I was curious why the figs would split that normally wouldn’t and did a simple experiment with watering. 
I used my local Unk. in both cases, potted in 3 gals. They were getting about 9 hours of the SoCal sun.

One fig tree (lets call it A) got a scheduled watering every other day and was connected to my sprinkler's timer.
The other (lets call it B) was watered a lot when the soil was dry  so that the water would appear in the dish.

At the end, almost all the B figs were split! I think they couldn’t stretch far enough during the excessive watering since the tree would consume as much water as it could and pump the figs enlarging them.
The A was fine and delicious, the fig’s taste was not watered down.
For a reference, the figs (fruit) shrink during the day when it’s hot and dry and enlarge after the watering and in the morning.

This is probably an extreme case but I think some varieties are more susceptible to the uneven watering than the others and the best you can do for your POTTED figs is to set them on a scheduled watering during the fruiting stage.

I am sure there are other factors at play like minerals, temperature, fertilizer, etc; I played with water only since it doesn’t require much of a setup.

I do not know how this works for the inground figs and what factors are crucial there.

Very interesting! It makes sense that the rapid growth of erratic watering could be the cause where even watering produces even growth. Keep up the experiment and maybe we can come up with a solution for all situations...in ground, in pots....large(spread out) area of plants, concentrated area of plants. There may not be an answer for all environments, but just maybe...... Good going!

Weather or something else has tpo play a factor, too. Some trees split terribly one year, and the next year little , if any.

I am usually concerned about the weather when it is raining :) 
So it is still about the moisture in the air.

My uncle has been, is and always will be adamant consistent water supply reduces splitting... In pomegranate and other fruits as well.

I don't split my figs with ANYONE!   :)

Oh, and tomatoes split from uneven watering, also.

I feel that you are all correct on consistent watering. Experiments on high humidity and little to no rain can be done. A controlled environment can be created so you have low humidity-water daily. low humidity-heavy watering sporadically, high humidity-water daily and finally high humidity-heavy watering sporadically. Just a thought. Who has the time, right?

And Bob, I heard that you split figs with EVERYONE.

Wayne,
A great idea that is hard to implement ? lol

I looked into the tomato splitting a bit, like Bob said, and discovered they all have followed my recommendations! :)

For example, this website:
http://organicgardening.about.com/od/vegetablesherbs/a/Why-Do-Tomatoes-Split.htm

From there:

What Causes Tomatoes to Split?
Tomatoes split because of fluctuations in the amount of water they get.
etc.

There are some suggestions that are more tomato relevant but in the essence, we are all concern about the same thing here. 

 

I was thinking greenhouse, but I don't want to do it. I would rather just think what it could be. "Tomatoes" is probably the best example and I have picked and canned my share of 5 gallon pails in the fields when they were open to the public. But it was at a time when rain was not a factor (at least in So, Florida). Very good thread.

I water my figs every day at about the same time unless we have a good rain shower. Last year in early spring I switched all my trees to fafard #52 soil mix. This soil mix drains much faster then the mix they were in before, and as there is no dirt, there is more air for the roots. I do not know if these 2 things are related but since then I have gotten very little splitting, -- very little. I don't know if this helps or gives you any clues if you decide to design any more experiments but thought I'd add my 2 cents.

Yes, very good point, the soil should not be ignored and carefully selected for different locations.
What works for you, is impractical for my SoCal very dry climate. I would need to water a few times a day.

On the other hand, I will try to increase the drainage and see what happens. Now I am on 60% pine bark, and the rest is potting soil, coco, pumice, perlite, lime and compost.

My conclusion is not universal for sure and there are a few variables there, although I believe the watering will remain the center of attention.

Hi,
On cloudy days with high air humidity - say in Autumn - , my figs tend to split more .
The watering will make the humidity raise around the trees, but the humidity supplied by the general weather conditions are more of importance here in my Zone7.

After playing a bit more with watering, I have another observation to share.
This is about the fig souring.

If your figs are in pots and almost ripe, I would say 2-3 days from the picking time, it is best to cut on watering, otherwise the figs take in too much water and two thing may happen:
The taste becomes watery (this one is obvious)
Many will get spoiled inside, become brownish with bubbles in the extreme cases if it is hot outside, have unpleasant taste and smell.

Sorry, I have no trees in the ground yet and do know if you have to change anything there.