As a country man that grew up in Appalachian mtns, I had never seen anyone use an axe to split wood unless it was a Hollywood movie or tv show. Everyone used mauls here. I always use a maul. Mine isn't as big as yours, but does just fine. I couldn't imagine trying an axe. Axes are for cutting wood horizontally. Mauls are for splitting wood vertically. Always has been.
Because it's a far more reliable way to split off wood, even for "easy" stuff. My axes mostly sit unused with my other tools for lack of work for them to do.
I'm supposing you meant an axe, not an ace. And how do you use a machete for splitting wood. I can see using a machete for splitting for light duty, but for heavy splitting as illustrated in the video, I'd use a splitting maul. As I imagine using a machete, I'd put it right in the wood where you want to split it, then move the wood and machete against something solid to drive the machete through the wood. That's what I often do with a splitting wedge when not much wood is involved. But I'm just guessing. What kind of wood do you commonly split?
I have a maul and an splitting axe. I use the maul to break down the big rounds and the axe for the final splitting. You get used to mauls pretty quick
I thought the same thing before today, but I just found out that my axe is way more effective than my maul on splitting some big aspen rounds. There is one caveat though, the wood is green and real soft. The maul just gets stuck and does nothing, the axe opens up a crack and split the round after a 2-5 swings. With the maul I need like twice as many swings and it's heavier and I waste even more energy since it gets stuck real bad after every swing. Lesson learned, the maul is for hard stuff.
You can talk all day long about you're 4 1/2 to 5 lb splitting ax. When your in "Big wood" you definitely want a splitting maul. The Splitting AX is meant for smaller straight grained wood. There is a tool for every job, big or small. Great demonstration video.
The x27 is all I use in any size wood. I’ve split hundreds of cords and if something worked better than that I would be using it. He has almost 3 minutes in a half I split whole chunks that size in under 2 minutes. Maybe it isn’t so much the tool as it is who’s using it.
I have lived in the country and used firewood for heat most of my life. I'm 74. I have spit wood with a maul and have never used an axe. Note: mauls have a flat head on one side for use as a sledge hammer, which works well for wedging. I have a 6, 8 and 12 lb mauls. As I've gotten older, a lighter maul is easier to swing. youth is a terrible thing to waste! Here's a tip for splitting big rounds: work around the edges rather than splitting in half. Place round in old tire to keep wood from falling over. Lift maul head by sliding hand down to the head and lifting/tossing overhead while sliding hand down handle to meet other hand for power swing. Do not do a big "windmill" unless you want to waist energy.
Splitting maul all day long. I have an 8lb fiskar maul... when you have cords of rounds to splitt the maul is fantastic. I got used to the weight quickly. I am going to buy a small splitting axe for kindling and small pieces
It's an easy choice, if you're just splitting and you're a younger guy use a splitting maul, if you also do limbing and you need something that does both use an axe or maybe if you're an older guy or if the logs you're splitting aren't too big, using an 8lb splitting maul to split a branch is overkill. Also, sharpen your splitting maul, unless you're splitting a really hard wood, it should have gone through that log in a swing or two
This video has definitely convinced me to get a maul. Ive been using the fiskars splitting axe and its been great for splitting my grandmothers wood. However, I'm cutting pretty darn big pieces sometimes and though i get through them at some point with the normal splitting axe, it does take a while for some pieces. So I'll be getting a maul, thanks!
After being totally humiliated by elm yesterday, I was looking into buying a maul. My Fiskars just bounced off the elm or got stuck. Tomorrow I'm buying a maul. Thanks for the vid. btw, please look after your back. 0:27
I had a big white oak taken down in October. Got a good maul, and now have a massive pile of split firewood drying under my porch for next year. It's worth it. Even big sections, if you hit it consistently, it eventually splits. Good exercise, too
I have an 8 lb. Also, i have a couple of old splitting wedges. Get a sledge hammer. Hit it well several times and even large sections split in half. Good exercise and cheaper than renting a splitter@@Wizard-ys3vf
I do keep an actual 5lb splitting axe,but my 8lb maul does the bruntvof the work. Theres no way to split up bigger wood with any efficiency with an axe. I mostly burn red oak,maple,and cherry. Ill split up limbwood or small trees up to 12" with the axe,but any bigger im usin my maul
Personally I use my splitting maul when splitting 2x4s and such for my wood stove. The key feature is that it SPLITS the whole stick easily, and with minimum of effort. I don't even keep an axe near my wood stove. I bought my wood stove in 1987, and it's been my primary source of heat ever since. Mostly I use scrap wood easily available from neighboring small industrial outfits, such as a nearby lumber yard. Another key--- I use a wheelbarrow for moving wood around, including up my front step and into the living room near the wood stove. I feed the wood sto ve directly from the wheelbarrow.
