Full chisel chain vs semi-chisel chain for frozen wood: Full chisel wins for frozen wood

Full chisel’s square-cornered cutters bite into hard, frozen wood better than semi-chisel’s rounded cutters. Semi-chisel dulls faster and bogs down in frozen wood, while full chisel clears chips aggressively and cuts faster. The trade-off is more kickback risk and faster wear if you hit dirt, but for straight frozen logs it’s the right choice.