James grew up on an Ozarks farm where tools like axes and picks were still used in the daily routine and the blades of stockman's pocketknives served their original functions. Receiving his first pocketknife at age four he got it open by himself nearly a year later and spent his formative years wandering the woods with a succession of ever larger knives, a book of matches and a rifle.
A veteran of Vietnam, James also served in Alaska during a stint in the Army, receiving his first intensive culinary training by setting a record for extra KP at Ft. Richardson.
Settling in the Pacific Northwest after his discharge, James crewed on sailing yachts in local races, backpacked hundreds of miles of mountain trails in search of good trout fishing, and occasionally attended college.
His first serious job as a civilian resulted from answering a Seattle Post Intelligencer want ad requesting someone who could lift 120 pounds repeatedly and wasn't afraid of fire. James apprenticed to John Frazier -- the most knowledgeable traditional foundryman in North America at that time -- for the next six years.
Returning to the Ozarks James made his living by growing ginseng on a hand-terraced wooded hillside and selling handmade wood turnery, furniture, sculpture and architectural carvings. James harvested trees from his own land, processing logs into posts and beams and turnery billets with saws, axes, froes and planes. Since many tools he needed were no longer available, James built his own forge from a barbeque grill, a vacuum cleaner and a 55 gallon steel drum, found a chunk of railroad track for his first anvil, and taught himself blacksmithing -- creating his own knives and tools from scrap steel and sweat.
Changing economic pressures eventually forced James back to the restaurant industry in Branson, Missouri, and later to even more success as a maintenance engineer for one of Branson's largest condominium resorts. Finally escaping to Indiana, James now makes his living telling true stories as a freelance writer.
Park the noisy gas-powered hydraulic log splitter in the barn, and get out the Gransfors Bruks splitting maul instead. Splitting wood by hand is fun, excellent exercise, and faster than splitting with a machine. Don’t forget the steel wedges for the tough blocks.
Even a cheap splitting maul can handle most rounds of firewood without the wedges, but cheap mauls come with built-in problems. They’re usually lighter than a sledge hammer, and companies that make them seem to think no one cares about rough painted surfaces and extra friction. With the Gransfors Bruks Splitting Maul, you can be satisfied you’re getting the best. If you split much wood, you’ll notice the difference immediately, and in a pleasant way. A swing of this classy splitting maul does more work.
The 5-1/2-pound axe head is half splitting axe and half sledge hammer, so you won’t need to bring two tools. The forged head is tempered for either purpose, unlike the polls of axes — which look like they’d be good for driving a steel wedge but turn into shrapnel if you try it. The polished faces of the axe blade reduce friction as the smooth wedge of the axe head drives the block apart. Most log sections won’t withstand a well-placed swing from 5-1/2 pounds of steel, so you’ll need those wedges less than usual. Gransfors Bruks armors the 31-inch-long American hickory handle with steel plate below the axehead, and that’s a perk you won’t find in the ordinary version of this tool. Of course, a master of the splitting axe never overswings either wedge or wood, but should that happen, the steel plate prevents major damage to the axe handle. When splitting logs with twisted grain, the steel collar protects the handle from the block on the way through.
Even splitting mauls get stuck sometimes, and a good tool like the Gransfors Bruks Large Splitting Axe can free them quickly, given some careful planning.
James grew up on an Ozarks farm where tools like axes and picks were still used in the daily routine and the blades of stockman's pocketknives served their original functions. Receiving his first pocketknife at age four he got it open by himself nearly a year later and spent his formative years wandering the woods with a succession of ever larger knives, a book of matches and a rifle.
A veteran of Vietnam, James also served in Alaska during a stint in the Army, receiving his first intensive culinary training by setting a record for extra KP at Ft. Richardson.
Settling in the Pacific Northwest after his discharge, James crewed on sailing yachts in local races, backpacked hundreds of miles of mountain trails in search of good trout fishing, and occasionally attended college.
His first serious job as a civilian resulted from answering a Seattle Post Intelligencer want ad requesting someone who could lift 120 pounds repeatedly and wasn't afraid of fire. James apprenticed to John Frazier -- the most knowledgeable traditional foundryman in North America at that time -- for the next six years.
Returning to the Ozarks James made his living by growing ginseng on a hand-terraced wooded hillside and selling handmade wood turnery, furniture, sculpture and architectural carvings. James harvested trees from his own land, processing logs into posts and beams and turnery billets with saws, axes, froes and planes. Since many tools he needed were no longer available, James built his own forge from a barbeque grill, a vacuum cleaner and a 55 gallon steel drum, found a chunk of railroad track for his first anvil, and taught himself blacksmithing -- creating his own knives and tools from scrap steel and sweat.
Changing economic pressures eventually forced James back to the restaurant industry in Branson, Missouri, and later to even more success as a maintenance engineer for one of Branson's largest condominium resorts. Finally escaping to Indiana, James now makes his living telling true stories as a freelance writer.
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Park the noisy gas-powered hydraulic log splitter in the barn, and get out the Gransfors Bruks splitting maul instead. Splitting wood by hand is fun, excellent exercise, and faster than splitting with a machine. Don’t forget the steel wedges for the tough blocks.
