Silly me! Stupid move, but with a silver lining...

[Hasufel]

You could say I had my first "axe-ident." I was splitting some rounds and saved the worst for last--a tough Y-shaped hunk that turned out to be a literal pain. I was trying to hack away at the outside and switched to my one-handed Fiskars X15. I should point out that, until recently, I've used only two-handed axes that have a much greater standoff distance. One swing must have landed on the toughest part of the grain because it glanced off and went straight for my shin. My initial reaction was annoyance that I cut through my pants. Then I realized there was blood running down my sock. Lesson 1: Size is deceptive--even small splitting axes can do a lot of damage. Lesson 2: If you don't have a first aid kit nearby, duct tape is your friend!

Eight stitches, a tetanus shot, and a course of antibiotics later, I returned home feeling quite annoyed at myself. The first thing I did was fire up the chainsaw to finish off that $@*^# hunk of wood--which I probably should have done from the start. Then, because it was a nice day and I couldn't take care of the other chores I had planned to do, I walked around the property a bit. I saw a couple of big hardwoods that had fallen in my neighbor's yard and went to ogle them. That's when I noticed that the property marker was on the -other- side of them! They were all mine, but I might never have noticed if I hadn't had my plans interrupted. I won't say it was a fair trade, but my leg is already healing nicely, and I'm really looking forward to harvesting those trees...

 

[BrotherBart]

Glad the leg is healing. And the foot is still there too.

Like the Sgt. used to always say on Hill Street Blues. Be careful out there..

 

[baseroom]

Ouch! Glad you are OK. heating with wood is an adventure!

 

[Hasufel]

heating with wood is an adventure!

It sure is! But at least it gets me outdoors in the winter.

 

[English BoB]

You could say I had my first "axe-ident." I was splitting some rounds and saved the worst for last--a tough Y-shaped hunk that turned out to be a literal pain. I was trying to hack away at the outside and switched to my one-handed Fiskars X15. I should point out that, until recently, I've used only two-handed axes that have a much greater standoff distance. One swing must have landed on the toughest part of the grain because it glanced off and went straight for my shin. My initial reaction was annoyance that I cut through my pants. Then I realized there was blood running down my sock. Lesson 1: Size is deceptive--even small splitting axes can do a lot of damage. Lesson 2: If you don't have a first aid kit nearby, duct tape is your friend!

Eight stitches, a tetanus shot, and a course of antibiotics later, I returned home feeling quite annoyed at myself. The first thing I did was fire up the chainsaw to finish off that $@*^# hunk of wood--which I probably should have done from the start. Then, because it was a nice day and I couldn't take care of the other chores I had planned to do, I walked around the property a bit. I saw a couple of big hardwoods that had fallen in my neighbor's yard and went to ogle them. That's when I noticed that the property marker was on the -other- side of them! They were all mine, but I might never have noticed if I hadn't had my plans interrupted. I won't say it was a fair trade, but my leg is already healing nicely, and I'm really looking forward to harvesting those trees...

Cant resist ....Is the axe ok ?

Glad it wasnt worse and your on the mend.

bob

 

[PA. Woodsman]

Be careful, friend!

 

[Hasufel]

Cant resist ....Is the axe ok ?

Haha, the axe survived without a scratch. But I made sure that log paid the price!

 

[D9H]

That's when I noticed that the property marker was on the -other- side of them! They were all mine,

This is funny.

I get that excited about firewood too!

 

[HisTreeNut]

Sounds like things are going ex-axe-ly as planned but better...

 

[Hasufel]

This is funny.

I get that excited about firewood too!

Yep, getting the firewood "bug" gives you a whole new perspective on things! Today I started bucking the two trees I discovered were mine and verified that they were oaks. Score! One still had its bark and was definitely a red oak while the other might have been a white oak but I couldn't tell for sure because it had lost its bark and was more seasoned. Both had gotten a little punky around the edges but still had a great core. Then I discovered yet another tree down inside my property lines. Suddenly I felt like I was living an infomercial. "How much would you pay for two seasoned oak trees? Eight stitches and a $20 co-pay? But wait! Act now and you get a THIRD tree for no additional charge!!"

 

[BoiledOver]

You are not alone. I too got nicked by a Fiskar, of the x27 variety. Had been working a medium sized rounds on a chopping block, the Fiskar went in and hung in the middle of the round. Like so many times before, I just grabbed the two halves by hand a finished the split. The axe fell out, spun 180 degrees, and landed right there on the Redwing work boot. I too originally thought it was just the outerwear until enough blood soaked the sock to a soggy state. The little toe and next one were sliced pretty good but very lucky not to severe a tendon. The always sharp Fiskar went right through the leather on just its own weight. Lessoned learned. I have since scrapped the block idea and go at it right there on ground level mostly with the rounds in the horizontal. Frozen rounds split nicely.

 

[CentralVAWoodHeat]

Axes can be way more dangerous than most folks think.

Most everyone is aware of the catastrophes than can occur when using a chainsaw goes wrong. However, plenty of folks are quick to buy an axe, of whatever variety, and go to town. Serious contact injuries can occur, even with the very dull edge that most hardware axes comes with. Please be careful with them and it's good to hear you are ok.

 

[2broke2ride]

I just got a fiskars x27 for Christmas from my father, I was actually a bit shocked with how sharp it is, it would be very easy to injure oneself with it.

 

[Hasufel]

The little toe and next one were sliced pretty good but very lucky not to severe a tendon. The always sharp Fiskar went right through the leather on just its own weight. Lessoned learned.

Ouch! Glad to hear it wasn't any worse than that. I guess both of us were lucky. Mishaps like ours might actually be worth the pain if they keep us from doing something worse down the road...