When using an axe to split logs, it’s awfully tempting to aim at the top of the log.
After all, if you miss the log entirely, it’s dangerous or at the very least, ineffective. One can argue that if you don’t split the top, it’s pointless—nothing else will happen.
The problem with aiming at the top is that the axe loses momentum before its work is done and you end up with a stuck axe and half a split log.
No, the best approach is to focus on splitting the bottom of the log. Split the bottom and the top takes care of itself.
Amplification: some of my smartest and fastest-reading readers (and some with experience in log splitting) missed the point of the post above. I’m not Gary Larson, so I guess I should clarify.I’m not talking about turning the log upside down or some other semantic trick. I’m pointing out that if you aim at the top (at getting started), then you don’t split the wood. If you aim at the bottom (by way of the top) then you do. Hitting the top of the log isn’t, the point, it’s merely the beginning of the stroke. In other words, don’t focus so much on starting something. It’s the follow through that will get you there, so the beginning must be with the end in mind. And yes, this actually makes wood chopping far easier.
