I feel your pain! I just did some big red oak at camp. It was like a rock. Had to chip away also - even with the splitter.
ReelFaster .. I feel like I know you, because Dennis and Dave have said great things about you. And I might have been the one that reminded them to make sure the saw was put in the right vehicle I understand you live in Jersey, where some mythical wood fairy delivers rounds to your house. When you live in the country wood actually heat you a lot more than that! When you cut it down, when you block it, when you split it, when you stack it and because where I live I'm not going to get a sled to carry one load a day 300 yards from the pile to my house. I r e stack it on the porch cuz I'm lazy. And 3 feet of snow at 20 below five steps onto a covered porch to get more wood is a good plan.. Oh and once burning the brush.. There may be more
More than 3 or 4 bounces and I start a wedge, especially on whole rounds. A maul scar makes a great starting place for a wedge. With a small, medium, and large wedge, your wife would have little trouble splitting wood.
I too will do the same and use a wedge if the wood is not splitting after a couple of hits. Most of the wood I split is soft wood and the maul will usually stick in the wood instead of bouncing off.
