Lancstree

I saw this Sycamore on a walk today and was interested by the burr at the base at first then I got puzzled as to weather it was one tree or two. From the burr pic it looks likely but from round the other side I'm not so sure. I saw another couple nearby growing out of a stone wall and it was pretty mature. The base was covered in moss and soil so it was hard to tell but I reckon that could have grown from being cut back in the past.

The growth form of sycamore's lend itself to this shape quite typically - am I correct?

Lets keep this going as it helps all of us build a good ID knowledge. Im going with T. dolobrata providing the scales are white underneath.

I've tried taking a couple of better photo's. Like I said I've already made my judgement on the rope condition but it is interesting to see how people's opinions vary. I got it snagged on barb wire in the tree so there's more damage now! I can still make two useable ropes which makes sense. Any recommendations on a new rope to try when I get an new 50m one?

Alright they're intended for me! I need them in pink to go with the rest of my attire. What make/brand are they?

Shrek where do you get them from? I've been looking for something like that for a gift. How long do they stay warm once microwaved and how many times can they be heated?

Its hard to tell from the pics but it is not normal wear compared to the rest of the rope and it is localized within a few inches.

I'm going to cut it and use both pieces for different size trees. I just need a new 50m rope for large woodland tree climbs. I'm not totally uncomfortable climbing on it but its always there and I have a responsibility to point out any defects to PPE to my employer.

I've already made my judgement as to the safety of this rope but I would like to know (particularly from loler inspectors) what call you would make if this were your rope. Its on a 50m New england safety blue. The damage is around 10m from the tail end. There are no other concerns with the rest of the rope and my concern with this damage is that it is localized and has resulted in a slight thinning of the rope diameter. Possible cause - impact from falling timber.

Apologies for the poor focus on the pics. My camera phone is crap at closeups.

Are they recorded on the Ancient Tree Hunt website Monkeyd? In case you are unfamiliar with it, this is an online database with an interactive map that anyone can add to.

Thanks Treewolf but please don't go to the trouble of finding out because I've bought the samsung today. Just setting it up now

Sorry fella's I'm having to shiver out. Something has come up on sat so I can't make it. Pity, cos I was looking forward to it.

There's some excellent roundhouses at Castell Henllys (can't spell it right) in Pembrokeshire, in case you haven't seen them. They are reconstructed Iron-age ones, in situ.

What's the batter life like on the Toshiba Treewolf? I'm still going to get the samsung because it has a bigger keyboard and the battery sounds like a butt kicker.

As an incentive, tell your boss the stein/cask helmets have a working life of 3 years (I think??), which is better than the husky which is only 2 years. I'm in a similar situation where the gaffers don't want to fork out (even though they use the afag leaflets as guidelines). They think I just want the latest and the greatest all the time, which when it comes to protecting my napper - I do!

is there a post code?

You've sold it to me steve. I'm gonna get one of them babes this week. They're 322 at pcworld, what did you pay?

This is my problem, there's too much choice! I had a look at the toshiba which runs xp and its tiny like the asus. The samsung looks great and the battery life still puts it ahead of the rest. The advents are good value and nice looking too. My instinct says samsung.

It looks a good one steve and the spec is pretty much the same as the toshiba but its slightly bigger and maybe more user friendly. The battery life might swing it for me too.

If a safer way of 'doing' comes about then regulatory bodies will embrace that. Advancing equipment is an example in my opinion. If it was a simple case of making equipment more attractive to the consumer then why bother with adding and improving safety features? Why not just paint it up pretty instead?

Thats good enough. Its just a case of which one to go for - gonna look at some tomorrow I think.

What about photo's and music steve?

Well it has 120 gig hard disk and 1gig of ram. I think it would be capable of more than browsing but not multi-tasking. Thats a pretty good spec though the processor (intel atom) would only have a little muscle

Does anyone have any advice to offer on those tiny laptops they call 'netbooks'? They seem good value for money and ultra portable - I'm quite tempted to get the Toshiba NB100 for £260 from carphonewarehouse. I only want one for spreadsheets, word processing, photo's and the net. I have a desktop to do the more demanding stuff.

I don't completely agree. Even the most primative arb equipment did the job and human error is largely what is to blame. By working together on regulations we have moved on from screw gates to triple-action crabs, so you are right in saying the equipment has got better but it is the regulations and guidance that dictate what equipment is suitable for each purpose and I am grateful for that. I'm grateful I don't have a boss that provides me with screw gates for life support for example. However, screw-gates can still be used for lowering so they have their place. I've just used crabs for an example here

Furthermore, it would be down to human error if there was an accident as a result of not complying with regulation

How do you find wearing glasses under the earmuffs pete? Are they the wrap-around style or normal with stalks?