Splitting wood is good exercise
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Been there. That's why you split fresh cut wood.
Notice that he's leaving big splits... be there all day on a couple of rounds otherwise!
Notice that he's leaving big splits... be there all day on a couple of rounds otherwise!
I like the way the ax bounces off the rounds, that kid is knocking himself out, and getting no where.
And some people laugh at me when I tell them to touch up a maul with a file. When you hit the tough stuff- it will just bounce out like that. Time to get a beater axe out that you don't mind pounding on to start a crack for a wedge.
Stuff like that goes right back to where it came from....the wood dump. Life's to short to beat your brains out for a few splits.
Stick with the straight grained, non-knotty stuff that splits well, then hand splitting is fast and fun.
Alan
Stick with the straight grained, non-knotty stuff that splits well, then hand splitting is fast and fun.
Alan
First of all, there is no law that says you have to try for two equal size pieces, if he had hit that piece 2-3 inches from the edge and taken off small pieces until the center piece would fit in the stove he would have been done in half the time, with 1/3 th effort.
That piece had a knot in it or was not straight grained for some reason. This makes the splitting much harder. If you see this in a round, you should consider the "knock off the edges method" above.
Studying the face of the round for starter cracks before you start smashing the middle can save you some time and effort.
If a piece is giving me a hard time, I sometimes flip and go at it from the other end- sometimes it helps.
Lunging and jumping while swinging the maul is a good aerobic workout but is a waste of energy and does not impress or imtimidate the wood.
Feet aprt, raise the maul straight over head and drop it on the round, acceleraitng the head as it strikes the wood is an efficient method. Remember, final speed of the maul head and angle of impact in the right spot is what makes it happen. This is basically the explanation of why a 140lb pro golfer can hit a drive further and straighter than I ever will, And I weigh about 220 and am as strong as any of 'em.
Splitting efficiency comes with practice ( in my case about 30 years), I think I could have split that piece in 2 minutes with no wedge.
I don't mean to lecture, but I tired from watching the video.
That piece had a knot in it or was not straight grained for some reason. This makes the splitting much harder. If you see this in a round, you should consider the "knock off the edges method" above.
Studying the face of the round for starter cracks before you start smashing the middle can save you some time and effort.
If a piece is giving me a hard time, I sometimes flip and go at it from the other end- sometimes it helps.
Lunging and jumping while swinging the maul is a good aerobic workout but is a waste of energy and does not impress or imtimidate the wood.
Feet aprt, raise the maul straight over head and drop it on the round, acceleraitng the head as it strikes the wood is an efficient method. Remember, final speed of the maul head and angle of impact in the right spot is what makes it happen. This is basically the explanation of why a 140lb pro golfer can hit a drive further and straighter than I ever will, And I weigh about 220 and am as strong as any of 'em.
Splitting efficiency comes with practice ( in my case about 30 years), I think I could have split that piece in 2 minutes with no wedge.
I don't mean to lecture, but I tired from watching the video.
Alan- I know what you mean. I'd offer it on Craigslist- someone with a splitter would get a score, and I save a trip to the dump. (I have a splitter, so the point is moot for me).
"People love chopping wood. In this activity one immediately sees results."
Albert Einstein
I have to agree with Einstein. I freaking love to split wood. Now that I'm a year plus ahead on wood, I'll go to hand splitting. How satisfying is it to swing a maul and pop a 12" round in half? I have about 3 cord of white and red oak, plus some pine (bigger- may use splitter) that I'll probably more than half hand split just for the fun of it.
"People love chopping wood. In this activity one immediately sees results."
Albert Einstein
I have to agree with Einstein. I freaking love to split wood. Now that I'm a year plus ahead on wood, I'll go to hand splitting. How satisfying is it to swing a maul and pop a 12" round in half? I have about 3 cord of white and red oak, plus some pine (bigger- may use splitter) that I'll probably more than half hand split just for the fun of it.
Gerry- no doubt, but occasionally there's a chunk that defies splitting. Weird tree base, 3 way crotch, etc. Then it's whittle away what you can, and beat yourself to death on the core.
Even with a splitter I have had some real challenging rounds. I often rosette the piece by starting on the edges and nibble away. Sometimes a split goes on the wood rack and some go in my fire pit pile. It all gets burned somewhere.
I never swing at the middle. I look at the grain and find the weakest spot on the log. I line myself up on the middle of the log, swing once on at the middle top half and once at the middle bottom half. Round will either split in half or have a serious crack to then swing at. In the 1% chance it laughed at me, go 90* from there and/or flip it over.
Beating on the core is just a waste of effort. You need to make the wood work with you, not at you.
Of course, most experience is with red oak. Anything other than working on an existing crack in elm is a waste of effort!
Beating on the core is just a waste of effort. You need to make the wood work with you, not at you.
Of course, most experience is with red oak. Anything other than working on an existing crack in elm is a waste of effort!
I have some pieces that won't go through a splitter also thats frusrating.
Before I got the splitter I was stuggling through a nasty rock maple. I kept going inside and seeing if I could force a big chunk into the stove. My wife who didn't grow up with a stove, said, "I thought it had to be split".
Well I invited her out to try. After 10 minutes she went back inside and came out with a template that was the maximum size the stove would take. Needless to say we used to burn a lot of rounds and big chunks.
Before I got the splitter I was stuggling through a nasty rock maple. I kept going inside and seeing if I could force a big chunk into the stove. My wife who didn't grow up with a stove, said, "I thought it had to be split".
