Which splitting maul should I buy?

In these tough economic times, many of you may be gearing up to use an alternate form of energy to heat your home. Firewood in particular. Personally, I would never own a home that was not heated with wood.

Of all the steps required to process firewood, my favorite is splitting! I see cutting, hauling, piling, and burning merely as the other steps necessary to get to do more splitting. I've been splitting firewood for as long as I can remember. When I was a kid, that was my job while Dad was running the saw.

Over the decades I have learned a lot about splitting firewood, most importantly the proper tool. Forget about that mechanical log splitter. Not only does it take the fun exercise out of the most enjoyable part of processing firewood, but unless you sit on a milk crate and run the lever while watching someone else roll around on the ground loading the rounds, it's also way more work than using a maul. Not to mention astronomically more expensive.

The best tool for the job: 6# maul with a fiberglass core handle. It is just light enough to get good speed and make it CRACK against the round. Yet, it is heavy enough to carry through without stopping and sticking. The plastic covered fiberglass handle has enough flex to ease the shock to your arms and shoulders, and will last many years longer than even the best hardwood handles.

An 8# maul is too heavy. You can't get enough speed to get the good CRACK when it hits the round. Many times you end up with a THUD and no split.

4# (including 3.5# single bit ax) is too light. You get awesome speed and good CRACK, but it's too light to carry through the round. Most of the time it sticks and you find yourself doing a lot more handle wiggling instead of actual splitting. I use a 3.5# single bit ax for splitting kindling, works great for that.

And one last tip, never never never sharpen your splitting maul. Dull is good. It will wear into it's own best shape, getting better and better as the years go by. Sharpen it, and you'll be wiggling the handle a lot until it dulls again.


- Quads, hailing from Grand Marsh Observatory atop Elk Castle Hill