Nice. Wood certainly does heat well. I built a fireplace heat exchanger for our home. It isn't as good as a wood stove, but it's a heck of a lot better than the fire place. It really heats the core of our home.
Actually, central heating systems provide FAR better heating for homes than the spot heating of a wood stove or fireplace insert. The primary advantage of my wood stove over my gas furnace is that I get the wood for nothing except the labor of collecting and processing it, and feeding the wood stove. That involves quite a bit of labor. However I'm a firebug and I enjoy tending a fire.
The big question in my memory my mind is what is the use of a sledghammer? Mauls are essentially sledgehammer with the perk of splitting large and heavy chunks of wood. What is the function of having two hammer heads? Safety?
I also have a maul as well as a fiskars X27 splitting axe. I mostly split red oak as that's what most readily available where i live. I'm in upper 60's. My go to default is the splitting axe. I find i can swing it much longer before I'm worn out or need to take a break. The typical rounds I'm splitting are 14-18 inches I'd guess. However, if i get into a particularly knotty round, I'll jump to the maul to bust through the really tough knots. Just my two cents worth based on my many years of splitting.
If you swing the x27 the same speed as the maul of course it won’t split as well, it looks like you’re swinging the x27 slower. I went away from a maul to a x27 and it does just as well.
@@waynejohnson9855 Not saying it's easier, just that it will inherently accelerate more due to having a higher density, resulting in a higher natural terminal velocity. Heavier the tool, the less energy you need to impart into it on the swing as it will generate more momentum naturally as well. Momentum = Mass*Velocity.
@@pickleman40 that is true and swinging at the same speed the heavier definitely will be better. If I could swing the 8 pound as fast as the 4.5 it would do far more. Almost double the weight will wear on you more also. The way he using it the 8 pounds works better for him.
Try a Fiskars x27 splitting axe,its 6.3lbs and you can generate some speed with it. I do about 3 cords a year. Splitting Elm ,Oak, and Pecan with it. These are 18"- 26" dia rounds. I have to say the way your were swinging the last axe was fairly unimpressive. It really skewed the comparison. Also choose your points of impact better. Popping that knot will only work you to death. They say wood warms you twice. Once when your proceesing it and the other time when your burning it.
I've chopped a lot of wood since I made this video and learned a lot in the process. I have an Adler Super Splitter now and it's great. I've found I prefer a wood handle. It's 6.2 lb. I agree it's much more manageable.
I have a fiskars maul and x27..and i can split that size with an x27 no issues..mostly i use x27 cause it doesnt get stucked in wood almost never..and its much better if u have lot of work done..overall splitin wood is a skill that takes time to master..im splitin since i was 13 and now im 36..
And what is the weight of the larger one? I've been thinking the same thing myself, but I'm wondering what to choose now, I don't want it to be heavier than I really need. The current splitting axe I'm using has the weight of 2.5 kg. And I'm feeling a lack of power when splitting 20+ cm logs.
@@raczyk You can hurt yourself. Well placed blows and gravity will do most of the work. I think it's better to start lighter than risk hurting yourself with something too heavy.
When you were using the axe, you were hitting right on top of a knot. That knot changed everything. If you had flipped it, or started from the other side, it would have been different. IMO, they both have their places. Maul is heavier, so it takes more effort to use it, but on the other hand, it takes shorter time to split. Splitting axe is thinner, so user can use it all day, without getting too tired, but it will take more whacks to get the same job done.
