It splits wood by gravity and human force. You drop/throw the weight on the bar that extends above the log which impacts the wedge sitting on the log. The force of the weight hitting the wedge splits the log. Please see our IMAGES tab for more info. Feel free to give us a call for more specifics.

I am a huge fan of hand-powered tools, and this thing is great. As a side note, the box and Bailey's site say designed in Sweden, not made there, so don't be alarmed that it isn't made there. It doesn't matter, it just works. I got it today, set it up, and went to work, and even on the green wood I have here, it's wonderful. And it's a whole lot less exercise than the video makes it seem. I have about 10 cords of spruce and fir to split, so I'll update after all that is gone through. But my initial feeling is I will use this for all of it, and love every minute.

I would hate to challenge the idiots of the world by saying this product is idiot-proof, but it is probably as close to idiot-proof as one can get, given the occasionally remarkable cleverness of some idiots (I am a retired lawyer and used to do product liability defense). It is the easiest and safest method I have ever used to split wood (but not too big, as stated in Bailey's description of the product). As my shoulders deteriorated over the years from various injuries and arthritis, I had to abandon my Monster Maul, and sledges and wedges, as they began causing excruciating pain to my shoulders and elbows. I went to a Timberwolf hydraulic splitter with hydraulic log lift, which admirably meets my needs for splitting large quantities of wood. But for the occasional small quantities (or that piece that for whatever reason I just left too large), and for kindling, I found that smaller "kindling malls" and "kindling axes" were reasonably effective without involving my shoulders, but caused prolonged tendonitis in my forearms/elbows. The Smart Splitter is completely stress free for my body and is a virtual "kindling factory." This product is superb!

Not made in Sweden as advertised. It is made in China. Say so on box and it has that tell tale VOC smell that you get from opening boxes of tools/hardware that are from China. Bailey's Note: Thank you for the information.

After trying a bottle jack splitter with double hand levers and an electric splitter from Lowes, I ordered the Smart splitter from Bailey's. The Smart Splitter works as advertised and better than either of the two other "solutions" I had purchased. It is very important to set it up right and use a base that is flat on both top and bottom. I can't imagine an easier way or safer way to make kindling.