chris French wrote:
In message , Davy
writes

"Guy Dawson" wrote in message
...
Davy wrote:
I've just bought a rather nice 2kg hand axe which is very
efficient for cutting small logs for kindling. But it is very
sharp and I would like to keep all my fingers. Anybody recommend
a way of holding the log steady whilst I take a swing at it with
the axe?

With a piece of kindling. You just have to cut the first piece
carefully...

thanks guys, your suggestion does have the advantage that if I
accidentally hit the piece of kindling that I am using to steady the
log then no harm is done to the axe. Not true of my first attempt
when I used bbq tongs! I have just had a log burning stove installed so
I'm suddenly
needing to learn new skills - including how to use a 6lb
log-splitting maul. That is some animal!

BRG's post does leaves a nasty taste in the mouth though. But I
suppose that if you ask questions on a newsgroup then you've got to
expect occasional replies/trolls like that.

shrug

It obviously makes some people feel better to make smart arse, or just
plain rude comments, rather than anything helpful, or just keeping
their mouth shut.

Forget them and move on, most people most of the time here are
helpful.

Not intended as "smart arse or rude" simply factual - if a question like
that has to be asked in a public group for a task that is so simple that it
was being done by ten year olds in my day, then the competence of the OP
must be doubted for his own safety - remember, you can easily cut the
fingers off your hand, but it's a damn site harder to replace them.

So the moral here was simply to either get someone who knows how to do the
job, or get that person to show him how it is done - a million words typed
in this group does not count for the experience of being shown.

Especially with -- "Easy peasy. Get a big wide bit of log to use as a block,
and swing it like a sledgehammer."

In this case, using that method can cause a large lump of the block to fly
and either hit the OP in the face or an innocent bystander such as a child -
doing rather a lot of damage to soft tissue. Again. someone giving advice
without really knowing what to do himself.

BTW, I could have been far more acerbic, abusive and foul-mouthed in my
reply but that was not my intention.

I gave my opinion of the matter as simply as I could and if that has caused
offence, then my response to that is simply to get a thicker skin as very
often the truth hurts far worse than bull****!

BRG