Camping and woodcraft - Scoutmastercg.com

AXEMANSHIP 203medullary rays, which are pithy. Hence a log canbe split straight through the center (if clear andstraight-grained) from any point on the circumference,but if you try to make other splits parallelwith this, you will have trouble, for you are attemptingto cross the raj^s at an angle. Some treescan be split, by careful manipulation, into threeslabs or four slabs with parallel faces, but usually itwill not pay you to try it.Fig.43.—Cross-sectionof Tree TrunkFi.?. 44.-Rail6SplitsThe natural way of cleavage is shown in Fig. 44,which illustrates the method of splitting rails. Firstthe log is split through the center, then each halfsimilarly. Then one of the quarters is split throughthe line ab, following, as you see, a medullary ray.Next the point of the wedge is split oii across cdThe(direction of annual rings), forming one rail.remaining billet is again split in the same direction,ef, and its separate parts are now split along therays, forming, in this instance, five rails.The number,of course, will depend upon the size of the log.To split a log: Begin at the smaller or top end,because it splits easiest that way. Advantage maybe taken of a natural crack or check, but if there isnone, take axe in one hand, maul in the other, andstart a crack. Into this drive two wedges, as inFig. 45, and others into the longitudinal crack ontop as it opens. To ensure a straight split: Firstscore the log lengthwise with the axe, driving thebitt in with a moderate tap or two, at one place, thenextending the cut backward with another, and so on.finally splitting this apart with gluts. A free-split-