Posts tagged #splitting wood

Splitting Axe Handle Blanks From a Windfall Tan Oak Log

Recently I was driving out my road and had to stop in the rain and shovel ditches out. I got so wet that I went back home to change my clothes, but within the hour or less I was out, a large Tan Oak fell down in the road.

I had been eyeing this group of trees already as potential wood working fodder, but this one just succumbed to heart rot and fell over. While cutting it up, I spotted one straight section and saved it aside to split up later. In this video I’m splitting it into 12 parts to stash away for woodworking projects.

You really don’t need much to split a log. A maul and disposable wedges can be made almost anywhere, usually from the trunk and limbs of the same tree. There are a couple of pointers here about making wedges, the use of boys axes as a one handed hatchet and methods to keep your splits going with the grain. Also basic wood splitting theory regarding run out, which is perhaps the most relevant problem in splitting rails like this.

I have begun slowly processing these rough split staves down into billets one or two at a time, by removing the rotten heart and the bark. I’m also chopping off about 3/4” or more of sapwood, which is more brittle, weak and rot prone than the pinker heartwood. I’ll be washing the outsides of each billet with a borax solution to prevent insect attacks by powder post beetles, which are populous here, especially with the abundant food available to them with the big Tan Oak die off that is occurring now. They are very destructive to certain woods, Bay and Tan Oak being among the most affected. I’ll also dip the ends into paint, or seal them with fat or pine pitch to prevent the ends from cracking due to rapid drying. After that I’ll just try to dry them at a reasonably slow rate to minimize warpage and cracking.

While watching this video footage, It occurred to me that I could have made a really neat drum out of that log, or two or three actually! Also that I should try making a barrel out of tan oak. I may save some of the short ends from this log and others this year to have a stash of well seasoned wood for a possible small keg project. Maybe a Calvados keg, hmmm….

Posted on April 6, 2019 by Steven Edholm and filed under axes, bushcraft/woodcraft, Forestry, tools, wood working and tagged wood woodworking green woodworking axes axe handles #workingaxes self reliance splitting logs splitting wood splitting rails woodcraft bushcraft.

How You Will Cut Yourself Splitting Kindling, and How Not To

Injuries while splitting kindling are fairly common. There are only so many basic things that can go wrong though and avoiding injury shouldn't be too difficult.

Posted on May 16, 2018 by Steven Edholm and tagged hatchets splitting wood splitting kindling how to split kindling axe safety hatchet safety.

Splitting Axe Cut Wood With a Sharp Felling Axe, Safety and Effectiveness

The first video is a short trailer or propaganda piece to promote the second video. Below are a few non-technical points I wanted to elaborate on.

I just have a few points I want to emphasize or elaborate on. I made this video in response to a lot of questions from people about how to deal with wood that is bucked with an axe, since it can't be set on end, or on a block. Also, because of how I'm operating with one axe, I assumed that it would be a small short axe and that it was intended to retain the edge in chopping condition. That wasn't so much a plan as it was just how it turned out since that's my world right now. It is not the only way to approach it. You could, and most probably do, have a dedicated splitting axe, or maybe a splitting edge on one side of a double bitted axe that can taste a little dirt here and there without much worry, especially if it's ground with a fat bevel that is less likely to suffer severe damage than a thinly ground edge. A longer heavier axe with a fatter grind is great, as is not having to baby it. However, using a small, short axe and keeping it sharp requires one to refine technique and strategy, and I think that is a good thing. I'm also very interested in making whatever tool I have work, and in processing wood with one axe. You'll hardly find anyone out there recommending an axe ground for felling, limbing and bucking as a splitting axe. Probably the opposite in fact.

One of the important points in this video is that it requires some investment to figure out what is possible. Many will discount the possibility of using axes, but not always out of experience, but rather assumption. I've been guilty of this to an extent myself and it's a mistake. I personally think that it's worth some investment to figure out what is possible and where an axe is more advantageous than a maul. I really like splitting with a maul and with some of the stuff I have to split, like dry hardwoods with knots and forks, I'm not likely to ditch my maul altogether. But, I will keep pushing my limits with axes of various kinds to find out what those limits really are.

