weekend? I thought I was stubborn with my wood-splitting, lol. I also seem to get more determined the more a log resists splitting .... but I have given up on a few in my log-splitting past. I split with a rather heavy maul-- I think it's about 13# (I weighed it once) which someone gave me. I love the thing. I can't quite swing it over my head, though, but I just put it up on my shoulder and then swing it up and over from there. Hey, I weigh about 115 lbs, so don't laugh, guys! The thing is heavy!

Anyway, congrats on winning! That's how I always feel when a log finally 'gives', it's an incredible feeling of satisfaction and ... yes, VICTORY.

firegal

 

[DiscoInferno]

E=mc2. Try a 6# maul. Faster head speed is exponentially more energy than heavier mass. That is why those little guys can ring the bell at a carnival. Just before the head hits the target they pull up a bit on the handle to increase the head speed. Congrats though! I got revenge on a few with the new splitter today.

1. You mean E=0.5mv^2. Newton, not Einstein. And to be really picky v^2 is a square law, not exponential (that would be 2^v).
2. It's really not clear whether energy (proportional to v^2) or momentum (proportional to v) is more important. It's not an entirely elastic or inelastic collision.
3. The human muscle response curve is not linear, so you won't necessarily gain enough speed to make up for the loss of mass.
4. A heavier maul has picked up more potential energy at the top of the swing, or stated another way, gravity assists a heavier maul more on the way down.
5. Even if true in some regime, the "use a lighter head" argument has to fall apart somewhere, otherwise you'd wind up splitting with a feather (swinging it at mach 3).

That's a quick summary of some threads in the past on this topic. Bottom line is that simple formulas don't really help determine what the "right" size maul is for a given person. Only experience. I have a 12lb monster with which I can produce marginally more splitting force than with a 4lb or 6lb head. I prefer the lighter mauls not because they split better, but because I can keep swinging them a lot longer than the monster. I don't have an 8lb, but I suspect that's actually closer to my personal "ideal" weight for splitting a single log.

 

[tkirk22]

Another method is to use some finesse and do it while sitting down:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=pRIYFFTlMSQ

 

[RedRanger]

Rockey:

Ya just got to keep thinking of "mom and apple pie". By that I mean, chain saw the damn thing down to 4inches, only seen a very few that I couldn`t smash with the maul when lowered to that depth.

And then, you will be smiling, just like you would when eating that apple pie Except, that nasty little beast will have been roasted toasted, and burned down to teach it a lesson. And you will feel all the warmer for it.. Satisfaction guaranteed ;-)

 

[woodzilla]

discoinferno is the man. I knew I was wrong with formula , but I thought it would catch more attention. I do like your idea of swinging at Mach 3!! No matter what, there are plenty of methods and tools to chose from. Thanks for clarification.

 

[Rockey]

Rockey:

Ya just got to keep thinking of "mom and apple pie". By that I mean, chain saw the damn thing down to 4inches, only seen a very few that I couldn`t smash with the maul when lowered to that depth.

And then, you will be smiling, just like you would when eating that apple pie Except, that nasty little beast will have been roasted toasted, and burned down to teach it a lesson. And you will feel all the warmer for it.. Satisfaction guaranteed ;-)

I hear you about the apple pie theory and it is a tried and true method around here. This one however, was a matter of principle. After all I couldve just as easily let my mother in law use it as a stool and it woulda done been split last year. I needed my own personal revenge on it though. I'm weird like that.

 

[Rockey]

Anyone notice a big diference between the fiberglass and wood handled mauls? After breaking a wood handle I bought a fiberglass from Lowes and regrettted it. It seems that a lot of energy is absorbed by the flex in the handle when it makes contact with the log. The wood just transfers more of that energy into splitting, Is it just me?

 

[woodburn]

Now this is a thread I can relate to!

 

[colsmith]

Re: the fiberglass vs. wood maul handle. I recently bought a fiberglass handled Craftsman maul since if it breaks they will replace it, plus I had a 20% off coupon. Our wood handled maul has been falling apart for some time. It has massive amounts of duct tape around it just below the head. Wanted to buy a replacement handle, but refuse to pay as much for the handle as for the darn maul itself. However, I mostly use the falling apart wood handled maul because the fiberglass one hurts my hands more. I have carpal tunnel and ulnar nerve problems, and although any kind of splitting makes my fingers a bit numb later on, I get a weird feeling in my left arm after I use the fiberglass handled maul. They are both 8# heads. I feel sort of like a bell that has been rung if that makes any sense. Doesn't exactly throb or hurt but feels like a vibrating numbish thing all up the arm instead of just the fingers.

The wood absorbs some of the shock better than the fiberglass is what hubby tells me. I never used to think of wood as flexible and absorbent of force, but I guess it is. I also use a 12# monster maul thing once in a while and it does help 'split the impossible' better than lighter mauls. However, I get tired out MUCH faster using it, so mostly avoid it. I think it is all metal, but there is a rubber grippy part where you hold it and that helps, I was wondering if I could put something like that on the fiberglass handle. My other problem is that although I have generally been right handed, somehow I split wood left=handed. I also miniature golf left-handed, maybe I was supposed to go the other way as a child and didn't realize it. But it puts more stress on my left arm and hand. Have tried to switch, but my technique is really thrown off then.