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New axe design uses lever action to make splitting wood easier

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Re: New axe design uses lever action to make splitting wood easier

#111

Post by ggchappell »

wmil wrote: post #51
jobu wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It amazes me when someone makes improvements to a job as old as splitting wood. Millions (billions?) of people have been doing it for thousands of years, and there's still room for improvement.

This is really a specialty tool. Normal axes were also used to fell trees, demolish wood structures, and occasionally personal defense. I'm guess that it's less useful if you're chopping against the grain or if you want precision.

True. It's also worth nothing that axes intended as weapons are also very specialized. Indeed, there are multiple types, depending on just how you want to kill people with your axe.

Re: New axe design uses lever action to make splitting wood easier

#112

Post by ggchappell »

This is an interesting idea. It's amazing to think that a tool like the axe -- which has been around for millennia -- can still be improved.

[OTOH, I've split a fair amount of wood. And I'd have to say that anyone who thinks splitting wood with an axe is a good way to produce fuel for the primary heat source for a house, is pretty much insane. It's exhausting work. Get a powered splitter for goodness sake. :-) ]

Re: New axe design uses lever action to make splitting wood easier

#113

Post by ricardobeat »

ISL wrote: post #65

This axe isn't the only one that can deliver such a video. Good wood and a proper splitting axe allows similar results. The tire trick, or a bungee cord, can allow big gains in speed. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gvuibTcEdmg

That is quick, but still the axe gets lodged in the wood at least four times in that video.

Re: New axe design uses lever action to make splitting wood easier

#114

Post by dfc »

maxerickson wrote: post #97
dfc wrote: post #89

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wonder if this is a European thing? Most of the places I have hiked/camped in America allow fires. What do you do for heat and beast repellent? There is a neat rule in some Scandinavian countries (I think it is more than one country but I forget the name of the rule so I cant look it up) that ensures people's right to hike across private property. I can imagine that a prohibition on fires would come in handy.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_to_roam edit: It isn't the same, but in Michigan, all navigable water is a public right of way. I would assume similar rules exist in other states.

There was a neat corner case with easements/rights-of-way and water from property class that I would constantly screw up in hypos. I obviously bombed it on the final but whenever I hear it I always think it is interesting. I think it is something to do with waterfront access to property that is otherwise inaccessible.

Re: New axe design uses lever action to make splitting wood easier

#115

Post by HeyLaughingBoy »

awor wrote: post #99
dhughes wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It also easier to spit wood when it's cold out -10C to -20C it seems to crack better. I used to hate fall as a kid when wood splitting season began. Pneumatic splitters are great but slow. You learn to hate hard wood when splitting but it's great to burn. An old joke: I was 10 years-old before I learned my name wasn't "Get wood!"

I use a Fiskar X27[0] splitting axe and swinging that into a 12" round log of white birch or white spruce at -30C to -45C is like cutting through butter. [0] http://www2.fiskars.com/Gardening-and-Yard-Care/Products/Axe...

Yeah, but that's cheating. Anything goes through white birch like butter.

Re: New axe design uses lever action to make splitting wood easier

#116

Post by HeyLaughingBoy »

misterjangles wrote: post #107
linhat wrote: post #34

This axe looks really awesome, physics for the win. Also, instead of using an old rubber tire, I highly recommend building a variable length, tensioning chain, much like this one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wrLiSMQGHvY Makes chopping wood so much more fun. And then, there is also the stikkan: http://www.stikkan.com/ Perfect to hang it up next to your fireplace to do some more fine grained wood chopping, cutting l…

It looks interesting. I have to wonder if the sideways action of this ax is tough on the wrists? I know with a regular axe when you get a bad hit and the ax goes sideways, it's very unsatisfying - not to mention slightly jarring to the wrists and arms.

Try to relax just before impact.

I use a maul (about 5lb head) to split wood (mostly elm since a neighbor cut down dozens of elm trees in the attempt to stop Dutch Elm disease from propagating) and the best motion I know of is to lift it straight overhead with hands spread wide. Then accelerate it downward while sliding the hand closer to the blade down to the base. Focus on coming down in a line through the center of your body. At the moment of impact, both hands are close together and your grip is just tight enough to hold onto the maul, with arms and shoulders relaxed.

It substantially reduces stress on your body and you still maintain good control. Feels like a Kendo "shomen uchi" strike.

Re: New axe design uses lever action to make splitting wood easier

#117

Post by tcdent »

jobu wrote: post #42
linhat wrote: post #34

This axe looks really awesome, physics for the win. Also, instead of using an old rubber tire, I highly recommend building a variable length, tensioning chain, much like this one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wrLiSMQGHvY Makes chopping wood so much more fun. And then, there is also the stikkan: http://www.stikkan.com/ Perfect to hang it up next to your fireplace to do some more fine grained wood chopping, cutting l…

It amazes me when someone makes improvements to a job as old as splitting wood. Millions (billions?) of people have been doing it for thousands of years, and there's still room for improvement.

This isn't actually a new improvement, just a 'hardware' implementation of a really old technique. You can get the twisting action with any normal axe, even if you're a barefoot girl:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7fWo0P0MdJM

Re: New axe design uses lever action to make splitting wood easier

#119

Post by darkarmani »

bprater wrote: post #8

Knotted wood is much more challenging to split. Even with a hydraulic splitter, chunks of wood with lots of branches can stall a machine pressing with tons of force. Great demo, but unrealistic unless you only chop beautiful limbless tall oaks.

> Knotted wood is much more challenging to split.

Isn't that true for a traditional axe as well? Splitting is the dark is harder as well as splitting in the rain.

Re: New axe design uses lever action to make splitting wood easier

#120

Post by Avshalom »

tcdent wrote: post #117
jobu wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It amazes me when someone makes improvements to a job as old as splitting wood. Millions (billions?) of people have been doing it for thousands of years, and there's still room for improvement.

This isn't actually a new improvement, just a 'hardware' implementation of a really old technique. You can get the twisting action with any normal axe, even if you're a barefoot girl: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7fWo0P0MdJM

... you just linked to some one's pornography didn't you.
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