What is your favorite/best wood splitting MAUL ????

[trx680]

You guys that split your own wood the hard way. What is your maul of choice?

 

[TheAardvark]

Fiskars X27 is pretty popular

 

[toddnic]

Prandy splitting maul.... I don't care for the Fiskars

 

[mtarbert]

I split a lot of wood (by hand) and I got to go with the X27.....

 

[Hasufel]

Fiskars X27 + Isocore 8# maul is my combo of choice. There's not much I can't split with those two.

 

[Woody5506]

The x27 isn't a maul.

I really like the Stihl Pro maul.

 

[TheAardvark]

The x27 isn't a maul.

I really like the Stihl Pro maul.

Its better than a maul

 

[Woody5506]

Not for me it isn't. In fact I really am starting to get annoyed of how much the x27 is talked up yet, for the life of me, cannot figure out why swinging a maul is way more comfortable and productive for me than swinging my x27.

 

[ToolBreaker]

X27 is amazing for what it does. But, a lot of the time I find it’s better used for flying through what’s left after I have wedge and sledged rather than as an all purpose tool for splitting.

My 8lb isocore doesn’t get much work as it’s not as fast as the x27 for the small stuff and not as effective as wedge and sledge for the big stuff. But, I’m also terrible at remembering to sharpen them, so YMMV.

 

[Tar12]

Not for me it isn't. In fact I really am starting to get annoyed of how much the x27 is talked up yet, for the life of me, cannot figure out why swinging a maul is way more comfortable and productive for me than swinging my x27.

I drank the X27 kool-aid and the ISO Core...the X27 sets...the maul is far more productive for me.

 

[JimBear]

I just use an 8# splitting maul, no idea of the brand & a 3-1/2# double edge ax I have a few wedges but have never used them. American Elm is about the only thing that gives me a hard time.

 

[Catfish Hunter]

X25 gets most of the use right now but it's mostly ash and birch which practically splits when I look at it. I use the x27 on bigger stuff. My maul doesn't get much use these days but it has its place too.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[heavy hammer]

The Wilton bash maul, 8 lb. You can use it to drive wedges as well, and they say it is indestructible. I love it goes through anything.

 

[Sawset]

8lb maul. Not sure of a brand name. Goes through 80% of the stuff here (oak,maple, elm, cherry). Rent a splitter for the rest. I tend to stay with things that are traditional and familiar. And sometimes cheap. I could get a lifetimes supply of hickory handles for one x27. Going on 10 years on the current maul, so no change in sight there. One thing is, temperature here has a lot to do with how easy splitting is. Went out yesterday to split a few rounds - about zero out. One was white oak, knarly, tried to break it up last fall with the splitter, gave up and set it aside since it was just a stringy mess. Gave it a go with the maul - like night and day. Cracked like a bowling pin. One face freshly split, nice and smooth, the adjacent face, the old knarly mess. Elm is a lot of times the same way. Sometime not, but a lot of times it is. Hickory I gave up on. Have to wait till spring with the splitter.​

 

[Rich L]

I just use an 8# splitting maul, no idea of the brand & a 3-1/2# double edge ax I have a few wedges but have never used them. American Elm is about the only thing that gives me a hard time.

JimBear ya that elm is a killer to split.I'm trying to inspire myself to go out and start splitting the cord of dried elm that's been looking at me for the past 7 months.Oldtimer says it splits best when it's cold out and it's cold out.To split this stuff I'll use my sledge and a couple of Oregon grenade wedges and then I'll see what the Fiskars can do.

 

[splions]

Fiskars x27 is the best...I have an 8lb maul for the heavy stuff.

 

[Rich L]

Yup just came in from splitting three or four days worth of Elm.My ten pound sledge and Oregon grenade splitting wedge split the rounds really well.The Fiskars did the clean up and the cold did the rest.

 

[SuperSpy]

I bought a cheepo 8 lb maul from the local farm store and promptly broke the hickory handle over-striking it like a moron (I blame slippery gloves).

