Product Review - Carlton Hardware Firewood Splitter
Тәжірибелік нұсқаулар және стиль
You’ve probably seen the social media ads for the Carlton Hardware firewood splitter drill bit you mount in an HD drill motor. It looks almost effortless - but did the product deliver?
#firewood #firewoodprocessor #woodsplitter
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We heat our shop during the winter months using a wood-fired stove. It’s not unusual for temps to be well below freezing, so having a dependable heat source is not only handy - it’s critical.
We typically burn hardwood that has been cut by an arborist friend of mine. He needs to place to economically drop woodchips and logs, and I can use both! Much of what is brought to us is Chinese Elm. It burns hot and long, but it is very stringy-grained and doesn’t readily split.
We do also get other wood types such as pine, fir, and cedar. These are softer but need to dry to split well by hand. We don’t have a hydraulic splitter - yet! We do plan to invest in one.
In the meantime, I’ve looked for various tools and approaches to ease the task of wood processing to have a good supply of fuel on hand for the shop stove. Wedges and splitting mauls have become my friend, as has my Stihl® chainsaw that my son gave me.
However, when I saw the ads for the Carlton Hardware firewood splitter bit, it looked interesting. We ordered it, got it, installed it in a heavy-duty commercial drill, and went to work.
Frankly, we found it had limited use, simply because it tends to dig in and get stuck readily, especially on harder, strong-grained wood. When this happens, you really need to be holding onto the drill while having the piece of wood secured. The drill will tend to twist out of your hand somewhat violently if you don’t.
If the bit sticks, it can’t be backed out, because the threaded shaft will simply unscrew. You have to rock the bit back and forth - which isn’t easy on the drill.
We found that you can only use the bit very near the edge or at the very end of the piece of wood with small portions of the wood being split off.
Would we buy it again? No. It was about a $50 investment all in with a couple of extra shafts and shipping. It works, but only moderately, and I think there are easier ways to get smaller splits for kindling.
If you do want to get more information or purchase one, you can visit:
carltonhardware.com/products/...
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Пікірлер: 63
You know I was about to buy one, but not now. Thank you for taking the time to make this video.
@DirtFarmerJay
Жыл бұрын
You're welcome.
They look so easy on their ad. Thanks for kindly exploding the bologna.
@DirtFarmerJay
10 ай бұрын
Our pleasure!
Great video. Appreciate the honest, down home, realistic review!!
@DirtFarmerJay
Жыл бұрын
Thanks!
I bought one of these. My results were very similar to yours. I tried using it once on a few different small logs of soft maple and chestnut. Got a good split or 2 but spent more time extricating the stuck bit from the logs than it would have taken to split all the logs with a hatchet. It does look sooo easy in the ad though!
@DirtFarmerJay
Жыл бұрын
Sal, thanks for validating the results of our little test. Best, DFJ
The ad looks way different from reality. Thanks for showing the reality. I saw the ad and was immediately interested so I wanted to see a fair review. Thanks!
@DirtFarmerJay
7 ай бұрын
We're glad to be of help. best, dfj
I bought one and had the same experience
@DirtFarmerJay
8 ай бұрын
Yep, mine is in a box somewhere waiting to go elsewhere...
We heat our home with firewood. A pickeroon is a must have. Thanks
@DirtFarmerJay
Жыл бұрын
Marine'72 - agreed on the pickeroon. I used it just today! Best, DFJ
Thrre was a splitter when I was a kid that was pretty good.. I can't remember the name of it, but it was basically an axe with 2 dogs in it. One on the left side and one on the right. When you swung it and hit the log, it would force both sides of the log in opposite directions.
@DirtFarmerJay
Жыл бұрын
These types of tools are called splitting mauls. I've acquired one and will likely review it in a future episode. Best, DFJ
Good video and I'm not at all surprised at the results... I have seen these advertised and always thought unless you have a very powerful drill and are strong enough to hang on to it this would not work as good as seen on TV which seems to be the case with many items you see on infomercials. 😱
@DirtFarmerJay
10 ай бұрын
Great point!
Once I hit 60 I converted to gas logs... after 40 years of splitting, hauling, and cleaning ashes I took the easy way. So unless this tool helps me open my beer cans, I'll pass... great review Jay!
@DirtFarmerJay
Жыл бұрын
Love it, TNtoolman! I like your outlook! Best, DFJ
Best hand tool I have found for kindling is a Friskars splitting ax. I have both the long handled one and a shorter one.
Great review
Thnx for this review. I wish u had tried a pc of oak. We have a lot in Louisiana.
Basically all you can really make is kindling and maybe hurt yourself in the process.Thanks for the great review.
@DirtFarmerJay
9 ай бұрын
Glad to be of help.