Well I invited her out to try. After 10 minutes she went back inside and came out with a template that was the maximum size the stove would take. Needless to say we used to burn a lot of rounds and big chunks.
- Feb 5, 2006
- 400
Yes, I agree, bad technique. You gotta act like you hate that freakin peice of wood! I like chipping at it from the sides like Gerry mentions, and I also crack the wrists to get a little extra speed just before I hit the log on the down swing. On the mean and nasty ones, I try to get full extension with my arms as that maul is coming on home from downtown!
I thought the guy was gonna stand on the half log to get a little more elevation for the down swing, but he did not. That helps sometimes to get a little more speed.
I also prefer wedges, that maul is not gonna last long beatin on it like that. And, his eyes ain't gonna last long either. He needs a pair of glasses, trust me, I know.
Finally, for the really tough ones, thats when it's time to pull out the 056 and cut that baby length wise. It ain't gonna beat me when I got 87cc and 36" of bar to throw at it! KD
I thought the guy was gonna stand on the half log to get a little more elevation for the down swing, but he did not. That helps sometimes to get a little more speed.
I also prefer wedges, that maul is not gonna last long beatin on it like that. And, his eyes ain't gonna last long either. He needs a pair of glasses, trust me, I know.
Finally, for the really tough ones, thats when it's time to pull out the 056 and cut that baby length wise. It ain't gonna beat me when I got 87cc and 36" of bar to throw at it! KD
I had some ash recently that I couldn't split for anything. I ended up having to roll that sucker to the truck and use a ramp to get it in. Sometimes you need to make other plans to get the wood home.
Just watched the video again to b irn off a few calories.
He needs a bigger maul in addtion to the other changes he has to make.
He needs a bigger maul in addtion to the other changes he has to make.
I've done my share of splitting and I also noticed on this, He's losing alot of force from the absortion of having it on top of the other chunk of wood. Upon impact with the maul they both absorb the engery he's created by hitting it with the maul is displaced from the block being split to the block below and then to the ground if your gonna go big splits on stuff put the block on the ground and you get more out of your swing's.
Though also I would work 3-5" in from the outside edge with 3-5 swings get 3 smaller chunks of wood then 2-4 swings will spit whats left in half and your done. 5 easy to handle chunks and your on to the next block of wood.
also like mention up thread flip the block over and split from the other side. if you cant get a piece off in 3 swings.
I just dont' get the spliting on top of another block method unless its a 1 swing 2 pieces process next piece, If your on really soft ground and trying to get a firm base to split off of OK and such but with the size of the wood he's spliting stand it up on the ground and you get another 6" of downward force to drive the maul down into the block of wood.
Thats the way I C it
sublime out.
Though also I would work 3-5" in from the outside edge with 3-5 swings get 3 smaller chunks of wood then 2-4 swings will spit whats left in half and your done. 5 easy to handle chunks and your on to the next block of wood.
also like mention up thread flip the block over and split from the other side. if you cant get a piece off in 3 swings.
I just dont' get the spliting on top of another block method unless its a 1 swing 2 pieces process next piece, If your on really soft ground and trying to get a firm base to split off of OK and such but with the size of the wood he's spliting stand it up on the ground and you get another 6" of downward force to drive the maul down into the block of wood.
Thats the way I C it
sublime out.
kd460 said:
When you have to use the saw, do you stand the round upright? I've got a bad feeling about some big Norway Maple Rounds in my backyard.......
With the right technique, he could do it with 1/3 the effort.
1. Wood too high
2. Poor swing
3. Going for the middle (however, I sometimes go for the middle if there is a big "check" there)
4. Repeating unproductive swings
5. Dangerous leg positioning.
6. Using big sledge to start the "wedge." A smaller one-hand hammer takes much less effort.
Concerning 5, I make myself stand with legs apart, not one in front of the other. That way if the ax somehow misses and swings down, it goes between the feet. That hasn't happened yet, but it seems to make sense to me.
1. Wood too high
2. Poor swing
3. Going for the middle (however, I sometimes go for the middle if there is a big "check" there)
4. Repeating unproductive swings
5. Dangerous leg positioning.
6. Using big sledge to start the "wedge." A smaller one-hand hammer takes much less effort.
Concerning 5, I make myself stand with legs apart, not one in front of the other. That way if the ax somehow misses and swings down, it goes between the feet. That hasn't happened yet, but it seems to make sense to me.
- Feb 5, 2006
- 400
HittinSteel, I usually start the cut with the log laying on it's side. Just to get it started, then I stand it back up like I'm going to split it with a maul to finish the cut (or most of it-don't want to ground the saw blade).
I also put 2 or 3 rounds around the one I am cutting to hold it in place and to keep it from moving with the force of the saw chain. Usually a cut about halfway down is enough, then I can split it the rest of the way with wedges. I cut it into 4 pieces (like a pie) then I split it the rest of the way with wedges or a well placed maul. KD
I also put 2 or 3 rounds around the one I am cutting to hold it in place and to keep it from moving with the force of the saw chain. Usually a cut about halfway down is enough, then I can split it the rest of the way with wedges. I cut it into 4 pieces (like a pie) then I split it the rest of the way with wedges or a well placed maul. KD
That was hillarious, watching the wedge bounce off repeatedly.
After the third wack and not progress the piece goes on the "Slitter Rental" pile, for splitting when I rent a splitter.
After the third wack and not progress the piece goes on the "Slitter Rental" pile, for splitting when I rent a splitter.
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