having one tough time splitting oak!

[misterprimus]

I have some oak from a while back and I am having quite the trouble splitting it! I have a mid-size splitting maul for the big stuff, a hatchet for the small stuff, and also a wedge + mid-size one-handed sledge for an alternative. Some of this wood just does NOT want to split! Other pieces split fine - even same species. Does anyone have any ideas? Trying to avoid big expenditures like on a log splitter. Perhaps I need to purchase a full-size felling axe to carve up the tough stuff, or should I go up in splitting maul size/weight? Perhaps it's just my technique.

 

[Simonkenton]

You certainly need a big maul. I have an 8 pound Fiskars. Also you have a one handed sledge. You need the Big Boy! I have a 9 pound sledge hammer that I use with the splitting wedges.
Are you using a chopping block? Wood splits a lot better when it is on a chopping block, rather than just setting on the ground.

 

[EbS-P]

Is your maul bouncing off? Or are some pieces really stringy? Make sure your maul is sharp to get that point of entry opened up. Split off the sides first. Even it just a 2” slab. If it’s stringy it’s just is going to be hard. I like the fiskars 8 pound maul but it’s a workout to swing for more than 20 minutes. I will use the chainsaw to cut 1/3-1/2 down if it’s a really nasty piece. Then bust it with the maul.
Evan

 

[gzecc]

Show us a picture of your tools and the round your trying to split.

 

[paulnlee]

Get to the gym, pump some iron for 3 month's, or buy a splitter.

 

[misterprimus]

Show us a picture of your tools and the round your trying to split.

I use that block for small items. I have a very short/wide oak piece for the bigger stuff (not pictured) or I just do it on asphalt.

 

[SpaceBus]

Are you sure that's oak? It looks like elm with all of the stringy bits.

 

[misterprimus]

Are you sure that's oak? It looks like elm with all of the stringy bits.

I'm pretty sure it was oak. That's how they advertised it, anyway. Some of the toughest pieces of wood I've split! You can tell by the tons of axe marks that I really struggled. They also seem quite massive. Even the small pieces have quite a bit of weight to them.

 

[misterprimus]

Not sure if something like this would help:

Collins 12 lb Single Bit Splitting Maul Steel Handle Mfr# TJ-12-C/32422 - Ace Hardware

The Collins 12 lb. Steel Lickety Splitter. It features 29 in. steel handle with a molded rubber grip for ultimate strength, a 12 lb. forged steel axe head for maximum durability and a welded connection for premium head retention. his Mega Maul has a triangular shaped head that won't lodge in...

www.acehardware.com

Or should I just get a two-handed sledgehammer and try to hit that wedge?

 

[Simonkenton]

That Collins 12 lb is a remake of the Monster Maul. I have one and it is a great maul. But the 8 pound Fiskars is better.
What is the weight of the maul you have?
As I said above, yes you need a real sledge hammer.

Or, maybe like paulnlee said "Get to the gym, pump some iron for 3 month's, or buy a splitter. "

 

[misterprimus]

That Collins 12 lb is a remake of the Monster Maul. I have one and it is a great maul. But the 8 pound Fiskars is better.
What is the weight of the maul you have?
As I said above, yes you need a real sledge hammer.

Or, maybe like paulnlee said "Get to the gym, pump some iron for 3 month's, or buy a splitter. "

Too lazy for that! Plus for the price of a gym membership, I can probably just buy a hand-operated hydraulic log splitter. I'm kinda trying to do this on the cheap, hence the checking on craigslist free stuff to find free wood.

 

[gzecc]

Doesn't look like oak to me. Most oak rounds are easy to split unless they are knotty. Its usually best to nibble around the perimeter with tougher wood. Sometimes you need to know your limitations with the materials and tools involved. Killing yourself isn't worth the $4 of splits in that round! How many cords to you plan to burn per year?

 

[misterprimus]

Doesn't look like oak to me. Most oak rounds are easy to split unless they are knotty. Its usually best to nibble around the perimeter with tougher wood. Sometimes you need to know your limitations with the materials and tools involved. Killing yourself isn't worth the $4 of splits in that round! How many cords to you plan to burn per year?

I mostly use it to cook meat 1-2 times a week in a charcoal grill. Otherwise, I occasionally use the fireplace during the winter.

 

[johneh]

I finished hand splitting a long time ago
bad back bad legs. This is my maul now

 

[EbS-P]

If you can’t pound that wedge with the back of the maul it’s not worth the effort or expense. If you must get rid of it. Drill a line of 1/4” holes or use a hand saw to start the wedge 2-3” from the edge. If it has knots you might not be able to split it by hand.

 

[BigJ273]

I don’t believe that’s oak.

 

[EbS-P]

Looks pretty similar to some laurel live oak I split this year.

 

[tadmaz]

Chainsaw 1/4 way through at an angle, try with a wedge. If still nothing, saw 1/3 through and try wedge again. Saw 1/2 way through, try wedge. I only do this when rounds are so big that I cannot lift the whole round.

 

[gzecc]

Chainsaw 1/4 way through at an angle, try with a wedge. If still nothing, saw 1/3 through and try wedge again. Saw 1/2 way through, try wedge. I only do this when rounds are so big that I cannot lift the whole round.

He probably doesn't have a chainsaw.

 

[misterprimus]

He probably doesn't have a chainsaw.

I do, but it's not a very good one.

 

[SpaceBus]

if you sharpen it then it will be plenty of chainsaw.

 

[EbS-P]

if you sharpen it then it will be plenty of chainsaw.

With the right size file. I have taken apart some 16” trees with a sharp cheap 12” plug-in electric chainsaw.

 

[clancey]

Take some vitamins...clancey How about one of those long saws sas sons---would that work just to chip off some of it...

 

[SpaceBus]

With the right size file. I have taken apart some 16” trees with a sharp cheap 12” plug-in electric chainsaw.

A friend of mine down south had a tree come down in his suburban yard. He is adamant that he needs the biggest saw at the box store and I'm tryin to convince him to use the electric saw he already has. He keeps saying it won't work because it is electric, the tree is "too big" (maybe 16"), and the chain is "stretched". Some friends of ours are getting advanced in years, but still try and use their chainsaw. Last time I asked them not try and just to let me do the work. They were going to use an MS250 with the chain dangling a few inches from the bar and the tensioner was stuck...

 

[Isaac Carlson]

Just buy a splitter, at least for the tough pieces. It will save you time and energy that you will be glad to have back.
Every time I finally do things like that, that I have been thinking about doing for years, I wish I had done it sooner.

I made a 4 way wedge for my splitter last year and it easily cut my splitting time/effort by at least 3x. We had 25 cord to split, and I did most of it with the single wedge. The 4 way made a world of difference. I had a friend helping me and he experienced the before and after of the 4 way and said he could not believe how much faster it was. He still splits by hand and is going on 70. I take my splitter over to help him out.