Nice one Teepee!
I baton with a knife all the time, using my trusty ash mallet.
I baton usually wrist thick stuff either for kindling or more usually to start my next spoon/carving project. Using an axe for that is overkill as the knife can more than cope with it. Mary's photos also very clearly showed that there is a technique, especially with thicker wood. Don't just hammer and hope for the best; understand and work with the grain and all will be well.
I baton with a knife all the time, using my trusty ash mallet.
I baton usually wrist thick stuff either for kindling or more usually to start my next spoon/carving project. Using an axe for that is overkill as the knife can more than cope with it. Mary's photos also very clearly showed that there is a technique, especially with thicker wood. Don't just hammer and hope for the best; understand and work with the grain and all will be well.