Unless I've misunderstood you, you don't need a top hand saw just yet. You would be better with a small rear handle to start with, IMO.

Ok great I'll look into that skyhuck, thank you! Any personal recommendations?

48 minutes ago, skyhuck said:

Unless I've misunderstood you, you don't need a top hand saw just yet. You would be better with a small rear handle to start with, IMO.

3 hours ago, Mitch Reeves said:

Posted just now

Ok great I'll look into that skyhuck, thank you! Any personal recommendations?

Stihl and Husqvarna are the two big players, with Echo and then Dolmar/Makita not far behind. These are the only manufacturers I would entertain purchasing from, anything else and you're into DIY/homeowner territory not proper professional saws. There's a huge amount of Chinese junk on the market, some of it mediocre and some of it downright awful. If you want to rely on your machines to make a living don't be tempted by any of the cheaper stuff. 

I think for the CS31 you want something that will pull a 15" bar, Stihl MS261, Husqvarna 550 XP or Echo CS501sx would be my top picks, all good saws which will last you a long time if looked after. However if £5-600 is too much to start with maybe have a look down-range a little, but I would avoid the real entry level stuff as I've used a few Stihl MS170/180s and they've been pretty unreliable even from brand new. 

18 hours ago, Darkslider said:

Stihl and Husqvarna are the two big players, with Echo and then Dolmar/Makita not far behind. These are the only manufacturers I would entertain purchasing from, anything else and you're into DIY/homeowner territory not proper professional saws. There's a huge amount of Chinese junk on the market, some of it mediocre and some of it downright awful. If you want to rely on your machines to make a living don't be tempted by any of the cheaper stuff. 

 

I think for the CS31 you want something that will pull a 15" bar, Stihl MS261, Husqvarna 550 XP or Echo CS501sx would be my top picks, all good saws which will last you a long time if looked after. However if £5-600 is too much to start with maybe have a look down-range a little, but I would avoid the real entry level stuff as I've used a few Stihl MS170/180s and they've been pretty unreliable even from brand new. 

Thank you for your help Darkslider! I know that Stihl and Husqvarna are the main players but something is drawing me to the Echo. I think mainly because it's japanese built and I'm in the hope that like their cars and other technology it will be very reliable and reasonably priced on maintenance. Thank you for your insight and I'll keep at look out around the £600 region. 

Buy the Collins Tree Guide.

This is, in my opinion, the best and only book you'll need on tree ID in the UK. I used it loads when I was getting started. Doesn't touch on pests and diseases much but for ID and information it's second to none. Fairly cheap too.

On 06/02/2021 at 09:28, chilverslewis said:

Just a moment...

WORDERY.COM

Buy the Collins Tree Guide.

 

This is, in my opinion, the best and only book you'll need on tree ID in the UK. I used it loads when I was getting started. Doesn't touch on pests and diseases much but for ID and information it's second to none. Fairly cheap too.

Great thank you! I have purchased that one! It is very good, just need one now to identify different tree conditions like diseases etc