AMC Outdoors, October 2007

Chopping firewood is all brain, not brawn

Living on a dairy farm in Westfield, Mass., for 10 years, Gary Forish and his family survived by chopping and selling firewood. “You can’t make money milking cows!” notes the former chair of the Berkshire Chapter.

Forish has fine-tuned this craft so well he now hosts an annual woodcutting event at AMC’s Noble View Camp in Russell, Mass. While woodcutting might conjure up images of brawny men wielding axes, women at the camp always give their male counterparts a run for their money, Forish says. “We have men coming out to show they’re still men, and we have women come out to show that they’re just as strong—if not stronger—than men.”

Woodcutting actually is less about muscular strength and more about technique, which is why limber lumberjacks of a wide range of sizes can accomplish this task—just in time for the impending cold snap.

CHOOSE WISELY Forish classifies a wood’s penetrability into two categories: Elephant and Butter Wood. The former (hardest to split) consists of white oak, beech, silver maple, swamp maple, and soft maple species. An ax can cut through “butter” species of ash, red and black oaks, and hard maple—Forish’s picks—with more ease. Most of these also have a burn quality that is comparable to their more rigid relatives.

ON SOLID GROUND  Almost as important as choosing the right wood is preparation. Making sure he has a firm footing, Forish keeps the ground around him devoid of wood pieces and branches (stumbling on such obstructions during cutting can impair a powerful blow to the grain). He also places the wood directly on the ground instead of on another surface since this approach gives him the best “snap.” Giving a cutter at least eight feet of breathing room is also a key safety tip.

TIP-TOP CHOP  If you are starting with a felled tree or large logs, sizing them down will make splitting them easier. This is most commonly done with a chainsaw and should be completed with extreme caution. The optimal dimensions for wood burning, according to Forish, are 12 to 14 inches in diameter and 16 to 18 inches in length. 

Forish’s tool of choice for splitting is a six-to-eight pound maul with a fiberglass handle, which has held up well under regular use. “I’ve tried everything,” he says. “All those fancy tools they sell you don’t do any good.” Case in point: Forish attempted his axing once using a steel-handled maul. “We’ve bent those handles,” he says. “It wouldn’t last us two hours.”

ALL IN THE WRISTS Legs should be spread apart and the maul held with the hands gripped near the base of the handle. Forish admits there are other techniques—including the over-the-head swing—that are just as efficient.

Start with the maul resting on your shoulder, then whip it down using an arc-like motion, aiming toward the center of the round log. When the blade is halfway to the point of impact, Forish gives it a “snap” with his wrists to forcefully maneuver it through the wood. After no more than two good swings, the wood should split.

However, Forish has a knack for “reading wood” and can sense difficult pieces. Honing this talent has taken years of practice but he offers sage advice for beginners. For starters, listen to the sound the blade makes on impact; if it’s dull or muffled, “you’re going to have a very tough time splitting it,” he says. The solution is to whack the log a few times on one end and then turn it over and repeat. This way, the wood should divide with more ease.

Since firewood is a profitable business, cutting your own can cut costs. Forish offers this rough comparison: Purchasing a cord of wood might cost about $60, whereas purchasing firewood from a seller that is cut, split, and delivered might have a price tag upwards of $200. And while you’ll stay toasty knowing you’re saving money, woodcutting has another way of keeping a person heated. “Firewood warms you twice,” says Forish. “Once when you cut and split it—and once when you burn it.”

—By Fred Durso, Jr.