Every Damn Wedge

Well, as promised, hickory is devil or angel, and this one was devil. The picture below shows this log barely cracked open with every wedge I had onhand. It took about 2 hours to get it open and the interlocking fibers turned out to be impossible to shave the radial plane cleanly. I was exhausted and downtrodden.

Just getting the log off the trailer was an epic job, but I picked myself up, dusted myself off and went back for another. This time around, I was very careful to try to see any waviness in the bark that might give a hint about the nature of the radial plane.

It’s a smaller tree, but the heartwood is smaller, so the actual sapwood available is about the same as the other log. This one split with three wedges in about 8 minutes

This one was $33, so I’m still in the black on the material budget. As I was splitting it, I pulled on a fiber coming off the surface and it ran intact nearly the entire length of the tree like a cable, so I tied it in a knot.

Here is a side by side comparison of the two logs, you can spot the interlocking in the bark on the one on the left.

The good news is that the interlocking log will make great splitting clubs. I start by axing the blank somewhat round.

I’m careful to pull off any loose fibers so they don’t whip around and hit my arm on the lathe.

Hickory will start checking instantly, so I seal the ends with glue.

I always make the clubs long enough that I won’t have to bend over too far to pick them up and I can use them to help me stand up!

You can start using these green, but I usually wrap them in paper and let them dry for a while. The paper makes a micro climate and keeps the club from checking…sometimes.

Shaving the new log is everything hickory promises to be. Smooth and buttery but strong as steel and flexible as rubber.

Only 65 spindles to go!