It is not enough to just just smack a few rounds with an axe to see if anything falls off. It takes some investment in yourself to develop good technique and at least a basic understanding of strategy as presented in these videos. The flick technique, as Buckin' Billy Ray Smith calls it, or the twist as the Vido's call it, is essential to develop for splitting anything difficult with an axe. It is just a way to use the power generated in the swing to good mechanical advantage by prying the wood apart on impact instead of just wedging it apart with the shape of the axe. It can make up for the lower mass of an axe head v.s. a maul in some cases. I believe that Tom Clark, inventor of the buster axe, an axe optimized for this technique, actually hit the wood with the head tilted at a slight angle. I think I twist it on impact, but it's hard to know for sure without a slow mo study. Either way, you'll develop a feel for what works. It is a skill that has to be learned by some time spent as it's rather clumsy at first to get the timing right. If you have a very sharp short handled axe that you are trying to stay out of the way of, which often requires somewhat awkward positioning, and on top of all that are trying to hit the center of a knotty piece of wood within a quarter inch, you can imagine that some time will have to be put in to gain a reasonable level of skill. The catch 22 is that it's only by gaining a certain level of proficiency that we can find out what is really possible and not.

The flick technique can be used as an alternative to generating velocity in splitting at times, but should not be thought of as a permanent stand in for it. The ability to generate a high velocity is a critical tool to have and will only complement that sideways torque when both are needed. I didn't go much into it, but will in the future. From my observation and experience so far, high velocity is primarily created by the axe head scribing an arc around a relatively fixed, or at least more fixed, point, like the wrists, elbows, shoulders, waist, or a complex combination of all of those. it is a complex topic. With the target at a certain height, it becomes less possible to generate velocity, and the higher you go from there, the harder it gets. That is one reason I don't use splitting blocks much. Working close to the ground has the advantage that it is easier to generate velocity, because you have more distance in the swing and can use body mechanics to better advantage.

For me, doing the axe cordwood challenge, in the way I approach it, has been perfect for developing these skills. I stick pretty much with the axe I'm chopping with, which for now is always small and sharp, and I split in the field with no blocks or contrivances of any kind. I can only remember abandoning two, maybe three, pieces of wood that were just really knotty or more likely forked. Even those could likely be split with enough energy, but I know when not to beat my head against a wall for a peanut. I'm glad that I've invested in this skill, because it will ultimately increase my splitting efficiency in all arenas. I now have a pretty good idea of what I can get away with and am further refining and defining when an axe will be more advantageous than a maul in splitting sawn rounds as well. For what it's worth, these videos at least show some possibility that can be put to use or invested in later. It's not for everyone, and not for every situation, and possibly not for every species, but in the right circumstances it is remarkably efficient and satisfying. I can say, that just splitting what I incidentally have to cut here, which is Madrone, Bay, Fir, Tan oak and Black oak, that none of those species are consistently difficult to split when young trees are cut and split green. Older Madrone and Bay can develop some wicked cross grain, but a person is not likely to be cutting those for firewood with an axe, and if they were, large trunks would have to be split, probably with wedges, before bucking, not after.

The axe and the technique of using it with good strategy are just another set of tools in the bag to be applied where they are best suited, or when necessary. But, again, it is a tool that has to be developed and refined to be appreciated and applied to anything but the most easily split woods. I'm glad I've put in some time and forced my progress by using axes that are not ideal for the job and I get to reap the rewards of that from here out.

Did I mention that it's fun? It's really fun :D

Posted on June 12, 2017 by Steven Edholm and filed under axes, bushcraft/woodcraft, cordwood challenge, firewood, Forestry, tools, wood working and tagged axes splitting wood firewood splitting firewood splitting firewood with an axe how to split wood how to use an axe woodcraft bushcraft survival skills prepping preppers permaculture tools axe safety chopping wood chopping wood with an axe splitting axe traditional woodworking.

Axe Only Firewood Processing, Felling, Limbing, Lopping, Bucking for a Splitting Video

I released a video a couple days ago on processing my last tree for the cordwood challenge. This was a tree I chose as not particular easy to split for a splitting video I'm still waiting to record. The question of how you split wood with an axe if it's cut with an axe instead of a saw vies with "what do you do with the chips" as the most common question regarding processing wood with an axe. The footage I shot for the front of that video seemed like a good stand alone video, so I edited it and posted it with some commentary.

Be aware that there is a lot going on when I'm processing this tree that is invisible to the uninitiated. If I were watching someone else do it, I could spot some of that "invisible" technique and safety stuff, but not all of it as it is very subtle and personal. The lopping operation is especially dangerous, but I'm using several things to stay as safe as possible. The most important might be the direction of cut, which means in what direction the force is pointed, the obvious reference point being the cutting edge. A close second is probably body positioning to decrease the likelihood of a stray edge contacting my body. Moderation of the force used is also extremely important. Axe work requires constant adaptation and a certain level of humility where you have to say to yourself "I can hit this really hard, but I'm not going to!" Finally, you really have to be able to hit what you're aiming at. Anyway, it's mostly a lot of chopping, but some people really seem to like that. There are some really good pointers though too. You can count on some very detailed tutorials in the future.