So if I swing faster and cut out a bunch of swings that’s saving energy braun when splitting wood works great. I got a video where I split rounds that size with a x27 in one minute.
You need to learn how to swi ng that axe. What you do is just set your axe (mall)on round.. i f your right handed just let the mall head fall to the right.. let it fall and make a big round swing kkinda behind you .. like around the world yo yo.as it comes around.use that gravity and you braun as its coming down you might be surprised. Kep that mall sharp.. also as it coming around i must move my hip to the left. . Learned rom railroad pounding spikes.
> That SOUNDS like you would lack control. It's rare that I would use that kind of swing. Mostly I need to apply far less force, and a less dramatic swing takes less effort with more control.
My uncles taught me to use the weight of the hammer head . To drive a nail not my arm strength. Hold the hammer loosely . Its in the wrist action . Throw the head weight down. Gravity and throwing the head weight combined does the trick. I have watched many "experienced" carpenters use their armstrength. People dont know there is a correct way to use a hammer. Youll get more out of a hammer this wau Just a bit of extra info that might help.. i can stack small rounds as high as i can . Split top then next and next .all the way down. Same i would set 12 rounds like a clock . Then go from one to the other like clockwork. Without a pause.. its just fun.
You're working too hard. Your swing is shortened when you put rounds up off the ground. You also have to bring all of your wood to the platform. I chop the wood where it lies. A little setting up is often necessary but setting large rounds on top of a stump is hard work. I like a 6 pound splitting maul. It's a little easier on you than an eight . It's sort of like an axe with a bit more power. i'll admit, sometimes an eight is called for but a six pounder is less tiring.
It's funny. In videos where I split on the ground, people complain and tell me I need to put it up on a block. I have a 6 pound splitting axe now and love it.
Yea, I mean I use an 8 lb maul and it literally just bounces off the seasoned oak I split. I have that Fiskars splitting axe too but wouldn't even bother trying to use that on larger pieces. That wood is so tuff that it even rejects wedges. Though I don't have an extra heavy sledge like you, which is probably key.
That would is so tough that splitting wedge that you're referring to that you think that's going to split the wood is not even going to do a dent You need something bigger than that
As a country man that grew up in Appalachian mtns, I had never seen anyone use an axe to split wood unless it was a Hollywood movie or tv show. Everyone used mauls here. I always use a maul. Mine isn't as big as yours, but does just fine. I couldn't imagine trying an axe. Axes are for cutting wood horizontally. Mauls are for splitting wood vertically. Always has been.
I'm Jamaican. I've never heard of wood splitting maul. We use aces and machetes to chop wood.
Why would you use a maul to split easy stuff.
Because it's a far more reliable way to split off wood, even for "easy" stuff. My axes mostly sit unused with my other tools for lack of work for them to do.
I'm supposing you meant an axe, not an ace.
And how do you use a machete for splitting wood. I can see using a machete for splitting for light duty, but for heavy splitting as illustrated in the video, I'd use a splitting maul.
As I imagine using a machete, I'd put it right in the wood where you want to split it, then move the wood and machete against something solid to drive the machete through the wood. That's what I often do with a splitting wedge when not much wood is involved. But I'm just guessing.
What kind of wood do you commonly split?
Sorry i meant to say mall
I have a maul and an splitting axe. I use the maul to break down the big rounds and the axe for the final splitting. You get used to mauls pretty quick
I thought the same thing before today, but I just found out that my axe is way more effective than my maul on splitting some big aspen rounds. There is one caveat though, the wood is green and real soft. The maul just gets stuck and does nothing, the axe opens up a crack and split the round after a 2-5 swings. With the maul I need like twice as many swings and it's heavier and I waste even more energy since it gets stuck real bad after every swing.
Lesson learned, the maul is for hard stuff.
You can talk all day long about you're 4 1/2 to 5 lb splitting ax. When your in "Big wood" you definitely want a splitting maul. The Splitting AX is meant for smaller straight grained wood. There is a tool for every job, big or small. Great demonstration video.
