• A single sided axeAxe in the wood image by yokulla from Fotolia.com
  
  Cutting wood is a common task when constructing a home, adding improvements and landscaping a yard. Larger power tools, such as chainsaws, and table, band and circular saws, can cut wood very quickly, but they can be cumbersome to carry and require an outside power source. Many simple hand tools can cut or split wood that only require physical strength to operate.
  
  

Saws

• Handsaws are a common tool for cutting wood. There are many different kind of handsaws. The proper handsaw to use will depend on the type of cutting job required of the saw. Ripsaws are large sturdy hand saws with teeth designed to cut along the grain of wood. Crosscut saws resemble ripsaws but the teeth are designed to make cuts perpendicular to the grain of the wood while maintaining a clean cut. Bow saws are wood hand saws with a long, thin blade connected by a bowed metal frame, which allows them to cut through tree branches or small tree trunks. Coping saws are similar to bow saws in design, but they are much smaller, allowing for small detailed wood cutting, such as cutting a shape out of a thin board.
  
  

Axes

• Axes are used to chop and split wood, and can be used as an alternative to chainsaws for felling trees and chopping firewood. Axes come in many different shapes and sizes. Some axes have only one blade, while others have blades on both sides. Small hand axes are sometimes called hatchets. Another chopping tool is a maul, which is an axe with a broader, heavier head similar to a sledge hammer with a sharp edge on one side.
  
  

Knives

• Sharp knifes can be used for basic woodcutting tasks, such as clipping off small branches or twigs and whittling. Knives are generally not useful for cutting through large branches.
  
  

Hedge Trimmers

• Hedge trimmers are a type of hand tool used to cut small branches. Trimmers look like large pliers with two long handles and an end with a sharp edge. Trimmers are only useful for cutting pieces of wood that can fit within their jaws.
  
  

Hammers and Chisels

• Chisels are sharp metal tools used in conjunction with a hammer to cut, split or shave wood. A chisel is basically a metal wedge that can be driven powerfully through a piece of wood using a hammer.