Not bad.
http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=f2d_1305059020
Looks like kindling, I'd split it once.
We use to call that "stove wood" because you had to cut it so short, and then split it so small that it would fit in the tiny fireboxes that some old wood stoves use to have. That is some easy splitting wood. With the hardwood I split with my monster maul, I would go right through the chain.
There is a 89 year old WWII survivor that lives year round in the Fish Camp, Marina in Fort Brag where I spend some time each summer fishing for Pacific Salmon. He lives in an RV trailer that he added a room onto and has a very small old Franklyn Wood Stove. Anything over about 12" in length and 4" round has a hard time fitting into this thing. He's a great old codger, that really reminds me of my deceased grandfather, (plus he is a hell of a fisherman), so I started giving him wood several years ago. It was such a pain trying to cut and split it small enough for him that now I just collect all of the small stuff I get during the year, (end cuts, small splits, small limbs), and then take those over to him. In his small space, and with his reduced mobility and strength, that little wood and stove does well, but I would hate to have to cut all wood that small.
Hmmm. I might have to give that a try.
You're a good man, Dave smiley_thumbsup smiley_thumbsup
Great instructional video. It would also be a big plus to have the temps cold when splitting the wood.
I had to supply two wood cook stoves with split firewood for more than a few years while I was still of school age.
I've used a similar method when I was splitting all my wood a couple months ago. Only difference is I was using a bungee cord around the entire round.
I went through about 5 bungee cords before I just abandoned the idea. When I had to split the harder/larger logs (and I really had to wind up to split them) there was no way to stop the ax before it went to far and cut the cord. :)
Still use it occasionally though.
Substitute a piece of elm and watch that system fall apart, but for the type of stovewood he's splitting it saves chasing the pieces. Frank C.
Quote from: ESFted on November 26, 2014, 12:35:23 PM
You're a good man, Dave smiley_thumbsup smiley_thumbsup
Yup...
that's the sort of behavior that earns you extra credit points with the "Big Guy Upstairs.'' :D
I would just have left it whole, and thrown it in our OWB just as it was.
Try that with pecan ( smiley_devil ) :D.
Quote from: WDH on November 28, 2014, 08:41:37 AM
Try that with pecan ( smiley_devil ) :D.
Throw it in the boiler? Lots of ash and little heat... ;)
The smaller splits burn more efficiently (but yes, I understand that efficiency is not always the primary goal - for some, getting the fire to last through the night is a priority, which often means larger pieces).
One of the tricks I use is to lay down an old car tire and stand as many logs in it as will fit. When you split, it holds the pieces. If you hit the tire with the ax or maul, it just bounces off.
I, too, would like to see how well this works with some red elm, oak, or hickory. I've had many of these video's shared on my facebook page. I have to wonder what kind of wood is being split here.
i have always used a tire like John MC said. But i just do that for my kindlin wood and then split then split bigger chunks with my splitter to make a fire last all night. (Not much fun wakeing up in the middle of the night to a frezzing house cause the fire went out.)
Generally, I split with a splitter, but every once in a while, I like to do a cord or so with an ax or maul. The last time was prompted by my purchase of a Fiskars X25 splitting axe. I was curious how it would stack up compared to my old splitting maul. The Fiskars kicked the maul's butt, despite the heavier weight and longer handle of the maul.