As a rainy day chore I was dressing my steel wedges, and splitting maul today. Which got me thinking as to how the membership maintains their firewood splitting tools. Also what tools they may use to maintain those splitting wedges.
A wedge should have a hard cutting edge but only a moderately hard head. This helps to prevent catastrophic spalling of either the sledge or wedge into flying missiles. This means that the wedge heads are subject to battering and deformation from a very hard sledge hammer face. One thing I do is grind away any spalled and deformed areas of my wedge heads. I then build back the ground away areas with the wire feed welder and re-contour the head. Then they are good for another couple years!
Tools like that I use a 6x48 belt sander. Can't remember when my maul and wedges were last used though !
For the maul, a couple of mill files. If its really bad, then to the grinding wheel. When I used wedges, I too too dresed them with a bevel around the top. Sca
This is what I use. Couldn't resist when I saw them at the PRI trade show last year. I bought it for race car fabrication, but it has been used for just about anything that also has an edge on it. Great machine ; a little heavy on the price tag but has been worth it for what I do.
I sharpen pretty much all my knives on it now. Axes and hatchets too. I use an all American sharpener/angle grinder for my mower blades.
Yep, I just use wet or dry sandpaper for sharpening my axes. I can get them good enough to cut paper. Splitting wedges, I do the same.
