Andy Collins

Ok I've just changed the thread title, though in breach of forum rules on swearing, my reason being that I can understand the sentiment behind the thread, and the content of the thread can help others who've messed up refuelling. Woody, please refrain from that type of language in future, thanks.

Haha ever the salesman eh? unfortunately I've always found that to be a negative, sorry, if I could fit long range tanks on the sides I would if it saved me minutes off a job.

I have a Tanaka single side unit, it's been very good indeed. Downside? It's fuel tank is smaller than many of it's competitors, meaning more refills, more stopping/starting, whether this is an issue on the long reaches I can't comment.

I have the Echo, tbh it leaves the Stihl standing in terms of quality build. I'd estimate that the vibes are approx 50% less than the Stihl model, cut quality is superb, in general a much better tool. Having started with a variety of long reach, the later model Echos take some beating, by far the most important factor for me in long reaches is the vibes though.

Sorry don't get me wrong Mike, i am not at all being disrespectful of the troops out there and all other theatres, that is not my aim, I am a staunch supporter of our troops. But there are always hidden agendas that they and we are not always privy to, these usually come out when the top secret files are released later on in time. The troops who have and continue to fall, will not die in vain, they did their duty and made the ulitmate sacrifice, in doing a job that we all pay them to do, and they do it well.

Oh well another log onto th fire, put kettle on again, more Hot Lava Java and I'll be bouncing off the ceiling for another hour!

[quote=LancsMike;653761 Andy, I can see your point but there is a fundamental difference in what we would deem '' acceptable '' compared to what the Taliban and the Insurgents have done and continue to do out there - We don't use kids as weapons or as said in an earlier example, maim a bunch of them knowing out of decency we'd Medevac which the Taliban don't want them to have. We don't know (thankfully) to what depths of human depravity we would have sunk to, we are not holier than thou, we are not whiter than White, we've done our share of wrongs in our history too. Of course, now we wish to police the rest of the world and tell them how they should run things to suit us, we have to paint a brighter picture. Militarily we are in these theatres to justify the existence of our armed forces, to test and train and maintain a standard, to ensure we are at the peak of performance for every eventuality, and this statement was made by a top military official on the radio yesterday, or cutbacks will remove our capabilities altogether. A senior politician has also stated that in the event of Argentina invading the Falkland Isles, we would not be in a position to repel them. So to say that we are protecting the Afghan people isn't strictly true, it may be a by product, but I doubt many politicians really care about some tribesmen halfway around the world.

Wet wet wet out there this morning, time for another coffee methinks

I was given a 444 about 16 years ago as a non runner, it was my first saw for chipper duties. Upgraded to a 242xp, a beauty! Sorry, totally irrelevant really, just reminiscing.

Agreed, always round down

Let us not forget, they are defending their homes, their families,their cultures, we are the invaders to be repelled (in their opinion). Let us turn this scenario around for just a minute, and be the invaded, the under dogs. How would we react. Though guerrilla tactics of course, using hidden underground forces to sneak up and attack the enemy. Disguising bombs as normal every day objects to catch the unwary. "Keep Calm and Carry On" is not some trendy modern marketing gimmick, but originated from the days when Nazis threatened to invade, and the populace was urged to carry on as normal and let our guerrillas attack the enemy. Thankfully this need did not arise, but it shows that terrorism or freedom fighting or how ever you wish to dress it up is nothing new, and that we are just as capable of "atrocities" as afghans or iraqis.. In fact, didnt we teach the mujaheddin how to build IEDs when they were dealing with the Russians? Didn't our closest allies supply the weapons? Oh and these aren't just a group of chancres randomly attacking, but highly proficient and skilled, using unexploded bombs to build into IEDs to use against our forces.

Interesting that the WMD saga was based on the lies of one man, who claimed to have seen them, claimed to have seen the vehicles that supposedly moved them from A to B and so on. Interesting also that the sketch of the vehicles for transportation of WMDs didn't look realistic enough to convince the powers that be so the sketches were then "enhanced" to make them more believable. Fact. Colin Powell fell for this web of deceit and convinced others (us) to follow him. Fact. Our military leaders assess before going into conflict the prediction of casualties/KIAs, if this is an acceptable rate they will go into action, if it's too high they will advise against It. Fact. We have not yet reached the figure of casualties that becomes unacceptable to the big chiefs... The predicted date for that figure is around 2015, in the Afghan theatre, but wait we should have pulled out of there by then, so they will declare it militarily a success.

You "may" or you "may not", hardly a definitive answer is it. It's a bit like saying "if you feel up to it" or "if you like". Typical vague response, copy/pasted I take it from some legal eagle? No wonder there is so much confusion when they leave it so open to misinterpretation.

Many years ago, I worked for an AAAC, in a self employed capacity. One of the stipulations ere was to have your own PLI, so in the event of a claim the buck could be passed down to the workers. This was put in place due to the insistence of the companies insurance policy. No one was employed by the company at that time, all self employed, and all required to have PLI if we wanted to work. If only there were a forum where you could find out this kind of information. Ditto the point on an insurance company coming on here and giving the facts from their point of view, after all they are quick enough to take our money and sit back until a claim comes in.

What a pig ugly saw!

If I was starting out today, would I buy a chipper first, before everything else. Definitely not. A chipper is a piece of kit that you will need one day, but not to start with. First off you'll need ppe, tickets, saws. With these you can sub out to others and get experience. Then you can build on this, start finding your own work, adverts in shops, leaflets and business cards. Then you'll need a yard, wcl etc, build on this and eventually get a chipper to increase your efficiency. Good luck, some lucky people start off with all the gear from the beginning and it works for them, at the end of the day, it's your decision, and up to you how much effort your willing to put in.

Have we been here before? Have I awoken from a nasty dream? Groundhog Day?

Upon investigation, I would hope they would be asking why you hadn't used the contents of a first aid kit!!

I think most of the ballast companies around here now have non-returnable bags for deliveries, so I'd probably recommend the same. I suspect they gave up trying to get their bags back some time ago!

No it doesn't work like that, in fact I've found it works in the opposite direction. I don't wish to work for those that will quibble over a fivers difference any more, I'll leave tha hassle for the students, and those doing a cash job on the way home from their company work with the company kit, because I can't compete on their terms. So I lose a couple of hundred here and there, but I will gain a thousand or so elsewhere, easier to do one biggish job than 5 little ones. "expensive limits you to number of willing customers" yes, it will, I don't wish to work for unwilling customers! In reality, wages have not increased in this trade for many years, in fact I am disgusted by the fact that manŷ still pay what I was on 10-15years ago!! Fuel has gone through the roof, vehicle running costs are way bigger, but everyone is happy to live on 90s incomes? I don't think so!!

Well was a musician from about 5years old, piano, trombone tried the trumpet (couldn't get on with it) and finished up with clarinet as well. Played piano to Grade 7, was in the West Suffolk Youth Symphony Orchestra, and the Cadet Force band. I stopped playing at about 17 and haven't touched an instrument since then. Pressure to achieve during my youth put me off in the I believe. No interest in playing at all nowadays, though love all types of music, with a preference for heavy rock.

We know little of lawlessness in this country, compared to many others, we do not have gangs cruising the streets in hi-luxes with machine guns mounted on the back, kids roaming with RPGs, what we do have is isolated pockets of petty criminals wishing to scare people, usually the elderly, weak or vulnerable, by intimidation. Let's not credit them with any more than this.

I love that bit of vid, top stuff!

Welcome to the 'Talk, and what a good start with pics of your work, keep em coming

RIP Darryl. My thoughts are with the friends and family.