Brushcutter

About 2 years ago we sold off our MF390 4wd with a loader for 10k. I hated the thing but it was a good little tractor for out in the woods.

You'd get quite a solid D22 Nissan Navara for that money. There is a 04 plate Navara D22 double cab sport going for 5790+vat with 50k on the clock and a mountain top. My one does 470 odd miles on a tank on diesel so its quite economical to run. The suzuki's eat fuel my friend has one.

I don't think ours is. I seem to remember my trainer saying that they're not. I can see why would be though.

Some needs to be checked 6months such as the lifting strops and climbing ropes. Rigging gear would be once a year.

I think my breaks are wearing a little. Might take it in next week to see if they are bad. I've done about 60k on mine. I'm thinking of geting a s/h 57 plate D40 as a replacement.

LOLER man comes twice a year to the yard. On 6 month intervals he looks at ropes, strops, shackels and the like. He looks at the front end loaders of the tractors but i think thats under PUWER rather than LOLER as i think they are exempt. LOLER man does look at the crane but under PUWER. I don't think they need to be inspected. Juts make sure thats its plated with its SWL as we got brought up on that. I think if you can change the grab on the end then it might need to be. As a side mount flail arm needs to be LOLER'd if you take the flail off and add a clam shell bucket or a ditcing bucket than. I'm quite sure that a timber crane doesn't need it as long as its doing it designed job. Stick something on it the end and it might.

Is it the D40 or D22 Navara? I have D22 one (04 plate) and at the MOT at 40kish i think the back break was sticky but they freed it up and a break line was leaky. Its not really abused mostly road stuff and some offroad but mainly nice tracks. Never really loaded up either just kit. That was at the Nissan dealer as well i can't fault them for service quality though.

I'll drop Basil (Will) a text get his input on the matter. He does a fair bit of coppice with a Keto 51 head. He is based in Essex.

Yes they are. Might be worth doing with the <3" stuff left over from doing firewood. Be a quick burn but you'd get a few bags from it.

I think Chestnut fence posts last longer than Oak too. We tend to make all our fence posts out of the stuff. I'm also burning a whole load of chestnut in the stove at the moment. I think you'd get more money for firewood than for charcoal. I think i'd cut it all for firewood. Can do it all on the harvester that way.

Are you looking for someone to do the coppicing work or someone to buy the coppiced product?

Fantastic serice too. I'm loving my new woolpower socks and hat.

I think most people do. I would if i had one. I think red has a greater sulpher content in it than regular diesel.

Nice toy. Never used a tracked dumper myself but i've seen them used with other big kit on some other sites. I'd have the bed off and a sort of timber trailer/bolster pin aragement on it. Could move brash and thinnings on it that way.

That my Fransguard V6500 i have love/hate relationship with it. As winches go its cheap and chearful with not a lot that can go wrong and its fairly easy to get apart if something does go wrong. Its only around 400kg so you don't need a meaty tractor to lug it about either. As a skidding winch you can get a fair old amount on the butt plate and its got a good old pull on it and the lower block is excellent for heavy pulls. Now the downside is that the one pictured eats cables. In 2 years it has had at least 4 cables in it at 100 quid a time. It just seems to lay it all over the drum and crush its self which leads to serious hedgehoging of the cable and lots of weak crush spots. Another bug bare is that it doesn't break band to tension the cable and keep it on for assisted felling or holding root plates still. Although newer ones seem to it could be that mine is before the time it came as standard. I'd say 700-100 quid for a good condition one would be on the money. Maybe ring AT Osbornes for a price on a new one. As for a 9 tonne winch it would probally be ok on an 85hp tractor. If you do big trees that need a tug over or some big forestry trees worth the extra cash but if you don't need it get a smaller one and spend the extra money on a good set of chains and some roller sliders and a good snach block.

Thats a nice tidy tractor and a bargin too. Get a nice Keto head for the crane and you'd have a nice one man harvesting/forwarding set up.

Its a really hard course to find. I contacted several colleges to do it been on a waiting list for years in some cases. The problem is that the material thats windblown need to be less than a year old and there be enough for 4 people to work on. Also colleges don't like running half empty courses so if they don't have 4 people but they do have material they still don't run it. I managed to arrange one through TFK forestry a little while ago they had material to do it on so i found 4 people to do it. Used ArbTalk to find them. I live in Hertfordshire and am having to go to Yorkshire to do the course.

Today Countryfile came to the estate to do a bit for the program next week. All based around stuff happening in the Chilterns. They filmed me felling a Larch tree and two of us working in the saw mill. Also some chatting about woodland management and pollarding. I didn't do that bit however. Think its out on the 14th looking forward to it going out. Rather offputting having a camera crew, sound guy, director and metering person all standing around you when your trying to fell. Andy

I ran a fruit tree pruning course last year at a beginner level and the two books i recommended were: The RFS one and The pruning specialst

A flail would do the job nicely like the ones pictured just make sure the flails are in good nick or it just makes a mess. As for a brushcutter attachment i recommend either a tri point blade or one of the new shredder blades. If you want something small try a BSC with a flail head.

I was taught that as the trunk of the tree was between you and the saw you could keep the break off and carry on limbing/moving.

Another vote for the Gransfors maul fantstic bit of kit. I also have their wildlife hatchet and a scandanavian forest axe will be joining them soon. Be a pitty to replace my Baco forest axe but its seen better days.

Husky do them for the 357 too. I've often considered getting one as they could be very useful. Downside is that you can't get right down to the ground to cut the stumps low. If you look on the saws parts list it gives you the number, take it to your dealer and get one.

I tend to use a running bowline when pulling stuff over. I've found the butterfly knot will get too tight to undo. I've got a few ropes with them still in as i can't get them undone. Again i tend to put a stick in the bowline to stop it doing up too tightly.

There were some forwarders in the classified a little while ago, worth a look. There are lots of people who make forwarding trailers with cranes but a 10 tonne trailer with crane is about 20 grand.