Best Budget Axe for Splitting??????

[nick 55]

I have got to agree with the folks advising to get a Fiskars. Whether you get the X25 or X27, you can't go wrong. I just got one for Christmas, and even in real knotty shagbark hickory and oak rounds that were 18-24" in diameter, I was beyond impressed. It may have stopped short in the wood a couple times, but the thinner head and the coating on of made it very easy to pull out. Before you spend $50 trying to find a combination of tools, buy a Fiskars and try it out. I really don't think you will be disappointed with it. It is very sharp and much lighter than a regular maul so there is some practice needed, but in 10 minutes I had a great process in place. Buying this $40-50 tool is far cheaper than a power splitter and personally, I feel the time and energy saved by not swinging a 6-8lb maul makes the cost worth it.

Nick

 

[HeRoze]

I have got to agree with the folks advising to get a Fiskars. Whether you get the X25 or X27, you can't go wrong. I just got one for Christmas, and even in real knotty shagbark hickory and oak rounds that were 18-24" in diameter, I was beyond impressed. It may have stopped short in the wood a couple times, but the thinner head and the coating on of made it very easy to pull out. Before you spend $50 trying to find a combination of tools, buy a Fiskars and try it out. I really don't think you will be disappointed with it. It is very sharp and much lighter than a regular maul so there is some practice needed, but in 10 minutes I had a great process in place. Buying this $40-50 tool is far cheaper than a power splitter and personally, I feel the time and energy saved by not swinging a 6-8lb maul makes the cost worth it.

Nick

yup... hard to believe until you try it. 18" pecan... took a few whacks to get it going, but once started the fiskers splits so fast it exaggerates the weakest link in the process - the operator (me)

 

[HeRoze]

from AKKAMAAN - we had some friendly debates on the old v/ new design.

You can do everything in this vid with a heavier, more cumbersome tool, but why would you? Around 2:15 you get a glimpse of the man himself... he past his 20th BD a few years ago, and isn't a giant. the wood being split and the stack behind him though...

[video=youtube;WoAOYLMU1Wc]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WoAOYLMU1Wc[/video]

 

[stihlrookie]

6# maul, can't go wrong with a hickory handle IMO. I split circles around everybody I know with this setup.

 

[jropo]

Back to the topic at hand.....

For me an axe has too narrow a profile and would get stuck in the 18"-24" hardwood that I split. I have used a Sotz Monster Maul exclusively for the past 30 years and I find that it simply overpowers the wood. Now that I am getting older I regret not getting the "ladies" model that weighed about 8 pounds before they went out of business.

The Sotz is the worn orange one on the left. The red one I picked up at an auction for $10 and does not split nearly as well as the Sotz even though it is a pound heavier. The head seems to "roll" to the side as I bring it down on the round.

As I get older I am tempted to try a Fiskars, I think it would be a bit faster once the round is busted open.



I was cutting wood at my mother's last spring and forgot my Sotz and discovered one of those things in her garage that my brother had bought years ago. I used it on about a half dozen rounds and then the tab holding one of the "wings" broke off, rendering it useless.

My neighbor had one of those, I tried once, swung it like a regular maul, the head kicked side ways and I almost had to go chase it down. Once he showed me how to use it, I could see that this would be really handy to have around, and this is what most people split w/ around here.

 

[jropo]

from AKKAMAAN - we had some friendly debates on the old v/ new design.

You can do everything in this vid with a heavier, more cumbersome tool, but why would you? Around 2:15 you get a glimpse of the man himself... he past his 20th BD a few years ago, and isn't a giant. the wood being split and the stack behind him though...

[video=youtube;WoAOYLMU1Wc]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WoAOYLMU1Wc[/video]

That was one of the vid's that I watched before I got the X-27.

 

[jropo]

[video=youtube_share;4P-23KnkfQ0]http://youtu.be/4P-23KnkfQ0[/video]



[video=youtube_share;HsateUTtbwk]http://youtu.be/HsateUTtbwk[/video]



These on Bailey's really sold it to me! Great marketing on Fiskars ,but if you have a good product its not that hard to sell sometomes.

 

[jropo]

One product sells the others because now I want the X-25, X-7, and the crazy Machetty(?) now.

 

[flhusa1]

they did not test it against the monster maul in the bailey video.the wood i see being split with the fiskars is short rounds. try it on hickory or oak logs 24" long.use whatever you feel comfortable and safe with. i almost gave up on the monster maul until i got the hang of it.now my old maul is rusting. i use the hammer head for wedges sometimes. good straight logs can be split with a regular axe and no fiskars cant split what my 35 ton splitter can. i could split your fiskars with my 35 ton.really tough logs you have to slab off along the outside and keep working in till you can split the center part. i have been splitting by hand for 25 years and i would go against anybody. it helps being 6'4" and at one time i weighed 320 pounds. now i weigh 235 but can still split faster than any machine. face it splitting by hand is a good workout no matter how you do it.

 

[kamikaze]

One product sells the others because now I want the X-25, X-7, and the crazy Machetty(?) now.

