Fun with my new (old) froe

jblyttle

jblyttle

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Sep 3, 2014
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I had a few large branches from my big maple tree taken down last year. I have had them stacked and was just going to use them for firewood. Last night I decided to try out my froe for the first time. I hand sawed the branch into sections and then started having fun. This could be addictive. Well, the splitting part, not the sawing. Now I have new handle material to play with, the first one will be for the froe. The wood has lots of cool wave/ripple patterns.

One branch processed.



 
Right on JB. That is a great looking froe. I picked one up about a year ago and haven't done anything with it. Pretty easy splitting?
 
Agent_H said:
Right on JB. That is a great looking froe. I picked one up about a year ago and haven't done anything with it. Pretty easy splitting?
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Understanding that it doesn't need to be super sharp, it could be sharper. Also, I used a branch rather than a proper mallet with more weight forward. Even so it worked well. I have more of those maple branches, it should provide some very mice mallets. This froe is of unknown age, but is as old school hand made as can be. It came from Pennsylvania farm country. I'm going to give it a new longer handle though from a piece of this maple.
 
there is something so satisfying about it the feel and sound as the fibers begin to split it's awesome I want to keep doing it just for fun
 
rjdankert said:
A branch will work just fine IMHO. This is a froe club I use. It's American Hornbeam from my property.
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That's really nice! It would be a particularly ominous-looking implement were you to produce it from under the seat of your car during an argumentative traffic stop!
Lovely features about Hornbeam (Ironwood) as a club or mallet is it's hard, heavy and tough.
 
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