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Ty Korrigan

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Everything posted by Ty Korrigan

  1. Yeh, I was wondering about that... I've been saving my Greenteef up for simply ages now hoping to get them sharpened locally. Seems the cut off point is around 100 teeth. I'm sure as hell not grinding that poisonous lot in my shed! The point about the nut wearing is a good one...I may just bin 'em all. Ty
  2. Handy hint, "Avoid bad starts to the year by taking the first week off on holiday" (Also works for bad weeks, taking Monday off) Cheers Ty:001_tt2:
  3. Gosh, I bet that smarts worse than a 'Thomas Tank' after a chilli cutting session:blushing: Come on, we've all done it...haven't we...? I don't envy you Friend. Get back in profit soon! Ty
  4. I have a fair few Jersey clients on my books and am often over for a decent pint and to re-stock on dairy milk and ginger biscuits. I should call in one day and deprive you of milk 3 sugars:biggrin:
  5. Huh, the M.S.A who are the government body land based workers pay their 'taxes' to are well under financed. M.S.A are responsible for tax gathering, health care and pensions for farmers. Too many retirees and too few paying workers. They have no specific catagory for arborists... Landscapers yes, Lumberjacks yes but arborists...no. They actually inspect new startups to see how serious you are. If they decide you don't cut the mustard and are not likely to pay enough into the system they will try to oppose your business and put obstacles in your way. I have been wrestling with them for 2 years now and it seems that they will only take me seriously once I am a limited company. To start up all did was register at the Chamber of commerce. To be a tree surgeon you don't need to prove any qualifications or experience to any-one. However, if you approach the Chamber of Trades or go via an accountant first then you may be put through a merry go round of non-sense and find your self being pushed from one office to another. Getting taken seriously as a micro entreprise is difficult. Ty
  6. Mucolloch and McAlister and all the cheap nasty makes seem to be yellow and black or yellow and blue... Castorama were selling a McAlister top handle for 109euros last winter. It took 2 men to lift and lasted a day before breaking. Identified the problem as the colour scheme. It just wasn't orange... Ty
  7. Tom, you've a deal, when can you start...x:thumbup:
  8. Hello, I cut this from allo-olivier a French version of arbtalk. Le forum des arboristes grimpeurs, des grimpeurs d'arbres, des bûcherons et des cordistes ou travaux en hauteur. / broyeur arbo 18 grennmech Ty
  9. Seems I can only send 1000 characters at once...

    Yes, John passed us a job he'd priced up at 1500euros plus 380 for the stumps.

    When we got there we saw that if we took down a phone line we could fell across a road which we closed off.

    One day 1500euros then 3 hours for a stumps. If only every job was like that eh?

    We've done some pricing for Liffre but the feeling is they don't take us seriously at the moment due to our status and size of equipment. The contracts have gone to Vital Arbre from Maxent, good guys though, met them before. Have you seen Bobbins new site? Its a bit weird...

    How is your renovation going? You've a great set up and one I look up too. Not sucking your cock but I admire you and enjoyed working with you. Anyway, stay in touch, Stuart

  10. Back again,

    Yes, I would like to consider pricing you in on jobs too large for the wee chipper.

    I'm glad you offered there.

    Our purchase of a road tow is delayed until late October 2012 when the euro regs for trailers are harmonised across europe.

    Should see prices drop as these changes will open up the market which is protected in France and Germany.

    Going to upgrade the Sidewinder for a bigger more stable machine.

    Grinding is a bloody good earner, wish I'd done it years ago.

    We've been regularly working as 3 on jobs for a while now.

    I had a week felling and grinding 80 Norway near Meneac in July.

    We camped on site, cooked on a fire and sold the wood on Angloinfo for a tenner a stere. Rare old time that was!

    Doing a job with Duncan Smith in Jan up near Sens.

    We've been bouncing clients across to each other.

    Been working with Squire on a few, he sent me a couple of plum clients this year and he has even been working for us too.

  11. Yo,

    You've been very discreet for a long time my friend.

    I don't seriously view you as a competitor strangely but rather as a collaborator.

    Its a big old market out there and I have only crossed your path a couple of times on pricing jobs, one I know you won, I was out of the country and couldn't react fast enough, besides, my wee chipper would have struggled unless I could have burned alot of it. The other neither of us did win as I hear from local chit chat the chap would rather it be done for 50% of the wood.

    I have tried to persuade some clients to let us bring your mobile saw mill in on several jobs but all they is firewood.

