Log
Splitter
I
confess I love all that technology has to offer. I am old enough to remember
land line phones, black and white TV, and Saturday afternoon matinees at the
local theater. Now I have at my disposal an iPhone, a computer that can call anywhere
in the world, watch color TV, show movies and have Siri answer all my
questions.
However,
if you live where I do, in the mountains of Montana, once you get out of town,
that fancy phone isn’t much use. That brings me to what’s really important in
life for a mountain man: a good chain saw and a log splitter. You see, some of
us still have a real fireplace where, on those cold winter nights, a blazing
fire warms heart and home.
That’s
why I am making a case for the most advanced technology in the mountains: the
log splitter. Again, I am old enough to remember using an ax or sledge hammer
and metal wedge to split logs. I tell you that was a long and arduous process.
Now the old-fashioned sweat and muscle method has been replaced by technology.
For
the uninitiated, the mechanics of the log splitter consist of a gas engine and
hydraulics mounted on a small trailer frame. Placing a log on one end of
trailer rail, engaging the hydraulic lever, the wedge moves forward splitting
the log in half.
It’s
a two-man job: one lifting the logs on the rail and the other engaging the
lever.
Earlier
this month, my friend Hal invited me to be the lever man. We spent a glorious
Saturday and Sunday afternoon lifting, splitting and loading wood into the back
of our pickups. By the end of the weekend we had split about six cords. Without
the splitter, it would have taken us a lot longer not to mention the damage to
our aging bodies.
I
enjoyed Hal and I working together. It gave us time to catch up on guy stuff.
The blend of manual labor and technology made pleasant work on an autumn
weekend in the mountains. It is quite satisfying to see those neat stacks of firewood.
The smell of freshly split pine is a tonic for the mountain man’s soul.
The hard work’s done, it’s time to get ready
for hunting season.
Your ode to the splitter might make it grow on a guy, but how about the same on a chain saw? A mountain man's basic friend.
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