black powder wood splitting wedge

[Omahkapi'si]

I bet I could catch a Roadrunner with that....what could go wrong?

 

[blackeagle]

Interesting, but I'll stick to my gas powered wood splitter.

 

[DuncNZ]

My Dad used to do that a lot, us kids all used to watch . The powder used was in polished lumps up to the size of a peanut , not ground up like the powder we are all used to . It was known a prune powder . Dad used a large hessian sugar bag wired to the blasting gun to act as a parachute , "hunting the gun" was a kids job .
I owned one until about 20 years ago , I sold it because I couldn't get the powder . The guy I sold it to had 30+ pint preserving jars full of prune powder . I believe that sometimes the powder was made with sodium nitrate not potassium nitrate . The sodium nitrate powder is hydroscopic and draws water out of the air , hence the glass jars .
There was a shortage of black powder here in NZ and some guys got ahold of some prune powder , put a blender in a hole in the ground and with a very long extension cord and a equally long remote control , sat in another hole and blitzed the powder until it was approximately 2f-3f and used that until the next Goex shipment turned up . Because blenders get hot it was blip wait blip wait for quite some time .

 

[William Lincoln]

As a kid river rat we weighted down dyna stix and blasted up catfish and anything else.
I saw a black powder water blaster once-- but never saw the ad again. Miners,who tried to
play safe when cracking rock with powder were aften hurt or maimed while blasting.
The safest way to use the powder is by proper tecnical muzzle loading safety. Behind every
lost finger or eye is a story. I'm now too old for exciting stories- like blasting stumps and
logs.

 

[hawkeye2]

Back home my great-great-uncle had a toothpick factory. He used one filled with ffffg.

A tip of the Hatlo Hat to TFoley

 

[MN284]

Sounds like a great idea if you need to split elm. Probably good for apple, too.

Tom

 

[3 trees]

I have looked for one for years. Had a friend that had one and always thought it was cool!

 

[toot]

and they call MT. WILLIAMS- AKA.-HILLBILLYS, DUMB? THINK AGAIN!

 

[Mr. Flintlock]

Has anyone ever used a black powder wood splitting wedge?

I had a good friend almost kill himself with one. He was splitting elm. He thought the fuse went out ... it hadn't. When he got to the hospital he looked like he lost a fight with a giant porcupine.

 

[Okie Hog]

Has anyone ever used a black powder wood splitting wedge?

Yes.

 

[fleener]

I had a friend brought one to my annual rendezvous. It was neat, glad we did it once, not sure I would want to routinely use it. Certainly can see where it can be very dangerous.

Fleener

 

[Packrat]

O for the good old days when powder was so cheap you could afford to make firewood with it

 

[B P Arn]

and they call MT. WILLIAMS- AKA.-HILLBILLYS, DUMB?

Imagine that.

 

[nhmoose]

What an expensive way to split wood. Cord cost will be very high IMHO

 

[J. Paul]

What an expensive way to split wood. Cord cost will be very high IMHO

Currently my powder is cheaper than gas or diesel

 

[Ian Straus]

sounds like it functions as a shaped charge

No, the charge is not 'shaped" at all.

 

[GrandLakeHunter]

No, the charge is not 'shaped" at all.

Just plain old pressure forcing the natural grain of the log apart.

 

[GrandLakeHunter]

Lots of sawmills resort to BP when logs won't fit on their mills. No wedge, just a chainsawn hole, powder and wood wedge to help contain the pressure momentarily. Still used to this day.

 

[Flying B]

I used BP to split some large logs last fall. I used a chainsaw to cut a slot into the log then poured in 2oz of 3f and inserted cannon fuse and packed with sand. Worked very well.

 

[appalichian hunter]

Would work for breaching doors also, one never knows. Knock knock I am coming in.