  12. Yars, I recently was offered a Salaen towed 23hp shredder on a demo and refused the offer. I told the dealer, no thanks, I've seen it in action and my CS100 is far faster, it is a kind offer but would actually cost me time. Needless to say, I was not believed, mainly because I'm a Brit, also because when you look at the ugly duckling that is a CS100 it is hard to believe just how much work it can do. By the way, it is sold here in France for an outrageous 8400euros including VAT That makes it £7000! BONKERS! Ty
  13. As for living off memories... I shut my business and before relocating I took time out to realise some dreams. I cycled across Australia in 2009, starting in Melbourne, along the coast passing vineyards to Adelaide through the grain fields up to Port Augusta before following the Stuart highway to Darwin up in the tropics via Alice Springs, Ayers rock, various Aboriginal settlements, wild camping in the bush with dingos, camels, wild horses, roos, huge lizards 2m long called goannas, white tailed eagles picking flesh of road train kills, vast sky with unfamiliar stars, mad drunk Aboriginals everywhere especially on 'Sit down money Thursday', the feeling of being alone yet unafraid in a strange hard land full of wonder. I sit here at times with the radio on, close my eyes and just replay it all. Yes, I can't live off my memories but they are sustaining and on dark days remind me of better times. "I travelled amongst unknown men in lands beyond the see Nor England did I know till then what love I bore for thee Tis not thy melancholy dream nor will I quit thy shore a second time For I still see to love thee more and more"
  14. Good grief... I just buy a saw and get on with it. As long as its not yellow and black its good. I'm a Stihl man by default only because I like the colour. Husquavarnanananana is obviously a great brand but hey. Such comparisons are all rather trainspotter/stampcollector/dried penis collector... Just get on and do the job and stop quibbling about details. (unless its really yellow and black crap) Ty:biggrin:
  15. Build a bigger better arb business. Its a gamble, sure, but it won't earn the same money sitting in a bank and it would be a fine thing to invest. I have a fair sum coming my way soon and so a Green mech road tow chipper in custom corporate metallic colours with reflective detailing riding on alloys a ***** would melt for towed by Ford Ranger Wildtrack in Orange with the Lithuanian hooker upgraded for a French one and a pint and pie to top it off. I'm laughing me, mad as a fish but its all true... Except the hooker, she was French to begin with... Ty:001_tt2:
  16. Ahh... nuts to French grammar:001_tt2: I learned a new word today from my associate, 'Branleuse' the feminine of 'Branleur'. Next time I am cut up cycling to work I shall use the feminine as its so much more bitchy:lol: Ty
  17. Cheers for that! That may explain why shredders are so damn noisey:thumbdown: Ty
  18. Hello, We've got approx 50-50 split between Frogs and Roast Beefs. The Ex-pats all seem a good drive away but the natives all mostly local. I always demand that every-one sports good condition PPE (no tears in trousers and washed regularly) and when possible one of our orange T'shirts with a our brand upon it. However our in house arb expert, a former and retired London Borough tree officer insists on sporting a green felt flat cap and an assortment of old jackets when visiting clients which that makes him look like an old lag released after serving 30years for burglary:blushing: He talks the talk but I do worry he will frighten people especially when he is 'between beards'... Ty
  19. Hello, Who here uses a shredder instead of a chipper? Here in Le Belle France shredders seem to dominate. Most of the local councils have them tractor mounted pto driven. Is there any advantage using one over another? Regards Ty
  20. How does the small petrol Greenmech arborist size up against the tw125? Ty
  21. With so many ex-pats on limited incomes this is a service I offer:thumbup1: Ty
  22. Don't be daft... The plods will only pull you if they see you using 'brown' sauce... Sauce-ist bastards!
  23. Hello, Measure your advertising responses. Every enquiry I receive is recorded. How did you hear of us? I ask everyone and its noted. Yellow pages works for us via the web. Flyers not delivered but placed in supermarkets yes. Signwriting on vans invaluable for professional credibility. Business cards NOT FREE VISTA PRINT are important. Major adverts must not cost more than 10% and ideally 5% of their gross revenue So an ad costing £100 must generate a minimum of £1000 and at 5% £2000 Best ad I placed cost us £1200 and won us £50k of work. I know this because I took the time to measure it. Regards Ty
  24. Stamps... STAMPS? The biggest cost cutting exercise you can make is time management. Train your team to work more efficiently. Some costs are fixed or hard to economise on. Some are variable. Work on the larger variable costs first. Time is your biggest variable cost. Anything including investments that help you long term save on variables are your primary goal. Ty Best of luck

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