The x27 is all I use in any size wood. I’ve split hundreds of cords and if something worked better than that I would be using it. He has almost 3 minutes in a half I split whole chunks that size in under 2 minutes. Maybe it isn’t so much the tool as it is who’s using it.
I have lived in the country and used firewood for heat most of my life. I'm 74. I have spit wood with a maul and have never used an axe. Note: mauls have a flat head on one side for use as a sledge hammer, which works well for wedging. I have a 6, 8 and 12 lb mauls. As I've gotten older, a lighter maul is easier to swing. youth is a terrible thing to waste!
Here's a tip for splitting big rounds: work around the edges rather than splitting in half. Place round in old tire to keep wood from falling over. Lift maul head by sliding hand down to the head and lifting/tossing overhead while sliding hand down handle to meet other hand for power swing. Do not do a big "windmill" unless you want to waist energy.
Splitting maul all day long. I have an 8lb fiskar maul... when you have cords of rounds to splitt the maul is fantastic. I got used to the weight quickly. I am going to buy a small splitting axe for kindling and small pieces
I use the same maul, it works great
It's an easy choice, if you're just splitting and you're a younger guy use a splitting maul, if you also do limbing and you need something that does both use an axe or maybe if you're an older guy or if the logs you're splitting aren't too big, using an 8lb splitting maul to split a branch is overkill. Also, sharpen your splitting maul, unless you're splitting a really hard wood, it should have gone through that log in a swing or two
This video has definitely convinced me to get a maul. Ive been using the fiskars splitting axe and its been great for splitting my grandmothers wood. However, I'm cutting pretty darn big pieces sometimes and though i get through them at some point with the normal splitting axe, it does take a while for some pieces. So I'll be getting a maul, thanks!
After being totally humiliated by elm yesterday, I was looking into buying a maul. My Fiskars just bounced off the elm or got stuck. Tomorrow I'm buying a maul. Thanks for the vid. btw, please look after your back. 0:27
Sweet video my friend explained it well!
Great video man 👍🏻 convinced me to go get a splitting maul.
I had a big white oak taken down in October. Got a good maul, and now have a massive pile of split firewood drying under my porch for next year. It's worth it. Even big sections, if you hit it consistently, it eventually splits. Good exercise, too
Nice. This stuff was red oak, but I have a lot of white now, too.
What size do you recommend 6 or 8 pound mail ?
I have an 8 lb. Also, i have a couple of old splitting wedges. Get a sledge hammer. Hit it well several times and even large sections split in half. Good exercise and cheaper than renting a splitter@@Wizard-ys3vf
@@carsonyoung9965 thanks
got very tired watching this. very informative though. glad I tuned in. Thanks
Looks quite heavy! The splitting axe!! I have both and find them useful!
I agree. The maul is heavy! The splitting axe is light and fun. This video helped me justify having both to my wife. 😜
THANK YOU. I looked up a question and you answered it in no time flat. Now I know 🎉
Very helpful, thank you
i split 14 cords a year for 37 years with a 6 lb maul then my brother in law gave me an ancient gas hydraulic splitter and life is good.
Ah, but which is better exercise and for your actual ❤
Good choice in shirt and straight forward video
I do keep an actual 5lb splitting axe,but my 8lb maul does the bruntvof the work. Theres no way to split up bigger wood with any efficiency with an axe. I mostly burn red oak,maple,and cherry. Ill split up limbwood or small trees up to 12" with the axe,but any bigger im usin my maul
I’ve been using a wedge and 16 lb sledge for a lot of gnarly stuff this week
Mauls are much more satisfying. You feel like Thor swinging Mjolnir.
Personally I use my splitting maul when splitting 2x4s and such for my wood stove. The key feature is that it SPLITS the whole stick easily, and with minimum of effort. I don't even keep an axe near my wood stove.
I bought my wood stove in 1987, and it's been my primary source of heat ever since. Mostly I use scrap wood easily available from neighboring small industrial outfits, such as a nearby lumber yard.
Another key--- I use a wheelbarrow for moving wood around, including up my front step and into the living room near the wood stove. I feed the wood sto ve directly from the wheelbarrow.
