Hello,

I found this log splitter at an estate sale.  Never saw one like it.
Got it home and see remnants of two stickers on it, and now I am more curious than ever.
Found one online referred to this as antique.  It sold years ago with no information.
So, my questions:
How old do you think this really is?
Any idea who made this?

And, here's what I like most about this.  The angles of this elongated pyramid look like the talons of a bird of prey.
Is there an intended purpose for these?

Thanks.

Back in the late 70's my dad had one of those. They called it a Wood Grenade if I recall correctly.

Something like this was still being sold in the 80s -- the last time I was in the firewood cutting & burning mode.  The idea was this thing would apply twisting force as well as wedging force -- if you were cutting & splitting hardwoods like mulberry, elm, etc with twisting grain these were supposed to help wrench the block apart rather than just getting stuck. 

I think my record for number of straight wedges used to split a piece of chinese elm was four -- three got driven in full depth  & the block still was not split sufficiently to pull them back out.

Thank you, both.

Enlightening, and interesting.

It's only an antique to the degree that I'm an antique.

I am absolutely shocked you all have never seen these before - Very common, you can still get em, and they work great.

http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200576433_200576433

Well, I had seen 'em, Sudsy; I was just being a tad indirect in the way I said it.

Bill, probably an antique in the eyes of many, but in denial

Well, I guess research pays off lol
I mentioned that I found one that sold a few years ago.
Ready?  It sold for $75! (as an antique).

Thanks again for all your help and information.

Quote from: patack on March 20, 2016, 05:03:25 AM
Well, I guess research pays off lol
I mentioned that I found one that sold a few years ago.
Ready?  It sold for $75! (as an antique).

Thanks again for all your help and information.

So, here's the plan: you buy five or six at retail, then you bury them in the backyard after hitting them with a file to knock off the sharp edges; maybe wail on them with the sledge, so the top is marked.  If you've got cattle or hogs, even better: bury them in the manure pit for a season.

Then you put them up on an auction site as anteeks, and make a fortune!

There is a guy that was married to my wife's cousin long ago, who hung around some good knife makers. I knew him as a ne'er-do-well already, but he confirmed it one time. I saw him  fashioning an axe head and he stated that he was going to "antique" it to sell on Ebay as a Civil war artifact!

Quote from: mvwcnews on March 19, 2016, 10:46:44 AM
Something like this was still being sold in the 80s -- the last time I was in the firewood cutting & burning mode.  The idea was this thing would apply twisting force as well as wedging force -- if you were cutting & splitting hardwoods like mulberry, elm, etc with twisting grain these were supposed to help wrench the block apart rather than just getting stuck. 

I think my record for number of straight wedges used to split a piece of chinese elm was four -- three got driven in full depth  & the block still was not split sufficiently to pull them back out.

I had a similar experience with a large wedge of green sweet gum.  Two wedges, a maul an an axe completely stuck.  I had to carefully saw off section until I could break each tool free.

Quote from: Yadda on March 20, 2016, 05:19:46 PM

Quote from: mvwcnews on March 19, 2016, 10:46:44 AM
Something like this was still being sold in the 80s -- the last time I was in the firewood cutting & burning mode.  The idea was this thing would apply twisting force as well as wedging force -- if you were cutting & splitting hardwoods like mulberry, elm, etc with twisting grain these were supposed to help wrench the block apart rather than just getting stuck. 

I think my record for number of straight wedges used to split a piece of chinese elm was four -- three got driven in full depth  & the block still was not split sufficiently to pull them back out.

I had a similar experience with a large wedge of green sweet gum.  Two wedges, a maul an an axe completely stuck.  I had to carefully saw off section until I could break each tool free.

I was once requested to leave a Fire Department Practice because I showed up on Jaws of Life night to see if they could get a couple wedges out of a hunk of burl.   I of course thanked them, and when I got back to my place cancelled their hose winder from MY schedule.  They also got a reciprocal treatment when they came by for the fund drive. 
I spent that money on a stubby cylinder for my PortoPower. 

About half the time you can just invert the block of wood and give it a couple love taps with the sledge and knock a wedge out.  The other half are Game On.

Definitely still made,I got a flyer in today's paper from Princess Auto ( Canada's version of Harbor Freight ) and they are on sale this week for $10.99. That's about $8.50 in US dollars.

When i saw that, i was thinking we are gonna need a bigger boat.

Unknown.