New equipment was developed to measure the maximal radial split resistance of individual annual rings in green European chestnut wood (Castanea sativa Mill.). This equipment was then used to compare the split resistance in chestnut trees with and without ring shake taken from three differently managed coppices from the southern part of the Swiss Alps. Results indicate that within these stands radial split resistance and annual ring width are positively correlated, and that the rates of ring-shake occurrence increase with narrow and weak growth rings. Forest management of chestnut coppices that leads to an increase in growth thickness might, therefore, be a way of reducing the risk of ring shake.