Splitting Out Black Locust Billets, and Some Talking Points About Splitting Logs

I usually finish videos late at night and then try to throw a blog post together to go with them so it will come out on the same morning. I'm often struggling to stay awake by then though and have made some pretty lame typos recently. This time I figured I'd just be behind a day and do this while I'm not falling asleep. I scored this Black Locust from a tree that was cut down on a construction site and managed to score some logs for wood working projects, mostly tool handles. Black Locust is one of my favorite woods and makes great handles. I could do a blog post just on the virtues of Black Locust. I took the opportunity to film the job and talk about typical approaches and problems related to splitting billets out. I would have liked to do the more in depth lecture style version of this video, but I'm pretty busy with time sensitive spring chores right now to take that on. I'll get to it some time, and I'm pretty damn excited about it actually, but for now, most of what anyone needs to know about the subject can be gleaned out of this version. Also, this is in a practical setting, so it's real life which is useful. There are some bullet points below:

A few Bullet Points

*Before Splitting, assess the log looking for knots and observe the bark pattern to determine how straight the grain is.

*Splitability of wood varies by species and specimen. Some split easy, some don't. Some tend to stay on track and some tend to run askew.

*Wood generally splits easiest along radial lines from the center out to the edges, but there are exceptions.

*Wood can also split pretty easily by splitting along the growth rings.

*Runout is when the split travels off to one side rather than following the grain lines. Runout is more common when a small piece is split off of a larger piece, so it is the safer bet to split things into halves.

*Runout can also be prevented by chasing the split along as it progresses rather than just splitting if from one end with a fat wedge.

*Knots are a major hinderance when splitting with the growth rings, but can be split in half when splitting along the radial lines.

*Wooden wedges are fine if you don't have steel, but make them flat in both dimensions, from side to side and tip to butt. Also, chamfer the butt ends and they will last a lot longer.

Posted on June 1, 2016 by Steven Edholm and filed under wood working, tools, axes and tagged splitting wood splitting billets bow staves green wood working black locust wedges spitting wedges splitting logs how to split a log.

Splitting Wood by Hand, #5, Just Splitting Some Wood.

This is #5 in my wood splitting video series, but it's being released out of order. After shooting the footage for segments3 and 4 on technique and strategy, and trying to explain it all, the gears in my brain really started turning. I feel like I can do a much better job of explaining and demonstrating those things now. Having put it all into language in my head I also feel like I have a better personal understanding too and can probably further refine my technique. So the technique and strategy videos will be re-shot this year, although I'm putting a few bullet points and a teaser below. Also below are a list of other wood splitting videos worth watching.

I also have better slow motion capabilities now, which I can use to make a study of the mechanics of splitting. Some of the important stuff that I'll be talking about in the technique video is presented in this segment as subtitles. I'll make blog posts with photos explaining segments 3 and 4, but this video stands on it's own more or less, and it is intended for visual learning anyway.

I just spent a couple of hours looking for a few decent wood splitting videos to link in this one, and I can tell you, my stuff is top shelf compared to the vast majority of what's out there. Hopefully people will actually see it. I'm still ranking low in the search engines. Comments, likes and shares anywhere help me reach more people. I'm very excited to make the next two videos and get deeper into the details that matter and which could really help people increase their splitting effectiveness! The previously released videos, along with this one, are in my firewood playlist.

Some notes and bullet points.

You'll notice that I don't favor using a splitting block for the most part. Splitting on the ground requires a tool with a pretty obtuse edge for strength, but it has some benefits as follows.

*We don't have to move the wood to the block, especially important with big rounds.

*We don't have to pick up pieces and set them on (or back on) the stump.

*We don't have to set the tool down to pick up wood

*We have better mechanical advantage (more speed can be generated if target is lower)

*It is safer, since the work is closer to the ground.

*Less interruption to the work flow.

I've come to think that the equation Mass+Speed= Inertia/Momentum/Power is a core principal here. I believe that any energy transfer to the target after contact is negligable compared the energy embodied before impact. By having a low target and tightening the radius of the swing into a shorter arc at the end of the stroke, you can generate a tremendous amount of speed which equates to stored energy. I know there is more involved than just that, but I suspect that things like the shape of the head, angle of attack and any twisting or manipulation of the head is really secondary to that equation. Even if twisting, the head, at the moment of impact to open the split, you are still using mostly that stored energy, you're just sending it off in a different direction. Aim and Strategy are of course also extremely important. But, assuming you know where to strike and can hit the target, being able to embody a great deal of energy in the maul or ax head will most certainly serve you well, even if you don't need it all the time.