Bark Buster Auger Log Splitters Recalled Due to Entrapment Hazards
CPSC warns consumers to stop using Bark Buster auger log splitters from 1977-1988 due to entrapment risks causing serious injury or death.
What this means for you
Highest-severity recall. Risk of serious injury or death is documented or strongly suspected. Stop using the product now and follow the agency's instructions.
Our severity reasoning: The source text explicitly reports one death and serious injuries, which meets the rubric criteria for a Critical severity score.
Plain-English summary
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is warning consumers to stop using "Bark Buster" brand auger-type log splitters manufactured between 1977 and 1988. These units were sold nationwide for splitting firewood and were produced by F. W. and Associates, Inc., Diversified Industries, Inc., Bark Buster, Inc., and Isanti Engineering, Inc. The CPSC estimates that approximately 8,000 units were manufactured.
The recall is issued because these log splitters lack critical safety features, including an operator-accessible off/on switch, a "dead-man" feature to stop the auger if control is lost, and a guard to prevent entrapment. The CPSC reports at least four serious injuries and one death associated with these products, involving the loss of arms, legs, or fingers.
Owners are urged to make the units unusable by unbolting, removing, and discarding the auger tip assembly. The devices are no longer being manufactured by the most recent producer, Isanti Engineering, Inc.
The recalled product
- Product
- Bark Buster auger-type log splitters
- Manufacturer
- Diversified Industries
- Category
- Consumer Product — Power Tools
- Hazard
Distribution
Distributed nationwide across the United States.
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