A manual wood splitter is one that operates without any sort of gas or electrical power. There are essentially three different types of manual log splitters. The first, one could argue, isn't really a wood splitter at all - it's just an axe. Technically, it qualifies as a tool that operates without any power source beyond your own muscle. That said, if you're interested in wood splitters it's probably because you're tired of the hard work and time it takes to chop wood with an axe.

The first type of manual log splitter looks a lot like some of the common gas or electric ones. It has a hydraulic ram that forces a piece of wood against a splitting wedge. The manual versions aren't powered by gas or electricity, but rather are driven by human force. These operate under the same principle as a hydraulic jack - on scientific standard called Pascal's Principle. The user exerts a small amount of force by pulling a lever, which exerts a larger force on the log, splitting against the wedge.

The other type of manual log splitter uses simple forces of gravity and weight. To use one of these splitters, the user lifts up a small weight that is on a track, and then thrusts it down, where it hits a wedge and drives into the wood. Though the weight is generally less than 10 pounds (and thus fairly easy to life) it can exert tons of pressure and easily split tough pieces of wood. These types of splitters are both fast and safe, and generally easier on the user than either of the other methods.