Pickaroon for firewood
Updated: 22 October 2026
You are looking at rounds in the grass, a splitter at the edge of the drive, a heap of splits, and a log store that is already half full. One spike will not do all of that well. A pickaroon for firewood works when the length matches the job in front of you, and it does not change the weight of the round it has hooked. The [pickaroon comparison](/hub/forestry-tools/pickaroon) keeps the twelve prices. This page maps the jobs. Peter F. used the amazon.co.uk listings and HSE lifting guidance, and did not move the wood. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
You are looking at rounds in the grass, a splitter at the edge of the drive, a heap of splits, and a log store that is already half full. One spike will not do all of that well.
You are looking at rounds in the grass, a splitter at the edge of the drive, a heap of splits, and a log store that is already half full. One spike will not do all of that well. A pickaroon for firewood works when the length matches the job in front of you, and it does not change the weight of the round it has hooked. The pickaroon comparison keeps the twelve prices. This page maps the jobs. Peter F. used the amazon.co.uk listings and HSE lifting guidance, and did not move the wood. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Our top picks
| Badge | Product | Length | Weight | Sheath | Note | Price | Offer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall |  Fiskars Fiskars 28 inch hookaroon | 28 inch (78.1 cm listed) | 816 g | n/a | 9.6 | about £51.41 | View offer |
 Fiskars Fiskars WoodXpert hookaroon | 78.5 cm stated (dimension line 80 cm) | 798 g on the table; bullet says 880 g | Yes, case called unwieldy in UK reviews | 9.4 | about £69.97 | View offer | |
| Best value |  Fiskars Fiskars 12 inch hookaroon | 12 inch (37.5 cm listed) | 272 g | Yes | 9.2 | about £31.02 | View offer |
On this page
Four jobs, not one tool
Think of four jobs that show up in a stove household, often on the same afternoon. Reaching into a log store or an IBC. Holding a piece while you split kindling. Lifting or rolling a round onto a splitter. Moving rounds that are still on the ground. A 12 inch handle that fits between the posts of a store will not pick a large round out of long grass. A 28 inch or a 78 cm handle that is good on the ground is clumsy inside the store. Owners in the Fiskars 12 inch reviews keep the longer Fiskars for the floor. That is the pattern, not a sign that the short tool failed.
About 30–45 cm is the short band. About 70–80 cm is the yard band for rounds on the ground. The only 36 inch title in this set is a Forester, and its reviews are shared with the 28 inch Forester, so extra length there is not an extra pile of evidence. Tongs come up in the same UK conversations, and they are not a row in this table. A pick that has entered the wood still leaves the weight where it was.
Short tools for the store and for kindling
The short listings are the ones to start with if the wood is already in a store or you are making kindling. The Fiskars 12 inch, at £31.02 and 272 g, includes a sheath and has 4.5 from 390 ratings. UK reviews put it into a log store or an IBC and use it to hold a piece while kindling is split. They also say it is too short as the only tool for rounds on the floor, and one UK review says it is not essential for loading a splitter. It is the best value short tool in this set for those short jobs.
The MichaelPro 16 inch is £35.00 and 499 g, with 4.6 from only 26 ratings and a single UK header. That header likes it on wet or slippery wood. A US review says it is short for fireplace rounds. No sheath is listed. The KOXHERO, about 14 inches and 907 g at £35.99, is much heavier for a short handle. Two UK reviews use it to move and lift rounds, and the table calls it a hatchet even though the title and those reviews describe a pick. The unbranded 16.5 inch at £19.99 has no star line, so it is not a proven store tool just because the price is low. If your afternoon is mostly rounds on the ground, move up a band.
Yard-length tools for rounds
For rounds on the ground and for the splitter, look at the yard lengths. The Fiskars 28 inch is £51.41 and 816 g, with 4.7 from 3,219 ratings. Reviewers use it to lift logs off the floor and to feed a splitter with less bending. Two UK reviews say the tip broke or sheared. The WoodXpert is £69.97, stated 78.5 cm, 4.6 from 1,549, and UK reviewers use it on chunks beside a pair of tongs. They also leave its case behind because it is bulky. Item weight is 798 g and a bullet says 880 g. Either of those is a more coherent floor tool than a 12 inch pick used past its reach.
The Forester 28 inch at £47.57 shares 4.3 from 619, and the same review text, with the 36 inch Forester, including a UK report that the head loosened. The Dolibest at £34.99 is about 71 cm and 1.36 kg, one-piece, with 4.0 from 94 and no UK header in the cap. Reviews that describe a pick say it helps rotate big logs and also that it does not stick or feels too heavy when you miss. The Kings County at £46.64 and 1.56 kg has US reports of a head that broke off. The Oregon at £79.99 and 449 g, and the Ochsenkopf at £96.29 and a listed 500 g, are the light alloy options if you already want that feel. Do not treat the Amazon cell that says an aluminium blade as the Ochsenkopf tip.
