Ty Korrigan

I just popped in to see if PeteB was mentioned but then I remembered he's only changing jobs not being embalmed so that's all right then, panic over. Stuart

Neighbour has given up growing since his bust though earlier this year in a mad revenge attack he cut down to the ground all my fruit trees and ragged out the blueberries. He's an addict with nothing to lose so although I informed the Gendarmes I asked for no further action. We are selling the place and don't need to have an open conflict on the books.

I've not devoted much time this year to the veg plot. Potatoes have done well enough but could have done with a little watering. Last night, the first sweetcorn, raised at home in fibre pots and planted in full sun with a few squash in between. The taste was...sweet ! Very sweet indeed. The pumpkins, about 40 fruits, are for Halloween, my kids and the local after school club. Onions suffered a lack of water and Red Lily Beetle. Leeks suffered from inattention during my month in Morocco, drowned by woody nightshade which is the most problematic weed I have. I'm on a fertile sandy soil that could always do with more humus.

I used your guide thanks but the resetting warm was advice I read elsewhere. Anyway, I'm going to remeasure the gaps once I've received the fresh rocker cover rubber seal which leaks a little. Thanks for posting that guide.

Cheers Mick, Was that the Quad chip back in 2012? The oil filter in a nightmare place above the slewring. It required a home-made 'MouseTrap game' style chute for the oil made from water bottles. I failed every time to cleanly change the oil. The first oil change was done by the dealer who too failed and charged us €80 for steam cleaning on top. Last week I changed the Iveco radiator! I bought one on offer from AutoDoc for a mere €80 ! Took me under 3 hours not rushing. I cheated a little and didn't reinstall the plastic McGuff surrounding the radiator. Saved myself between €600/€900 plus vat Cheapest quote was a mobile mechanic, highest a verbal quote from Iveco main dealer.

I think I've been engaging in bellendery and confused the two measurements on the feeler gauges. So with a cool head I reset the valves cold then ran it up and reset them warm. It now runs better but lots of resistance on starting, to the point of snatching the starter cord. Tick over still a little high with it coughing at times. VID_20250816_124754.mp4

Ah, O.K, I am a bit baffled that there are exhaust fumes coming out of the air filter box when it is countering away on tickover. My local machine shop put in a helicoil for me. Something absent from my engine are the guides to show top dead centre so I'm having to guess it from the valve rocker position. I guess that's the reason adjustments are not working out...

I never touched the Briggs ! I broke before I became that curious !

I changed the carb when I did the head gasket. I've just had another go at the valves and run it up again. Runs better but not perfect plus the oil seems to have burnt off. Now, like a muppet, I stripped the thread of the valve cover so it won't seal. It's off the my local machine shop to get that sorted tomorrow. If I'm lucky they might even tune it for me. These things really should have been taught at school in 1986, I might have paid some attention !

I've managed to get it running until hot, helps if you remember to refill the tank Dufus... It was spluttering oil out of the exhaust briefly until it seemed to burn off and now exhaust smell has much improved. Is the spluttering and back firing caused by the valves needing adjusting properly? VID_20250812_171453.mp4

I've only briefly run it up as it needs a carb tune but the exhaust smells of burnt oil although there is little in the way of visible smoke.

I took it apart but have lost the images somehow. No obvious scoring on the cylinder though. Re-fitted a fresh head gasket and carb which needs a tune. I think I got the tappets done correctly. Still burns oil. Considering fitting a compatible Chinese engine short term to avoid having down time Moteur à essence GeoTech-Pro 420 cm3 en Promotion | AgriEuro WWW.AGRIEURO.FR Moteur à essence monocylindrique 4 temps à arbre horizontal GeoTech-Pro 420 cm3 - démarrage électrique then having a go at repairing the Honda myself IF I ever find the garage space and time. Or moving the machine on with the Chinese engine fitted and buying a new grinder.

If that is a reference to me, I've long moved on from the Efi saga and joined the Kubota V1505 club However during that Efi period of woe I did make contact with several others experiencing the same or similar issues. Everyone, like me, found the dealers to be less that satisfactory and ended up trading their Efi powered chipper in for diesels. Costly move but the stress and uncertainty was just too toxic. I notice the posts asking about problems have largely dried up, hopefully the updated 40hp Efi will prove to be more reliable. I liked the Efi when it worked...

