Kindling splitter

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I did this same thing last weekend with a $20 fiskars. If you can make millions with it, more power to you!
 
I did this same thing last weekend with a $20 fiskars. If you can make millions with it, more power to you!

My daughter Ayla (14 years old) is sitting next to me, she is the one that invented this idea and I just asked her what she thought of someone making her idea in their back shed for themselves after all the hard work she has put in, she said "I hope they put a tough safety ring on it so no one can fall onto the blade and seriously hurt themselves, there could be children running around playing and you wouldn't want a home-made one without a safety ring lying around’’


This product is selling very well and you have also proven that the people that can’t afford to buy one are 'trying' to make one of my daughters ideas in their back shed, I think that says it all......... Ayla’s product is a great idea, very well made and a very safe and functional product.


Merry Christmas to you and your family today (we had Christmas yesterday), I hope you and your family have a safe and happy holiday.
 
Pretty neat. Any research done on a 4 or 6 way wedge and a bigger hammer?
 
my Mom used to tell me, If you do not have something nice to say, well we all know the rest. Therefore I am usually a quiet man.

very nice job Ayla, sometimes the simpilest ideas are the best ones.

to all the people saying they can build one, Well not really you are COPYING something someone (Ayla) has developed already. Very easy to do.

Come up with an idea and bring it thru to patent, been there done that, it is very hard to do.

Congratulations again Ayla.
 
Pretty neat. Any research done on a 4 or 6 way wedge and a bigger hammer?

Yes we have tried that but the older generation, people with disabilities and young children (Ayla 14) struggle to lift a bigger hammer and if they hit a knot it can jam very easy with a 4 way blade and when it does they don’t have the strength to whack it through, you can see what I'm talking about when you read some of the feedback here (people using them); (broken link removed to http://www.kindlingcracker.com/happy-customers.html)

The KISS theory was used when designing this product 'Multiple blades' can be used and it is included in Ayla’s 38 page Patent along with many other designs you are thinking of, most are to complicated and over worked.
We found it best to keep it a simple design and make it easy to use......there are other reasons for this;

1. so all walks of life can use it.

2. it is a simple and cost effective product to make on a production line.

3. minimal assembly and no moving parts to fail one day.

Remember Ayla wants to make these in the country they are sold in eventually, one of the hopes with the licensee is to make them in America for the American people, we think we have the right people for the job now and will see early in the New Year if they can for your next winter, they won’t be the cheapest thing on the shelf.....to many people look at price before quality now a days, the units we make in New Zealand at present are built to last and it’s the sort of product you would hand down to your children when you have gone.
 
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my Mom used to tell me, If you do not have something nice to say, well we all know the rest. Therefore I am usually a quiet man.

very nice job Ayla, sometimes the simpilest ideas are the best ones.

to all the people saying they can build one, Well not really you are COPYING something someone (Ayla) has developed already. Very easy to do.

Come up with an idea and bring it thru to patent, been there done that, it is very hard to do.

Congratulations again Ayla.

Thank you for your nice words Sir,

I have learnt a lot about manufacturing since I started my project, my Dad and some very nice engineering companies have been guiding me through it all, I have also learnt a lot about humans since I've been doing my product too. Kind regards Ayla
 
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+ 1 ;lol

[Hearth.com] Kindling splitter
 
What a wonderful invention! Ayla should be very proud of her work at such a young age. Looking forward to mass production that will bring the overall price down. Does she need a business / manufacturing manager :cool:?
 
What a wonderful invention! Ayla should be very proud of her work at such a young age. Looking forward to mass production that will bring the overall price down. Does she need a business / manufacturing manager :cool:?

Freight is a big expense from New Zealand, but it is a good fast service via UPS, we are looking at sending over 40ft containers and shipping them out form Texas in two to three months (selling them via Ayla's website) which will bring the price down, However if you look at the drop down bar on the website, you will see that if you buy 4 at a time they get a lot cheaper, you just need to get some friends and family to order one with you (note the 4 units will go to one address) and it takes about 4/5 days.....my husband has just said that you might want to check the duty charges out first and buy 3 at a time in America because he thinks 4 units might attract some duty (I don't know how much the duty would be myself)


We have a man on the ground in Texas that is helping us out with the distribution of the containers for the Internet sales and we are in discussions with some very large manufacture/distributors in USA at present, but thank you for your offer.
 
Must be something in the water in New Zealand here lately, tons of new inventions coming out of there.

Congrats and I hope this helps pave the way for new inventions from her. I personally could use an automated kindling cracker.

Us Kiwi's are known to be quite inventive.
They have just put a write up of Ayla in the local paper here in New Zealand, Ayla has just added it to her Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/KindlingCracker

Ayla looked into making a little automated kindling cutter that could be left by the fire or back door when she first started her science project for school, but she soon realised that they would be too expensive to make, freight and for customers to buy, most of all an automated one would not be a safe piece of equipment to have around children in the family home.
 
I bought a Kindling Cracker in December. Yes, I could have saved myself some bucks by fastening an upside down axe to a cutting block. But why split kindling outside in the cold when I can sit in my living room and split wood with the Kindling Cracker while watching TV? The cracker works great. It is easy, AND SAFE, to get your kindling split very thin. It is sort of addicting. You keep splitting thinner and thinner, because you can! No fear of slashing open a finger.
 
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I think this is a great tool if you have kids that want to help out and you'd rather not have them swinging an axe.
There are some grown-ups that probably shouldn't be swinging an axe too . :)
I know swinging an axe bothers my back but splitting with wedges and a maul doesn't so here's one more fine application.
Probably nicer to use indoors on a rainy day . Garage, small shed etc. where there is limited room to swing an axe but still tap a hammer.


I kinda like the rustic earlier prototype myself but that was probably a bit too rustic to be found in a Nordstrum or Skymall catalogue. :-)
 
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