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Can An Innovative Axe From Finland ‘Revolutionize’ Chopping Wood?

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Stubborn logs with annoying grain no problem. Meet the Leveraxe, a revolutionary axe that cuts and separates wood in the same swinging motion.

Leveraxe axe splits wood with lever technology

Axe design is a pretty stagnant field. With a few minor exceptions, this basic tool continues to remain pretty much unchanged for hundreds, heck, maybe even thousands of years.

The Flaw With The Basic Axe

A stubborn log with tight grain tends to take several hits to split. Axe heads easily get stuck in the log and a battle ensues to get the blade back. Who hasn’t lifted the entire blade and stuck log overhead for a second, third, and fourth swing? 

Well, the Leveraxe (Vipukirves) is a simple invention that was released a few years ago. It appears to genuinely speed up the whole log-splitting process.

Leveraxe axe splits wood with lever technology

The Leveraxe Solution

Invented by a Finnish company, the Leveraxe uses a side-weighted cantilever to force the blade of the axe to act as a lever when it impacts wood.

It took me a few seconds to puzzle out how this device would work, but eventually I realized its genius. While innovative, we suspect there will be some situations where it doesn’t work as well as a standard axe or heavy-headed maul. But we have yet to test it out.

The company claims the splitting force of a Leveraxe is considerably stronger than traditional axes.

Finnish 'Leveraxe' Looks To Go Mainstream In U.S.

The axe that took the internet by storm last year has now hit Kickstarter. Read more…

Upon striking a log, the design automatically turns to the right and detaches the chopped portion from the log. The result: chopped sections remove with a single strike and the blade doesn’t lodge in the log.Leveraxe axe splits wood with lever technology

The axe is not cheap and is available online for about $200 plus shipping.

We hope to spend a few hours warming (twice) by the side of a campfire testing this clever cleaver this summer.

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