Haven't done this in years

[cutterboy]

I dropped a good sized red oak a few days ago at the edge of a field and cut it into 16" lengths. Since the rounds were so heavy I decided to quarter them right there in the field to make it easier to transport them to the barn. Now, I have split very little wood with a splitting maul since I bought my wood splitter 18 years ago but I found my old maul and a couple of rusty steel wedges and went to work.


 

 

 

 

 
Now I remember why I bought a wood splitter!

Happy splitting.....Cutter

[mike_belben]

Why didnt you mill that beautiful log?

[thecfarm]

Them are still good sizes pieces.
I have split 4 foot beech with a maul and 4 iron wedges. Sometimes I would have all 4 wedges into the wood and still not split. But it did make good firewood. 

[Tacotodd]

Good firewood AND a good work out! 

I just tore my rotator cuff I “think” from hand splitting, because I’m not a 20yo anymore. Oh the days I was.

[doc henderson]

when I lived in Albany, had a fireplace in my apartment.  I lived at twin oaks apartments.  they were clearing land up the road for an office complex, also called twin oaks.  they fell a bunch of oak trees.  and I would go get a few rounds on the weekends.  about 30 inches.  I could only get 2 at a time in my Bronco 2.  accumulated about 18 of them and on the weekend, would go out and split.  had a 6 and 8# maul.  took about 20 hits to get the first split across.  then it was easy to pop a triangle off the end, and work around the half.  good workout.  could only do 1 or 2 at a time.  the neighbors thought they lived next to the "Beverly hillbillies".  I told them, no I am from Kansas.  

[hedgerow]

Have a BIL that is 65 and has always split his firewood by hand and still does. He burns around five cord a year. He probably has 10 years split and piled in his barn. After a couple shoulder surgery's I wouldn't even thing about swinging a maul. 

[cutterboy]

Why didnt you mill that beautiful log?

Mike, that tree was leaning pretty badly into the field and was under so much stress it wouldn't have made good lumber. Look carefully at the first picture and you will see at the lower left hand corner a crack running up the tree. That crack went all the way through the tree and was caused by  stress. That crack did make it easy to split the first few rounds.  I have plenty of nice straight red oaks I can cut down for lumber. In fact I'm going out this morning to drop two of them.

[gspren]

I like to split a few pieces with a splitting maul each year just to show myself I still can. I don't need to do very many pieces anymore before I declare that I still can.

[cutterboy]

gspren, us old guys still have got it!

[Dave Shepard]

Unless I see a seam across a big diameter chunk, I go around the outside. I'm splitting some cherry right now that you just have to wave the maul in a threatening manner and it falls apart. 

[Southside]

@doc henderson was that Kansas Oak that happened to be growing in New York by chance?      

[doc henderson]

ha ha ha, how would I know, that was before the FF.  I did not have "friends"  like you to tell me when I was wrong!   .  

[doc henderson]

@Southside it was SS oak.  (some sorta oak).

[Tacotodd]

@doc henderson that would be my kind of answer. Quit doing that! I thought that I was the only uneducated tree 🌲 person around until my friend taught me what little that I’ve been able to absorb from him. I’m still SLOWLY learning, DanGit! 

[SwampDonkey]

Most all my wood is split by maul. Why? 1) It's a good Collins maul, 2) I don't have to drag wood through mud or load a trailer which adds $$ to the cost of the operation for equipment, 3) I can load and forward and when it gets to the house I can pile it right away, 4) no leave tree damage. I bring every tree to the ground with a chainsaw. Yes, one may fall into another once in awhile, but a chainsaw will still bring it down with out putting your life in danger and not having to cut other trees to do it. You cut the 'feet' out from under it, it'll come down. I guarantee it. And now I have a nice man sized trail to carry the bucked/split pieces out to the SxS and tree length away.

Yes, I do have a wood splitter. Rarely used. You still have to bend down and pick up wood twice. Hand split, I pick it up once. The rest of the steps are the same.

[breederman]

I've been cutting and splitting a little bit by hand the last few weekends. It splits easy when its frozen. Looking at the forecast maybe the snow in front of the shed will melt enough to get the splitter out next weekend.

[Spike60]

Probably do a 1/4 of my splitting by hand; the rest with the splitter. Good excersize, and in addition to proving that you can still do it, it keeps you in shape from losing the ability to do it. I see so many older guys come in the store that have lost the ability to even start a saw let alone swing a maul. The old "use it or lose it" deal for sure. Always affects the more occasional users. Regular users that stay active generally have no problems at all.

[cutterboy]

Spike, very true. Use it or lose it!

[Al_Smith]

Green cut oak normally splits easily .Just depends on the job with a splitter .If it's a tip up and can be positioned next the work it's fairly easy to just roll the rounds in place .If not remember a chainsaw can rip cut too .Noodle a big round an inch or two deep then lay into it with the wedges using a big sledge .I own a couple of mauls but prefer a 5 pound actual splitting exe when it comes to that .Other than that I let the machinery, saw or splitter do most of the work  .I'm still strong for my age but I' m not a spring chicken anymore either .My mind might think I'm still 30 but my bod reminds me I'm 73 every so often .

[Tacotodd]

And the noodles make a great fire starter!