I went out and bought another one and about a week later broke it in the exact same way.

I then slid a 12" section of 1.5" schedule 40 pipe into the eye of the maul, then a 4' section of 1.25" into that, and welding the ever loving #$&^ out of it (paying attention not to overheat the maul edge itself).

That lasted a few weeks until I slipped again (stupid gloves) and overstruck it right below the weld, breaking the smaller pipe.

The extra weight made it split like a dream too, so I'm probably going to take the other broken one and do it just the same, with a longer section of 1.5" pipe.

I might be stubborn.

 

[Tar12]

I bought a cheepo 8 lb maul from the local farm store and promptly broke the hickory handle over-striking it like a moron (I blame slippery gloves).

I went out and bought another one and about a week later broke it in the exact same way.

I then slid a 12" section of 1.5" schedule 40 pipe into the eye of the maul, then a 4' section of 1.25" into that, and welding the ever loving #$&^ out of it (paying attention not to overheat the maul edge itself).

That lasted a few weeks until I slipped again (stupid gloves) and overstruck it right below the weld, breaking the smaller pipe.

The extra weight made it split like a dream too, so I'm probably going to take the other broken one and do it just the same, with a longer section of 1.5" pipe.

I might be stubborn.

Sounds like you are a candidate for Fiskar products...you break it they replace it free of charge...

 

[tymbee]

Interesting the number of folks using eight pound mauls. I've never used anything other than six pound mauls for many years. I don't think adding a couple of pounds would improve things much since if it can't be split with six pounds (twisted/knotty/etc) it's a set aside for the splitter of chainsaw.

I just use an 8# splitting maul, no idea of the brand & a 3-1/2# double edge ax I have a few wedges but have never used them. American Elm is about the only thing that gives me a hard time.

 

[ToolBreaker]

Sounds like you are a candidate for Fiskar products...you break it they replace it free of charge...

Agreed. Also, they just require a picture for replacement. Not like Stanley which makes you eat the $15 in postage to mail the pieces of the 10 lb sledge back to them when they break every six months.

Husky also has a good policy, they let you go to Home Depot and trade for a new one. No questions asked. But, the Husky mauls are not as nice as the isocore.

 

[Hasufel]

Interesting the number of folks using eight pound mauls. I've never used anything other than six pound mauls for many years. I don't think adding a couple of pounds would improve things much since if it can't be split with six pounds (twisted/knotty/etc) it's a set aside for the splitter of chainsaw.

For those of use who don't (yet) have a splitter and noodle only as a last resort, the extra weight that an 8-pound maul offers definitely comes in handy. The 8# Isocore also has a wonderful striking face that makes sledging & wedging much more successful. So far the extra weight hasn't been too tough on my body--I get used to it pretty quickly once splitting season starts. In fact the only problem I've encountered is that the X27 has a slightly longer handle, which leads me to over-strike it sometimes when I've gotten used to the maul.

 

[mtarbert]

I bought an 8lb Fiskars Maul last summer and it is Damm Good

 

[cahaak]

I've split with both an 8 pound maul I have and with an X25 that I got about 5 years ago. The X25 would be my go to tool now for splitting especially if the diameter is under about 16" or so. There are some situation where the increased mass and momentum of the maul works better, such as very large rounds or certain difficult pieces. The one thing I really like about the X25 is that I can operate it a long time - like fours hours straight is really not a problem. For wood that splits decent, the ability of the Fiskars to get down into the wood due to the sharpness almost always forces a split on the first hit. I've found over time that velocity of the impact is one of the keys and I can simply get the fiskars up to a higher velocity due to the lower mass. Still not as easy as using a splitter, but its a good workout.

 

[hickoryhoarder]

I got the one at the hardware store down the street, nine years ago, 29 dollars. I'm 63 years old, 135 pounds, with every joint arthritic. It splits anything from beech to hickory to oak, mainly by using the weight of the tool.