Teaching a teen splitting with a maul

[woodchuck357]

Yesterday I was working with a neighbor kid, a fairly well muscled 15 year old, splitting some hackberry. Not the easiest wood to split but not the hardest either. He started out splitting with a six pound maul with a 28 inch handle and was having a little trouble. I let him use one of my six pound mauls that had a 40 inch handle and he was doing better. I'm not sure how much extra speed the longer handle gives the head but it sure makes a difference.
I kept encouraging him to strike thru the round not at the top. Aim at the bottom of the round thru the place you need to hit for the best split. But he just didn't seem to get it.
We were splitting on the ground with the rounds inside of a couple of stacked tires. I could tell he was still holding back, not hitting with as much speed and force as he was capable of. So I cut a 4 inch thick slice off a very knotty round and put it under his rounds, not raising it enough to change much but it made a whale of a lot of difference in his splitting. He was able to strike thru the wood because he knew now that the maul wouldn't hit dirt with the slice setting under the round. After a while and he realizes the maul never gets more than half way thru the round we will go back to setting the rounds on the dirt.

 

[CTYank]

Lots of things are labeled "mauls" from el-cheapo bludgeons to efficient splitting tools. Chubby cheeks generally accompany dull edge, and make you do lots more work. IOW, it's not all about head weight and handle length. And ... good luck finding a real maul at a corner hardware or big-box store. (Search for Council Tools, Wetterlings. and such.) IMO 32-36" handles work fine.

I've found out that a hefty block of wood under the round being split helps to keep the sharp edge (see above) out of rocks & dirt, and helps transfer more of the energy into splitting work. Even a 2' diam round of pine a foot or more long does nicely. You'd NEVER get a chance to use a maul of mine in the dirt. Ever.

With practice, you might hit a round at the far edge, then the near edge, then finish the job in the middle.

On his first day with a maul, #1 son had some accuracy challenges. He ended up turning the handle into hickory kindling from over-striking. From then on, no problems with the handles, though he did turn some rounds into kindling until he learned how to hit a split line he'd already started. Not knowing any better, I'd gotten him a 5 lb bludgeon. My bad.

 

[woodchuck357]

Lots of things are labeled "mauls" from el-cheapo bludgeons to efficient splitting tools. Chubby cheeks generally accompany dull edge, and make you do lots more work. IOW, it's not all about head weight and handle length. And ... good luck finding a real maul at a corner hardware or big-box store. (Search for Council Tools, Wetterlings. and such.) IMO 32-36" handles work fine.

I've found out that a hefty block of wood under the round being split helps to keep the sharp edge (see above) out of rocks & dirt, and helps transfer more of the energy into splitting work. Even a 2' diam round of pine a foot or more long does nicely. You'd NEVER get a chance to use a maul of mine in the dirt. Ever.

With practice, you might hit a round at the far edge, then the near edge, then finish the job in the middle.

On his first day with a maul, #1 son had some accuracy challenges. He ended up turning the handle into hickory kindling from over-striking. From then on, no problems with the handles, though he did turn some rounds into kindling until he learned how to hit a split line he'd already started. Not knowing any better, I'd gotten him a 5 lb bludgeon. My bad.

A block of wood under a round acts as cushion, IF one helps cut 3 or 4 and stack them up that would increase the benefits! The cushion effect is minimal and unimportant, true, but it is there. The block under the round just gives the splitter the confidence to hit harder.
I am sure I can make any maul that doesn't have concave cheeks split well with a little grinding and polishing. And maybe a longer handle! A little welding before the grinding and polishing could maybe fix one with concave cheeks, but I have never tried it.
I some times show off splitting rounds that are setting on a piece of a thick foam mattress. The maul transmits it's energy to the wood without moving the round hardly at all.
In my younger days, when I was faster and better coordinated, my cousins and I would toss a round for the other to split with a double bit ax while it was in the air!

 

[CTYank]

IMO, a block of wood will never be confused with a cushion. It's more like an anvil. Try hammering a piece of steel on the ground and then on an anvil, and it'll be crystal clear what the physical principle is that I'm talking about. OTOH, bare dirt is a pretty good cushion. It's all about conversion of kinetic energy to work. Diverting and storing any of that in a spring (mattress) or in tamping dirt? No, thanks.

To me, the big confidence factor is that I'm not being jacked around, but getting it done with max mechanical efficiency. Waste sux.

My mauls work just fine with an edge on, and flat shiny cheeks.

 

[woodchuck357]

Except for height, an anvil would work just as well setting on the ground as on a block of wood!
Wonder what the block under the block is setting on.

 

[turnkey4099]

IMO, a block of wood will never be confused with a cushion. It's more like an anvil. Try hammering a piece of steel on the ground and then on an anvil, and it'll be crystal clear what the physical principle is that I'm talking about. OTOH, bare dirt is a pretty good cushion. It's all about conversion of kinetic energy to work. Diverting and storing any of that in a spring (mattress) or in tamping dirt? No, thanks.