I only wished I heard such a warning before I purchased this a couple of years ago. Normally I research a product before I buy it. I looked a a few reviews and they seemed positive enough and because I was really happy to find such a tool I didn’t research it further. DO NOT PURCHASE THIS PARTICULAR PRODUCT!! I can’t comment on the other similar products that purport to do the same thing. First I tried it with my Dewalt cordless. It got stuck. It doesn’t loosen out in reverse just like this video shows. Then I tried it on the end like in the video. The amount of time and effort it took to do this was counter productive. Then I tried my corded hammer drill on the thicker part of this small (just like in this video) and the same thing happened. Unfortunately I waited too long for a refund which the company wouldn’t give me. I can’t tell you how disappointing it was because in theory, this would have been perfect for what I needed to do.
@DirtFarmerJay
8 ай бұрын
Thanks for weighing in on this. Sounds like the same poor results for you as for us. Best, DFJ
@jonstone9741
7 ай бұрын
Thanks for the advice. It's getting close to winter, and I heat my place with a woodstove. I saw ads for the wood-splitting drill bit, and I was tempted to buy one, but now I'll pass.
Tim says to get one of those Binford 25 hp two man drills.😅 Have that pickaron. Really is a worthwhile tool.
@DirtFarmerJay
Жыл бұрын
Love it, Brian!
I'm thinking (if it would actually work) trying it with an impact drill? The hammering action my get better results. Just a thought....
@DirtFarmerJay
8 ай бұрын
Thanks - indeed, I didn't show that, but I have a hammer setting on that drill, and there was no significant difference. Being able to counteract the torque and to back out the device when it stuck was the most difficult and why we ended up not recommending this. Thanks for watching and writing! Best, DFJ
If you were going to split those pieces with an axe, would you strike them in the middle or the end?? How about using this product on the end???
@DirtFarmerJay
10 ай бұрын
One way or another, there is a lot of torque generated and it's very hard to hold the stock you are attempting to split. I agree it is best to use the tool near the end to give additional leverage and get the split started. Best, DFJ
I'm wondering if giving it higher rpm might do the trick?
@DirtFarmerJay
9 ай бұрын
Possibly, but that wrenching action when the tool wants to torque out of your hands in hard on the tool, and hard on me. Thanks for watching and writing! Best, DFJ
Good morning from Southeast South Dakota
@DirtFarmerJay
Жыл бұрын
Morning!
@DirtFarmerJay
Жыл бұрын
Morning!
@DirtFarmerJay
Жыл бұрын
@@Ettibridget good afternoon!
@ricardoallende2597
Жыл бұрын
Figures. Thanks for that.
You don't put it in the end?
@mikeplunkett2041
Жыл бұрын
I wondered the same thing. Any time I’ve ever seen firewood split, it was always on end.
@DirtFarmerJay
10 ай бұрын
That would be even more difficult to hold the piece of wood. The torque would be very high.
What about trying to split the wood from the end grain?
@DirtFarmerJay
Жыл бұрын
Greg, it's even worse, as it twists the piece of wood out of your hands. It's easier to stand on the piece of wood sideways to restrain it. I hope that helps! Best, DFJ
@gregj2647
Жыл бұрын
@@DirtFarmerJay thanks for your feedback. Glad I never purchased it
Well if it won’t fit my hammer drill then I can’t use it
only works on TV ads
@DirtFarmerJay
9 ай бұрын
Pretty much! Best, DFJ
I bought one and it doesn’t work at all just like the farmer suggested. I’ve tried multiple times to reach out to the company via email with absolutely no response
@DirtFarmerJay
7 ай бұрын
Sorry to hear that you've had the same poor experience we had! Best, DFJ
Very timely ! I won't be buying one. Thanks Jay
@DirtFarmerJay
Жыл бұрын
Glad to be of help, Jerry!
On a hand held drill it’s junk put it on a motor your hand can not hold it plus it will burn up drill
It's really not suitable for splitting firewood without a very high torque motor and some way to secure the piece of wood. I found it very useful for splitting pallet deck boards cut to desired length, usually 10-12". I mounted one in a drill press which split the boards about 98% of the time. The other 2% were boards with tight knots or hardwoods which caused the belt to slip in my budget bench-top drill press. I'm actually using it to produce kindling for a small group of repeat customers. $500-$1000/year. It's also a nuisance that the shank is not one piece. If you get the unit stuck in a piece of wood, reversing the drill unscrews the hex shaft instead of backing out the splitter. Not really helpful. The larger ones mounted on tables or bolted to car axles do a good job of splitting full-size log rounds but what a horrible way to die if you fall on it.
@DirtFarmerJay
6 ай бұрын
Good insights. It is indeed a problem when the shaft unthreads back off the tool head when you need to reverse it. Best, DFJ
This would explain their current 60% off sale, to get rid of this poor product.
@DirtFarmerJay
8 ай бұрын
LOL!
These are really dangerous tools. I used mine twice but never again! When the bit jams the junk of wood can spin faster than a helicopter blade! Be warned!
@DirtFarmerJay
5 ай бұрын
Thanks for the insight. That sudden torque can really take you by surprise!
Looks like a piece of junk. Dangerous.