Abstract: The nutcracker apparatus includes a frame on which there is provided a front and a rear head assembly that each has a head which is resiliently urged toward the other but is limited in such movement by a knife at least in part located in a slot in the head. Each knife is mounted on a rod, the rear rod being movable toward the front rod to initially clamp the nut and as the movement of one head toward the other is limited by the uncracked nut, the rear knife continues to move toward the front knife to crack and/or split the nut. In one embodiment the rear knife is mounted by the rear rod which is moved forwardly by a pivotal handle moving binder members into binding engagement against the rear rod. In the second embodiment the rear rod is a piston rod of a piston cylinder combination that is operated automatically to crack a nut as the nut is dropped between the heads.