There is a lot of good and useful posts here now....
First of all.....technology has come to stay for us, wood-splitters....old mauls and axes, is like black and white tube TV sets from 1950, compared to what we use today....
To bad for people that think they are successful with old tools (see stihl sawing's arsenal), and never tried an Fiskars Super Splitter, FSS, or the flywheel SuperSplitter.....
Why these new tools and power tools are so successful, is because they utilize the speed and inertia instead of raw mass, pushing force and high powered engines.
Sierra99 nailed it here, and this has been posted a few times before too.....
double the mass will double the splitting energy, but doubling the speed will quadruple the splitting energy....So by taking half the weight off the head, you can double the speed and perform better, last longer and enjoy it more.....as simple as that......
Sharp tools always perform better than dull ones.....there is so many details on the design of the FSS, that make it perform the way it does, but the most important one is the sharpness and the polished head that reduce friction and allow deep penetration and actual splitting. Dull edges just push wood fiber in front of the edge, instead of splitting fiber apart..
My experience is that splitting with a FSS, allow a better and safer stance, more precious hits on the log.
It is also important to hit the first hit on a big round where it most likely would crack open.
Bundling smaller logs is also important for the safety, it is a larger area ti hit and mis hits will land safe on the bundle.....also remember to hit the opposite of the log or bundle....see my other (first edition) video....
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For using a tire on the chopping block, get a wide tire with low profile for a large diameter rim ex. 305/35R17, a 17" diameter hole, will give you a lot of space to fill with smaller logs, and good stability (10" tall)
I prefer to wrap a rope, bungee or even 5" stretch wrap could work, around my bundles, that way I can carry them to the stack....
Here is a couple splitters that use low power engines and inertia...
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