The round is still heavy
Hooking a round does not make it safe to carry. The Health and Safety Executive’s agriculture guidance screens an easy, close lift at about 25 kg, and still wants aids, smaller pieces, and shorter carries. Firewood often fails that screen, especially when it is wet, unsplit, or a full round of dense hardwood. Reviewers who say they bend less are describing a drag, a roll, or a short lift onto a splitter. That is not a claim that a pickaroon fixes a back, and it is not permission to walk a hooked round across the yard.
Use the pick to bring the wood to the splitter or to the saw, put it down, and then split it into pieces you can actually hold. Tongs, if you own them, suit the regular smaller logs at your feet. If the stack you are feeding has started to move, stop. If the point will not bite, the next page is the swing, not a heavier bar. For the swing itself, read how to use a pickaroon. For length, head fixing, and the sheath question, use the pickaroon buying guide.
Common questions
Will a pickaroon save me bending for every split?
It can shorten the bend when you hook a round off the floor or onto a splitter. That is what Fiskars 28 inch and WoodXpert reviews describe. It does not lift every split for you, and it does not change a round that is over about 25 kg into a comfortable carry. Kindling in a store is a different reach, usually the 12 inch tool. If your back is the reason you are buying, treat the pick as a way to drag and roll, and keep the heavy carries out of the job.
What length reaches into a log store?
About 30–45 cm. In this set the Fiskars 12 inch, at 272 g and £31.02 with a sheath, is the one UK reviews put into a log store or an IBC. The MichaelPro 16 inch and the KOXHERO at about 14 inches sit in the same band, with much smaller UK samples. A 28 inch or a 78 cm handle is the awkward one between stacked rows. The short Fiskars is still too short for rounds left on the ground, which is why some owners keep both.
What do I use to put rounds on a splitter?
A yard-length pick, used to hook and roll, not to carry. The Fiskars 28 inch reviews describe less bending at that job. The WoodXpert is the other long Fiskars, with more UK review text and a higher price. The 12 inch Fiskars has a UK review that says it is not essential for loading a splitter. If the round is more than you can move without twisting, split it where it lies or get help, rather than walking it on the spike.
Can I hold kindling with it while I use a hatchet?
Yes, that is a job UK reviews give the Fiskars 12 inch: hold the piece, split the kindling. Keep the spare hand out of the hatchet path, and do not walk away with the pick still stuck and the hatchet still in the other hand. A heavier short tool such as the 907 g KOXHERO is a lot of mass for that light work. The hold fails if the point was never sharp enough, which shows up as mixed sharpness comments even on the Fiskars.
Are tongs better for regular small logs?
Often, for the pieces already at your feet. UK forum users who move a lot of firewood talk about tongs for the smaller logs and a hookaroon when they want reach or a larger round. Tongs are not in this twelve-row set. Very large tongs can invite a lift that is too heavy, which is the same trap as walking off with a hooked round. Use tongs to pinch what you can hold, and the pick to drag what you should not carry.
Is a 1.3 kg one-piece tool a good firewood pick?
The Dolibest is that tool: about 71 cm, 1.36 kg, £34.99, one-piece steel, 4.0 from 94 ratings, and no UK header in the saved cap. Some reviews say it helps rotate big logs. Others say it will not stick, needs several swings, or is too heavy when you miss. The listing’s medium and large logs line is a bullet, not those reviews. A one-piece bar avoids a loose eye. It does not avoid a point that fails to bite.
Does hooking a wet round make it safe to carry?
No. Water adds weight, and the spike only gives you a handle in the end grain or the face. The Health and Safety Executive’s about-25 kg screen for an easy close lift still applies, and a wet round is a common way to fail it. Roll or drag the piece to where you will split it, put it down, and then move the splits. If you cannot do that without twisting, the pick has done all it usefully can.
Related pages
Sources
Public sources from the research digest. Shelf prices are the amazon.co.uk figures in the saved listings of 19 October 2026.
- HSE: Manual handling in agriculture (retrieved 22 October 2026)
- HSE: Safe working with timber (WIS2) (retrieved 22 October 2026)
- HSE: PUWER overview (retrieved 22 October 2026)
- HSE: LOLER and forestry (retrieved 22 October 2026)
- Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 9 (retrieved 22 October 2026)
- Ochsenkopf OX 172 A-0500 (retrieved 22 October 2026)
- Oregon lifting pick 536319 (retrieved 22 October 2026)
- Arbtalk: lifting tongs and a hookaroon (retrieved 22 October 2026)