Wedges!

[Sagetown]

Have not tried them. Seen several brands/versions.

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Philbert

I'm not so sure those would work on this hardwood we have down here. Just getting a regular wedge to do a half-way decent job is a chore. I use my Dad's old wedge with a thin edge as a template so to speak to tweak my new USA made wedge. I think these new ones are made fat and blunt on purpose.
I like the idea of Painting the non-contact sides of the wedges. Will paint them up with yellow or light green. I'm color blind, and red and orange is like camo to me. Just the other day, mine shot off the round , and disappeared into the leaves. Took awhile, but I found it.

 

[Philbert]

I'm color blind, and red and orange is like camo to me.

+1

I painted mine just to reduce the likelihood of rusting in storage. Used whatever spray paint I had, or matched the original black. Hi-Viz paint is a good idea.

Philbert

 

[jerrycmorrow]

can still find good wedges in flea markets and garage sales. I tap mine into a round and paint the whole thing with bright orange or bright green paint. if I can't overcome a little bit of stickiness on the contact sides then I need to hang it up; plus, that paint wears off pretty quickly anyways.

 

[hardpan]

Maybe

these? Don't know.

They basically take a flat wedge and twist it. Some of the big name, expensive companies offer these things. Expensive but if a guy had a way to heat a common wedge to glow orange and then twist it? Maybe it is just like trying to re-invent the shirt pocket and then charge 4x the price. Google "spiral wedges".

 

[Philbert]

Maybe these? Don't know. They basically take a flat wedge and twist it

A wedge is one of the '6 simple tools'. Adding a sharper edge for easier entry makes sense. The different tapers (making them 'double bevel', triple bevel', etc.) or twists added seem to be an attempt to
'get something extra' - which we learn, always comes with some type of trade-off or cost.

A narrow/acute angle wedge will penetrate with less force, but has to be driven deeper to split the wood (all other things equal), and may get stuck. A wider/obtuse angle may split the wood faster, but has to be driven in with more force, and may have a tendency to pop out. A twisting wedge will focus more of it's energy on it's edges, rather than spreading it out across more of the wood fibers.

Screw type splitters (another simple machine) also break rounds apart, but make a mess, rather than splitting along defined lines.

I am a fan of simple here, but willing to try stuff. Different designs may work better in different types of wood, different conditions (green or dry), different lengths of rounds, etc. I would pick up one of those 'winged' Estwing wedges, or a twisting 'wood grenade' at a garage sale just to try for fun, or for my 'collection', but would stick with the basic wedges if I was buying retail.

Philbert

http://idahoptv.org/sciencetrek/topics/simple_machines/facts.cfm

 

[hardpan]

Yeh, me too. I refer to my misdirections (all those damn mauls) as a collection. LOL. I split 95% with an old hydraulic splitter that to me is priceless but where is the primal satisfaction in that? LOL. This is "a hobby that heats my home" and part of the fun is looking for new, different, and better ways.

 

[Philbert]

Has anybody split rails, like they used to do for fences back in the cowboy and Abe Lincoln days? What type of wedges are/were used for that?

Philbert

 

[Philbert]

Powder Wedges!





Philbert

 

[hardpan]

Has anybody split rails, like they used to do for fences back in the cowboy and Abe Lincoln days? What type of wedges are/were used for that?

Philbert

I have done that but not a lot. I used to be a fan of Woodwright's shop and I think that is what prompted me to make them out of Dogwood. I start with steel wedges, then the wood wedges and chase the split. I split White Oak straight grain. It was fun and much easier that I thought. I drove the wood wedges with a wood maul that I also made.

 

[USMC615]

Have not tried them. Seen several brands/versions.

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Philbert

I've personally broken three/four of these type wedges...snapped 1"-2" up the stem. Got them from NT. They all went back for a full refund. Won't make that mistake ever again.

 

[turnkey4099]

Has anybody split rails, like they used to do for fences back in the cowboy and Abe Lincoln days? What type of wedges are/were used for that?

Philbert

I've split posts (same process) out of black locust using just my regular wedges and a splitting maul. Start on one end and chase the crack down the log using more wedges 10lb sledge to pound the wedges, maul to bust the stringers.

Harry K

 

[hardpan]

I've split posts (same process) out of black locust using just my regular wedges and a splitting maul. Start on one end and chase the crack down the log using more wedges 10lb sledge to pound the wedges, maul to bust the stringers.

Harry K

I intentionally chose near perfect logs, no visible knots. It would be altogether different with twisted, knotty or wood that was naturally difficult to split. My dogwood wedges were I think about 12" long and maybe 3" thick, worked pretty good after getting the start.

 

[c5rulz]

I actually might have tried one of these. Thanks for the tip. Can you tell me what the downfall is for this wedge? Maybe the "wings" press in instead of opening the split?

I think it's because by the time the wings come into play, the piece should already have split and it just gets stuck. (I only used it a few times)

Noodling with a big saw is much quicker on troublesome pieces.

 

[Sawyer Rob]

Only "wedge" I've ever used that works EVERY TIME on EVERYTHING, is this one!

SR

 

[alleyyooper]

I am a fan of the simple wedges. As said the new fangled ones always have a trade off and simple is hard to improve.

As I said above my dad and uncle used wedges to split logs like they did for split rail fences. Only dad and Uncle made them so they could lift those huge things up on a buzz saw rig when not many had chain saws except loggers.
My dad was so skinny most of the chain saws back in those days weighted about a 1/3 of what he weighted.

29 pounds and dad weighted 118 when he weighted the most.

Al

 

[svk]

Here is my splitting wedge next to an aluminum felling wedge.

 

[hardpan]

I have never seen a ribbed splitting wedge like that and it appears to be extra large. I have not seen an aluminum wedge in a long time. Interesting pair.

 

[USMC615]

I have never seen a ribbed splitting wedge like that and it appears to be extra large. I have not seen an aluminum wedge in a long time. Interesting pair.

Can say the same here. I don't think I've seen a splitting wedge that length either...nor a fluted one for that matter. I can certainly understand the fluting theory though.

 

[svk]

I have never seen a ribbed splitting wedge like that and it appears to be extra large. I have not seen an aluminum wedge in a long time. Interesting pair.

It's homemade. Some piece of scrap metal from the mine cut into the shape of a wedge. Fluting was just because it's from scrap that already had that cut in.

 

[USMC615]

It's homemade. Some piece of scrap metal from the mine cut into the shape of a wedge. Fluting was just because it's from scrap that already had that cut in.

Fluting probably has its advantages...less contact surface area to 'stick' while the basic principle of the wedge does the work. I suppose the flutes could do some filling and 'grabbing' with the channel filling with straight grain material, but I thinks it's a good idea to have on the sides of a wedge. No doubt, it's a homemade wedge. If you get tired of it, send it to Ga. If nothing else, I'll backfill the flutes with a MIG welder or stick welder in the shop.