To me, the big confidence factor is that I'm not being jacked around, but getting it done with max mechanical efficiency. Waste sux.

My mauls work just fine with an edge on, and flat shiny cheeks.

Yes! A round on dirt has some 'give', on a block it doesn't. That 'give' robs splitting force.

Harry K

 

[brenndatomu]

Yeah, I gotta agree with the others woodchuck. I have tried splitting directly on the dirt, it's much more difficult than splitting on a block. Of course my block is usually bigger in diameter than what I'm splitting, so there is an advantage there, with the footprint of the block being spread out over a larger area, less PSI on the ground, less give. Plus it helps make the geometry of your swing more correct. Having the round on the ground makes it so your arc is starting to come back at you. I don't like having my Fiskars land by my toes when I swing through the round! But I'm kinda tall, so that makes a block work out that much better...

 

[zogger]

For me as a young guy, not a teen, but 20s, it was motivation. Ain't nothing like knowing you better get on it with the bowsaw and axe or you will be freezing plus not cooking any food.

When you don't have modern switches to flick to heat and cook..you learn real dang fast how to take larger pieces of wood and turn them somehow into ones small enough to fit in the stove.

 

[unclemoustache]

I always split my wood on a big round, not more than 12" high. Seems to be the perfect height.

 

[El Quachito]

I'd give the kid time. I started in the woodpile when I was 5-years-old. So long as his maul is not super blunt he should catch on. There's lots of nuances to it, but its too hard to type to type it all up. lol

 

[stihly dan]

Is it even possible to teach a teen anything?

 

[ppkgmsy]

For what it's worth, my experience working with young people is that things work best when kept simple. Provide the basic information, then sit back and wait for questions. A motivated learner is someone who will actually do what you tell them.

 

[mallardman]

I always split on my concrete patio. There's a lot less give than splitting on dirt or grass. It just takes some practice so you don't ground it.

 

[HuskStihl]

Got to learn to let the weight of the instrument do the work. Smooth arc, sharp edge, accurate strike. Trying to be a muscle man just wears you out

 

[stihl sawing]

I always split on my concrete patio. There's a lot less give than splitting on dirt or grass. It just takes some practice so you don't ground it.

Ok I have to ask, You split wood with a maul on a concrete slab? And you never hit the concrete after the maul goes through the wood. I'm gonna need a video of this.

 

[Marine5068]

I use my wood splitter mostly, but when I do use one of my mauls or axes, the rounds are always placed up on a 24" diameter x 12" tall flat Maple chopping block.
It makes my swing better by striking the rounds more square.
I'm six feet tall, 255lbs and can't seem to hit 16" tall rounds on ground with the right angle or force.
It's easier, safer and keeps my axes and mauls sharp. I grind (if needed) then hand-sharpen with an axe stone.
Make sure you're always wearing your PPE (personal protective equipment) when using tools.

 

[woodchuck357]

Ok I have to ask, You split wood with a maul on a concrete slab? And you never hit the concrete after the maul goes through the wood. I'm gonna need a video of this.

Splitting with the wood inside stacked tires keeps the maul from going all the way thru the rounds. I suppose you could hit the ground (or concrete) if you intentionally tried just to do that, but it will never happen just splitting.

 

[stihl sawing]

Splitting with the wood inside stacked tires keeps the maul from going all the way thru the rounds. I suppose you could hit the ground (or concrete) if you intentionally tried just to do that, but it will never happen just splitting.

He never mentioned no tires, besides stacking a bunch of tires on each round is just adding to the work. set them up on the ground and pound em... nah use the hydro splitter.lol

 

[zogger]

He never mentioned no tires, besides stacking a bunch of tires on each round is just adding to the work. set them up on the ground and pound em... nah use the hydro splitter.lol

Nah, use your 49,000 dollar slicer and dicer! Well, 49 grand plus import fees from new zealand..

"Look how much money we are saving on the heating bill, honey"!

I'm sticking to cutting lotsa smalls and right into the stack. That ain't "brush" that needs to be "dealt with", that's no splitting required firewood!

 

[woodchuck357]

The boy showed up just after lunch today with a 6 pound maul with a short handle he had just bought at a local flea market for three bucks. It was a decent shaped head (guess he listened when I described features I think are important) and in a little while we had fitted it up with one of my hand made hafts. Then I showed him how to grind and polish the cheeks. He did a good job with just a little help.
He had already finished splitting his hackberry and returned my maul, so he is trying his new tool out on some of my white oak from a take down I did last week.
He has expressed some interest in learning to give the little flip that helps pop splits apart. If he is still at it when I get rehydrated, I'll have to explain that's something that can't be taught. He has watched me do it so all that can be done is work at trying to get the timing right.