The Machete is a SOG, u wont be dissappointed, all of their stuff is top quality

 

[jropo]

they did not test it against the monster maul in the bailey video.the wood i see being split with the fiskars is short rounds. try it on hickory or oak logs 24" long.use whatever you feel comfortable and safe with. i almost gave up on the monster maul until i got the hang of it.now my old maul is rusting. i use the hammer head for wedges sometimes. good straight logs can be split with a regular axe and no fiskars cant split what my 35 ton splitter can. i could split your fiskars with my 35 ton.really tough logs you have to slab off along the outside and keep working in till you can split the center part. i have been splitting by hand for 25 years and i would go against anybody. it helps being 6'4" and at one time i weighed 320 pounds. now i weigh 235 but can still split faster than any machine. face it splitting by hand is a good workout no matter how you do it.

You are right! They did not! I wish and was waiting for one in the video! Probally because thats a whole different class of splitter!
Kinda like a Big Detroit Diesel vs 1000 RR!!
LOL That would be another good test of it's claim to indesructable!!!! And you'd be a fav. for the na sayers!!!!
At your size why even use a maul!!! Can't ya just rip them open? One good Karate chop should do it! :hmm3grin2orange:
And yes it is, and some of use depend on or chores as our gym.

I don't cut wood that small my self matter of fact I hate wood that size in my stack. I have to put it on the top our the whole this falls over.
But if you sell wood thats the recommended lenth of cord wood. I split that stuff for fun w/ my 3.5 ax for fun.

I also watched this before the purchase. X-25 the X-27's lil bro.


[video=youtube_share;TYOnM3JuW_o]http://youtu.be/TYOnM3JuW_o[/video]

 

[kamikaze]

I wanna know where you sign up to be the guy that gets to test stuff like this out.... i wouldnt even expect to be paid just give me the axe let me use it and write a review

 

[jropo]

After a removal 150yrd. of a fence row that I did for a client, cutting 3ft. spars for his ODWS, it stunk when I cut some for myself @ 18-20''. Now I'm not really looking forward to going back to cutting 12-16'' cord wood this week.
And I will NEVER cut 6-8'' potbelly wood Again, if so you wil not like my prices!!!!

 

[jropo]

I wanna know where you sign up to be the guy that gets to test stuff like this out.... i wouldnt even expect to be paid just give me the axe let me use it and write a review

You gotta work there! And be the bosses cousin!!!
Besides isn't that what we are doing? :hmm3grin2orange:

I know what a job! I'd like to do it. I like testing things durability!!!!!!

 

[howellhandmade]

Just like to add a +1 to the poster who said to find an old head at a flea market and hang a new handle on it. If you don't go with a Fiskars, that is. A couple of weeks ago I was quartering some big rounds with a wedge and maul across the street from my house where a tree crew had dropped an oak and a maple. Just as my wife came home, the head flew off my maul. Fiberglass handle, didn't have a backup or time to do anything about it so I asked her to run down to the Ace five blocks away and get me a 6lb. maul. She came back with a Collins Axe maul that has a very nice wooden handle, swings well and makes a decent sledge, but the splitting end is so thick and blunt you might as well hit the round with the hammer face. My old 6lb. head is much thinner -- doesn't work as well as a Fiskars but at least it works. I've looked closely at mauls in stores since and I think they're all useless. $30 for a hardware store maul may seem cheaper than $50 for a Fiskars but if it's anything like the one I just got it's false economy.

 

[zogger]

You are right! They did not! I wish and was waiting for one in the video! Probally because thats a whole different class of splitter!
Kinda like a Big Detroit Diesel vs 1000 RR!!
LOL That would be another good test of it's claim to indesructable!!!! And you'd be a fav. for the na sayers!!!!
At your size why even use a maul!!! Can't ya just rip them open? One good Karate chop should do it! :hmm3grin2orange:
And yes it is, and some of use depend on or chores as our gym.

I don't cut wood that small my self matter of fact I hate wood that size in my stack. I have to put it on the top our the whole this falls over.
But if you sell wood thats the recommended lenth of cord wood. I split that stuff for fun w/ my 3.5 ax for fun.

I also watched this before the purchase. X-25 the X-27's lil bro.

Pretty good. I think he would have done it faster with less swings by stepping up on a one foot block. He left a ton of force in the swing by hitting high like that.

 

[jropo]

Pretty good. I think he would have done it faster with less swings by stepping up on a one foot block. He left a ton of force in the swing by hitting high like that.

Your right!
I just like the fact that is was the short 28'' ax type and Black Locust is no joke from what I hear.

 

[HeRoze]

.... haven't tried it, got hit in the shin by it, have an emotional attachment to something else ....

I'll maybe try something else when the fiskars doesn't do the job for me anymore. if something else works for you, use it and enjoy it! the fiskars ain't just hype though.

 

[Net-Knight1]

Here is a good idea for splitting firewood...

[video=youtube;2jg0PT24BmY]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2jg0PT24BmY[/video]

 

[jropo]

Very effective, But I like to watch mine Flyyyyyyyyyy.
I like his wood storage spot!