Photos Splitting Wedge Regrind

FortyTwoBlades

FortyTwoBlades

Baryonyx walkeri
Dealer / Materials Provider
Joined
Mar 8, 2008
Messages
25,491
My father loves heating his home with wood, and can sharpen his chainsaw well, but for some reason has never taken care of his other edged tools, so I typically do some maintenance on them when I notice they're getting too beaten up. I finally got around to fixing up his splitting wedges for him and took it as an opportunity to demonstrate how I like to grind them. Most wedges have a very thick shoulder from the factory, but I find that putting a deeply blended convex on the first inch or two really makes a monumental difference in how easy they are to start and drive without any negative effect on their overall splitting power.

IMG_7395-1024x694.jpg

IMG_7402-1024x694.jpg

IMG_7396-1024x694.jpg

IMG_7403-1024x694.jpg

IMG_7404-1024x694.jpg

IMG_7405-1024x694.jpg

IMG_7406-1024x694.jpg
 
Shaving-sharp splitting axes want to do nothing but 'stick' but a splitting wedge that is shaped so it readily 'takes', and doesn't bounce out, is liberating. If your dad isn't appreciative (or doesn't even notice) what you've done then maybe it's time to save up for a gas-powered hydraulic version.
 
Oh, he's definitely appreciative! I touched up his Fiskars splitting axe and maul, too. They were nearly a full 1mm or so thick on the edge, fully reflective. He's got a hydraulic splitter, but only uses it for really gnarly stuff, and splits the rest by hand. He just never learned to sharpen an axe or knife for some reason, despite learning how to sharpen his chains quite well.
 
The nice thing about the deep convex is that the thinned apex allows it to easily bite in when starting, but smoothly transitions into the the cheeks of the wedge so the actual driving of the wedge is facilitated as well. Nice smooth entry.
 
I first tried it because I had a Falci wedge I had gotten as a sample (a little 2lb thing I thought might be good for using in series to split rails) that was STUPIDLY thick at the bevel shoulder. I sure as heck wasn't going to try flat-grinding the whole side of the wedge to thin the shoulder down, and working from the edge would have left too abrupt of a shoulder, so I tried using a pulsing action against the contact wheel of my belt grinder like I do with axes and it worked so much better I couldn't believe it. Just watch your toes when the split lets loose. :D
 
Many store-bought splitting wedges these days have an overly obtuse angled edge. When you can't get them to 'stick' and/or they 'bounce out' all the time it's not difficult to figure out what's wrong after having used a 'good' one. The business of creating a 'softened shoulder' and more acute angle oftentimes takes a surprising amount of time and effort, even with an aggressive grinding wheel or angle grinder!
Been there done that!
You are not re-inventing the wheel 42 but you have brought this topic into the open.
 
A lot of wedges these days just don't have the cheeks coming down to a properly thin shoulder. It's like they took a wedge with a good taper and chop-sawed the last inch off and then ground a new edge on the thickened up shoulder. Fortunately these ones weren't too awful, as two were vintage and the big grey Indian one had too thick of an actual edge, but the shoulder thickness wasn't too far off so it blended back quick. :thumbsup:
 
I did some wedge work today splitting some maple burls. I sharpened one of my wedges thin and convex as Benjamin's wedges. It worked well. But on the really tough burls I found my concave grind wedges took purchase a little bit easier.

Nasty stuff to split. No grain to follow. Just burst it apart by pure brute force.

You won't find this stuff in any splitting videos (because those splitting videos always feature straight-grained easy splitting wood).
Splitting%20burls.jpg
 
Last edited:
I've done a little more comparison work between wedges sharpened convex and wedges sharpened concave. For my splitting needs I'm convinced that the concave bevel is superior. I only use wedges when a good axe or maul is rejected by tough grain. I normally split with a 5 lb Plumb rafting axe and it serves me very well. But when it fails I go to wedges.

The concave wedges actually drive easier. And they take purchase much easier and more accurately! That is to say it's easier to get the wedge to stay exactly on the line you want it. I encourage any of you who use wedges to try them with a slightly concave bevel.

We discussed these wedges a couple years ago and I posted an image of what I'm talking about. Another forum member tried my style wedge and found them to be more effective. Read this post and the 2 posts that follow for details. The whole thread is worth reading.

https://www.bladeforums.com/threads...rpness-for-an-axe.923325/page-2#post-10496889
 
Could you post pictures of the wedges you used for comparison? :)
 
The splitting wedges currently made (in USA) by Warwood Tools (including the BlueGrass brand, from all appearances) look like they have only a single main bevel with a very small bevel on the back side:

warwoodsplittingwedgelargethumb_1.jpg


bluegrasswedgethumb.jpg



Another view of a Warwood wedge, showing what looks like a small bevel on the back:

61c8iCJ8BUL._SL1346_.jpg




I wish I would have known this before buying a few Barco wedges recently, which have what looks like a significantly thicker end:

30-3216_bar0544400.png

BARCO wedge
 
Last edited:
FortyTwoBlades said:
Could you post pictures of the wedges you used for comparison? :)
Click to expand...


Sure. First a repost of the wedge I posted in the earlier thread.
Wedge1.jpg


As I said in the earlier thread the difference is subtle. It almost shows better on the face then in profile. Blue wedge is slightly convex. Red wedge is slightly concave. From the first tap it's evident which wedge I prefer.
Wedge2.jpg

Wedge3.jpg


Have you tried a concave bevel yet?
 
I like to take the convex thinner than that. I've tried concave in the past but haven't experienced a tangible difference between the two, as they both drive easily if taken thin enough. I make my convexes almost like they're a chopping grind. :)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top