Nice. Wood certainly does heat well. I built a fireplace heat exchanger for our home. It isn't as good as a wood stove, but it's a heck of a lot better than the fire place. It really heats the core of our home.
Actually, central heating systems provide FAR better heating for homes than the spot heating of a wood stove or fireplace insert.
The primary advantage of my wood stove over my gas furnace is that I get the wood for nothing except the labor of collecting and processing it, and feeding the wood stove. That involves quite a bit of labor.
However I'm a firebug and I enjoy tending a fire.
Great video.. I use the maul to split large pieces then use the axe to split the smaller pieces
The big question in my memory my mind is what is the use of a sledghammer? Mauls are essentially sledgehammer with the perk of splitting large and heavy chunks of wood. What is the function of having two hammer heads? Safety?
I also have a maul as well as a fiskars X27 splitting axe. I mostly split red oak as that's what most readily available where i live. I'm in upper 60's. My go to default is the splitting axe. I find i can swing it much longer before I'm worn out or need to take a break. The typical rounds I'm splitting are 14-18 inches I'd guess. However, if i get into a particularly knotty round, I'll jump to the maul to bust through the really tough knots. Just my two cents worth based on my many years of splitting.
I have a new splitting axe I really like for those smaller rounds. Still need the maul for the really big ones. I split a lot of red oak, too.
If you swing the x27 the same speed as the maul of course it won’t split as well, it looks like you’re swinging the x27 slower. I went away from a maul to a x27 and it does just as well.
the maul's weight basically swings itself
@@pickleman40 with that thinking you should use a 20 pound maul.
@@waynejohnson9855 Not saying it's easier, just that it will inherently accelerate more due to having a higher density, resulting in a higher natural terminal velocity.
Heavier the tool, the less energy you need to impart into it on the swing as it will generate more momentum naturally as well.
Momentum = Mass*Velocity.
@@pickleman40 that is true and swinging at the same speed the heavier definitely will be better. If I could swing the 8 pound as fast as the 4.5 it would do far more. Almost double the weight will wear on you more also. The way he using it the 8 pounds works better for him.
Try a Fiskars x27 splitting axe,its 6.3lbs and you can generate some speed with it. I do about 3 cords a year. Splitting Elm ,Oak, and Pecan with it. These are 18"- 26" dia rounds. I have to say the way your were swinging the last axe was fairly unimpressive. It really skewed the comparison. Also choose your points of impact better. Popping that knot will only work you to death. They say wood warms you twice. Once when your proceesing it and the other time when your burning it.
I've chopped a lot of wood since I made this video and learned a lot in the process.
I have an Adler Super Splitter now and it's great. I've found I prefer a wood handle. It's 6.2 lb. I agree it's much more manageable.
Yup, cut then burn. Former gives you "healthy" excercise; the later to sit back and enjoy some cold ones! Canada 🍁🍻🍻🍻🍻🍻🍻
The axe he's using is the fiskars super splitter 36 inch I think. Same thing as the x27 just plain handle without the orange rubber of x27
@@calvinrondeau8505it's a 28" handle, 2.5 pound head, boys splitting axe.
I have a fiskars maul and x27..and i can split that size with an x27 no issues..mostly i use x27 cause it doesnt get stucked in wood almost never..and its much better if u have lot of work done..overall splitin wood is a skill that takes time to master..im splitin since i was 13 and now im 36..
And what is the weight of the larger one? I've been thinking the same thing myself, but I'm wondering what to choose now, I don't want it to be heavier than I really need. The current splitting axe I'm using has the weight of 2.5 kg. And I'm feeling a lack of power when splitting 20+ cm logs.
The maul is 8lb, which is about 3.6K. I currently prefer my 6lb splitting axe, which is a tiny bit heavier than what you have.
I'm 5'10" and 150 lbs what size maul is best for splittinig? 8 lbs?
8 lb will split most things. I’m shorter and smaller and can handle it, so you should be fine.
@@appalachianwoodhomestead Is heavier better? Is 8 lbs the starting minimum, what about 10 lbs maul, etc.
