Back in April of 2019 I found this wedge in my garage. I had just started splitting firewood....and watched a few videos...... Soaked it in vinegar for a week or so.......then wire brushed it clean using wd-40 as a lubricant and to prevent flash rusting. Put an edge on it with a bastard file and have been loving it ever since. I love the slim profile of these old school wedges. The new ones tend to pop out because the angle is to high. I got it so nice and shiny it looked like an ingot of silver! I thought it was a door wedge at first.
Nice wedge and restoration. I agree about not liking fat entry wedges. I have some old, thinner wedges that my Dad called starting wedges as opposed to splitting wedges.
I liked that one so much I bought another one on ebay for like $20. Worth it to have 2 of those bad boys. Recently had some HUGE 34" diameter x 14" height black oaks with some nasty knots in some of them buried deep inside that required both wedges. Combined with the isocore I usually win. I do, however, have some nasty beech that I will be saving for the hydraulic splitter. Just cleaned the garage today so I can actually walk now. Also have some knotty spruce that will be heading the splitters way.
Nice find. I am tempted to look for a couple, myself. One warning though: I know the mushrooming looks cool but you might want to clean that up for actual use, as the fragments are known for flying off during impact with the hammer, same for chisels. We were always cautioned in construction work, to keep our cold chisels, etc. clean and free of mushrooming. I guess as long as you are wearing safety glasses you would be pretty safe.
I was told a story in a safety meeting of a fellah that got stuck in the jugular by a piece of shrapnel off a wedge...can't remember now what the supposed result was from it...
I'm sure it wasn't pleasant for that fellah! Ouchies. Safety first man. PPE and when splitting I go the extra mile with some metatarsal guards and soft soccer shin guards. Has saved me multiple times. Although not much you can do about a wedge except be diligent about grinding off the mushrooming...
Looks very nice. Here's an interesting wedge design for you Aluminum Firewood Splitting Wedge | Order Premium Tools
Thanks. In the video he splits a piece of ash I believe. Doesn't get "easier" than that eh? Also he's slamming the wedge with the back of a maul, a bit of a noob move, n'est-ce pas? I'd try it if someone gave it to me but I don't think it's worth double the price of the steel wedge.
You can actually see it splitting apart as he gently taps it with one hand at first to get the wedge started. Just thought the twist was interesting, and the reviewers raved about it. I’m sure we’ve all had those rounds where you bury two wedges past flush and no cracks appear. Just water oozes out.
i really like that wedge and completely agree with ya on older wedges vs newer ones over the past 3 yrs or so i ended up gettin 3 wedges ive given the nicknames the good the bad and the ugly the good was 1 i got at wally world that surprisingly bites into the wood very well then i bought one from lowes that seem to have a slightly fatter edge and does so so at bestbon goin into wood then the ugly i bought at harbor freight that was similar to the 1 from lowes but with a much fatter profile all around and seems to hate biting into wood
When I first met my wife her Dad was splitting firewood with sledge and wedge a piece of the wedge flew off hitting him in the shin about 2" below the knee it went through his pant leg and into his leg then dropped about another 2" Off to the ER to have it removed.
And that is why I wear soccer shin guards as well as the metatarsal guards. Not that I need to have knight's armor but these are pretty cheap insurance for all kinds of injuries. Sorry to hear your FIL got injured.
There's potential for accidents with hydraulics as well. Split hoses, boiling hot hydraulic fluid in your eyes, a piece of wood being pinched and flung out at 100mph, and of course the fingers getting caught. I've already had one of my hydraulic hoses leak on me. Luckily I caught it before it ruptured in my face.
