EstwingE-5 9-inch Sure Split Wedge with 1-0.875-inch Cutting Edge

Ok I was a bit worried when I read some of reviews, some people saying it was rubbish, some saying it was brilliant. It is very good when used with the right hammer! For small logs etc you just need to hold it and hit it a with a small 4lb hammer, then if required use something bigger... But if you hit with a bigger hammer first it will just bounce off. So I used it with a axe and splitter axe and it was fantastic. It's really solid I think it will last years! So it can handle splitting little bits of wood and also the really large stuff!

This review is for using the wedge on tree-stumps, still in the ground. I bought this as I had three fairly large Leylandii stumps to get rid of, and didn't fancy paying someone a fortune to do it. This little wonder does the job - but be warned, if you are working on stumps in the ground, good as this wedge is, you will need to put in some hard work. You will also need something suitable to drive the wedge through. I strongly recommend a proper long-handled 10lb sledgehammer. A regular carpenters hammer, or a short-handled lump-hammer are simply not going to be up to providing the heft needed to get this wedge through a tree-stump. However, if you are just splitting sawn logs, you may get away with a smaller hammer, and indeed a lighter wedge.I found the best technique is to put two saw cuts, an inch or so deep, at right-angles, to make a cross on the flat top of the stump. This is to make a 'start' for the splitting wedge. Drive the wedge down through the centre of the stump. You may reach a point where it will go no further, or is below the point where you can continue hammering it. At this point it will also not want to come back out of the stump - ie, is wedged in. At this point a decent crow-bar comes in handy. Start again on one of the other cross cuts, then repeat. You'll end up with a stump in four sections. Of course, you'll still need to get under it to cut through the roots which will be holding it into the ground, but this is a lot easier when the main stump is in four pieces.This is a very useful bit of kit. Extremely robust, it literally took a big hammering and came through without any ill effects. It is made from forged steel - which means it won't shatter or crack.

Bought this to split up logs for the fire when we needed kindling. It is easy to use and shows no sign of wear despite bettering it around. It is quite heavy,but that is probably why it has lasted.

Perfect and fast delivery

Read the reviews and had high hopes that it would help me with splitting logs from a recently felled beech tree.....wrong! Once the wedge is properly driven into the log it works well. The difficulty is managing to get to that state without it bouncing out. I tried sharpening the point but still no joy. In the end I resorted to using the log bomb that I bought for less than half the price. It outperformed the Sure split wedge in every aspect of its use. Thoroughly disappointed with my purchase, should have saved my money!! it might be a lack of technique on my part but I doubt it.

I ordered this so instead of chucking Pallet wood blocks away I could instead break them up. A few hits with this and it splits a wooden block up 👌 it’s not light it’s got some serious weight to it.

Seen this item used on videos so thought I would give one a try on some bigger pieces of tree trunk. It's solid, quiet heavy and well finished.

Estwing products always good and sturdy...joiner by trade, had estwing hammer for 30 years...still going strong....