@@raczyk You can hurt yourself. Well placed blows and gravity will do most of the work. I think it's better to start lighter than risk hurting yourself with something too heavy.
@@appalachianwoodhomesteadokay, I'll give an 8 lbs maul a go. Do you add force to the strike, or let gravity do most of the work?
A Maul in English Rugby is akin to crowd sourcing to get the ball , a spliiting maul is when you trip the bastards up :-)
Which maul are you using?
Connor
Who taught you how to split wood I can split it with that axe with no issues
Hell yeah that maul did the job that 👍👍
It would help if you could hit the same spot more than once
You use the hammer end of the maul if you need to use a wedge also anything with knots an axe probably wouldnt be much use
Where the heck is the haul video?!!?! 😂
When you were using the axe, you were hitting right on top of a knot. That knot changed everything. If you had flipped it, or started from the other side, it would have been different. IMO, they both have their places. Maul is heavier, so it takes more effort to use it, but on the other hand, it takes shorter time to split. Splitting axe is thinner, so user can use it all day, without getting too tired, but it will take more whacks to get the same job done.
Good observations.
Fiskars has 3 splitting axes and I believe he was using the smallest one. It would be great for small and medium pieces.
Braun doesnt matter that much. Plus you use more energy. Power swinging. Id liketo know if this helps anyone.
So if I swing faster and cut out a bunch of swings that’s saving energy braun when splitting wood works great. I got a video where I split rounds that size with a x27 in one minute.
I’m a fan of mauls, never used a splitting axe. But you swing like a nance. Especially with that little axe.
Don't bring a knife to a gun fight.
At least you know how to swing a axe a lot of videos showing how to use an axe and the person demonstrating haven’t a clue how to swing an axe.
8 pound maul vs 2.5 pound boys splitting axe. Hmmmm???
You need to learn how to swi ng that axe. What you do is just set your axe (mall)on round.. i f your right handed just let the mall head fall to the right.. let it fall and make a big round swing kkinda behind you .. like around the world yo yo.as it comes around.use that gravity and you braun as its coming down you might be surprised. Kep that mall sharp.. also as it coming around i must move my hip to the left. . Learned rom railroad pounding spikes.
>
That SOUNDS like you would lack control.
It's rare that I would use that kind of swing. Mostly I need to apply far less force, and a less dramatic swing takes less effort with more control.
My uncles taught me to use the weight of the hammer head . To drive a nail not my arm strength. Hold the hammer loosely . Its in the wrist action . Throw the head weight down. Gravity and throwing the head weight combined does the trick. I have watched many "experienced" carpenters use their armstrength. People dont know there is a correct way to use a hammer. Youll get more out of a hammer this wau Just a bit of extra info that might help.. i can stack small rounds as high as i can . Split top then next and next .all the way down. Same i would set 12 rounds like a clock . Then go from one to the other like clockwork. Without a pause.. its just fun.
You're working too hard. Your swing is shortened when you put rounds up off the ground. You also have to bring all of your wood to the platform. I chop the wood where it lies. A little setting up is often necessary but setting large rounds on top of a stump is hard work. I like a 6 pound splitting maul. It's a little easier on you than an eight . It's sort of like an axe with a bit more power. i'll admit, sometimes an eight is called for but a six pounder is less tiring.
It's funny. In videos where I split on the ground, people complain and tell me I need to put it up on a block. I have a 6 pound splitting axe now and love it.
@@appalachianwoodhomesteadis it the Fiskars ?
Fiskars X27 all day...
Not to criticize but if you swing straight down your aim is typically improved.
Only has one use? Larry Gapen would disagree.
Yes
Yea, I mean I use an 8 lb maul and it literally just bounces off the seasoned oak I split. I have that Fiskars splitting axe too but wouldn't even bother trying to use that on larger pieces. That wood is so tuff that it even rejects wedges. Though I don't have an extra heavy sledge like you, which is probably key.
Not even with the sledgehammer is not going to work need something heavier than that
That would is so tough that splitting wedge that you're referring to that you think that's going to split the wood is not even going to do a dent You need something bigger than that