An Easier Way to Chop Wood: Using Tires

If you chop wood with an axe and would like to make things easier on yourself I urge you to watch this video or read the steps below. The beauty and key of this method is that the wood stays inside the tire instead of flying around which usually happens with a usual chopping block. If you have two tires and an axe you can use this simple method:

-Depending on the height of the wood, you either put one or two tires down on the ground

-Then place logs of wood inside the tires so that they are standing straight and tall, taking up as much of the inside of the tire as possible

***You can also do this with larger diameter logs one or two at a time. Even if they don't take up the who diameter of the tire, the logs stay put (unless of course they get stuck on your axe)

-Now you are ready to cut the wood as usual. For me, cutting box elder(manitoba maple), and apple wood takes about 2-4 shots with the axe to break.

-Once you've split all the wood you can take it all out of the tire and stack it

-Reload tire and repeat...

Heres the video links:

This video gets right to the demonstration and its on the ground, the way I've done it. Unfortunately its filmed sideways which is a little annoying.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTLRiH4pE-M

This video goes into more detail and has tires attached to a wooden chopping block but its essentially the same technique as above. The tire chopping starts at 3 minutes into the video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bRuk_jd1f8M


I hope this isn't posted somewhere else in the forums, I looked around a bit but couldn't find a duplicate thread.

This is indeed a labor saver. I've used the tire method quite a bit this year, and it's definitely worth doing. Another thing we did to save our backs and the chain saw blade was to build a cross-cutting station out of 2x4's. Just 3 "x braces" held together a couple feet apart by several horizontal boards. It really keeps the wood from jumping all around on you and also keeps the chain saw blade out of the dirt. Hope it helps! -Jesse

Good idea gorillajets. I've been mulling over how to make some kind of chainsaw station and this gives me a good idea.

BUMP

More on the use of an old tire for labor savings during wood splitting.

This works best on nice straight grained  wood that has higher uses that to be used as firewood. For stuff that has large knots it's often necessary to embed the axe and then raise the block and axe overhead, with the head of the axe coming down first.

I could see it working very well with birch or some of the low value softwoods.

This method is covered extensively in another thread.

Same principle. Easier to handle than the tires.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2vThcK-idm0

ben harpo wrote:
Same principle. Easier to handle than the tires.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2vThcK-idm0

I wonder if a bungee cord would work? This would go really fast if you had a partner to rig up the logs and take them off the block for you as well.

I bet you could even just fasten together a bunch of logs with a ratchet strap or something similar and do lots at one time.

Bethany Dutch wrote:

I wonder if a bungee cord would work? This would go really fast if you had a partner to rig up the logs and take them off the block for you as well.

I bet you could even just fasten together a bunch of logs with a ratchet strap or something similar and do lots at one time.

I tried with a pretty low quality ratchet strap (brand new) and it snapped immediately. I wonder if I wrapped more logs than I did (I had maybe 10) if the pressure would have dissipated? I dunno. Be careful on the straps.


I am using the tire method myself, very similar to the video with the guy in the garage. I have my standard chopping block (old pine log), and I got 3 tires that fit snugly around it, and the top one kinda slides a little but I am learning to use that to my advantage.

This method makes getting a wheelbarrow of chopped wood into about 3 or 4 minutes. Any logs that are knotty/twisted and can fit in the stove I skip the chopping phase, as the tire doesn't work so well with them.

But the tire method works kinda too well with the straight wood, such that I find myself making kindling every time, instead of just chopping each log once or twice.

I haven't tried the bungee, but I have seen a video with regular bungies working once.

Yes - But- Link below :


https://permies.com/t/24111/homestead/Log-Splitter

Perhaps a lazy susan made from one of those piano stools with the very coarse threaded center shaft for adjusting heights, and some wedges statically
placed to take the weight ! Big AL

kyle saunders wrote:

Bethany Dutch wrote:

I wonder if a bungee cord would work? This would go really fast if you had a partner to rig up the logs and take them off the block for you as well.

I bet you could even just fasten together a bunch of logs with a ratchet strap or something similar and do lots at one time.

I tried with a pretty low quality ratchet strap (brand new) and it snapped immediately. I wonder if I wrapped more logs than I did (I had maybe 10) if the pressure would have dissipated? I dunno. Be careful on the straps.


I am using the tire method myself, very similar to the video with the guy in the garage. I have my standard chopping block (old pine log), and I got 3 tires that fit snugly around it, and the top one kinda slides a little but I am learning to use that to my advantage.

This method makes getting a wheelbarrow of chopped wood into about 3 or 4 minutes. Any logs that are knotty/twisted and can fit in the stove I skip the chopping phase, as the tire doesn't work so well with them.

But the tire method works kinda too well with the straight wood, such that I find myself making kindling every time, instead of just chopping each log once or twice.

I haven't tried the bungee, but I have seen a video with regular bungies working once.

I wonder if you kept the straps a bit loose? I also have tried (or, am actively using) the tire method. Had to replace 2 of my truck tires, so threw the old ones down by the woodpile and started using them to split up my big chunks. It works well! I kinda wish I had a couple more - mine are just sitting right on the ground, no chopping block or anything. I also like how the tire will bounce the axe just a little bit which makes it easier for me. If I didn't have to spend so much time scraping the snow off each piece, it would go a lot faster And yeah... the snow thing, not my fault so don't yell at me

I tried the bungees. Cut through it on the very first strike. So I switched to the tire. Works very well.

Anybody else find the steel wire in the tire chewing up the edge of your axe? I keep my axe very sharp, so I really notice the nicks.