Pete Mctree

Tidy work - how long does a tree like that take? Large single stemmed trees are very uncommon around here so I have little experience of them.

I have run a 440, 441, 460, 461, 462 husky 372 & 572. Non of which should run a 25" bar in hardwoods cutting commercially- that is time for a 90cc saw IMO. The 440/441 and 372/572 are great forestry saws, capable of ergonomic shedding & felling, the torque of the 460/461 make for more of a felling or crosscutting machine. The 462 is the best midrange cutting saw I have ever run - it just works on another level. I just wish I could justify owning one. Weirdly it's vibration figures are quite high but in the hand it feels quite smooth.

I agree about the emissions, but economy? Your using a smaller saw saw logic says that it is potentially cheaper.

All my saws apart from an 084 are ported. Some by Spud, some by myself & other builders. The increase in performance is noticeable & for me they have been a great investment. However, there may be issues with employees and persons other than yourself using them however.

I have recently had to switch from a rightfooted to a left footed ascender to relieve knee pain. good technique helps too - try to "pedal a pushbike backwards" when using it.

Agreed Matty, I'm going to crawl back under my rock & pretend I never offered any constructive advice. We will only ever be wrong - and that's on a good day !

This is exactly why you give this industry a bad name - the dismissive "will never happen & I don't give a fuk attitude" - gotta love it p.s. Don't give a shitt about the money

LOLER is only a legal requirement. Ask your insurance company when the shitt hits the fan. Your attitude really drags our industry down - thanks for sharing

You work on & rig bigger trees than many, so yes, I would question your use of such a lightweight rope & would just walk away if you presented old climbing rope for me to inspect.

I would buy xtc for lightweight & natural crotch rigging. Nice to handle & abrasion/heat resistant so good for me - it makes a better rigging rope than a climbing line. A bit expensive these days though. I think that using old rope for rigging is dumb at the best

I see no benefits of this over using a portawrap or a safebloc. I’m sure it functions well but I see nothing unique.

I have been thinking about this tonight. I needed to make money in the woods & faced the same decision a few years ago. I simply did not like either of the 60cc range enough to buy one to take into the woods so, I just bought a stihl 441 & ran it on a 18". Yes, they weigh a bit more & the fuel costs are higher, but I trusted it to be reliable AND cut timber

If your in bigger timber perhaps you need to be using a bigger saw?

362cm is a great all round saw - it does everything you could ever ask of it, pulls an 18" with authority if needed (balances nicely). Nice for felling, snedding etc and is reliable too. However it does not scream and fly through the timber like a 560 or 562. The 560 is the live fast die young kind of saw, whereas the stihl is that steady dependable that lives at 90%. The choice between them is difficult as they are so different.

I initially hated the geckos as I bought them with Euro gaffs. Changed to shorts and immediately felt at home. I changed myspair pair on to long gaffs a few years ago & I am really impressed with them

Full fat, imported cougar blue & orange. Static enough for srt and good enough hand to revert to dDrt

Love my Burley !

I start loading & sorting at about 7am & try to leave 7.30ish

The two subbies I use have 15 & 35 years experience each & have enough tickets to be insurable for basic tasks. I give them similar money you ask for without hesitation in Yorkshire........

removed - not constructive

I have seen all forms of traffic management ignored. From red lights to physical barriers. It amazes me that irrespective of your control measures it will always be your fault if they evade it ? On this occasion there was no groundie throwing cones, his helmet, y-fronts & phone whilst screaming blue murder at the cyclist, so I can only guess they were too good to make a mistake & just slung a few cones out. Arseholes..........

Enjoyed that - some good work there

I can only sympathise about your staffing problems, but people rattle on about poor wages too much. The money paid should reflect the aptitude, ability & qualifications - without all three your never going to have much of a living from tree work. I have two subbies, both with limited earning abilities because they refuse to invest in themselves - both can graft & have excellent work ethics, however neither can climb ( be a rescuer), one has first aid & neither have medium/large trees. So what do I do? I am very limited on tasks that they can undertake & be insured doing them. I also have a couple of well trained inexperienced, clueless work shy fools I can use - the worst thing is that I sometimes have to bring one them along just to tick boxes. As for colleges and independent trainers, I look not at what they teach, but what they are asked to teach. The best instructors still have to follow the script. There is no magic wand with staff & luck seems to play a huge role in finding them. The best companies seem to have a balance of ages of staff, however it never fails to amaze me how one individual can drag the entire work force down & ruin the productivity & ethic of the other staff.

Nice Reg. some really organised work between the two of you.

The oil tank is built into the crank case & as far as I know they are available.