I like quoting and enjoy selling our services. Upon first contact with clients, I try to win them over with some flattery. Compliment them on their garden, house, always pet the dog, trying to present a friendly front. I give the tree a quick review and say "lovely form that birch but I can see the seeds might bother the neighbour because he has Velux windows, if it was mine I'd..." I'll then take a closer look at the tree and either reassure the client or condemn it with a tatty tap of my boot or by putting my entire arm inside the trunk and sucking my teeth whilst looking serious. I'll say "I'm no carpet salesman* but if the wind blows, I'd sleep in the back bedroom until it's removed" * French expression I might ask "Do you have a fireplace?" As we lend clients a complimentary wood splitter if they wish to both keep the wood and make an economy. Tell them how useful woodchip is around the garden in case they want to keep it. This doesn't change the price though as my tip sites are local and free. Tell them the stump is always an option priced separately. If it's to be a decent pruning job, I'll send before and after images of similar jobs This is a useful tactic as I don't believe many competitors do the same. Stuart

The proven recipe of Arb tipper and 6" road tow is difficult to argue with for general arb work. Good coin can be made with a 20 year old transit and venerable TW150 However, how others roll is often of interest and a talking point. I started with a Kangoo and 3m caged trailer with a wee chipper and rapidly proving Dempsey right when I outgrew it. One tool that gets the French aroused is the 3.5t tipper fitted with a grab. They sell them here for €25k ! Wee chippers have a very strong following. In fact two of my 3 subby climbers run medium vans, caged tippers and wee chippers. Both use their vans for private use, not earning enough to justify a separate family vehicle. I doubt Mrs Accountant will go there but a 7.5t hook loader with an 8" tracked chipper would work well for me. Attached image lifted from a discussion on a French arb group.

I believe the UK to just as complicated but with the added burden of shite weather and eyewatering house prices...

Phytosanitaire info: https://planthealthportal.defra.gov.uk/trade/exports/exports-to-the-eu/export-it-systems/plant-health-export-service-phes/apply-for-a-pc-used-farm-machinery/

That most certainly isn't an option.

I've just had a horrible flashback to the time I bought an Atlas tipper trailer in 2012 which despite the instance of the dealer, didn't in fact conform. What followed was 9 months or more of visiting to the DREAL also known as the 'MINE' by some French. We had to assemble a dossier of every CofC for each component of the running gear. I eventually asked if they wanted a CofC for the air in the tyres. Now a trailer is simple enough but your machine doesn't conform in other ways other than merely running gear so avoid the DREAL route is my advice.

To add... The registration process is done online via ANTS. Accueil Immatriculation - Immatriculation - France Titres (ANTS) IMMATRICULATION.ANTS.GOUV.FR Other than your usual i.d and proof of residency, you need to upload your CofC for the machine. Very simple process. One thought, perhaps GM could supply a chassis which conforms...?

Hello, I've imported several chippers into France and helped several of my French colleagues do the same. I've sadly no idea (post Brexit) on how to obtain a phytosanitaire certificate as this was something that was of no concern beforehand or even if it concerns road tow machines. I suspect tracked chippers, tractors, diggers and other earth moving machinery are obvious candidates. Just to throw another obstacle into the mix, your machine does not confirm to E.U norms and most likely cannot be made too either. Neither can a used non-conforming machine be (legally) sold in France. Less important if it's for your own use but important if anyone else is using it as one important modification was increasing the length of the infeed chute to reduce the risk of 'foot feeders' losing an appendage. Some manufacturers have made kits with which to upgrade machines but only the more recent higher volume models. Regardless, I have a colleague who against my advice bought a UK chipper which was pre CofC and found he couldn't register it as a result. He had a custom chassis made costing around €4k, still cheaper than buying the same machine used in France. Where are you setting up in France? Regards Stuart

Oh my, thank you very much for finding that link!

The tax credit system in France is rotten with fraud.

What is your tax rate over there for self employed? Ours is around 50% of profit in social charges with income tax being very variable depending on whether you are married and the number of children in the household. Some single people in our trade with no kids pay around 65% combined social charges and income tax.